See also Marx’s Invasion Day Playset from the same period.
Archive for November, 2014
Sands of Iwo Jima Miniature Playset (Marx, Circa 1963)
Published November 11, 2014 Marx Toys/Playsets 3 CommentsViking Warrior Kite (Spectra Star, 1982)
Published November 10, 2014 Fantasy Toys/Playsets , Kites 1 Comment
The actual figure on the kite is not as cool as the illustration on front (which is slightly Warduke-esque), but it’s clearly an attempt to cash in on D&D without going in for the license. This happened quite a bit starting in 1982.
(Images via eBay)
A Portrait of Young Geeks Playing D&D (1985/1986)
Published November 10, 2014 D&D , D&D Portraits Leave a Comment
Via MainlyCats, we behold the tail end of a late-night session (the red splotch on the table was a candle) at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, UK. Specifically, the lads are in the kitchen of the Waveney Terrace building, a section of the university known for its Spartan accommodations. Or, as the UEA Alumni Association put it in 2005, when Waveney was demolished:
Much loved, Waveney Terrace opened in 1972; what it lacked in aesthetic charm was compensated for by a sense of community and character.
Read an account of Waveney in the ’80s here. There’s also a Flickr pool dedicated to the place.
Star Swords (Skyline, 1977)
Published November 7, 2014 Knockoff Toys , Star Wars (Original Trilogy) 4 Comments
So much goodness here.
“Soft inflatable fun.”
“Inflate Blade by blowing into valve with mouth.”
“Pinch the valve at its base with your fingers…”
“Draw rigid end of blade into collar until it fits snugly.”
You’ll notice that fake Darth’s sword trembles with flaccidity, while fake Luke’s (with Leia’s hair?) sword is erect and turgid with the Force!
(Images via eBay)
Kenner’s Return of the Jedi Toys: Rancor Monster Figure (1983)
Published November 7, 2014 Kenner Toys , Star Wars (Original Trilogy) 3 Comments
Beautiful. A classic giant monster toy—much more impressive design-wise than Mattel’s Kraken, in my opinion.
See some amazing German ROTJ toy ads here.
Familiar Places Activity Toy: Holiday Inn (Playskool, 1974)
Published November 6, 2014 '70s Decor/Design/Fashion , Playskool 3 Comments
“The perfect place to spend a make-believe vacation.”
The Village Green Hotel Brochure, 1973
Published November 6, 2014 '70s Decor/Design/Fashion 8 Comments
Isn’t it strange how we used to talk to one another instead of staring into our phones? That’s the first thing that hit me about the brochure. The second thing is the style of the place that’s being advertised. I’m not saying it’s good style, but it’s style: architects and designers attempted to make a physical space more appealing to the people inhabiting it, and a designer created the brochure to impart that sense of warmth and welcoming to potential customers.
Now that we spend so much time in virtual space, physical space has inherited the modern “style” of the online world: an aseptic and non-commital functionality surrounding a series of electrical outlets. Plug in here. Click here. There is no such thing as home. Keep moving.
The Village Green is “most accessible,” by the way, and “social events and group meetings are a specialty.”
P.S. Doesn’t it look like the kid on the bed is holding up a Darth Vader action figure?
(Images via eBay)
Tomy’s TRON action figures are here. Jason makes a good case at Contra Dextra Avenue that the second cycle is orange, not red, since Tron rode an orange cycle.
The price tag on the yellow cycle looks like it’s from Best Products.
Promotional Video for Atari Adventure Entertainment Centers, 1983
Published November 4, 2014 '80s Decor/Design/Fashion , Arcade Cabinets/Coin-Ops , Atari , Video Arcades , Video Games 1 CommentI talked about Atari Adventure, or Atari Video Adventure, here and here. According to Atari, the centers would be “the premiere showcase for the newest innovations in computer learning and video excitement.” There were less than ten locations across the U.S., at least one of them a straight up arcade at the Disneyland Hotel. It was a costly, ambitious enterprise that lost steam after Atari’s E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial debacle (Christmas, 1982) that partially launched the video game crash of 1983.
The footage includes quite a bit of concept art I haven’t seen, and I love the line: “Atari is dedicated to exploring the human frontiers of high technology.” Nolan Bushnell once referred to his business as “leisure applications of technology,” another nice phrase that’s become an overriding preoccupation of the first world.
Parts of the video were taken from another Atari promo from 1981 called “Inside Atari: The Next Decade” (below). I like the intro about the importance of games reflecting the “politics, the wars, the economic systems of the societies that create them”—narrated over some artsy footage of two white dudes in suits playing Go, an ancient Chinese strategy game.
2 Warps to Neptune 