Action Figures
What??? A boy playing with a doll??? Are you insane? These
weren't dolls, they were 'Action Figures'. There's a big difference
. . . Dolls are for girls, action figures are for boys, okay?
ACTION JACKSON (1970's)
Released in 1971, Action Jackson was largely a failure, and this
failure led to the concept of using the basic body on any variety of
characters. AJ was quickly forgotten, but he remained a big part of
Mego Action Figures. The many costume sets and bodies left over from
the line are still found in large quantities and possess a certain
charm. Undeniably hokey, often poorly designed, AJ is nonetheless a
broad and interesting line to collect.
BONANZA
Life was good at the Ponderosa Ranch in the mid-60's. Bonanza was
the most-watched program in the USA., the Nevada mountains were
still pristine and beautiful, and Little Joe was still a handsome
little heartbreaker.
And somewhere up in the mountains (or a company boardroom - we
always get our legends confused), somebody looked around the table
and said, "Fellas, it's action figure time!".
American Character toys knew a good thing when they saw it, and
the Bonanza license was a very, very good thing. At the time, the
company was primarily known for its baby dolls, but you just don't
pass up an opportunity like this one. And so, with features moulded
in plastic, packed with great Western accessories, and housed in
nice-looking boxes, the Cartwright family hit the toy shelves.
Each ten-inch Bonanza figure came with a gun, a holster, spurs
with straps, a canteen and lariat. Little Joe and Ben came with
bandanas; Ben and Hoss came with vests. At this point, you may
notice that we've left off one major member of the Cartwright clan.
Well rest assured, little cowpokes, it's not our fault. Actor
Pernell Roberts (Adam Cartwright) left the show in 1965, but his
action figure likeness had already been produced. Since American
Character no longer had permission to make an Adam figure, they
simply added a moustache and called him 'The Outlaw'.
There were horses for each figure - all came with one hoof up and
ball bearings in the grounded feet for mobility. There was also the
'Four in One Wagon', which came with seventy - count 'em, seventy -
accessories and could be transformed into an Ore Wagon, a Ranch
Wagon, a Covered Wagon and a Chuck Wagon. Yessir, life was good at
the Ponderosa Ranch, even the one made out of moulded plastic.
CAPTAIN ACTION
With a change of clothes and mask, Captain Action could alter his
identity into some of the mightiest heroes on the planet.
The basic 1966 Captain Action figure came with a form-fitting
captain's outfit, a sword, and a ray gun (making Captain Action
ready to fight both ancient Romans and futuristic aliens).
Alone, the Captain was indeed a man ready for action (and fully-poseable
action at that), but the toy's real hook was its bevy of
accessories. Nine separately-sold sets could turn Captain Action
into famous figures from the comics - Batman, Superman, The Lone
Ranger, The Phantom, Aquaman, Flash Gordon, Captain America, Sgt.
Fury and Steve Canyon. Each new set came with the proper outfit and
accessories, but the identity-swap wasn't over yet - to complete the
transformation, Captain Action donned a customised mask moulded with
the hero's features.
The prospect of owning ten different heroes for the price of one
(well, one plus nine new accessory packs) was enough to overcome any
qualms about buying a "dress-up doll". Kids scooped up the
Captain, and Ideal responded to their enthusiasm by releasing new
additions to the Captain Action line in 1967. New suits were a given
- Buck Rogers, Tonto, Spider-Man and The Green Hornet - but the
toymakers also brought out a new sidekick in Action Boy and a new
nemesis in Dr. Evil (no relation to the later Austin Powers
character). Both of the new characters shared Captain Action's gift
for role-playing, donning the garb of Aqualad, Superboy, Ming the
Merciless, and more. The line also expanded to include play
accessories (parachute, survival vest, etc.), the multi-purpose
vehicle The Silver Streak, a carrying case play-set, and even a
short-lived Captain Action comic book from DC.
Alas, like many of the good ones, Captain Action's multi-faceted
career was all-too-brief. The line was discontinued in 1968, and
Captain Action's separate identities all moved on to toy lines of
their own. The action figures and their outfits became hot
collectors' items, and devoted fans continued to produce
home-designed costumes and accessories to expand the Captain's
repertoire. And when all else failed, desperate fans realised that
since they were the same size, the Captain could trade wardrobes
with that other 12-inch action figure, GI Joe.
Finally, in the late 90s, retro toy kings Playing Mantis unveiled
a new line of Captain Action figures, including The Lone Ranger, The
Phantom, The Green Hornet and sidekick Kato. The comic book
superheroes have yet to rejoin the party (they have solo careers to
think of, after all), but Captain Action is not a man used to
defeat. That iron jaw and steely gaze may yet convince those
tights-wearing pantywaists to step back in line with the king of
dress-up, Captain Action!
COLORFORM ALIENS
In 1968, the Colorform company made a bold attempt at cracking the
action figure market with a set of seven bendable rubber "Outer
Space Men," each named after a different planet in Earth's
solar system. Although the toy line was not initially successful,
the innovative and fantastical design made lasting impressions on
those children who owned them.
CYBORG, MUTANT and ANDROID (1970's)
Cyborg was made of clear plastic so you could see his mechanical
innards. Mutant was clear purple with organic guts and Android was
black with a missile launcher in his chest. Lots of (inevitable)
expansion sets (to keep the kids amused and the parents poor)
including a rather brilliant green and purple flying saucer.
HE-MAN and SKELETOR (1980's)
 LONE
RANGER
SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN (1970's)
The Six Million Dollar Man action figure came complete with his
rocket, which doubled as a health centre for bionic folk. The Oscar
Goldman figure had a briefcase which would "explode" if
you didn't get the combination right.
There was a Bionic Woman figure too, but for most young boys,
that was getting dangerously close to doll territory! Infinitely
preferable to playing with a 'girl doll' was the opportunity for
your 6MDM figure to do battle with the range of baddies; Maskatron ,
who had swappable faces, and arms and legs that would explode (well,
drop off) at the push of a button on his chest, Bigfoot ('The
Sasquatch Beast' as seen on the TV series), and a Fembot (but not
with machine guns in her nipples like the ones Austin Powers had to
do battle with several years later!)
STAR WARS FIGURES (1970's)
It was every parent's nightmare. A seemingly endless stream of
plastic figures that were just affordable individually, but for
which you'd need to take out a second mortgage to complete the set.
Dozens of figures were produced in at least two different sizes,
along with scale models of hardware from the film and electric guns
that emitted a series of ear-splitting death tones - at least until
you played with them in the rain.
Palitoy's Star Wars figures were much smaller than previous
action figures at the time, and the moulded-on clothing was also
something of a revelation in the toy industry.
The original 12 back figures (so called because the back of the
packaging showed the first 12 characters to be released) are the
most desirable collectables these days. The ultimate figure to look
out for has to be the vinyl-caped Jawa figure, which can go for
thousands. There are many fakes out there however, so beware!
Just as it seemed there couldn't be a single thing left to
exploit from the film, the sequel The Empire Strikes Back was
released!
One of the largest accessories released by Palitoy for the Star
Wars action figure range was the twenty-three inch long Millennium
Falcon, which also doubled as a playset. It featured a movable radar
dish, opening cockpit and retractable landing gear.
The rear of the ship also lifted off to reveal a crew compartment
where the action figures could play holographic chess, fire the quad
laser cannons, practice lightsabre skills with a training remote and
even hide from Stormtroopers in a secret compartment. It also had a
battery-operated ''battle alert'' sound that was activated at the
push of a button.
WWF ACTION FIGURES
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