Palitoy Talking R2 D2

I love it when I get a new catalog and discover something I'd never heard of. Take this Talking R2 D2 by Palitoy of the UK (Same folks who made this) . I automatically assumed it never got made but was happy to find this on Ebay.

It's kind of rare to find mint boxed but I did notice this kind soul put up a youtube video of how he sounds. What a neat toy!

1979 Palitoy Star Wars Catalog

Mr. Action Fighting Men!

LJN's Mr Action was a lower cost GI Joe knock off that judging by all the parts and pieces I find, sold pretty darn well in the early 1970s.

This seems to be an attempt for LJN to knock off Mattel's Heroes in Action trading on Mr Action's name.

I honestly don't know if these ever got made.

No wire hangers, ever!

The "Joan Crawford collection for you and her" was a big hit in the pageant community in the early 1970s. Each set came on wooden hangers of course....

1985 Remco Toys Catalog

Remco Toys was in tenth year of being under the ownership of Azrak Hamway toys  and 1985 finds them having a wonderful year of creating some memorable lines that aped the popular themes of the decade.

This fantastic catalog covers such great lines like Conan the Barbarian, The Mighty Crusaders, Zybots, Ninjas, Warlord and the Pirates of the Galaxseas just to name a few.

It's a fun trip into lower cost and rack toys items, won't you please enjoy the 1985 Remco Toys Catalog?

More Remco:

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Double Knit Stretch Nylon Pants!

No fashion mockery here. still better than sweat pants and always will be baby!

Hasbro on Parade

Sadly, Jerry Lewis was never part of the GI Joe Adventure Team, his presence was to promote a series of board games. What a missed opportunity to have sets like "Search for the Golden Ladieeeeeeee!"

Super 8 Apes

 I was really happy to run into this Planet of the Apes Super 8 short recently, I have a small but growing collection of these titles but Apes is a biggie for me.

Super 8 films will always remind me of my local library and birthday parties, I always perked up when you saw a projector at your friend's house.

The store had more than one but cash is limited, so I chose Beneath because it gave me nightmares as a kid!



I hope to track down the rest soon, maybe even some of them fancy color ones. A boy can dream!

Novelty Rugs for Fun!

There isn't a single one of these I wouldn't proudly display in my home.

1979 Palitoy Commander Power Catalog (Super Joe)

In 1976, Hasbro Toys had abandoned the G.I. Joe action figure , the following year Joe returned 4 inches shorter and now in the future as "Super Joe" which lasted two brief years.

Hasbro's UK distributor Palitoy (Who was still busy selling 12" Joes as Action Man) decided to release Super Joe into the United Kingdom. Like a lot of their product lines, Palitoy did a massive rebranding of the concept. Joe became Commander Power and he was only joined by two other characters at the time, Gor King of the Terrons and the Shield. Judging by how hard it is to find the toys from this line, it's fair to summize that it wasn't terribly successful. However, it is quite nice to look at:

Check out the Palitoy Commander Power Catalog here.

More Super Joe:


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1977 Super Joe Hasbro Catalog


1978 Super Joe Hasbro Catalog

King's Road Collection

In their day, there four cut a swath of unexpected pregnancies that would have made Wilt Chamberlain humble.

Toques of Justice

It's Superhero cold outside today, choose your brand.

Show 'N" Tell

Gabriel's Show N Tell came out when I was ten years old, so I'm not surprised I didn't notice it back then, I was all about action figures at that point.

A really novel approach to the "Book and Record" format I loved, I can't imagine it had a long life at retail with affordable VCRs looming closer and closer....

Holding out for a Hero

I finally found the proper footwear that won't clash with my new cape.

Palitoy Talking Dalek Speaks

I was rather excited to reunite with a working Palitoy talking Dalek this past month.

This toy was my first "Big boy collector mail order purchase" at the yonge age of 13, I innocently sent $25 (US!) to a classifed ad in the back of Starlog.

The next three months of waiting were nerve wracking as I largely assumed it would never come but three months later, it did arrive and was glorious.

While I did sell that one for food money in college, it sparked a life long love of collecting and getting packages.

Below is a video I've thrown together to hear him speak and as a bonus, I threw in the original commercial.

Welcome home old friend.

The Final, Fantastic Fashion Touch: The Vest!

Oh, it's like the ugly duckling finding his flock of swans at the end!

Mego invades the UK

This picture, from the 1977 Palitoy Bradgate Catalog is so much like my childhood (and adult dreams) it's scary. I love a world where the Star Trek crew can mingle with the Fantastic Four and take on Doctor Zaius.

You can see the whole thing at the Mego Museum.

Le Dentiste

Found the French version of the Play-Doh Dr Drill N' Fill (blandly named "Le Dentiste") in a catalog and I'm still amazed this was a thing. How many kids didn't just instantly get dark with this?

Double Breasted Splendor

I hope someday to know the bliss, providing my grades are good enough.

Starbird in Germany

You know they call Starbird in Germany? Supervogel!

This is the most educational segment I've ever provided.

Entex Space Invader

If i had even minimum wage for every hour i played this in 1981, I'd likely have a paid for home right now.

PS Holy cow this was expensive.

Fill your Wardrobe with Summer Dresses

The Stepford collection : Now available at Gimbels.