Yesterville Toy Room

Mickey Mask 1974

2011-09-25T19:16:00.000-07:00

This is one of the gifts I opened for Christmas last year from my Mom and Dad. Sure, it might not look like much but it's something I hadn't seen in quite a long time. This is another item that I made with my Dad when I was a kid... a Second Grader, to be more specific. I can't remember the specifics, but this paper mache mask was done for a school project. My folks kept it all these years. It's in pretty bad shape, but still very cool to see again.

When I was a kid, I was always "in" to something. In other words, I tended to fixate on television and movie characters and, most often, the toys that went with them. Among my young childhood obsessions were Disney characters like Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. Before I discovered things like Planet of the Apes and Evel Knievel, Mickey Mouse was a character favorite of mine in the very early 1970s. I watched cartoons, drew Disney pictures, and dreamed of one day visiting Disneyland and seeing all the colorful characters, in person.

So, when the opportunity came to make a mask for a school project, Mickey was at the top of my list. I remember layering goopy, gluey newspaper strips all over a blown-up balloon to make the basic headshape and ears. Once dried, it was painted and a bent metal measuring spoon, painted black, served as the nose. At some point, Mickey's nose must have disappeared as he was sans spoon when I opened the box my parents wrapped up for me.

This is my "Mickey Collection," at the time. The ridiculousness of this photo cracks me up. Didn't I have more pressing things to do than this?! Anyway, my kid brother, Mike, was kind enough to stand-in and help me display my Mickey bounty. I'm holding a Mickey ventriloquist dummy that I got for Christmas a year or two earlier. My brother is holding a Mickey Mouse bust bank and Mickey doll, of some kind. On the wall, is a Mickey corkboard for keeping track of all the pressing things a 7 year-old would need to keep organized. I'm wearing a home-made Mickey Mouse Club shirt (don't be jealous) and an official, stylin' Mickey Mouse ears hat. A mysterious arm holds the Mickey Mask that is the subject of this post.

I still have the same Mickey bank that was one of the toys in the picture above. These two decorated my room when I was about 4 or 5 years-old and have just kind of stayed with the family, all these years. I think I adopted them, officially, into my collection of toys just a few years ago. I came across them recently when looking through boxes of toys in a recent "toy purge" to thin out my collection.

Being a good Mickey in 1974... waving to the crowd.

Another shot of my brother, Mike, and I. This seems like a lifetime ago. These days, we're all starting to get up in years, but it's always neat to have an object like this mask as a tangible reminder of the simpler, care-free days of being a child.

Hasbro 1970 Gi Joe Adventure Team Land Adventurer

2011-09-18T13:35:00.000-07:00

This is Hasbro's 1970 Land Adventurer from the GiJoe Adventure Team line of action figures. As I've mentioned before, with public backlash against military toys in the late 60's and early 70's, Gi Joe needed to redefine himself as an "adventurer" rather than a soldier. With newly-flocked hair and beard (vs. the beardless painted hair previous versions of Joe), the Adventure Team was ready to take on Mother Nature instead of foreign soldiers. This change from soldier to adventurer proved to be quite a success and millions of these figures found their way into countless backyard adventures everywhere.

When I was about 5 or 6 years old in the very early 70's, it seemed that every kid had an Adventure Team GiJoe or two (and maybe even a few of the 60's military figures handed down from an older brother). Like the 60's GiJoe line before, when you got your hands on an Adventure Team (AT) Gi Joe, you weren't just introduced to a world of of action figures. No, you were inducted into a huge world of possibilities that included vehicles, playsets, and other uniforms and outfits. The amount of add-ons for Joe seemed endless and it was always a thrill to visit the toy store and drool over all the adventures your Joe (or Joes) could have if only Mom and Dad would pony up the dough for new Gi Joe stuff. Your Joe could capture a wild gorilla or white tiger, dig up an old mummy, or even recover a stolen idol (Yep, ol' Joe was doing it way before Indy). Most the time, the smaller accessory sets could be purchased with some saved allowance but the bigger sets usually ended up as Christmas or birthday presents.

Although, there were five or six different figures in the Adventure Team line-up. The Land Adventurer seemed to be the "go to" guy for most missions. His visage (dark hair and beard) graced most of the add-on adventure sets' packaging. He also seemed to be the most prevalent Joe amongst neighborhood kids, for whatever reason. Mabye it was his camo outfit that attracted so many kids.

The figure in the photos is a fairly recent addition to the Yesterville archives. He's the first version of the AT Land Adventurer with the "nose picker" (affectionately named for the extended index finger on the right hand) hard hands, pistol, and shoulder holster. Later versions of the Land Adventurer would feature "Kung Fu" grip hands and a scoped rifle. Although this original style of hands made it somewhat difficult to hold guns and accessories, they have held up much better over time than their Kung-Fu counterparts. The Kung Fu hands are made of a rubber material that has dried and broken (take note Hot Toys!) on many figures, while the original hands are made of a less flexible, sturdier plastic that has survived on most figures, just fine.

One of the coolest things to me, as a kid, about the AT GiJoes was their big, chained "AT" medallions around their necks. I loved the AT graphic symbol, for whatever reason, and almost viewed it to be like a superhero logo. This was a replacement accessory for the metal dog tags that came with the earlier 60's GiJoes. During a meeting at Hasbro during the development of the AT logo, one of the employees remarked at how much the AT symbol looked like a peace symbol (which was EVERYWHERE back then... t-shirts, posters, bumper stickers, etc.). The owner of Hasbro responded by saying, "Let's hope so!!" Hasbro was eager to leave the stigma of military toys behind and any similarity to the peace symbol certainly couldnt have hurt. At any rate, there's just something I really love about these huge, over-sized medallions that is just so indicative of the early 70's.

One of the things that many younger action figure collectors are surprised by when they first hold and pose a vintage 12" GiJoe is just how well-articulated and posable they really are. I'm always a little shocked by this since GiJoe was the very first boys' articulated action figure and the development guys at Hasbro really did their homework and came up with an amazing base body for their new toy. In my circle of (older) friends, it's been pretty much common-knowledge that action figures started on a high point and had begun to de-evolve (articulation-wise), in the late Seventies with the onset of small 5-point articulated figures. Many younger collectors grew up in the 80's and 90's when action figures were smaller, simpler, and much, much less articulated than their predecessors like GiJoes and Megos. As more and more companies have started putting more and more articulation into their smaller all-plastic figures, many believe this to be a new development in the world of action figures. That's my guess as to why the "disconnect" happens, anyway.

The Adventure Team Land Adventurer was many kids' very first action figure. He predates even the first Mego Superhero figures by several years and the smaller 3 3/4 Joes by over a decade. He truly is a prime example of a much simpler time in the world of action figures. I can hardly believe he's over 40 years old this year. Someone put a brake on these years... they are rolling by much too fast.

Ideal Evel Knievel Silver Hi-Jumper

2011-09-17T16:41:00.001-07:00

This is the Ideal Evel Knievel Silver Hi-Jumper cycle from 1977. This is one of the most rare Evel Knievel toys ever produced. In 1977, Knievel had a controversial parking lot altercation with a writer that slandered him in a "tell-all" book. The writer left the incident with two broken arms and Evel was left facing jail time. Rather than continue to produce toys that used the Knievel name, Ideal Toys chose to end their relationship with Evel rather than risk losing money on a toy line associated with the then-maligned Knievel name.

Consequently, some Knievel toys did not make it to production or were canceled not far into production. The Silver Hi-Jumper set was one that ended up having very low production numbers. Information online is sketchy but it seems that somewhere between 1000 and 1500 of these sets made it to toy shelves before the final curtain closed on Ideal's mighty and lucrative Evel Knievel toy line.

The full-set included the Silver Hi-Jumper cycle, Energizer (winder), a white-suited Evel Knievel figure with helmet, and a red ramp. If I'm not mistaken, this was the only vintage Knievel cycle set to come with a jumping ramp in the box. Other sets like the Scramble Van and the Stunt Stadium (both forthcoming in reviews) included ramps but not a cycle.

This particular Silver Hi-Jumper pictured was acquired by me about a year ago. It's missing some silver paint here and there but is in nice condition, otherwise. It runs and nothing is broken. A blue-suited Evel figure is standing in for the white one that would have originally come with this set.

The cycle itself is actually a repaint of a much more common Knievel toy cycle called the Trail Bike. The Trail Bike body was black plastic with chromed engine and tail pipes but the Silver Hi-Jumper is painted in reverse with an all-chrome finish and black engine and tail pipes. Although, the distinction between the two bikes is somewhat minimal, the rarity of the silver bike makes it one of the line's "holy grails."

I didn't have this cycle as a kid. In fact, I had never heard of it until more recently when researching the line of Evel Knievel toys. However, I came across this example for a screaming deal and had to pick it up. I was very glad to add it to the collection of Knievel toys I've gathered over the years.

This is the box that the Silver Hi-Jumper cycle set was sold in. I love these old illustrated, no-window toy boxes.

Every year, we make a few trips to Evel's hometown of Butte, Montana for some of my boys' soccer games. Last year, we stopped at Evel's grave to see his final resting place and pay our respects. Evel was one of my biggest heroes as a kid and it felt pretty neat to be able to walk right up and visit the grave of such a famous and iconic American.

The backside of Knievel's grave was inscribed many years ago. Evel intended that this stone be erected as a commemoration of his attempt to jump the Snake River Canyon in 1974. When that didn't pan out, the stone was put into storage. Later in life, as Evel struggled with illness, he pulled the stone out of storage and had it transported to Butte to be used as his headstone.

Hasbro GI Joe Adventure Team

2011-05-10T17:15:00.000-07:00

As I work my way back through my favorite toys of childhood, I find myself once again fascinated by GI Joe and the impact he's had on the toy world and culture, in general. I have a new appreciation for the open-ended "non-licensed" property of GI Joe. The 12" GI Joe vintage line is the kind of line that seems to have disappeared, for the most part, from modern toy store shelves. It's wasn't based on a licensed movie, TV show, or comic yet it prospered on the idea of giving kids enough to trigger their imaginations... to carry out their own adventures with the toys.

The first GI Joes were 12" military figures (these were the very first true action figures). There were four basic figures available (Action Marine , Action Soldier, Action Pilot, and Action Sailor) and they all utilized the same headsculpt with different colored eyes and hair. Uniforms, weapons, and vehicles could be purchased to supplement the basic Joes. Hasbro used the basic razor and razor blades marketing strategy... and it worked. A child might buy or receive a figure but would then spend more money on items to be used with the figure. While I have a somewhat detached love for the first, military Joes (they were before my time), the GI Joe Adventure Team was MY GI Joe, growing up. The Adventure Team was introduced in 1970... right about the time I started really playing with toys as a child. I only had a couple of the AT Joes as a kid before moving on to such things as Mego Superheroes, Evel Knievel, and the Six Million Dollar Man (these licensed properties had a huge draw on me at such a young age) but I loved the Joes I did have. I never had any of the accessory sets or vehicles but enjoyed playing with the figures, all the same. In fact, my first "GIJoe" wasn't even a GIJoe, at all. You see my Dad wanted to buy me a GI Joe for my birthday but couldn't find one to purchase. So, on my birthday, I opened a Ken doll dressed in a GI Joe Marine Dress uniform (there you go, Bubba, have a field day).

The GI Joe Adventure Team was basically an upgrade of the military GI Joe figures. Hasbro took each of the four military figures, added flocked hair and beards, added a shoulder holster and pistol, and a giant AT medallion around their necks. Their uniforms were even identical to the ones used for the military figures. As America became embroiled in Vietnam, the idea of playing with toys based on war became less and less popular with the American public. So, Hasbro, in a brilliant move, transformed their military Joe line into an adventure line full of heroes that would rescue animals and search for lost treasure. They became more like Indiana Jones and less like Audie Murphy (you youngins will have to look that one up)... although, Indiana Jones wouldn't actually appear on the pop culture scene for another 11 years or so.

Many great vehicles, playsets, and accessories accompanied the release of the Adventure Team and the line continued to grow and prosper until 1976 when competing licensed toys (like The Six Million Dollar Man) and high oil-prices made the line no longer profitable.

In the past few months, I've started to acquire more of the original, vintage AT GI Joes and am excited to finally bring more AT reviews to Yesterville. So, stay tuned, as I post on some of the individual vintage AT Joes and even some of the more recent AT replica figures. It's a fun line that harkens back to a simpler time for many of us when playing with our GI Joes in the backyard with a buddy or two was about as much fun as you could have with a toy line.

Thanks for your patience...

2011-05-08T12:00:00.000-07:00

Mego Bend 'n Flex Planet of the Apes Astronaut

2011-03-10T10:00:00.000-08:00

Quick post. This is Mego's Astronaut from their Bend 'n Flex bendy series from 1975.

I picked this guy up last year from a Mego Marketplace seller. I'm keeping him carded as I love the cheesy, vintage artwork and, in this case, the packaging feels as much a part of the toy as the toy, itself. I especially love the illustration on the back of the package that shows all the characters in the series.

I only had two of these Planet of the Apes bendies as a kid...the astronaut and a soldier ape. I got the Astronaut first and he accompanied me on a road trip from Minnesota to Montana to find a new house when I was about 8 years old. While visiting Montana, we stopped by a Kmart and I was allowed to buy a soldier ape. So, my strongest memory of these Ape bendies has to do with playing with them in the car for hours and hours while riding from state to state.

Better than a Gameboy or Ipod for passing time? Eh, probably not... but there wasn't a whole lot for a kid to do on long road trips back then.

I've said it before, but I love how Mego got away with making their astronaut toys look NOTHING like the astronaut characters from the films.

Gotta love the 70's.

Mego Micronauts Baron Karza

2011-02-20T14:52:00.000-08:00

The Micronauts were a toy line that debuted in the US in 1977. Like Shogun Warriors (from Popy), they were created by a Japanese toy company (Takara) and imported by a US toy company for sale in the States. In Japan, the line was called "Micro Man" but Mego Corp. renamed the line "Micronauts" and sold it in the US.

The Micronauts were a bit ahead of their time. They were a fully-articulated line of 3 3/4" inch figures that pre-dated Hasbro's 3 3/4" articluated GiJoe line by 5 or 6 six years. Although most of the figures were around 4 inches tall, there were some larger figures in the Micronauts universe. The subject of this post is one such figure. This is Baron Karza. He was kind of the "big bad" of the Micronauts line. Although Mego didn't really provide much story for the toy line, Marvel Comics produced a series of comics that did flesh out the story of the Micronauts.

Baron Karza is about 6" tall and uses a fairly unique mechanism for his articulated sections. Magnets. His shoulders, neck, and hips are all magnet joints that can be pulled apart and then put back together... in crazy configurations, if desired. Baron Karza's magnets also allowed him to be combined with a black magnetic horse toy called Andromeda to create a Centaur version of Karza.

This example belongs to my younger brother (but currently resides in the Yesterville Archives). As a kid, I didn't have any Micronauts because they were being sold alongside Kenner's brand-new Star Wars toy line. Consequently, my allowance usually went to something Star Wars while my brother tended to be a bit more "open" to other toy lines. As an adult, I can now see just how cool this line of toys was. These toys seem to have a nice, quality build to them that you just don't see all the time. Baron Karza is a fairly heavy, solid-feeling figure with loads of play value.

Like Shogun Warriors, Karza has projectile fists that shoot off at the touch of a button. Also included with the Baron were two large cone-shaped missiles and several small 1/2" red missiles (not shown...long gone). Both kinds of missiles could also be shot from Baron Karza's wrists or the missile port in his stomach. There was even a missile storing attachment included that could be carried on Karza's back and a pair of non-firing "missile silo" arms.

The good Baron with a smaller, more-typically sized Micronaut, Pharoid.

For information on the Micronauts Time Traveler (similar to Pharoid but the most recognizable figure in the series), please see Iok's (from That Figures) excellent post on the figure and the Micronauts series, in general:

MICRONAUTS TIME TRAVELER

The Micronauts were an insanely cool toy line that truly stood out on toy shelves in the late 1970s. They really had a unique look and unique set of play features that set them apart from other toys.

Karza looks awfully Vader-esque, don't you think? Coincidence?

Mego 1979 Diecast Metal Batman

2011-02-18T08:58:00.001-08:00

I've posted a full review of this figure at Yesterville's sister-blog, Under the Giant Penny. Given that this figure is from 1979, I thought some Yesterville readers might be interested in seeing more about this figure. This one "crosses the fence" for the focus of both blogs. Just click the link below to be taken to the full review and many more photos.

Mego Diecast Metal Batman

Yesterville is TWO!!

2011-02-14T13:19:00.000-08:00

I was just sitting here working away when it hit me... Yesterville is two years old today!! So, because I didn't have anything prepared, I dug though some old photos to find something that might be relevant. I found these photos of an Artoo Detoo cake that my wife and I made for our youngest son when he turned two (about 6 years ago...yikes, time moves quickly). So, since it was his second birthday and today is Yesterville's second birthday, I thought these images might be appropriate (plus, it's Artoo Detoo!!...).

I haven't been posting as much as I'd like over the past year or so but I'm trying to remedy that. There are also plenty of toys left in the Yesterville archive that I need to cover... so, stay tuned!

Kenner Six Million Dollar Man Critical Assignment Legs

2011-02-12T16:21:00.000-08:00

This is the Six Million Dollar Man Criitcal Assignment Legs set from Kenner, produced in 1977. This was another add-on set for the Bionic Man figure... similar to the Critical Assignment Arms set that I've reviewed previously.

Despite Steve Austin's legs being bionic (robotic) in the television show, the Kenner 12" action figure only featured bionics in his right arm. With this set, kids playing with Bionic Man figures everywhere could finally have bionic features in their figures' legs, as well.

This set features two legs (naturally) that both perform unique bionic "actions."

The left leg is an "exploding leg." It features flesh-colored panels that hide the true nature of Steve Austin's powerful appendages. When the appropriate button is pressed, "Pow!!!" the panels explode off the leg. According to the back of the box, this function is to simulate a "bionic malfunction." Ouch.

The right leg features two opening panels. The panel in Steve's thigh opens to reveal wires and bionic circuitry. The panel in his shin provides the necessary tool to perform bionic surgery on Steve's leg, should he need it. It features a small blue hook that aids in pulling the wired panels from Steve's thigh... kind of like a mini Operation game without the lights and buzzer.

This set also features a pair of white shorts. In his regular, red standard-issue pants, it would be difficult to play with the features in Steve's new legs. The shorts allow adequate access to the various parts and panels in the legs. Cool beans.

I didn't have this set, as a kid. I picked this one up close to this past Christmas on Ebay. However, I did have the Critical Assignment Arms as a kid and did always want to add this set to my Six Million Dollar Man. So, it was great to finally add this set to my collection. I still think it's pretty neat that Kenner would produce add-on sets like this that would allow kids to add new features to their figures without having to buy an all-new figure. I guess Kenner really did care. After all, that WAS their slogan.

Kenner Star Wars Large Size Jawa (12" Scale)

2011-01-17T11:47:00.001-08:00

This is Kenner's Large Sized 8" Jawa from 1978. He's the last of the twelve that I'll be reviewing on Yesterville. Maybe I'll have to set up a Star Wars Large Sized "family photo" as a finale to finally finishing all the Large Sized Star Wars figures.

One of the great things about the original Star Wars trilogy was the fact that George Lucas didn't feel like he had to explain everything... or give us a glimpse under every helmet or head covering. Who was under the Stormtrooper helmets? Who knows? What does Boba Fett look like? Is he human? Who knows? This was part of the fun of Jawas, too. As a kid, it was pretty fascinating to see Jawas for the first time in Star Wars. Those covered faces, strange voices, and light-up eyes were pretty startling. I always wondered what their faces looked like and if those lights were actually their eyes... or lights that they needed to see with. Who knows?

Kenner's Jawa is a pretty basic figure. He has swivel shoulders, swivel thighs, and swivel wrists. He's really not too different than his 3 3/4 inch counterpart. I am glad that Kenner included bandoliers that could be worn over his cloak this time, though, instead of being sculpted underneath the cloak.

I found this Jawa many years ago at a comic convention, as well. I would always make it my yearly goal to add one more 12" vintage Star Wars figure to my collection each time I attended a comic book convention.

A complete Jawa should include his brown cloak, rubber bandoliers (one piece), and his blaster.

Ooootini!!!

1977 Christmas Sketchbook

2011-01-14T10:03:00.001-08:00

This isn't really a toy... but I viewed it as one since it was a Christmas present in 1977. I was ten years old and I loved to draw. So, my parents bought me a sketchbook for all my drawings. I filled this sketchbook with many of my favorite things to draw for about 3 years... until 1980. I've managed to keep it all these years and it's one of my favorite "artifacts" from that time. So, I thought it might be fun to pull out a handful of drawings that might be of interest (or something to laugh at) for other toy and Star Wars geeks, like myself.

It's hard to believe that this sketchbook is over 30 years old. I can remember drawing just about everything in it like it was only a few years ago. This is what I did for fun when I wasn't running around with friends. We only had 2 TV channels, no DVDs, no video games, no books (okay, we had books), and no internet. It was a different time when entertainment wasn't as instant or accessible. Consequently, we made our own fun (man, I'm sounding old) and learned quite a bit doing it.

Because the cover of the sketchbook called it a "Sketch Diary," I really viewed it as such. That is why every drawing was labeled with the date and the age I was when I did the drawing. I'm glad I did.

Star Wars Sandtrooper

This was the first drawing I completed in the sketchbook. It just HAD to be a Star Wars drawing as that is about all my brain had knocking around in it, at the time. This was drawn on Christmas Day, 1977... I jumped right in. These days, I have to circle around a sketchbook for a few weeks before breaking the pristine newness of the book. Don't ask me why.

Nerf Football

One of my Christmas presents made it in as the second entry in my new sketchbook. Gotta love Nerf! This present made me feel like a jock without actually having to catch a real football...which I broke a finger doing later in life.

The Six Million Dollar Man Bionic Mission Vehicle

Another drawing of a 1977 Christmas present. Looks like I ran out of room while drawing the front of the craft. The OSI won't be using this as a blueprint any time soon.

Darth Vader

I was really proud of this one, as a kid. One of my first forays into actually adding shading to something. Don't ask me why I drew it so lightly. I thought "Darth" was Vader's first name.

R2D2

I remember trying to get every detail right on this one. Good thing I labeled it so I know who this is nowadays.

Evil Lord Vader

Crack!! Need I say more?

Princess Leia

I must have switched to another, darker pencil to fill in her mouth. Otherwise, not a bad likeness for 11.

Stormtroopers

I drew this one on the day that Star Wars was rereleased in theaters in 1978. Know how I can tell? Magic.

Jaws 2

I remember drawing this one off of a bubble gum card. That is ONE doomed copter.

Kenner Death Star Playset

I remember drawing this one for a specific purpose. Like Ralphie from A Christmas Story, I drew this as a ploy towards acquiring this childhood grail from my parents. Surely, if I had taken the time to actually draw the toy, my parents would HAVE to buy me one, right? It didn't work out that way. My younger brother ended up getting one, instead. You're welcome, Mike... I primed the pump on this one for you.

Think about how crappy the ending to A Christmas Story would have been if it had been Ralphie's younger brother Randy that ended up with the Red Ryder BB gun on Christmas morning. Just sayin'.

Ace Frehley

Everyone's favorite Rock Spaceman. That thing over his head isn't a dunce cap. He's basking in the spotlight while laying down some classic licks.

Yoda

This is one of the very last entries in my sketchbook. Yoda was a brand-new Star Wars character, at the time, and needed to be documented for prosperity. Otherwise, how would future generations know about the wise and diminutive Jedi Master?

I hope you enjoyed this little trip through my childhood sketchbook. Sure, the drawings are crude but I always enjoy looking back and remembering all those hours I spent just drawing for myself.

Kenner Star Wars Large Size 12" Ben (Obi-Wan) Kenobi

2011-01-13T07:58:00.000-08:00

This is Kenner's 12" Large Size Ben (Obi-Wan) Kenobi from 1978.

Before the Star Wars prequels, we knew that Ben Kenobi had a past as "Obi-Wan Kenobi" but we still pretty much always referred to this character as "Ben." If I'm not mistaken, Luke even refers to him as "Ben" during the entire old trilogy.

At any rate, I have to give Kenner credit for producing a large scale figure of the "old wizard" we know and love. Maybe I'm off base here, but it seems like companies would have shied away from producing toys based on older actors. Perhaps, the runaway sales of all the smaller Star Wars figures gave Kenner the freedom to say, "What the heck!"

Like other characters in the line, Kenner produced a nice likeness to actor, Alec Guiness. He looks older and wise without looking geriatric.

The only time I saw this guy for sale back in the 70s was at a small hardware store that had a very small toy department (our major sources of toys were Kmart, Labelles, and a mall store called Clown Town). We used to ride our bikes to this hardware store to see what new Star Wars action figures might be on the shelf. They only had one of the Large Sized action figures for the longest time... and that was a Ben Kenobi. He sat on the shelf for, what seemed, years. This store also kept an air-popper popcorn popper on the front counter with a well-stocked bowl of buttered popcorn for customers to enjoy. Free popcorn and other things like Wacky Packs and Cracked magazine were other reasons my buddies and I made frequent visits to this hardware store.

I picked this guy up in a trade with a very good friend back in the 80s when collecting Star Wars action figures wasn't near the top of our priority lists. An offer was presented to trade Ol' Ben for a couple of comic books and the deal was made. Ben had a taped up, busted leg and was missing his lightsaber. I've since replaced the leg and given Ben back his weapon "from a more civilized age."

Ben has the standard articulation for the human figures in the line... swivel hips, swivel shoulders, swivel neck, and very limited "click" articulation in the knees.

A complete Ben Kenobi should have his white tunic (with black neck and chest insert), brown robe, two rubber brown boots, and his yellow lightsaber.

Kenner Star Wars Large Size 12" Princess Leia

2011-01-11T21:10:00.000-08:00

This is Kenner's Large Size Princess Leia Action Figure from 1978. Alright, to be fair, this is a dolly... plain and simple. Sometimes, it takes the manliest of men to succumb to buying a DOLL to complete a collection. Convinced, yet?

Princess Leia was one of the original four large sized action figures (dollys) that Kenner produced alongside Vader, Luke, and Chewie. However, she was marketed towards little girls and not the boys that were typically prowling action figure aisles in pursuit of "plastic gold."

As a kid, she was an easy pass. You could hide a 3 3/4 inch Leia at the bottom of your action figure case, if need be, but a ruler sized Leia was another thing altogether. If one of your buddies were to spot her in your collection, you could instantly become the target of constant ridicule and torture (having a Luke that looked like a Ken doll was bad enough, believe me). She didn't come with any kind of weapon or action feature. In fact, she came with a brush and comb set that allowed little girls to style her hair in several different hairdos. There was even a hairdo how-to booklet that came with Leia. Unfortunately (maybe fortunately), I do not own any of Leia's hair-styling accessories.

Again, Kenner came through with a great likeness that looks quite a bit like Carrie Fisher did at the time. Sure, it's a doll-like sculpt but it does a nice job of looking like the character. More so than many more recent attempts from companies producing six-scale version of Leia. Articulation is fairly limited... swivel hips, swivel shoulders, swivel neck, and maybe a tiny bit of "click" movement in the knees.

I picked this figure up in 1988 at the San Diego Comic Con. I've only recently discovered that she's wearing the wrong shoes. Oh, well....one more thing to track down. (If anyone has a spare pair, let me know.)

A complete Princess Leia should come with her white gown, two stockings, two white shoes, a belt, two donut-shaped rings (that are inside her ANH hairdo), a comb, a brush, and a hairstyling booklet.

I've always thought that Kenner should have included a blaster with Leia. That way, girls could join in the "action figure" fun and maybe, just maybe, a boy or two might have wanted to add Leia and her "Empire Crusher" blaster to their collection. Eh, probably not.

All in all, though, what Star Wars figure line would be complete without Leia? In that respect, I'm very glad that Kenner produced her and she makes a great addition to the Large Sized line-up.

Kenner Star Wars Large Size 15" IG-88

2011-01-07T09:27:00.000-08:00

This is Kenner's Large Size IG-88 from early 1980. He stands about 15" tall and is scaled to the other figures in the vintage Large Sized line. He was released in an Empire Strikes Back branded box.

IG-88 was the last large-scale figure that Kenner produced when the "Large Sized" line was phasing out as the new decade of the 80s dawned. Consequently, he's the hardest of the large sized figures to find... especially complete.

I've always thought IG-88 was kind of an odd choice to get the sixth-scale treatment in the original Kenner line. In the film (Empire Strikes Back), IG-88 really doesn't do a whole lot... he just kind of stands there and adds an interesting and cool silhouette to the bounty hunter line-up that Vader has assembled. Of course, this is most likely why Kenner chose IG-88 to produce in this scale... he's just plain cool looking... and he's a robot.

I remember seeing this figure on the shelf at our local LaBelle's department store (which subsequently became a different dept. store, then a grocery store, and is currently a Hobby Lobby) back in 1980. The funny thing is, he was always alone. I don't recall ever seeing any other large Star Wars figures on the shelf next to him (I do seem to recall seeing 12" Mego Star Trek The Motion Picture action figures very close by, though.). Maybe being a late release, he shipped by himself... I don't know.

I picked this guy up in the 90's a little bit at a time. I started with the base figure and then added pieces as I found them available. I've found it's fun to collect figures this way, sometimes... "the thrill of the hunt" really comes into play, along with a healthy dose of delayed gratification as the figure slowly comes together.

At any rate, I think he's a great-looking figure. He doesn't have much in the way of articulation, though... swivel neck, swivel shoulders, swivel wrists, and swivel hips. So, he's not much for posing in front of the camera. Maybe he's just camera shy.

A complete IG-88 should include his bandolier, four red grenades (that attach to the bandolier), and two blaster rifles (one very long one and one shorter one).

Almost Vintage: Hasbro Gi Joe Talking Adventure Team Commander (Gi Joe Collectors Club Reissue)

2011-01-02T19:46:00.001-08:00

There's something special about a Gi Joe. As kids, everybody had one (or more), it seems. Whether you are an older guy, like myself, or of a slightly younger generation, the world of Gi Joe has been kind of a collective experience for many of us.

Gi Joes started as clothed, 12 inch articulated figures. In the early 60s, wooden artist mannequins served as the inspiration for creating a brand new concept in boys toys... a large, fully-posable soldier. Boys were used to playing with toy soldiers in a much smaller scale but larger clothed soldiers were a new concept. Hasbro, afraid of Gi Joes being called "dolls," prohibited everyone in Hasbro's office from using the "D" word in reference to Gi Joes. They were to refer to Gi Joe as a "movable soldier." They even went so far as to tell their toy reps that if they were caught using the word "doll" to sell Gi Joe, they would have their orders canceled.

Gi Joe was the first true "Action Figure." All the great sixth-scale and smaller figures of today owe a debt to the ground that Gi Joe broke all those years ago.

Hasbro enjoyed enormous popularity with Gi Joe during the 1960s. However, when America became involved in the Vietnam conflict, sales began to wane as Americans no longer wanted to be reminded of the realities of war as they bought toys for their sons. Hasbro, eager to move away from Gi Joe's military theme, released the Adventure Team in 1970. Gi Joe no longer fought foreign soldiers. He fought the elements and anything else Mother Nature could throw at him as he searched for wild animals and even buried mummies. These new Joes also sported "life-like" hair and beards for the first time through an inventive flocking technique.

The Gi Joe pictured is a recent (several years) Gi Joe Collector's Club reissue of the Adventure Team Talking Commander. It is a near-perfect recreation of the 1970 figure... right down to the box. I had an original Talking Commander for a short time in the early 70s. I had received him for Christmas and remember enjoying playing with him that Christmas day. However, I have no memory of ever playing with him after that Christmas. I'm guessing that something was broken (maybe I messed up his pull-string talking feature) and he was returned to the store. Whatever happened to that Gi Joe will always be a mystery to me.

I'm not going to give an overview or review of this figure, at this point. Hasbro used the same body and head mold for almost all of the AT Gi Joes. I'll go into more detail about the figure, itself, in a future Gi Joe post. I have some vintage and quite a few reissue Joes that I'd like to talk about.

A few of the accessories that came with this reissue Joe

When you pull Joe's pull-string, he says one of many different phrases like, "I've got a tough assignment for you!"

I really love these figures. I love that they all used the same headsculpt and it was up to a child's imagination to create the different characters and adventures that these toys went through. Heck, they didn't even have names past monickers like "Land Adventurer," "Air Adventurer," and "Sea Adventurer." They were Gi Joes... and that was good enough for us.

Kenner Star Wars Large Size 15" Chewbacca

2010-12-06T20:20:00.001-08:00

This is Kenner's 15" (1/6 scale) Chewbacca from 1978.

Chewbacca has always been a difficult character to "pull-off" for toy companies. We usually get a figure that's all plastic or one that's all plush but haven't really gotten one that's a mix of the two.

Kenner chose to go the "all plastic" route with their first sixth-scale Chewbacca action figure. In fact, Chewie's construction is very similar to another large action figure that Kenner produced for their Six Million Dollar Man line of toys... Bionic Bigfoot. In fact, early prototype images of Chewbacca reveal that Kenner used a repainted Bigfoot with a bandolier strap as a stand-in for our intrepid furry hero until an official figure could be produced. If you examine both toys together, it's very apparent that they were "cut from the same cloth," so to speak.

Chewbacca was one of the first four large-sized action figures produced along with Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, and Princess Leia. Chewie's articulation is somewhat limited. He has ball-jointed shoulders, of sorts (held in place by rubber banded tension), and swivel hip joints... that's it. Due to the way he is sculpted, there is no head or neck articulation.

I like the way that Chewie is sculpted. There's plenty of sculpted fur detail but not too much. He's somewhat simplified and this choice works well with the somewhat simplified features of some of the human characters (like Han or Luke) in the line.

One neat aspect of this figure is that the cartridges on his strap are actually removable and can be placed on a peg on his crossbow blaster.

A complete Chewbacca comes with crossbow blaster (make sure the crossbow piece is present. It's a separate piece), bandolier strap with plastic pouch, and enough cartridges to fill all the slots on the strap.

Chewbacca has always been one of the more lovable characters in the Star Wars saga. This figure is fun representation of the beloved furry oaf.

Kenner Star Wars The Empire Strikes Back Toy Brochure #2

2010-10-13T12:29:00.001-07:00

This is another pack-in toy brochure from 1981. These usually came with the bigger toys like vehicles, playsets, and larger figures. I was always excited to find a new one of these in the box. I used to pour over these little brochures as it was almost the only way to know what other toys were available or were being released soon. Notice the upside-down Tie Fighter.

More vintage 12" Star Wars and other vintage toy reviews coming soon.

Mego 8" Fonzie

2010-07-20T14:24:00.000-07:00

This is Mego's 8" Fonzie from the Happy Days television show. Happy Days was a popular TV program that aired from 1974 to 1984. Mego Fonzie was released in 1977. The show was a nostalgic look back at a family (the Cunninghams) during the 1950s and early 1960s. To kids watching at the time, Happy Days depicted an era that seemed almost as ancient as the Depression of the 1930s or the Wild West of the late 1800s. To parents, the Happy Days era probably seemed fairly recent as it depicted a time that was only 20 years previous to when the show aired. One's age and how it relates to the perception of time passing is a very strange thing.

It's difficult to describe Fonzie (aka The Fonz, Arthur Fonzarelli) to someone that hasn't seen the Fonz "in action" on Happy Days. You see, Fonzie was the coolest of the cool... the leather-jacket-wearing-guy that could never fail and always kept his cool no matter the situation. He was almost like Superman, James Dean, and Evel Knievel all rolled into one. Fonzie could best almost anybody at anything (he even jumped a shark on water skis... which eventually led to the term "jump the shark). Few dared to oppose him and many looked to him to help them out of sticky situations. The character became such a cultural phenomenon that he spawned such things as t-shirts, lunch boxes, toys, and even an official Fonzie kids leather jacket (that I tried on while shopping for school clothes once... My Mom said "No." Can you tell that I've been scarred for life?).

Point of Shame: When I was about 9, I was a such a Fonzie fan that I started a "Fonzie Club" in my neighborhood... individually drawing Fonzie with markers on each "club member's" white t-shirt.

Mego did a nice job on Fonzie. The head sculpt looks very much like a Mego-ized Henry Winkler (the actor that played the Fonz). This figure also includes an action feature that is unique to this figure. His thumbs swivel into a "thumbs up" position on each hand and a lever on his back thrusts his hands up from waist to chest level. You see, on the show, the Fonz would thrust both thumbs up and utter his famous-at-the-time line, "Aaaaaaaay!!" The Fonz would often do this to show his approval of something... or he could change the inflection to reflect something more like disappointment with someone (sans the thumbs). I can't tell you how many kids walked around in the mid-Seventies saying "Aaaaaay!!" or "Sit on it" (another catchphrase popularized by Happy Days).

A complete Mego Fonzie should include his leather jacket, white sleeveless under-shirt, jeans, and black boots.

The original "shark jumper."

Laurel and Hardy Finger Puppets 1972

2010-05-23T12:50:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, I like to try to remember toys from my very early childhood. Often, they are just fleeting fragments of memories of things that may not have even existed at all. When I was about 5 years old, my folks would put me to bed on Saturday nights but then allow me to wake up a few hours later to watch some of the old movies that played on one of the local channels. Sometimes, they were old Universal monster movies like Dracula or the Creature from the Black Lagoon... and sometimes, an old comedy like a Laurel and Hardy movie would be shown.

Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy made 106 films together between 1926 and 1951. Today, I couldn't tell you much about them, or even the name of a single film they made. However, when I was five years old, Laurel and Hardy were favorites of mine.

At any rate, I had a vague memory of having a pair of Laurel and Hardy finger puppets and was curious whether they were something real or something I had concocted in my head. Thirty-eight year old memories can be a bit fuzzy.

The internet is a pretty astounding thing, really. After only five minutes of searching, I had not only discovered that the finger puppets were indeed real (from 1972) but also for sale... cheap. My priceless memories were someone else's junk drawer fodder.

And so, a box arrived in the mail and time folded back on itself as I held these two fleeting bits of memory in my hands once again. It's a strange feeling to have such vague and distant memories come to such vivid reality in an instant.

Wham-O Bullwinkle Bendy

2010-05-20T09:42:00.000-07:00

There were a lot of bendy figures being produced in the early 70s... superheroes, TV Heroes, cartoon characters, etc. I had quite a few bendy figures during this time and this was one of them... Bullwinkle the Moose from the Rocky and Bullwinkle cartoons. This is another bendy from Wham-O that was produced in 1972. Wham-O produced quite a few characters from the Rocky and Bullwinkle/Fractured Fairy Tales cartoons. Hopefully, I can get my hands on a few more of them.

Bullwinkle was produced in true bendy fashion... that is, he was produced as a three-dimensional figure but the term "dimensional" is pushing it a bit. Most bendy figures were produced as thinly as possible. That is, from the front, they look correct. When you turn them sideways, they almost disappear. I'm not sure if this thinness helped with way the internal wires worked or if it was a cost cutting measure but it's definitely a trademark of bendy figures from this era.

Consequently, Bullwinkle looked good in the package but wasn't much to look at once you tried to utilize him as a 3D character. As you can see, his antlers don't quite work once you try to adjust him out of the package.

I love these old bendies from the early 70s. They are just so...TOY. I don't know how else to put it.

Mego 8" Planet of the Apes Astronaut Peter Burke

2010-05-19T12:16:00.000-07:00

This is Mego's Peter Burke from 1974. He's the other astronaut that was stranded with Alan Virdon on the TV version of Planet of the Apes.

As with Virdon, Mego did an outstanding job of capturing the actor's (James Naughton) likeness... especially by 1974 toy standards.

To be complete, Peter should have a brown long-sleeved shirt, tan pants, a burlap (yep, it's even rough and itchy) vest, and brown moccasins (same as Virdon and Cornelius/Galen).

This concludes the Mego Planet of the Apes action figure line. Mego produced 9 individual figures from the films and TV show (ten characters... as Mego used the same figure for both Cornelius and Galen). Although, we really didn't care what movies or shows the figures came from as long as we had a good assortment of Apes and Astronauts to play with... and Mego delivered. I think Mego did an outstanding job on the Planet of the Apes figure line. For Megos, they are well-detailed and come with a nice assortment of accessories (at least the Generals did). For me, this will always be the quintessential Planet of the Apes figure line and I'm glad I was the right age when they arrived to enjoy them like I and many others did.

Mego 8" Planet of the Apes Astronaut Alan Virdon

2010-05-18T14:51:00.000-07:00

In 1974, those dirty apes from the series of ground-breaking sci-fi films were transported to my family's little black and white television (along with millions of other televisions, I'm sure). The Planet of the Apes television series didn't last long, but while it did, I was always glued to the set to see what would happen next to the astronauts that were stranded in this strange world where apes ruled and humans cowered. The TV show, in premise, was a lot like the first Planet of the Apes film. Although, instead of one astronaut surviving and being on the run, the television series had two...Peter Burke and Alan Virdon.

This is Alan Virdon, one half of the human astronaut duo that survived through all 14 episodes of the television show that were produced. Mego produced Virdon as part of the their second series of Planet of the the Apes (POTA) figures. While the first series of figures featured a generic astronaut that looked nothing like Charlton Heston, this new batch of POTA figures featured astronauts with very good likenesses to their living, breathing counterparts on the TV screen (Alan Virdon was played by actor, Ron Harper).

I remember seeing these two newer astronauts in the Coon Rapids, Minnesota Target store in 1974. Instantly, I wanted to bring them both home for my apes to chase and torment. It wasn't to be... and, as a kid, I never did get these two astronauts. However, my mom did make a very convincing version of one their tattered costumes for my Mego Tarzan and he did a fine job of standing in for these official Mego astronauts (and Evel Knievel's Canyon Sky Cycle stood in as the astronaut's ill-fated rocket ship).

Alan is a pretty basic Mego figure. He didn't come with any accessories or extras... just the figure and his "ripped-up" clothing. To be complete, he should have his tan shirt and pants, brown vest, and brown moccasins (the same ones that Cornelius and Galen came with).

It was great to finally get Alan and his astronaut buddy, Peter, a couple of years ago. It made that 7 year-old that had to leave them behind at Target very happy.

Kenner Star Wars The Empire Strikes Back Toy Brochure

2010-04-19T21:30:00.001-07:00

This is another one of Kenner's pack-in brochures for their line of Star Wars toys. In 1980, Kenner released the first 10 figures and several vehicles and playsets for the new movie, The Empire Strikes Back. I like how Kenner kept the older Star Wars toys in release as they continued to add to the line. I'm also very partial to the spread that showcases all the large sized figures. Cool beans....and who knew Ben Kenobi was the father of the mystical "FORCE?" I sure didn't.

Enjoy. There will be more classic toy reviews coming soon.

Almost Vintage: Hasbro's Modern Vintage Star Wars Action Figures

2010-03-24T18:49:00.000-07:00

The original 12 Kenner Star Wars action figures hit all of my nostalgia buttons full-force. It was the greatest thing to be a kid when the first Star Wars movie hit theaters and the first action figures started hitting toy shelves. It was a "magical" time.

I'm a vintage toy collector but I'm also an illustrator, as well. I've been working on some sketch cards for Topp's upcoming Empire Strikes Back Widevision card set and it has had me dwelling on that galaxy far, far away a bit more than usual. This has led to some discussions about Star Wars toys with fellow blogger Chunky B at Eclectorama.

We both thought it would be fun to find the best looking and best articulated modern versions of Kenner's original 12 action figures from 1978. I've started a meager collection of counterparts for some of those original 12 figures and a stray figure or two that weren't in the original 12. It's great to have them hanging around on the drawing desk for inspiration. I haven't collected these small figures since the Power the Force line back in the late 90s. So, it will be fun to dig back through the last 10 years of Star Wars action figure evolution and pick out my favorite doppelgangers for the original 12. I know that Chunky B and myself may have differing opinions about the "best" figures but I'm sure we'll probably end up choosing at least a few of the same figure for our modern vintage original 12 collections.

Hopefully, this will end with 12 great little versions of the first 12 Star Wars action figure characters and a detailed run-down of which figures were chosen and why. A custom, vintage-inspired stand to display them on may also be in the works. Stay tuned.

To see my past feature on the original 12 Kenner Star Wars action figures go HERE.

Kenner 12" Star Wars Large Size Stormtrooper

2010-03-14T18:57:00.000-07:00

Kenner released this Stormtrooper as part of their 12" Large Size figure series. Every Star Wars figure line needs a trooper and things were no different back in 1978 or '79.

Stormtroopers were integral to the Empire's plan for galactic conquest. Their look was iconic and somewhat mysterious as we never really saw them without helmets in the original trilogy. Later they would be defeated by teddy bears with sticks, but in the first Star Wars film, they were deadly (just ask Aunt Beru) and definitely to be feared. Their skull-like appearance made them pretty scary to kids seeing them for the first time. There were even playground debates over whether they were robots or not.

Kenner produced the 12" Stormtrooper in very close fashion to the way they produced the smaller, 3 3/4 inch version. Both versions share almost the same articulation... cut shoulders and cut hips for leg movement. That's it. The 12" trooper also has limited wrist articulation that allows his hands to swivel, slightly. Neither feature any head movement. So, Stormie here has a bit of the Batman film syndrome. In other words, he can't turn his head and must turn his entire torso (or body) to look a different direction.

Despite his lack of articulation, I'm sure kids still had quite a bit of fun with him. I didn't have a large size Stormtrooper as a kid. This guy was purchased at a Comic Convention many years ago. It was the first one I had ever seen and I counted myself very lucky to come across him. Of course, these days, this figure can be found quite readily on Ebay, fairly inexpensively.

The Stormtrooper didn't come with much in the way of accessories, either. He has his blaster rifle and a loop of string at the waist for him to store his gun when he's not turning rebels and old people into scorched piles of bones and bile.

I really love these old Star Wars toys. Back in the days before home videos, toys were the most tangible way for kids to relive the films and having a neat toy like this Stormtrooper went a long way towards feeling like you had a piece of the movie at home with you.

Kenner 12" Star Wars Large Size Boba Fett

2010-03-11T19:04:00.001-08:00

This is Kenner's 12" Large Size Boba Fett. He was released in 1979, at a time before his film debut in 1980's Empire Strikes Back. He had previously played a part in the animated segment of the Star Wars Holiday Special that had been shown on TV a year or two previously.

So, when this figure was released, we didn't have much of a clue who the character really was. There was quite a bit of hype around the character before the release of the Empire Strikes Back which included this figure and the now infamous "rocket firing" 3 3/4" Boba Fett that could be had by sending in enough Star Wars action figure proofs of purchase.

Kenner must have decided that they weren't putting enough play features into the figures of the Large Size figure line when they designed Boba Fett. For one, he was designed with quite a bit more articulation than any other figure of this line before. Boba Fett has lateral shoulder, elbow, wrist, and knee ankle articulation that most of the other large sized figures were missing. He was articulated more like a 12" Gijoe from this era rather than something more akin to Ken and Barbie like previous figures.

Boba features a see-through eye feature that was, seemingly, borrowed from Kenner's own Six Million Dollar Man figure. He also sports quite a few more accessories than was typical for this line. Another fun feature is a missile that can be removed from his backpack and hooked onto something like a grappling hook. A string attached to the "missile" allows Boba to hang or glide along the string.

This particular figure was our childhood Fett. It first belonged to my brother and then, eventually, became mine through a trade of some sort. My folks hated it when we did that. So, this guy is far from mint and has more than a few problems. One of his hands was torn off and then glued back on. His backpack is also missing one of the prongs for winding up the black cord that's attached to his missile. If you look closely, there's even glue on his face, presumably from "Operation Hand Reattachment."

I always felt bad for the wookies that gave their lives so I could enjoy this toy.

This particular figure is complete, however, which is no small feat with this guy. He had quite a few accessories to lose over time. A complete Boba Fett should include his gun, belt, wookie scalps, shoulder cape, removable backpack, and a rubber tipped missile with attached string and loop.

Kenner 12" Star Wars Large Size Han Solo

2010-02-25T21:07:00.000-08:00

This is Kenner's 12" Han Solo from 1979. Just look at this scoundrel! I'm not sure if this guy was rare back in 1979 but I only saw him for sale ONE time. We were on vacation visiting friends in Minnesota in 1979 and were at the Target store in Coon Rapids. They had this guy for sale along with a few other figures I had never seen in my hometown. That was the first and only time I saw this Han Solo on a toy shelf until years and years later at a comic book convention... and the price on him, at that point, was many times over what his price was on the Target shelf in Coon Rapids. I couldn't afford to add him to my collection, at that point.

There was a time before ebay and other online auction sites when vintage toys seemed much more rare than they actually were. To find something like this 12" Han Solo, you had to stumble across one in a store that sold vintage items or find one in one of the national toy classifieds (these were like monthly newspapers that would come in the mail). So, it was REALLY hard to find something like this "back in the day."

In 1992, my wife and I traveled to Orlando, Florida for our honeymoon. It was a blast! We enjoyed all the theme parks and did a little shopping, as well. We found a small comic book, toy, and collectible store that had quite a few neat things. Among the treasures, was this 12" Han you see in the photos. Being the gem that she is, my wife offered to make the Han Solo my wedding present as we hadn't exchanged gifts, at that point. Since 1992 was pre-ebay days, he was quite a bit more expensive than a loose, complete 12" Han can be had for these days. However, it was quite a find to actually encounter a complete figure. There was one problem, however. Han's white shirt had a chocolate-looking stain about the size of a quarter (Man, I hope it was chocolate). Being anxious to see if the stain would come out, I bought a small box of detergent and worked the stain out in the hotel room sink. The stain came out completely and I hung the small shirt up to dry on a clothesline that could be pulled across the front of the shower.

To this day, one of my wife's most vivid memories of our honeymoon was the day her complete Geek-of-a-husband washed his dolly clothes in the hotel sink and hung them up to dry. I guess it was a kind of eye-opening event for her that I will never live down.

Kenner did a nice job with this figure. The likeness to Harrison Ford is there but not overstated. Han's clothes are a bit simple compared to a more contemporary version of this figure would be but they do the job and convey the look of the character quite well. An interesting side note: Kenner reused this body and head sculpt for their Indiana Jones 12" figure. However, if you look closely, Han's eyes are painted brown while Indy's were painted blue.

Like Kenner's 12" Luke Skywalker, Han's articulation is somewhat limited: cut neck, cut shoulders, and cut joints at the hip that allow the legs to move forward and backward. If I'm not mistaken, he also has limited "clicky" articulation at the knees...like a Barbie.

A complete Han Solo includes his two black boots, black pants, white shirt, black vinyl vest, plastic belt with holster, Han's pistol blaster, and a medal like the one he received at the end of Star Wars ( I won't call it A New Hope... I won't).

"Never tell me the odds!"

Yesterville's First Anniversary!

2010-02-14T12:25:00.001-08:00

This blog is as much about reminiscing and honoring the past as it is about the toys themselves. Toys from childhood are the "hooks" to hang memories from to be revisited time and time again. So, I'm taking this opportunity with Yesterville's first anniversary to reminisce about something other than toys and give an update on an item from the past that was included in a photo from the very first official post on Yesterville.

This item works for today's post nicely in two ways. First, it was shown in Yesterville's first post. Second, today is Valentine's Day and this item was created as a school Valentine box.

I created this R2D2 Valentine box with my Dad in 1978. I'm not trying to turn this blog into "Things I Created with my Dad" but I thought this would be an appropriate item for today, anyway (There will be one more item I created with my Dad coming in the future...last one, I promise).

This little guy has survived all these years in a box in my parent's garage. He's a little beat up but is still in pretty great shape, all things considered.

A Quaker Oats container served as the base for R2's torso and foil covered paper mache served as his noggin.' Cut and shaped poster board became the legs. All the detail artwork was done by me (Give me a break... I was 10).

Vintage photo from 1978. You can see the R2D2 Valentine box in the back on the left.

Valentines went in through the slot on the front. If any Death Star Plans happened to find their way in, all the better.

This R2D2 Valentine box won first prize that year in Bench School's 5th Grade Valentines Box contest. That is the main reason it's been kept all these years... historians will someday want this for the Smithsonian when they do their "All-time greatest Valentines boxes from Bench Elementary" exhibit. Don't laugh, it could happen.

As a tie-in with the R2D2 box, just this weekend (on Saturday) I visited my elementary school for the first time in over 30 years. I hadn't stepped foot in the school since leaving after 6th grade in 1979 (Yes, I graduated from 6th grade). I have driven by several times over the years and have wanted to see the inside of the school again but didn't know how to do it without looking like some kind of deranged stalker.

Serendipitously, Bench Elementary School was having a Pancake Breakfast School fund raiser this weekend that would allow ANYONE access to the inside of the school!! Bench Elementary had become a sort of surreal place in my mind over the years. I spent four years "getting my school on" in that place but time had faded my memories and I couldn't remember exactly how everything looked... just somewhat, vague notions of everything. Would it all come rushing back to me? Would the pancakes be served from the same lunch window in the gym that I had stood in line for so many times before? Would anyone reading my blog care? ;)

So, on Saturday morning, I loaded up my two bravest sons and headed across town to Bench Elementary. I was so excited that I could hardly fall asleep the night before. My kids just wanted pancakes. My wife stayed at home, stunned that her dorky husband could be so excited about a pancake breakfast at an elementary school across town.

Seventies music blared across the car stereo speakers as we made our way across town (my kids were NOT amused). Unbeknownst to my kids, we left our house in 2010 but arrived at Bench School in 1975.

This sign wasn't here when I attended school here. I decided to let it stand.

When I walked through the front doors, everything was EXACTLY as it was. All sorts of memories came flooding back and my memories of the look of the school came flooding back, as well.

It's good to see that they can still display the American flag in public schools.

I have so many memories of this old gym. It was the place where we had gym class and it doubled as the school's cafeteria. This is the place where I was forced to dance "the Hustle" during gym. This was the place where I rehearsed for a school play (I was a fireman). This was the place I took first runner-up in the school spelling bee. This was the place where I envied all those cool metal lunchboxes that some of the other kids had. Of the ones I remember are Kung Fu (The tv show), Six Million Dollar Man, Star Wars, Happy Days, and the NFL.

For educational movies in the gym, these large curtains would be closed. Anyone remember Mulligan Stew with the notorious Flim Flam Man that was always trying to get kids to eat poorly and fill their bodies with poor nutrition?

In the upper right corner you can see my elementary days' nemesis... the rope. It's still there...laughing at me. We had evening Cub Scouts meetings in this gym and climbing the rope was part of the festivities. Stupid rope. You'd think after 30 years it would be gone or someplace else in the gym. Nope, right where I left it.

Ghosts of the past or just poor photography? You decide.

Here are my boys enjoying their scrumptious pancake breakfast sitting right where I sat many times as a kid. They really are happy, well-adjusted kids. I promise. I think they are just a bit overwhelmed with being in the 70s. Time travel can take it out of you.

This is a story I wrote for a 6th grade project. I think it's title is freakishly appropriate for this post. I came across a box of this kind of stuff in my folk's garage this past summer. The story is about some friends and I reuniting in the future. We remember our elementary school days and start a band called "Lasers." It's almost like I was nostalgic for the 70s before I even left the 70's. Strange. You know "Lasers" would have rocked, don't you?

Every one of my classrooms while at Bench Elementary was down this hallway. Unfortunately, I had to shoot this photo through a gate. I don't remember the hallway ever being any brighter than this.

The area between the two boys is exactly where I fell and fractured my shoulder playing "soccer hockey" on the ice with some friends. It was a sheet of ice then and I went down like a sack of potatoes. My shoulder became infected and I ended up spending a couple of weeks in the hospital. The good thing was, my Dad would bring me a new Star Wars action figure every day. How cool is that? All of the figures that my Dad brought to help me with my stay in the hospital are HERE.

I have so many memories of this playground, too. This is the door we would line up at everyday to come in from recess. Also, just to the left of the door is where they would post new class rosters at the end of each summer. We used to ride our bikes down and see which of our buddies would end up in our class. This playground also reminds me of things like Grape Bubble Yum, Pop Rocks, Wacky Packs stickers, and Make-A-Shakes (chocolate milk that you would shake in the carton and it would get thicker...like a shake). We often walked through this playground after school toward the Kwik Way convenience store a half-block away to buy a goodie or two before walking on home.

So many memories. This is where we stood with our backs to the sun to watch the eclipse as it shone through a hole in one piece of cardboard to project an image on the one underneath. This is where we played countless games of basketball, tetherball, and four square. This is where my Little League baseball team practiced after school. This is where girls walked around with Bonne Bell Lip Smackers on ropes around their necks and mini-Farrah hairstyles a few inches higher. This is where we would chew on toothpicks that had been soaked overnight in cinammon oil because candy was not allowed in school. This is where we couldn't be the days after Mt. St. Helens blew its top and covered our town with ashes...from three states away. This is where a friend shouted to me from a window during my recess that my Star Wars drawing had been chosen to be in the national Weekly Reader. I had never wanted to come in from recess as quickly as I did that particular day.

Too bad they didn't have a "Lamest" category. I would have taken first, no doubt.

These basketball hoops are the exact same ones that were there over 30 years ago. They were happy to see me.

The two silver playground structures in the foreground were there, as well, over 30 years ago. If memory serves, they were the ONLY playground structures we had at the time.

I remember spending countless recesses climbing this dangerous looking structure with friends and arguing about things like whether Darth Vader survived after spinning off into space at the end of the first Star Wars (there would be more movies but we didn't know it). I also remember talking with a friend about Gene Simmons of KISS's recent appearance in People magazine with Cher. He wasn't wearing makeup and had a napkin covering his face. It was like finding out about Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. That's Gene?!!

I hope you enjoyed this somewhat self-indulgent trip down memory lane. I had a lot of fun visiting my old school and basking in good memories. It was particularly fun to walk around the old playground after so long. It was like having a hazy jumble of memories come to vivid life in an instant.

Of course, if I ever truly forget, I'll have ol' Artoo here to remind me and keep the memories fresh.

Mego 8" Planet of the Apes General Urko

2010-02-11T17:15:00.000-08:00

Okay...I'm going to get through all these dang dirty apes if it takes me several months. I promised myself that I'd get through all the Mego apes in a reasonable amount of time... and I've failed. So, onward!! I'll do the best I can. Just a few more to go and then I'll move on to some other 70s toy goodness... like more large-size Star Wars.

This is the other ape general. I knew him as General Urko, as a kid. You may know him as General Ursus. His package variations, back in the day, used both names. Go figure.

This General was a hard "sell" to my parents. I never did get him as a kid. He looked too much like the previously released Soldier Ape for my parents' taste. They did have a point. However, he was different enough that I wanted him and envied those that did have him. There was something cool about his face sculpt that I really liked. Although, not screen-accurate, he was much closer looking to the apes in the movies and TV show than the first gorilla soldier ape we got from Mego. He looked menacing to me... maybe it was the knife.

A complete General Urko should include his tunic with attached cuffs (although, some variations of this figure were packaged with the original soldier ape tunic and separate "mittens"), pants, black split-toe general boots, bandolier with knife holder, knife, and M16 rifle (with brown string).

I've always viewed this guy as one of the "newer" Mego apes since he was released after the TV show started airing. That was over 35 years ago. Man, I'm getting old.

Almost Vintage: Mattel Retro-Action DC Super Heroes Green Arrow

2010-01-02T21:34:00.000-08:00

Back in the very early Seventies, a company named Mego began producing some of the very first Super Hero action figures. They produced a wide array of characters from both DC and Marvel comics in a toy line titled "World's Greatest Super-Heroes!" They were 8" tall, colorful, and full of playability. Many "kids" of that era swear by Mego figures as being the best toys ever created. Mego figures may not have been the most durable toys but kids loved them and many grown men (and women) today still do. The way that Mego figures were designed often left the characters looking slightly goofy and "off-model." However, looking back, the quirkiness of Megos lends them their greatest charm.

Over the past ten or fifteen years, nostalgia for Megos has lead to at least two toy companies trying to recapture the "magic" of Super Hero Megos in a 9" format. Two of the things that makes a Mego a Mego are cloth costumes and and a "reusable" base body. In kind, the new 9" "Megos" from Hasbro (DC Super Heroes) and Toybiz (Marvel Famous Covers) had cloth clothing and utilized a "reusable" base body. Both companies succeeded to some degree with both hits and misses in their respective lines. However, both companies were trying to create a product that would appeal to both nostalgic Mego collectors AND to the current generation of children roaming the toy aisles with their parents. In my opinion, by trying to hit both targets, they also missed both to a great degree. The 9" format wasn't truly in scale with the vintage Mego figures that Mego collectors already had AND children were more used to action figures with sculpted clothing and a smaller scale. Both lines did fairly well but began to fizzle after a relatively short time.

Just recently, in 2009, Mattel toys announced that they would partner with EMCE Toys (makers of the fantastic Star Trek and Planet of the Apes Mego replica figures) to resurrect the "World's Greatest Super-Heroes!" toy line by producing brand-new "Megos" in an 8" scale. The figures would be made to closely resemble the style and look of vintage Mego figures. All new characters that Mego never produced would also be a part of the new Mattel line. Mego fans rejoiced at the prospect of having all-new Megos and have been waiting anxiously for the figures to become available. It should also be noted that the "World's Greatest Super-Heroes" name has changed, sadly, and the line is now called "Retro-Action DC Super-Heroes."

The first new "Mego" from Mattel is Green Arrow and he is an online exclusive through mattycollector.com. The following waves of figures will be exclusive to Toys R Us stores and a few online toy sites. Green Arrow just shipped out to collectors last week and is just now arriving to homes, currently.

So, how does this new "Mego" stack up? Let's find out.

Packaging: The packaging on the "Retro-Action" Green Arrow is a definite "nod" to the packaging of vintage carded Megos. It consists of a somewhat flimsy cardboard backer and a simple clear bubble to hold the figure. The figure and accessories are packed in the bubble with nothing to hold them in place. This is exactly how vintage Megos were packed and it definitely adds to the nostalgia factor of this toy to not have twist ties or an insert tray to keep everything in place. The packaging art is also clearly an homage to vintage Mego art using many of the same design cues like the rectangle for the name of the toy line, the white line around the border of the card, and vintage looking drawings of the characters on the front and back. There is also a bit of "distressing" to the card art to help carry over the idea that this is an homage to a vintage toy.

The figure: The figure itself is very Mego-like. The way that the costume and accessories have been produced gives them a quality that is very close to vintage Mego. The costume seems to be made of the same type of material that Mego used and the accessories are molded in a single color (without painted details) just like vintage Mego accessories. His hat, bow, and quiver all look very much like their vintage counterparts with just a slight bit of updating.

Green Arrow's boots are made of a much denser, hard rubber-like plastic that gives them a bit of a different feel than vintage Mego boots. Vintage boots are a bit slimmer and less chunky looking. They were also made of the thinner plastic that almost "rattled" on the vintage figures' feet.

Green Arrow's head is still squishy like a vintage Mego. The headsculpt is also very reminiscent of classic Mego sculpts.

The body used on Mattel's new Megos will probably elicit the most criticism from vintage Mego fans. Clothed, Green Arrow looks quite a bit like a vintage Mego. However, it does have some key differences that do point away from Mego, somewhat. It's limbs and torso are sculpted to look a little more muscular than a vintage Mego. For instance, Mattel's new "Mego" body has a much smaller waist and legs that seem a bit too muscular and "bow legged." However, official word is that the legs will undergo some "tweaking" before the second wave (characters yet unannounced) of these figures hit shelves. Articulation-wise, this new body has the same basic style of articulation of vintage Megos and in the same spots on the figure. That's a plus.

As you can see, the new Retro-Action Green Arrow "hangs" with vintage Megos quite well.

Overall, the Mattel Retro-Action Green Arrow hits almost all of the right buttons and should produce a good dose of nostalgia for anyone that loves the old Mego action figures. I definitely felt a nostalgic rush while cracking open this brand-new "Mego." Much more so, than other aforementioned attempts at bringing back some "Mego Super Hero magic." I, for one, am very excited about the what the future holds for this line.

As I mentioned, Green Arrow is currently available at www.mattycollector.com. This Spring (2010), the next four figures (Superman, Lex Luthor, Green Lantern, and Sinestro) will begin hitting Toys R Us shelves.

I can hardly wait.

Mego 8" Planet of the Apes General Ursus

2010-01-01T11:30:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year, Everyone!!!

This is Mego's General Ursus from 1974. He was released as part of the second wave of Planet of the Apes figures. This second wave was based on the POTA TV series that was running at the time.

There is a bit of controversy involved with the name of this figure. You see, during the time that Mego produced this figure, his packaging used two different names...General Ursus and General Urko. Another Mego General figure from this same wave also used these two names. However, since the figure I had as a kid was called "Ursus," that's the name I'll be using for this guy. Although, it should be noted that "Urko" is probably the more appropriate name as Urko was the name of the helmeted General from the TV series (played by Mark Lenard) that this second wave of figures was based upon. General Ursus is from the film Beneath the Planet of the Apes and is almost identical to the General in the TV series.

Ursus was probably my favorite Mego Ape. There was just something so cool about him coming with an extra accessory. He had a rifle AND a knife. So, that automatically gave him a "one up" on the regular soldier apes because they only came with a rifle.

Looking back, it was an odd choice for Mego to use the colors that they did on General Ursus. His costume with the riveted collar and helmet were a nice approximation of a character costume from both the movies and the TV show. However, the purple and mustard coloration seems completely out of left field. When I was a kid, though, I think the bright colors were part of what made this guy my favorite. Perhaps, Mego was following the look of this character from the Planet of the Apes cartoon. I don't know.

A complete General Ursus should include his mustard colored tunic (with attached cuffs), a pair of purple pants, two black boots (note that the General's boots have a split toe and are not the same as the soldier's boots), a rifle with string, a bandolier with a knife "scabbard," and a silver/gray knife. Ursus is also sporting a helmet. However, the helmet is not removable.

Left to right: Mike Magnuson, Yours Truly, David Magnuson, and my brother Michael. The Magnusons were good friends that lived next door. We shared a wall in our townhouse. They were in a band with two older siblings and it was always a lot of fun for me to hear them practicing through the wall.

The photo above was taken in Fridley, Minnesota in 1974. So, I've had the picture almost my entire life. I was scanning and archiving a bunch of old family photos last year when I noticed, for the very first time, that my brother is actually holding a Mego General Ursus figure! Also, a friend (thanks, Brian B!) pointed out that he is ALSO holding Mego Batman in the other hand. Wow!!...hidden treasure.

Below is a close-up of the figures in Michael's hands.

The Mego Planet of the Apes figures were such great kids' toys and General Ursus is no exception.

Top Ten Favorite Childhood Christmas Gifts

2009-12-18T08:32:00.000-08:00

With Christmas less than a week away, I've been reflecting on Christmases of the past and all the great gifts that I've received from my parents and family over the years. Everyone knows that a toy received on Christmas is more special than a toy you saved your allowance for or happened to talk your Mom into while on a shopping trip. There was a special "magic" associated with the things you unwrapped at Christmas. In honor of those Christmas mornings of the past, I've compiled a list of my 10 favorite Christmas presents I received while I was a kid.

1. Evel Knievel Sky Cycle

I received the Evel Knievel Sky Cycle the Christmas of 1974. Evel had just attempted to jump the Snake River Canyon the previous September. So, this was quite a timely toy. The Sky Cycle was my first Evel Knievel toy and I remember getting it that Christmas very clearly. We lived in a townhouse in Minnesota with a very short hallway. That didn't stop me from sending Evel back and forth across jumps in that short hallway for the better part of the day. Because Evel Knievel toys were a huge part of my childhood and this toy was my first one, it snags the number one spot on my list.

2. Crosman 760 BB Gun Air Rifle

My Dad surprised me with this BB gun the Christmas of 1977. In a very "A Christmas Story moment" my Dad pulled this out from it's hiding place after I had opened all my other gifts and was feeling a bit disappointed that the BB gun I had been hoping for was nowhere to be found. My parents had made it pretty clear that I would, most likely, NOT be receiving a BB gun. Incidentally, I was shopping with my family a couple of weeks ago and was in a sporting goods store. Surprisingly, Crosman still makes this same model of air gun (some 30 or so years later) and there was an entire display of them on an endcap. It warms my heart to know that in this ever-changing world, some things stay the same.

3. Evel Knievel Dragster

I received this the Christmas of 1975. I have good memories of playing with this in our unfinished basement all day (couldn't play with it outside...SNOW). It didn't have the speed and jumping ability of the Stunt Cycle but it did do "wheelies" and deploy a red, white, and blue parachute.

The only photo of my stereo I could find. Dig the woodgrain. You can also see the wires running up to the speakers and just a hint of a Kenner tie-fighter on the top shelf.

left to right: Yours Truly (Look, I match my cake!), Brian McGill, Tom Fuchs, and my younger brother Mike.

4. Soundesign Stereo (Record player and Radio)

This was a BIG deal on Christmas Day, 1978. We didn't have mp3 players, boom boxes, or even Walkmans (if you don't know what a Walkman is... I pity you) back then. There really wasn't any way for a kid to enjoy music in private without the whole family listening in. I had to play most of my records (big plastic cds...for you youngsters) on my Mom and Dad's record player in the living room. So, this gift meant FREEDOM! I was suddenly free to play whatever I wanted when I wanted...IN MY ROOM (Gasp!). This was such a big deal to me that I requested a "stereo cake" on my next birthday. I think my Mom did a great job.

5. Maskatron

Six Million Dollar Man toys were always a Christmas staple for me in the mid-70s. I think I received this guy for Christmas 1976. Now, Steve would have an enemy...that could look like Steve! This toy was great fun.

6. Evel Knievel Super Jet Cycle

I think I received this Christmas 1976, also. I seemed to receive an Evel Knievel toy each Christmas for several years in a row in the mid-Seventies. Great memories of this one. The jet pods would send out sparks as the toy tore across the floor.

7. Sesame Street Cookie Monster puppet

This photo is probably from Christmas 1971. I had just received a cookie monster puppet that I had been hoping to get for quite some time. Back then, Cookie Monster was the "bad boy" on Sesame Street. He was dangerous. Sure, Oscar talked a lot of smack but we all knew who was in charge when it came to fuzzy monsters. I played with this puppet for years and years. I also had a Bert and Ernie, as well.

8. Bouncy Horse

I don't know what these are officially called but I received it on Christmas 1969 (I think). I played with this thing for years and years, too. This is currently sitting in my parents' garage and has even been ridden by my kids when they were little. It still works perfectly. I have such great memories of throwing on my Lone Ranger mask and galloping across the plains in pursuit of train robbers.

9. Talking Adventure Team Gi Joe Commander

I'm a bit unsure about what year I got this guy. I was only about 5 or 6 years old. I DO remember spending Christmas with my cousins (far away from home) that year. I remember playing with this Gi Joe while at my cousins' house. However, I don't recall playing with him ever again. I have no memories of this toy after that Christmas. I wonder if it became broken, somehow, and had to be returned. Strange. At any rate, I loved it while I had it and have very distinct memories of opening him and playing with the talking feature.

(the figure pictured is a replica...but a good one, right down to the box)

10. Six Million Dollar Man: Bionic Mission Vehicle

I still have this toy stashed away, somewhere. This toy was a lot of fun and had quite a few play features. I loved the winch it could lower from the side. There wasn't anything remotely like this in the TV show but I didn't care. It was just cool that Steve finally had a "ride" that wasn't a rocket/operating table. You KNOW you are heading for trouble when your space ship transforms into a bionic operating table. The makers of this transport must have deemed it "safe" since it didn't fold out to to fix Steve immediately after a crash.

My first Christmas. Yes, that Santa is terrified.

A few years later, Santa gets "payback."
Guess who's terrified now?

I hope you enjoyed this little trip through Christmas past.

I'd like to TAG a few fellow bloggers to see if they are willing to list their favorite Top Ten Childhood Christmas gifts.

Brian B at What My Dad Saw

Chunky B at Eclectorama

Bubbashelby at Toyriffic

If any other bloggers would like to do this, just add a link in the comments. Even if you don't have a blog, leave a list in the comments. I'd love to see them.

Merry Christmas, Everybody!!

Mego Planet of the Apes Zira

2009-12-15T11:31:00.001-08:00

Just about every line in the 1970s that Mego produced had at least one female character in it. With the World's Greatest Super Heroes we had Wonder Woman, Batgirl, Catwoman, Supergirl, Invisible Woman, and Isis. With the Star Trek line we got Uhura. With the Dukes of Hazzard line we got Daisy Duke. With the Planet of the Apes line, we got Dr. Zira.

When I was a kid, it was practically unthinkable to buy or ask for a female action figure. In fact, it seemed like the term "action figure" didn't even apply when it was a female character. Heck, Zira could have come chewing a cigar and been armed with grenades and a bazooka and I still would have thought of her as a "doll." These days, I'm too old to care...and if there's a hole in my collection that needs a female character, I throw caution to the wind and go ahead and "order it up" online.

Zira was a scientist and fiancee to the chimpanzee, Cornelius. She was fairly certain there was more to humans than meets the eye...that they were more than just animals. When she met Astronaut Taylor, her suspicions were confirmed. You see, Taylor was the first talking human any ape had encountered. After realizing how special Taylor was, both Cornelius and Zira did what they could to help Taylor escape the ape community that was sure to dissect him once they realized his special vocal ability and intelligence.

Zira comes with two brown boots, a skirt, and a tunic with velcro closure (pretty hi-tech for the 70s). She didn't come with any accessories, unfortunately. However, there is some nice embossing work on her tunic's vinyl panel. I have no idea what it says, though. Perhaps, it says, "Zira: Woman Scientist." It always cracked me up that the original Mego TV commercial for the Apes figures called her this. It was almost like code to little boys that said, "Don't buy me."

These days, Zira has a place of honor in my Mego Apes collection as the lone female character. I would even display her, I'm man enough.

....which leads me to a question I have about displaying vintage toys:

Does anyone else have an aversion to displaying vintage toys because you are afraid that old emotions and associations with the toy will be replaced with new ones if you have it around day-to-day?

Maybe, it's just me. Am I crazy?

Halloween 1978 Stormtrooper Helmet

2009-10-30T12:23:00.001-07:00

With Halloween coming up, I thought I'd post something that's vintage but not really a toy.

Back in 1978, Star Wars was still a very new movie. For Halloween, I wanted to dress as a Stormtrooper. I dreamed of having one of the Don Post Stormtrooper masks that were always advertised in Starlog magazine. However, desiring one and convincing my parents that I needed one were entirely different issues.

Sympathetic to my cause, my Dad came up with the idea of building a stormtrooper mask from scratch. I was SURE it was going to turn out looking just like the helmets in the movie. When you are a kid, anything is possible.

So, out came the newspapers strips and flour glue. My Dad and I covered a balloon until we had a ball-like shell. Once that dried, we added more and more pieces and paper mache strips to build up the extremely accurate visage of the Stormtrooper you see before you. Once the shaped helmet had dried, a white coat of paint, green eye cellophane, and sharpies completed the transition from yesterday's news to today's Halloween costume mask. It was great fun and an enduring memory from childhood.

White poster board that was cut, rolled, and markered served as the white stormtrooper armor that completed the costume. Underneath the poster board armor were a black turtleneck and black pants (probably cords, given my Mom's proclivity for dressing me in cords on non-jean days...I can still hear them. Cords...both clothing and an aural experience.) I wish I had photos of the complete costume. I guess I'm just lucky that the mask itself has survived all these years since 1978.

Here's the interior. It includes an elastic head support, a nasal breathing hole that vents on the underside of the chin, and even my initials made with one of those clicky label makers. It was fun to catch up on the news inside the helmet between houses while Trick or Treating.

For those of you doubting the amazing screen accuracy of this helmet, I direct you to the undoctored and purely authentic screenshot from Star Wars below:

Mego 8" Planet of the Apes Astronaut

2009-10-26T18:50:00.000-07:00

Who looks nothing like Charlton Heston, dresses like the Maytag Man, and has mutton-chops that would make a Rhinestone Cowboy jealous?

This guy.

This is Mego's Planet of the Apes Astronaut.

He's kind of a generic, all-purpose astronaut for the simian Planet of the Apes figures to attack, torture, and maim. In the original Planet of the Apes film, three men survived from their ship's crash landing only to stumble upon a hostile ape civilization. The primary astronaut, Taylor, was played by Charlton Heston and was the obvious choice for a likeness when Mego produced their astronaut figure.

I'm not sure if Mego decided that kids wouldn't care if this figure didn't look anything like Heston...or if Heston refused to allow his likeness for the toy...or if Heston was asking for too much money to license his likeness. At any rate, this is what we got. He was just called "Astronaut" on his package and in the television commercials.

He is made of completely recycled parts from Mego's Action Jackson line of figures. Action Jackson was a smaller copy of toy lines like Gi Joe and Action Man. Everything from the Astronaut's head and helmet down to his boots was recycled from the Action Jackson line. Even then, it was a bit disappointing that his helmet and suit looked nothing like the astronaut suits from the film. The least they could have done was give him a white suit.

However, there is something quaint and innocent about the fact that there once was a time when a toy company could get away with something like this. He was an astronaut and was stranded on the Planet of the Apes... this was enough for most kids and their imagination filled in the rest.

A complete Astronaut includes his silver helmet (with chin string and retractable goggles), blue jumpsuit (with GIANT zipper pull), white belt, and black boots.

Wham-O Boris Badenov Bendy

2009-10-24T16:40:00.000-07:00

This is a Boris Badenov bendy from WHAM-O in 1972. I love the name Wham-O. I wish I would have named one of my kids Wham-O, but alas, that ship has sailed.

Boris is from the Rocky and Bulwinkle cartoon. He and his wife Natasha were villains on the show. I haven't seen the show in so long, I can't really offer much more about his character. I believe both Boris and his wife spoke with Russian accents.

I do know that Rocky and Bulwinkle were created by Jay Ward (his name's right on Boris's back) along with a whole slew of other characters like Mr. Peabody, Sherman, Dudley Do Right, and Snidely Whiplash. Great, classic cartoons.

I had this bendie when I was in First Grade. There was just something so cool about how chunky the figure was...and I really dug the jet black rubber and white color scheme. I took him to school one day at Simmons Elementary in Aberdeen, South Dakota in 1973. The thing is, he disappeared at some point during the day and that was the last I saw of him. I guess that's what you get for taking a toy to school when you aren't supposed to. I think I only had Boris for a day or two.

So, if anyone knows someone that went to Simmons Elementary in 1973 that has a Boris bendie, tell 'em I'd like to have a little chat with them...Wham-O style.

Kenner 12" Large Size See-Threepio (C3PO)

2009-10-22T13:34:00.000-07:00

This is Kenner's 12" See-Threepio from 1978.

After Artoo, it seemed natural to cover Threepio in this next post.

There's not much to say about Threepio, the character, that hasn't been said a million times before. With that said, I will say this...he's shiny, he's whiny, and if he had spent any time on Dagobah he might have felt a bit briny (I'm here all week, folks). Bad rhymes aside, Threepio (along with Artoo) made for great comic relief in the Star Wars films. Unfortunately, I think that the widespread acceptance of these characters and their humor planted a seed or two in George Lucas's noggin' that eventually led to much more ham-fisted comedy in characters like the Ewoks and Jar Jar Binks. The droids' humor was perfect...ewoks and Jar Jar, not so much.

Kenner didn't really go above and beyond the call when they made See- Threepio in his 12" size. For all intents and purposes, Threepio is just a larger version of his 3 3/4 counterpart. He sports all the same limited articulation (neck, shoulders, hips) and doesn't include any accessories or play features. Such limited articulation on a character that has built-in spots for extra articulation is a cheap cop-out and one of my pet-peeves (I've noticed some of the recent Buzz Lightyear figures have the same issue... There's an elbow joint sculpted right in that doesn't move!!!) What you see is what you get and it's fairly easy to track down a "complete" See-Threepio these days as he didn't have any extra pieces to lose. However, he does sport a very shiny, gold paint scheme. Pretty, ain't it?

As a kid, his limited play features were a huge disappointment. Sometimes, I think I was made to suffer. It's my lot in life.

Kenner 12" Scale Large Size Artoo Detoo (R2D2)

2009-10-21T20:10:00.000-07:00

This is Kenner's 12" scale, large size Artoo Detoo (R2D2).

Artoo was quite a revolutionary character when he appeared in the first Star Wars film. He was shaped like a garbage can on legs and was not what we were used to as far as film robots go. Through the use of motors, puppetry, and sound design, he was brought to life as a character we all could love. I can't think of another instance in cinema before Star Wars where someone attempted to make a non-humanoid robot a sympathetic, fully-fleshed out character. We couldn't understand a "word" he said but we always knew how Artoo felt and what he was thinking. In my book, cinematically speaking, that's a huge achievement.

In 1978, Kenner released the lovable Artoo Detoo in the 12" scale to go along with their other 12" figures. I think they did a wonderful job of accurately representing how Artoo looked onscreen. Sure, he's not going to fool a studied prop-junkie but his proportions look about right and he's got oodles of detail and chrome paint.

It's a good thing Artoo is so good-looking because he can't do much else. His head turns and his legs swivel at the "shoulders" and the "ankles." He also has wheels to help him scoot along. No third leg on this guy, though.

The downside to vintage collectibles that are molded in white plastic (versus painted white), is that the white plastic almost always yellows over time. So, you can see that Artoo isn't completely white anymore but more of a cream color. Also, glue along joint lines tends to darken and show up on vintage white plastic (Vintage White Plastic would make a great band name, btw).

When you press a panel on the front of Artoo, a door opens in back to reveal the Death Star Plans that he's hiding from the Empire. There are two sets of plans inside Artoo that can be removed. Mine have fingerprints on them, and if I'm not mistaken, they look Bothan... go figure.

Artoo doesn't have much to get lost. He needs his two plans to be complete and that's about it... barring a missing leg or something.

His and hers?

This is a great piece and a collectible just can't get any more "Star Warsy" than a vintage Artoo Detoo giant action figure.

Mego 8" Planet of the Apes Dr. Zaius

2009-10-17T09:58:00.000-07:00

This is Mego's 8" Dr. Zaius. He was first released in 1974, also.

Dr. Zaius sort of presides over the science and religion aspects of Ape Society as the "Minister of Science" and "Chief Defender of the Faith." He's seen as a wise old sage by most of ape society. However, Zaius knows more about ape history than he is willing to divulge to others. He's fearful for ape society if the truth of its origin leaks out. Kind of like how our government hides the truth about UFOs, Bigfoot, and Unicorns from us...allegedly, of course. If they do, it's for our own good.

Mego did an outstanding job with the head sculpt on Zaius. It looks a great deal like the character in the films and seems to almost have every crease and wrinkle. He even seems to have that certain twinkle in his eye that actor, Maurice Evans, brought to the role. Am I seeing too much?

Dr. Zaius didn't come with any accessories. It would have been nice if he had come with a scroll or something, though. Nope, he'll just have to suppress the truth and torment humans using only his wits and hairy mitts.

A complete Dr. Zaius should include his fur-cuffed tunic, pants, and black boots. Some versions of Dr. Zaius include boots with symbols from the Ape alphabet embossed on the sides of them. However, the example pictured is wearing the standard black boots without symbols. It should also be noted that with all the Mego Apes, Zaius included, the hands of the figure should be sculpted with a hairy texture.

Mego 8" Planet of the Apes Soldier Ape

2009-10-16T15:52:00.000-07:00

I could go on and on all day about how much I loved the Planet of the Apes as a kid...and how I still do. I could also go on and on also about how I think the Apes movies and TV show deserve more love from the current geek community.

At any rate, this is Mego's 8" Soldier Ape action figure. The soldier apes were the "Star Wars Stormtroopers" of the Apes films. They all looked pretty much alike and wore the same uniform (they also tended to be fairly dumb). So, in the toy world, you could buy as many soldier apes as you liked and build an army without someone saying, "Aren't they all the same guy?" There was an understanding, as with Stormtroopers, that identical figures represented a whole bunch of individual soldiers...that all looked very similar (or simian). However, I only had one. I'm just trying to give the non-Apeheads a sense of who these guys were in the films.

The Soldier Ape was one of the first 5 Apes figures that Mego released when they started the line in 1974.

One thing about him that really bugged me as a child (and that I love today) is his fingerless gloves. He just has fabric pouches that cover all his fingers and make it more than a little difficult for him to hold his rifle. These days, I love the fact that Mego made decisions like this... Hey, it's just a toy.

Although his gloves were a bit odd, the Soldier Ape's costume is excellent for a Mego figure. They even included a bandolier and rifle.

A complete Soldier Ape should include his tunic, pants, black boots, gloves, bandolier, and rifle with string. It should also be noted that late releases of the Soldier Ape did not include gloves, but rather, vinyl cuffs attached to the tunic that left the hands bare.

I also posted about Cornelius from this same set and release HERE.

"I smell an ASTRONAUT!"

Remco Star Trek Phaser

2009-10-15T19:51:00.001-07:00

This is just a quick follow-up post to my garage finds post back in August. I had mentioned that we had a Star Trek phaser that shot disks but didn't know what had happened to it. A couple of weeks later, my Mom stopped by with a few more little things that she and my Dad had found. Lo and behold, there was the Star Trek phaser. No big deal... just thought I'd throw it on here.

It's made by Remco and is dated 1976. This was a time when there really weren't any active movie or television properties associated with Star Trek running. However, Star Trek toys were made throughout the 70s, even when there wasn't a show to promote.

Kenner 12" Large Size Luke Skywalker

2009-10-14T15:33:00.001-07:00

This is Kenner's 12" Luke Skywalker Large Size Action Figure.

Like the Darth Vader in my previous post, he's also from 1978.

This is the figure that replaced my broken Darth Vader and I've kept it all these years. At the time, I would have preferred to have replaced Vader with another Vader but it was not to be. So, I settled for Luke... Vader's son. I just didn't know he was Vader's boy at the time.

Having grown up on 12" GiJoes and Mego figures, I was a bit surprised to open this figure and find that his articulation was very limited...like a Ken doll. He's built like a Ken or Barbie doll, as well, with a hard plastic torso and rubbery arms and legs that only swing forward and backwards. Also, like Ken and Barbie, he has limited elbow and knee articulation. There's some sort of "clicking" armature inside that allows very limited bending movement.

Still there's something about Luke's head sculpt that I still like to this day. It's not trying to be uber-realistic and it's definitely not a generic sculpt. Mark Hamill is in there, albeit somewhat stylized. I definitely prefer this kind of sculpt versus a sculpt that's trying to be realistic and has gone wrong...as most of Hasbro's 12" figures from the 1990s exhibited. However, I do enjoy realistic sculpts, also, when they really hit the mark.

To be complete, Luke should have a white tunic, tan pants, white boots, black and silver "utility" belt, a blue lightsaber, and grappling hook.

If these accessories were released with a figure today, screen accuracy junkies' heads would definitely explode.

Overall, this is a nice rendition of a now iconic character. Today, there have been many 12" versions of Luke Skywalker produced by Hasbro and more recently by Sideshow Collectibles. However, this was the first 12" scale Luke and still deserves recognition despite it's doll-like qualities.

Kenner 15" Large Size Darth Vader

2009-10-13T20:10:00.001-07:00

This is Kenner's 15" Darth Vader "Large Size" action figure.

In 1978, Kenner started producing Star Wars figures that were the extreme opposite of the small, insanely successful 3 3/4 scale action figures they had released earlier. Kenner started producing 12 inch, sixth-scale figures of the most popular characters from the first Star Wars film. Vader was one of the first four released along with Chewbacca, Luke, and Leia.

To this day, I'm unsure what compelled Kenner to produce these figures. Don't get me wrong, I'm definitely a fan of figures in this scale. It's just that I don't quite understand the reasoning behind releasing these when they already "had a good thing going" with the smaller figures, vehicles, and playsets. I can only imagine that many parents weren't too keen on buying Johnny a new set of Star Wars figures in a whole new scale after having purchased so many items in the smaller scale.

As a kid, I was already vested in the smaller scale Star Wars figures. However, my appetite for Star Wars knew no bounds and I begged and pleaded to be able to get some of the new large Star Wars figures. My parents succumbed to my pleas...somewhat. I managed to snag two or three of the larger figures while they were on toy shelves.

My first figure was a Darth Vader. He fell off of a six foot shelf the first day I had him and the elastic keeping his arms attached to his torso snapped. Back to the store he went. However, replacing him with another Darth Vader was not to be (until 10 or 15 years later). The large size Star Wars figures were fairly scarce and another Darth Vader could not be found within a 20 mile radius from where I lived. I had to settle for a Luke Skywalker...but that's another story.

So, the large size Vader became the "one that got away," in a sense. I really felt the sting of having to give that Vader up. The sting of having it and then having to let it go so quickly. Silly, I know...but I was only a kid and girls and cars hadn't entered the picture just yet.

Kenner's approach to the large size figures was "all over the board," so to speak. Some were produced completely in hard plastic and some were produced in full "dolly" mode with a Ken doll style body and cloth clothing.

Vader is produced in plastic with his cape being the only cloth used for his costume. His articulation is very limited...only hips, shoulders, and neck. The only accessories that came with Vader are his lightsaber (gotta love that candy-like, semi-translucent plastic) and his removable cloth cape.

Despite his shortcomings, Kenner's 15" Vader is still a nice looking figure and is an impressive sight on any toy collector's shelf. Imagine how cool it was for kids back in 1978 when the only other Vader figure produced, up to that point, was about 4 inches tall.

Ideal Evel Knievel Super Jet Cycle

2009-10-12T07:30:00.000-07:00

The Evel Knievel Stunt Cycle was a tremendous success for the Ideal Toy Company in the early 1970s. Eager to continue the line and keep it a success, Ideal produced many different vehicle sets that used the same "rev and go" technology that made the Stunt Cycle such a success with kids and retailers alike.

One of those toys is the Evel Knievel Super Jet Cycle. This set was first produced in 1976, just a few years after the introduction and success of the original Stunt Cycle set.

Originally, when talking about jumping the Grand Canyon (ultimately to become the Snake River Canyon), Evel Knievel promoted the idea by showing off a jet-powered motorcycle that had wings mounted to the bike. Eventually, this design gave way to the, now famous, "Skycycle" rocket that Evel used to attempt his jump across the canyon back in September 1974.

I have a hunch that the design of this toy is loosely based on Evel's original idea for his jet-powered motorcycle.

Evel (left) on a talk show with his Jet Cycle prototype.

The red "jet pods" on the back of this toy actually have a function. When you rev the cycle on the Energizer, a wheel in each of the jet pods spins against a piece of flint and produces sparks (you had to replace the flint from time to time). The red pods fill with sparks and the sparks also shoot out of the holes on the sides of the pods. This was a very cool effect. However, it was dampened by the fact that the spinning wheels in the pods had a dragging effect on the cycle's flywheel motor that kept the Jet cycle from reaching the kinds of speeds that the original Stunt Cycle could attain. All things considered, though, the Jet Cycle was still a great toy.

I received my original Super Jet Cycle for Christmas in 1976. I'll never forget jumping this toy over ramps in the basement over and over again. In Montana, there was always quite a bit of snow outside during Christmas.

The Jet Cycle did have some improvements over the original stunt cycle. It was made out of a softer, studier plastic that was less prone to breaks and cracks. The original Stunt Cycle, although sturdy, was made of a harder more brittle plastic. This, most often, resulted in broken handlebars and foot stirrups. It was much more difficult to break any pieces on the Jet Cycle.

Like the original Stunt Cycle set, the Super Jet Cycle came with the Energizer base, instructions, decals to apply, and a white-suited Evel Knievel figure with helmet (at this point, Ideal had stopped including Evel's famous "Swagger Stick" cane with figures). A pair of extra flints were also scotch-taped to the front of the instruction sheet. It came in a windowless box with a terrific illustration on the front and line-drawing illustrations of other available Evel Knievel toys on the back. I love these kinds of illustrations from this era. No photoshop effects, computer coloring, or filters...just fantastic hand-produced artwork.

I'll bet Ideal Toys had a lot of fun figuring out what other vehicles besides a basic motorcycle Evel Knievel figures could ride across the driveway, basement floor, or roof. They came up with quite a few inventive toys before the line shut down around 1977. The Super Jet Cycle was no exception and is another classic Evel Knievel toy that should never be forgotten.

Lakeside Popeye Bendie

2009-10-11T13:12:00.001-07:00

When I was a kid...a very little kid, Popeye was the "Man." I watched Popeye cartoons on tv, played with Popeye toys and games, and even dressed up like Popeye from time to time. I had a real corn cob pipe and sailor hat. Ball point pen provided the anchor tattoos on my scrawny forearms. I even tried eating cold spinach out of can to emulate my hero once...ONCE.

Until recently, I had forgotten about the Lakeside Popeye bendie. I had one as a kid but it was a forgotten memory. After seeing a photo of one online, I had an "Oh, yeah!" moment and memories of having this bendie came flooding back.

This was produced by Lakeside in 1968 and was sold through, at least, the early 1970's. I do remember that he was sold alongside the Smokey the Bear bendie on toy shelves.

This particular bendie has a greenish sailor suit. Mine, as a kid, was bright blue. I'm not sure if this is from a different production run or if time has altered the original color of the rubber (since the green color is the actual color of the rubber used and is not painted). I have seen both colors in various pictures of this toy online.

I remember being very confused about Popeye's face as a tyke. Is that an eye? Where's his chin? Does he have two mouths (one for talkin' and one for smokin')? The sculpt on this bendy did nothing to clear up my confusion. This is truly one of those faces only a mother could love.

...and therein lies the beauty of Popeye..."I yam what I yam and that's all that I yam." Popeye was always comfortable with himself just the way he was and that always made him cool, in his own right.

Yours truly, about to deliver a spinach-fueled beatdown to "The Bomper," an obviously evil, up-to-no-good clown.

(Edit: I just realized that the bop-bag probably doesn't say "The Bomper." I looked up "Romper Room" and, sure enough, it's a licensed Romper Room toy. The clown's still evil, though. Hmmm. All these years, I thought it said "The Bomper.")

Mego 8" Penguin

2009-10-08T07:52:00.001-07:00

This is Mego's 8" Penguin from 1974. I believe he was released in tandem with Mego's Joker and Riddler 8" figures.

Penguin was a popular Batman character in the early 1970s. This was due, in part, to Burgess Meredith's fantastic portrayal of the feathered fiend on the Batman television series. In fact, Penguin went on to train a boxer named Rocky to be champion of the world. He trained Rocky under the alias "Mickey" but we Bat-fans knew who he REALLY was.

Mego's Penguin uses a base body that is a bit different than the standard body used on most Mego characters. He's a on a shorter body with a round, fat abdomen. Mego only used this body on a handful of characters (like Dukes of Hazzard's Boss Hogg and Superman's foe, Mr. Mxyzptlk). Since his torso is different, he lacks the usual waist articulation that most 8" Megos enjoy. In fact, he has zero waist articulation. However, all the other usual Mego articulation is there.

Mego's Penguin features a very nice head sculpt that really captures both his sharp wit and maniacal nature. It should also be noted that Penguin's hat is part of the head sculpt and is not a separate accessory.

A complete Mego Penguin should include black shoes, a screen printed nylon body suit (to simulate pants, shirt, and tie), and a nylon coat and tails (which is VERY prone to fraying). His hands should also be molded in white plastic to simulate gloves.

It's really a shame that Mego didn't supply Penguin with some sort of umbrella accessory considering that's a Penguin "trademark." It's really a no-brainer but Mego never was very generous when it came to giving their figures extra doo dads. They got better at supplying accessories by the time figures like Green Arrow were produced but poor Pengy will just have to rely on his wits alone to foil the Caped Crusader.

Kenner The Six Million Dollar Man Critical Assignment Arms

2009-10-07T11:46:00.000-07:00

This is Kenner's Six Million Dollar Man Critical Assignment Arms set from 1976. That title's a mouthful...but deservedly so. The SMDM toys were some of the best toys ever created. This set again demonstrates the great playability that Kenner injected into this line.

The set came with three different bionic arms to equip your Bionic Man (sold separately) with new bionic features. Each arm popped on and off easily and had a roll of rubber skin to cover the bionics to keep Steve's bionic-ness covert. It also came with a white short-sleeved t-shirt (complete with SMDM logo on the chest) to provide easy access to Steve's new arms.

The set features a "Laser" arm that lights up when Steve's hand is bent back at the wrist, a Neutralizer Arm with spring-loaded karate chop and neutralizer gun behind a door in the bicep, and the Oxygen Supply arm with oxygen mask.

A more thorough explanation of each arm's features can be seen in the instructions below.

I had this set as a kid but managed to lose every arm over time despite still having my original Steve Austin figure. I love the concept of this set and the opportunity it provided kids to add brand-new play features to a toy they already owned...vs. selling a whole new figure with new arm features (although Kenner did that from time to time, as well).

Am I just getting old or do they not make toys like they used to? I'm probably just not paying as much attention to newer licenses and toys.

Included instructions (front and back)

What My Dad Kept

2009-08-23T15:31:00.000-07:00

My Mom and Dad have always been good at saving my brother and I's childhood things. Anything that survived after we were through with it got tucked away in storage to be found as treasure at a later date. I know I'm extremely lucky as I often hear story after story about how someone's toys were either thrown away or sold in a garage sale by parents. Luckily, over the years, I've been able to find the majority of the things I played with as a kid.

This past week, I spent several days helping my folks sort through things in their garage to either be organized or given to a place like Goodwill (furniture, clothing, etc.). To my surprise there were still quite a few childhood things that belonged to my brother and I that I hadn't somehow come across in earlier "toy recovery missions." So, this is kind of a "down and dirty" post to show some of the things I came across this past week in boxes that were in my parent's garage. These are all items from the mid to late 70s with just a couple of exceptions.

Toy Guns - The above shot is a couple of toy guns from the 70s. The Space Astro gun is one of those light and sound jobs that drive parents crazy. The other is a gun that would shoot little plastic colored disks. I believe that this one may have come on a card and been Star Trek branded, despite it's generic appearance. We also had a Star Trek phaser that shot the same disks. I'm not sure what happened to that one.

Spiderman and Hulk Silly Putty Containers - Spiderman had red putty and Hulk had green. The putty is still inside.

Paperback books from the 70s - I had no idea that I had a Welcome Back Kotter book, at some point. I'm sure I got it through one of those Scholastic school book orders. For those of you a bit younger, Welcome Back Kotter was a popular TV sitcom (remember those?) that ushered a very young John Travolta to stardom (he's on the cover at the far left).

Kiss puzzle and book - The Kiss book is another school order book. I don't remember having the puzzle...but there it is.

Six Million Dollar Man record and books - I had always wondered what happened to these over the years. I used to love to listen to the adventures on this record. It's great to have the books back again, as well.

Superman pop-up book - This is a pop-up book from 1979. It has some pretty cool actions that the pages do when you slide a lever or turn a door.

Star Trek children's books - I love the illustrations in these and they are illustrated throughout. Good stuff.

Fisher Price Adventure people - I don't know a whole lot about these guys. They belonged to my brother. I'm sure there are quite a few pieces missing.

The Lone Ranger and Silver - The Lone Ranger still had a bit of residual clout in the 70s and early 80s from previous decades. This is a 3 3/4 scale set from the 1981 movie, The Legend of Lone Ranger. So, not quite a 70s toy but close.

Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica - This is a 3 3/4 inch figure from Mattel. They created these in the wake of the tremendous popularity of Kenner's Star Wars figures. I always hated the fact that they didn't bother to paint the eyes on any of the characters.

Clash of the Titans - These are a couple of 3 3/4 scale figures from the movie. Nice likeness of Harry Hamlin as Perseus...especially at this scale.

Micronaut - This was a very cool 3 3/4 scale (noticing a trend?) line of figures from Mego. I believe the concept was licensed from Takara's Microman line from Japan. Love these guys!! Although, I have no idea who this character is. He comes with an Egyptian style tomb to store him in.

Mego Pocket Heroes - Mego made a complete line of 3 3/4 size heroes and villains. This is what's left of my brother's collection.

Tron - These are figures from the 1982 Tron movie (close but not quite 70s, again). They are also in 3 3/4 scale. They are made of a semi-translucent plastic. Cool.

Star Wars Han Solo pistol - This, to me, is the coolest thing I found. My Dad made this for me out of a couple of other toy guns in 1977 before Star Wars toys started hitting toy shelves. He chopped pieces off, used part of a scope from another gun, glued things together, and painted everything black. Sure, it's not 100% accurate but it was close enough for me. I still think he did a great job, all things considered. This was at the bottom of a box that was headed to Goodwill. I almost didn't even look through the box...and I've been looking for this thing for years. Close call.

I hope you've enjoyed this smattering of stuff I found in my folk's garage... a little something for everyone, I hope. There are still a couple of other things I found that I will probably do a more in-depth look at in the future.

What a fun week I've had!

The Six Million Dollar Man: Maskatron

2009-08-21T11:32:00.001-07:00

Wow! Look, a new post! ....sorry about the hiatus.

Onward.

What's more dangerous than a super-powered robot that can disguise itself as your neighbor or your boss? Not much.

This is Kenner's Maskatron from 1976. Maskatron was introduced as Steve Austin's first enemy in the Six Million Dollar Man toy line. I remember getting this guy for Christmas, one year. My younger brother got one, too, even though he didn't have any of the other SMDM figures. He had a blast with this toy, anyway.

The three faces of Maskatron. Left to Right: Steve Austin, Maskatron's own human face, and Oscar Goldman.

Maskatron is based on a very similar character from the Bionic Man TV show that was played by actor John Saxon. I don't remember the character being called Maskatron in the show but it's a perfect moniker for this chameleon-like "robot of doom." If you think about it, Maskatron is a very similar concept to the disguised robots from the Terminator films. Yet, he predates them by a good 9 or 10 years. In fact, we need a Maskatron vs. Terminator comic book. Someone, get on that.

Maskatron was a very "feature rich" toy. He came with the 3 masks that would allow him to disguise himself as Steve Austin, Oscar Goldman, or his own separate identity. It was liking having 3 characters in one! Sort of like a robotic Captain Action, of sorts.

He also was able to shoot off his appendages at the elbows, knees, and neck due to spring-loaded limbs. Each limb has a button for shooting off an appendage or his head and also a sliding "lock" to keep limbs from flying off at unexpected moments.

A black lobster claw-like arm and a suction cup arm were also included and could replace Maskatron's normal limbs whenever you liked. The claw opens when the claw's wrist section is pulled back and snaps shut when the wrist is released. It should also be noted that the three large "computer chips" in his chest were also removable. To top things off, Maskatron also has a door on his back for storage of unused masks in his torso.

This toy had tremendous play value and even seemed cool to kids who weren't all that "into" the Six Million Dollar Man TV show. On a side note, it's a bit tough to find a complete Maskatron, today, due to the enormous amount of accessories that were included with the figure. More accessories means more opportunities for things to get lost or broken.

Still dangerous...

A complete Maskatron should include a beige shirt, black pants, two black shoes, 3 computer chips in the chest, 2 normal arms, 2 normal legs, a suction cup arm (although the rubber used is prone to deterioration after all this time), a claw arm, and 3 different masks.

UTGP?

2009-07-24T08:36:00.000-07:00

Under The Giant Penny

Mego 8" Riddler

2009-07-16T15:31:00.000-07:00

The Riddler is one of Mego's 8" Bat-Villains that was first released in 1974. That makes this guy about 35 years old, at this point. This is some old stuff. Wow. I'm beginning to feel a bit like the old guy down the street with a basement full of Hoppalong Cassidy memorabilia. Oh well, at least Batman and his rogues are still just as relevant today as they were 40 or 50 years ago. When was the last time you heard about ol' Hoppalong?

The Riddler was kind of a second-tier villain in Batman comics until the 1960s TV show popularized the character with Frank Gorshin's fantastic perfomance of the character. Kids watching reruns of the show HAD to have a Riddler for Batman to bring to justice and Mego obliged.

Mego's Riddler has a fun head sculpt but doesn't seem to be modeled after the likeness of Frank Gorshin. He also sports a green jumpsuit with question marks screen-printed all about. He also came with a belt that is the same belt as Mego Batman's belt except that it's molded in purple plastic. The Riddler did not come with shoes...he just runs around in his footy pajamas. It should also be noted that his hands are also molded in purple plastic to simulate gloves.

This is a great, vintage version of the character.

Ben Cooper Batman Jiggler

2009-07-09T21:26:00.000-07:00

This is one of the weakest, most pathetic excuses for a toy ever...and yet, it's one of my favorites.

This is Ben Cooper's Batman Jiggler from the very early Seventies...I'm guessing around 1971 or 1972. Ben Cooper's claim-to-fame was children's costumes but it appears that the company delved into "toys" now and again. There were several Jigglers released. I know there were also Superman, Spiderman, and Hulk Jigglers produced.

Nothing to see here, Bubba. Move along...

Just what exactly is a Jiggler? A Jiggler is a toy at it's most basic form. It's basically a 6" rubber figure with an elastic cord attached to it's back. So, you would hold the cord and "jiggle" the figure. That's about all you could do with it. These were REALLY cheap toys that were produced without packaging. These are a lot like the rubber spiders and bats that were plentiful around the same time. When new, each Jiggler had a hang-tag attached to it's elastic cord to let the buyer know the price and what figure they were buying. These were most likely sold at the counter by the cash register to tempt children into goading their parents to buy them something just one more time before leaving the store.

Why is it one of my favorite toys? This is the first Batman toy I can remember ever having as a child (this isn't my original in the photos....long gone). As a six year-old, I remember once asking my Aunt Carol (an artist) to draw Batman for me. She used my Batman Jiggler for reference and did a "spot-on" drawing of Ben Cooper's Batman Jiggler. However, I was hoping for something that looked a little more like a Neal Adams Batman. At any rate, I'd love to have that drawing today.

Just look at the sculpting and paintwork on this exquisite figure!! What a thing of beauty!!

In all honesty, this makes cheap foreign Batman bootleg figures look like something from Hot Toys or Medicom. It's that bad... or good, depending on your point of view.

Why?

Mego 12" Magnetic Batman

2009-07-08T13:33:00.000-07:00

This is Mego's 12" Magnetic Batman from 1978.

After substantial success with their 8" line of action figures, Mego started to go the "foot tall" route with some of their action figure lines. Superheroes were at the top of Mego's list for 12 inchers along with lines like Star Trek: the Motion Picture and the rock group, Kiss.

This particular 12" figure is somewhat unique, in that, it has magnets in its hands and feet. This makes it difficult for the figure to stand on it's own but allows for some fun play on the family fridge and what-not. Mego also produced a Robin with magnets, as well. This allowed Batman and Robin to perform heroic feats... circus acrobat-style. Hey, you could even take Batman for a ride to the supermarket on the hood of your car, if you were so inclined...thanks to his magnetic ability.

Mego, to my knowledge, never produced a 12" Magnetic Spiderman...which would have been an ideal use of the magnetic hands and feet feature. Mego, did produce a 12" Spiderman figure sans magnets, however.

One thing I find very interesting about this figure is the head sculpt. He has a very determined, grim facial expression that wasn't common to Batman figures from the 1970s. Most toys depicted him to be much more mild-mannered and friendly. This is not a Batman you want to mess around with...and don't forget, he's got magnets, too. Getting pummeled by magnets is not fun.

A complete 12" Mego Magnetic Batman should include his jumpsuit with attached cape, belt, plastic forearm covers, and plastic boot tops.

Mego 5" Bend N' Flex Batman

2009-07-03T11:13:00.000-07:00

Okay, here's the thing...when a company produced a figure of a Superhero in the 1970s, it was always with the intent that they were producing a toy for children to play with. There were no expensive, high-end Batman statues or sixth-scale figures like the ones that are being produced for the adult collector's market today. There were just toys...and some of them, well, they just screamed TOY!

This is such a figure. It's Batman, no doubt. However, this is Batman at the most simplified, silly, rudimentary level. This is Mego's Bend n' Flex figure from 1973. Mego produced a full line of characters in their Bend n' Flex line that covered such properties and DC/Marvel Superheroes and even characters from the Planet of the Apes films.

My kids just laughed when I showed this figure to them. My oldest son just shook his head in disgust. To them, it was almost inconceivable that a child would want to play with this toy and consider him to be THE Batman. This is Batman at his silliest and he certainly wouldn't instill much fear in criminals prowling around the alleys of Gotham looking like this. However, our standards were a bit lower as children in the 70s and it was always fun to get a new Superhero toy... no matter how abysmal looking it was.

This figure is 5" tall and is constructed in the standard bendy style... rubber/vinyl over a bendable wire armature. It's fun to look at the quality standards for paint work on these cheap toys from back then. On this figure, it's all over the place and looks as if the painters worked on these figures while under the influence.

All in all, these bendy figures were a good alternative to "real" figures when you didn't have enough money for a more expensive toy...or if your Mom was "brick walling" your pleas for a new GiJoe at the department store, you could most often snag one of these guys without too much trouble.

Kidbiz 1989 8" Batman

2009-07-02T19:46:00.000-07:00

Okay, I dropped the ball on "Bat Week" last week to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Tim Burton's 1989 Batman film. However, I'm going to go ahead and make the next batch of posts Batman related to make up for it.

This is Kidbiz's 8" Batman figure that was released in 1989. This isn't a toy from the 1970's and I hate to label it "Almost Vintage" as it's already 20 years old. I'm sure that's considered vintage in many people's books. I have a hard time swallowing something from 1989 being considered "vintage" but that's just my age "talking." In kind, I certainly would have considered something from 1969 to be vintage while living through 1989.

This Batman figure was released in Europe and Australia only. I remember running into one at the San Diego Comic Con in 1990 and wondering why we didn't get this one released in the US. I'm sure it had something to do with Toybiz having the US rights to produce their 1989 Batman figure abominations (alright, they're kind of quaint...in hindsight).

Kidbiz's Batman was obviously produced with the Mego line of Superheroes in mind. He's 8" tall and in perfect scale with Mego's 8" figures. He's also designed the same way with an articulated base body with a cloth and plastic costume on top.

This figure is a perfect example of how much of the merchandise of 1989 kind of "rode the fence" between the new movie's interpretation and the comic book's interpretation of Batman. For instance, Batman's head and chest emblem look very much like they were designed with Batman's comic book image in mind. However, his all-black costume, boots, and belt are direct imitations of the costume that Michael Keaton wore in the film.

This figure looks a bit goofy in person. He's got a pair of black briefs over the top of his black body suit that makes him look a little thick in the middle and also makes his legs look fairly stumpy. However, to my surprise, he's actually quite photogenic and looks pretty decent in many photos. One thing I DO like about this figure is the fact that his cape is large enough to wrap around the front of his body. This is a pretty rare trait for any Batman figure from any era or price range. Most toy companies don't bother.

A complete Kidbiz Batman should include his cape (vinyl with a "pleather" collar), black body suit with attached forearm covers, black briefs, boots, and belt.

1989 Batman Film's 20th Birthday!

2009-06-23T07:58:00.001-07:00

I just wanted to take a moment to recognize the 20th birthday of Tim Burton's 1989 Batman film. The film was released in theaters 20 years ago, today.... June 23, 1989.

Most older Bat-fans remember the summer of 1989 like it was only a couple of years ago. "Batmania" swept the USA (and the world) like almost never before (the "Bat Craze" of the late 1960's was huge, as well) and we are still riding the wave of Batman fandom that was started that year. For example, in the time leading up to the first 1989 Batman film, Batman toys and collectibles were fairly scarce. Mego had produced figures in the 1970s and Kenner produced a Batman figure as part of their Super Powers toy line. That was about it.

Since 1989 and the release of the first Batman film, there have been hundreds and hundreds of different Batman figures, toys, and collectibles produced. The Batman license has remained very strong and has benefited from many other films and animated versions of Batman. That's 20 years of an almost constant flow of Batman toys and merchandise.

The marketing for the Batman film in 1989 was a bit haphazard in comparison to the well-orchestrated movie marketing campaigns of today. The Batman collectibles of 1989 most often rode the fence between depicting Batman as he looked in comics of the time and also as he looked in the film with his new all-black Bat suit. At times, Batman was depicted as an odd amalgamation of the two looks. 1989 was definitely a big transition year for the Dark Knight and what fans would come to tolerate in updating and changing Batman's costume.

For the next week or so, I'll be posting mostly Batman items to commemorate the 20 year anniversary of this now-classic film.

Mattel Battlestar Galactica Colonial Warrior

2009-06-22T18:29:00.001-07:00

This is Mattel's Battlestar Galactica Colonial Warrior.

I don't have too much to say about this guy. He's supposed to represent one of the "good guys" from the not-so-successful-but fondly-remembered 1978 TV show, Battlestar Galactica. However, he doesn't resemble any of the actual characters from the show.

My only guess is that Mattel wanted to make a quick buck off of the TV series and used the available resources they already had to pull it off. The Colonial Warrior actually uses molds from Mattel's late 1960's toy line, Major Matt Mason. Major Matt Mason toys were small bendy-type figures with space helmets and lots of cool accessories. The Colonial Warrior's twin, Captain Lazer, was a 12" scale figure sold as "Major Matt Mason's Friend from Outer Space." He was kind of an anomaly as he was a 12" figure being sold in a 5 or 6" scale line of figures. I guess he was some sort of big, alien friend.

From what I can tell, Mattel's Colonial Warrior is nothing more than a redeco of Captain Lazer with a brown fuzzy vest. To be fair, Mattel DID release a Cylon figure at the same time that did feature, at least, a new head sculpt.

The Colonial Warrior is made of hard plastic and features very limited articulation. He has a backpack that takes two AA batteries. When you push down on the backpack's plunger, the gun (or detachable view screen) lights up.

A complete Colonial Warrior should include his brown vest and the "view screen" that attaches to his molded-in-hand gun.

Tagged: My Top Ten TV Shows of the 70's

2009-06-04T09:13:00.000-07:00

I've been tagged by Brian at What My Dad Saw to list my favorite TV shows of the 70's. This is the order I probably would have listed them in as a kid.

1)The Six Million Dollar Man

I couldn't wait to see what adventure Steve was involved in next. I would have given my right arm to be bionic like Steve. Also... Bigfoot. The greatest bionic man-ape ever!

2) Batman

We never seemed to have the right channels for me to see Batman very regularly. So, it was always a bit of a "holy grail" for me as a kid... constantly trying to catch an episode here and there at friends' houses. I love pretty much all incarnations of Batman and this classic is no exception.

3)Planet of the Apes

This show, unfortunately didn't last very long. I think it only ran for about 13 episodes. It made a lasting impression on me, though. It was so cool to see a new episode each week right in the middle of the early 70's "ape mania." The opening credits scared the tar out of me when the ape on the horseback raised his rifle. I just knew he was going to find me hiding in the brush.

4)The Incredible Hulk

The "wanted man" type of storyline boosted this one into being more than just a slugfest each week. The music in the end credits just tears your heart out.

5)Wonder Woman

I just thought it was a blast to see another comic book character brought to life. As a child, I was oblivious to certain attributes that Lynda Carter brought to the role. Lynda Carter IS Wonder Woman...end of story.

6) The Muppet Show

This show was really well done. It was always funny and they had great guest stars like Mark Hamill and Alice Cooper. No wonder it still has such a huge following.

7) Fantasy Island

Mr. Rourke was the man! ...and he always managed to teach his guests something about themselves that they needed to learn. So, in a way, Rourke was a bit like a therapist...with a giant, magical island for a couch.

8)Happy Days

Fonzie. Do I really need to say anything else?

9)Welcome Back Kotter

Sweathogs and chalkboards. I always loved the theme song to this show. Travolta will always be Barbarino to me. "Up your nose with a rubber hose."...pure poetry.

10)Charlies Angels

Farrah was a HUGE phenomenon when this show aired. I always loved the beginning with the exciting music and Charlie voice-over introducing each angel. Did anyone else notice that all three angels were both tough AND beautiful?

Honorable Mentions: The Bionic Woman, Logan's Run, The Electric Company (Spiderman!), The Donny and Marie Show

Mego 8" Joker

2009-06-03T10:31:00.000-07:00

This is Mego's 8" Joker. He was first released in 1974. It was great to finally be getting some villains to battle our 8" heroes. Batman was getting a bit tired of hauling in Action Jackson only to find that it wasn't a crime to wear a blue jumpsuit and sideburns.

In recent times, the character of the Joker has been subjected to a bit of interpretation. However, from the character's inception in 1940 all the way up to roughly 1989 when the first Batman motion picture was released, the Clown Prince of Crime had been largely unchanged. Just about every incarnation or depiction of him was fairly consistent. Since then, his look and back story have been evolving somewhat. Jack Nicholson's Joker in the first Batman film looked a bit different than what people typically expected. And of course, 2008's The Dark Knight changed the look and the demeanor of the Joker fairly radically.

Mego's Joker was produced when the Joker's look was still consistent with his original depiction. His head sculpt and costume reflect the look of the Joker from comics and cartoons of the time quite well. He looks like a very happy fellow...a happy fellow that has just tainted Gotham City's entire water supply with gallons and gallons Smilex toxin. He's funny that way.

Mego, instead of producing many layers of clothing, dressed Joker in an overcoat and screen printed body suit that resembled layers of clothing and a tie underneath. I've always thought this was a bit cheap and brilliant at the same time.

A complete Joker includes his overcoat, bodysuit, and pair of brown shoes. Also, take note that Joker's hands should be molded in white plastic to resemble gloves.

Maybe it's Maybelline.

Mego 12" Incredible Hulk

2009-06-02T15:38:00.000-07:00

In late 1977, the Incredible Hulk live-action TV series started airing and it was a huge hit. Even though my kids can't fathom how the show had such a huge following (they can't believe how small and human-looking Hulk is), it was one of those "must see" shows for many kids in the 1970s.

Mego, having already produced an 8" Hulk figure, released their 12" Hulk figure in 1978... right on the heels of the popular TV show. Sure, Mego's Hulk looks nothing like Lou Ferrigno's Hulk, but the synergy between the toys and tv show was there, all the same.

Mego's 12" Hulk features an excellent comic-book-accurate face sculpt. He also features quite a bit of articulation. To be complete, he should have both his purple pants and white (factory torn) shirt.

The Hulk is one of the "high marks" in Mego's 12" Superhero line of figures. Although, I don't like him when he's angry.