Debs – Page 22 – Vintage Action Figures

The Real Ghostbusters Super Fright Features: Janine Melnitz

Browsing back through recent posts on this blog it occurred to me that there are very few female action figures on these pages. Time to address that right away with The Real Ghostbuster‘s erstwhile secretary Janine Melnitz! Very much the fifth Ghostbuster in the animated series where she was voiced by Laura Summer and Kath Soucie, the character first appeared in the Ghostbusters movies played by the wonderfully droll Annie Potts.

This vintage Real Ghostbusters 5 inch action figure from 1989 actually marked her third appearance in the line and is one of the best in the Super Fright Features series (the sequel to the Fright Features).

1998 Universal Studios Monsters Lon Chaney Jr. as The Wolf Man

Lon Chaney Jr. – The original Wolf Man!

With Benicio del Toro currently starring in The Wolfman movie as the latest in a long line of cinematographic lycanthropes, I thought this would be a an excellent excuse to take a look back at the greatest Wolf Man of them all – Lon Chaney Jr.

I saw this Universal Studios Monsters action figure in the window of a second-hand store recently and could scarcely believe my eyes – although I’d known about this Sideshow Collectibles figure for years, it had sold out very quickly soon after release in 1998 and I thought it unlikely that I would ever happen upon one at a bargain price – certainly not in Rome, Italy! I’m a huge fan of those old Universal Pictures monster movies so this was a must-have!

Yeeeee-Haaa! It’s Bo Duke!

I know it’s April Fools’ Day and I’m sure that this action figure was never intended to be a joke even though many young fans of The Dukes of Hazzard must surely have looked at it and said: You’re kidding…right?! For as much as I love this 3 ¾ inch Bo Duke action figure produced by Mego in 1981, there is no way I can find even a passing resemblance to the actor John Schneider who played Bo in the TV series!

What’s that smell? It’s pine scented Moss Man!

The Internet is fairly buzzing this spring with news of the latest Mattel release in the Masters of the Universe Classics toy line – Moss Man. So here’s a timely look back at the vintage version of that figure…

If there were a prize for the most bizarre action figure attribute then surely whoever thought up Moss Man’s gimmick for Mattel with their 1985 Masters of the Universe 5 inch figure would win hands down! As if the the furry coating over what was essentially a green repaint of the earlier Beast Man wasn’t strange enough, Mattel thought that adding a pine scent to the figure would be just the right finishing touch.

Star Wars Variations: Grey-haired Ben (Obi-Wan) Kenobi

Back in 1977, the only Obi-Wan Kenobi anybody had ever heard of was played by veteran British actor Alec Guinness in the original Star Wars movie. Ewan McGregor, on the other hand, who would slip on Obi-Wan’s cloak in the prequels, must have been just about old enough to play with the Kenner action figures which belatedly appeared in 1978, but was probably still too small to have seen the movie at the time!

Ben (Obi-Wan) Kenobi was one of the original so called “12-back” Star Wars 3 3/4″ action figures, meaning that he appeared in the first 12 figures range which were featured on the reverse of the original action figure blister packs.

Winston Zeddemore – The Real Ghostbusters Super Fright Features

The Real Ghostbusters Super Fright Features: Winston Zeddemore

Of all The Real Ghostbusters action figures in the Super Fright Features toy series, in which the heroes of the long-running TV animated show sport wacky space suits and looks of terror, Winston Zeddemore – played by Ernie Hudson in the movie and voiced by Arsenio Hall in the cartoon – is probably the most imaginative of the lot!

There’s a lever on the action figure’s back which makes his head disappear – only to reappear when a flap then opens in his chest, to reveal a giant screaming Winston head, complete with tongue hanging out! Whilst this 5 inch action figure by Kenner is described as having 5 points of articulation the extra “fright feature” more than makes up for any other limits in movement.

E.T. 20th Anniversary Interactive action figure

E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial 20th Anniversary Interactive Figure!

This was a recent market stall find – quite literally, at the bottom of a box of mostly broken toys. Amazingly, this 5 inch Interactive E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial action figure was still in working condition, with plenty of life left in what are probably the original batteries! I discovered there and then that pressing down on E.T.’s head would elicit one of the classic lines spoken by the alien creature in Spielberg’s movie – “Home” – but it wasn’t until much later that I discovered, quite by accident, that his heart light glows red and his index finger lights-up to the words “Be Good!” if you pull back his left arm!

Happy Birthday Johnny Cash!

I couldn’t let today go by without mentioning the Man in Black himself – Johnny Cash! Born on this day, 26 February, in 1932, he went on to become an iconic figure in the world of American Country and Western music recording in excess of a staggering 1500 songs, broadening both the musical scope of the genre and its impact. He died on 12 September, 2003 in Nashville, Tennessee.

This Sota Toys Johnny Cash action figure has been enormously popular with both collectors and music fans ever since its release in 2006. It proved so popular, in fact, that the figure was re-released only two years later.