Mattel sold Big Jim, the ten-inch answer to GI Joe from 1973 to 1977 in the US.  During that time, Big Jim was mostly a sportsman with the last two years being a pseudo-spy adventurer with “Big Jim’s Pack.”  Big Jim continued in International markets into about 1988, but there was one more push for […]

In 2000, a small company named N2 Toys released figures from the Matrix trilogy in various sizes, including a 1/6th scale. “N2Toys” was originally founded as “Warner Brothers Toys” by one of the Kenner Executives.  Most of the staff had worked at Kenner at one time also. At the time, it has a loose association […]

Part one of “Having a Blast with GI Joe” discussed the grenades and smaller explosive accessories for Joe. Part two will discuss the larger ordinance. GI Joe Bomb Disposal bomb Although this figure was a higher price point and targeted to collectors, I pushed for making the bomb have a feature while keeping it still […]

Vintage GI Joe Grenades – GI Joe Action Soldier Combat pack The first GI Joes that I played with were the vintage Action Marines and Action Soldiers. Of course, they were not vintage at that time. During my backyard battles, front yard battles, vacant lot battles, and alley battles, grenades were indispensable equipment. At least […]

When superhero action figures started to make their appearance on toy shelves in the early 1960s, they were mostly versions of little green army men.  If you were lucky, you found one of the great six-inch poly figures created by Marx.. During this time, they released a set of Marvel superheroes of Thor, Spiderman, Daredevil, […]

GI Joe Saluting Hands in White Gloves There is a fun story behind the GI Joe Millennium Salute.  If you have never played with this figure, there is a lever on its back that when you pull it down, it causes the arm to turn and elbow to flip up into a crisp salute.  On […]

Not everyone would agree with me, but I believe the hands-on 1/6th scale figures are extremely important. I believe they absolutely are to kids and collectors, but most employees in toy companies do not understand the significance.  Many times, I turned down buying figures because the hands were useless.  My definition of useless in this […]

When I first started working at Mattel in 1984, I poured through every toy catalog I could find.  Any that I found tossed in a throw-away pile became part of my personal library.  Not only was I reliving my youth seeing old toys that I played with, but I also was able to see some […]

Electronics are a typical part of modern toys and even the vintage GI Joes.  There were only a few Classic Collection Joes which came with electronics such as the lights and motor sounds of the Five Star Jeep or the propeller-driven Sea Sled. Since the large GI Joes were so expensive to begin with, it […]