Matchbox Mobile Action Command Find

Like a lot of you,  my summer plans kinda fell apart in 2020, so I've been doing small day trips with my wife hitting some familiar antique and flea haunts. It's been slim pickings but it's still fun to get back to scrounging in a limited fashion.

The best find I've had all summer is this beautiful carded Matchbox Mobile Action Command (M.A.C for short) vehicle complete on Canadian card (which if you watch Toy-Ventures, you know is a fetish of mine).

M.A.C is one of those toylines I only purchase "in the wild", I refuse to look on eBay, it's just more fun and appreciated like this. This was tucked in behind something, it was almost impossible to see, I almost felt like it was waiting for me.

Here's to small victories!

We did a Toy-Ventures episode about MAC on Youtube.

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Toy-Ventures: Matchbox MAC (Mobile Action Command)

This week we look at a toy line that seems to always get forgotten, Seriously I get so many emails about Matchbox's Mobile Action Command (MAC) and it's wonderful array of fun toys, we even look at the knock offs it inspired.

Check out this Wonder MAC site:
http://www.mobile-action-command.de/eng/index.php

Link to the MAC Commercial:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWt6G08tZKc

Hosted and edited by Brian Heiler (@plaidstallions)


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5 Awesome things on eBay this week

Mobile Action Command Rescue Van- I loved Matchbox's MAC as a kid and so did a lot of you judging from the "what were those toys called?" emails I get about these. I never had anything as deluxe as this rescue van but you really got a cool toy for under three bucks.

Conan the Barbarian Neck Tie from the 1970s- According to the auction this is a very rare test market piece, The Superhero neckties were featured in the Mighty Marvel Mail Order catalog but I wonder if "Conan" and "Neck Tie" are a fit?

Dungeon Master PVC Figure from the "Dungeons and Dragons" Cartoon- I remember liking this Saturday morning show a whole bunch and being confused that there was no accompanying toyline. I mean some of the characters in the toyline got cameos but yeah....Well, lucky kids in Spain got inaction figures of the cast and they're pricey now.

Spider-Man Appearance Poster from 1977- If I didn't already have one of these hanging on the wall behind me, this would be mine. Seriously, Mall Appearance stuff is just magical to me.

Model Kit of the Spaceship from Quark-  As a kid, I loved Quark but it was cancelled pretty darn quickly so there is no merchandise to speak of. This fan-made replica of the garbage truck the crew manned would dignify my office.

Britain attacked by the Fighting Furies

The Fighting Furies sold a lot better in the UK and Europe in general, they even got a second series of Western themed characters. It is one of the most wonderfully made action figure lines of the decade.

PlaidStallions Fighing Furies Gallery

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M.A.C two pack

I recently picked up this two pack of Matchbox M.A.C figures, while i was fan of the series as a kid I have no memory of these. Its gate fold packaging with 3-D overtones is truly one of the nicest, most well thought out cards i've ever seen. I paid $25 for this, sometimes the best stuff is hiding in plain sight.

Matchbox MAC Air Rescue Unit

Matchbox Mobile Action Command (MAC for short) is a largely forgotten toy line but happily remembered toy line of the 1970s. At least judging by the "What were those cool vehicle/figure sets called?" type emails i get about once a week.

It's also a toy line I actively collect but with one caveat, I have to find it in the wild. In this marvelous digital age, I have come to savour the old fashioned hunt that toy collecting once was and about once a year, I find a MAC piece for $20. Last weekend, I discovered the air rescue unit and I'd thought I'd share some pics.

More after the jump!

Fighting Furies will make a big splash

I'll never understand why I don't own any of these wonderful Matchbox Fighting Furies figures. I should fix that, post haste!

MAC 1977

click for a bigger view

I am in awe of this awesome ad for Matchbox MAC toys from 1977. These two inch tall heroes were sort of an "International Rescue" type organization and one of my fondest memories as a wee lad.

More Mobile Action Command

The MAC Commando/Rescue Team

 This ad from 1976 makes me happy, Matchbox MAC (Mobile Action Command) was a really fun series of figures and vehicles that are unfairly forgotten. MAC never gave kids any back story (much like the Metal Men) and let their imaginations run wild.

Below is the link to the 1977 MAC catalog, enjoy!

Matchbox Fighting Furies Commercial

This commercial reel has sat on my desk for over two years, it's been driving me mad to honest. It did not disappoint, even though I honestly don't recollect the Fighting Furies, seeing 70s sensation Mason Reese pimp this toy line is truly a highlight of my year, behold the original commercial for "The Kung Fu Adventure" from 1974:

The Fighting Furies is one of the most ignored toy lines of the 1970s, check out all their cool goodies at the Fighting Furies Archive

Adventure 2000

I absolutely adored toys like Matchboxes "Adventure 2000" as a boy and  was really disheartened as an adult in the actual year 2000, none of their bold predictions came true. My Pontiac Aztek could not fly nor did I get any sort of laser cannon accessories.

You lied to me Matchbox!

More Trading Cards Part 1

It's been a while since I've talked about this but I printed some designs in the summer and have been happily sending them out with DVD orders and ebay auctions, figured this weekend would be a good time to showcase them.

Card #32- Stretch Armstrong

This was long overdue, seeing as he's an iconic toy born in the 1970s. It's one of the few vintage toys I had as a kid but will likely never rebuy as a collector. Those things can be timebombs and I learned my lesson years ago, so did an unfortunate mouse.

1978 Stretch Armstrong Catalog

Card #33- The Ghost of Captain Kidd
Ah, this is one of the coolest action figures of the 1970s IMO, this image was too good not to make into a trading card. I don't collect these either but wow do I think they're neat.

Matchbox Fighting Furies Gallery


Cards 34 and 35 tomorrow!

The Ghost of Captain Kidd

I've always really liked the Matchbox Fighting Furies line, a big reason for that was the Ghost of Captain Kidd figure. What a great idea for the third figure, make him a cool glow in the dark Ghost pirate. I'd put him in my personal top ten of best Glow in the Dark action figures ever and like a lot of things I admire, I don't own one..

More Love For MAC

I forgot to add this to "Toy Questions" segment I did a month back, this is easily in my top ten of solvable toy mysteries for people. Matchbox MAC were really unique, compact and perfect to me as a six year old but even when I was buying them, I had absolutely no idea what they were called. They were just "those little guys"..

Below is the link to the 1977 MAC catalog, enjoy!

Matchbox Fighting Furies Gallery

In 1974, Matchbox toys ventured into the action figure market with the Fighting Furies, a series of well-made Pirate action figures that had piles of adventures to choose from. Fighting Furies is often forgotten when discussing 70s brands and that's a shame because it's really high quality stuff.

Thanks to the generosity of Bill Frost, Plaidstallions now hosts one of the most comprehensive Matchbox Fighting Furies Galleries on the web:

In addtion to having the 1974 Matchbox Fighting Furies Catalog, we also have galleries devoted to the packaged figures and outfits:

Boxed Figure Gallery including the neat Ghost of Captain Kidd figure

Outfit Gallery

Did you know there was a second series of Fighting Furies Cowboy figures? No, that's because only European kids got them!

Ad Archive featuring Mason Reese plus rare foreign ads, store displays and even shots from Toyfair 1974!

Other Figure Galleries:

Potpourri of Coolness

Just a few random things I've forgotten to show off before hand. Firstly, I am elated to announce the DVD release of the Monster Squad television series this June 23rd. Not to be confused with the 1980s movie of the same name, this Monster Squad was a Saturday morning show reminscent of the Adam West Batman series. I can't be alone in my admiration for this series can I?

While many of us remember Mall Appearances through our child sized eyes, Stephen remembers them through his Spidey Mask. Heroes in my Closet is a fun blog recollecting the experiences of a man who played Spiderman for almost a decade.

And rounding out the Monster theme started is this rare commercial for the Maxx Fx line (from Max's creator Mel Birnkrant) even though it's an 80s toy, I've always been disappointed that Matchbox foolishly chose to launch the line with Freddy Kruger, thus dooming it. Try to ignore the 80s white guy rap and just take a look at the toys, we wuz robbed! For more Maxx check out our gallery:

Mobile Action Command Challenge

Matchbox's Mobile Action Command is one of those fun toys a lot of people had but have no idea what they were called. These guys had a real limited back story and I honestly don't remember if they had any sort of TV advertising. I was surprised to find out as an adult they were supposed to be some sort of "Thunderbirds" type organization.

Check out the 1977 Matchbox MAC catalog Gallery for more info.

Matchbox Mobile Action Command

Mobile Action Command or MAC is one of the most underrated action figure lines of the 1970's.

The concept is centered on the nameless men of MAC, an international rescue operation similiar to the Thunderbirds, each man has his own quasi futuristic vehicle. The combination of a 2" figure and attractively priced vehicle lured me many times and the lack of a back story intrigued me and millions of other children world wide. The thing I hear most about MAC these days from collectors is "I had that but never knew what they were called!"

Check out the 1977 MAC Catalog on Plaidstallions

If you'd like to know even more about MAC, check out Mobile Action Command Headquarters which has more information and catalogs from other years.