So Much Wrong

So the official Playboy sleep wear is a dress a like man dress? Didn't Hef live in pajamas?

Also, what's with Fran Tarkenton's expression in this picture? Lastly, why do they never have merchandise like this for Juggs?

The Empire hadn't yet struck back

1979 made for some pretty wild Star Wars toys with the sequel still months away, Kenner started deviating from the first film. I must have been getting into The Black Hole at the time because I missed out on toys like the Imperial Troop Transport. The Remote Controlled Sand Crawler was the feature attraction at a birthday party I got invited to that year, every other guest gave the kid a jawa.

Thrown in at the bottom of this page was mystery man Boba Fett, I got this doll for Christmas that year despite not knowing who he really was.

1978 is the year of the Home Computer!

Yeah, like this'll catch on......

I'm pretty sure this is the computer my girlfriend in college had in her dorm room.

Sleep Tight Tony Manero Jr.....

Saturday Night Fever didn't garner a ton of merchandise save for the soundtrack, some gumcards (which I will admit I bought) and this bedding set. I realize the power of Travolta but this movie with it's adult themes and language seems like a strange kid's bed set.

Space:1976 The Future Was Fantastic!

One of the reasons I began collecting toys was my love for Space:1999 merchandise, so these Mattel Space:1999 toy offerings from 1976 are something I'm really hyped about bringing to the site.

Now, Fight Like Apes!

Apes + Army Men = Bliss

I'd have played with this for an entire summer as a kid.

Staged Catalog Fun

Stuff like this always makes me laugh, like a photographer said "OK guys, frolic and act silly" because you know, all men do this......

"Hey what's your number?" Brick is wearing the "Smoothy Belt" in this piece.

Style Sensations

More Put Togethers pain, the pants, jacket and shirt of this ensemble seem to be fighting.

Vintage Toys I saw at Wizard World

I should almost call this post "stuff that tempted me" as I posted at the Megomuseum Blog, I attended Wizard World this weekend in Chicago and was blown away by the amount of vintage toys available. I'm tired, so let's just go through my photo's and I'll get back to catalogs tomorrow, I promise. Above is a boxed Remco Climbing Spider-Man, a shorter version of Energized Spider-man, it was sooooo minty. (pic courtesy of Heroes)

A full set of 12 backs in very nice condition, I don't know how I'll ever swing it but one day these will be mine.

Actually, I was surprised by the amount of decent "entry level" (meaning cheap) vintage Star Wars pieces available at this show. I'm officially on the wagon when it comes to Lucas, so it was bothersome.

The Monsterizer just plain bothered me, I collect Remco Mini Monsters and this is just like, the neatest toy ever. I don't know why but I held out and bought a carded Mego Planet of the Ape instead, he's a very pretty ape though......

I can't believe I forgot to show this pic of SuperPowers toys, such a beautiful, classic line and really hard not to stare at.

FIsher Price Toy Love

It's not often I give myself flashbacks but that's what happened with this 1977 Fisher Price Toy Catalog., Starting with crib toys and moving to the point where you traded in your little people for adventure people, you might find something you had on every page.

Viewmaster Gift Sets

My dad used to sell Viewmasters, so I've always kind of dug them. My kids can watch anything they want whenever they want, so I guess viewmasters won't be the big deal they were for me. If you look at some of them today, the amount of care that went into them is pretty noticeable.

These gift sets were something I always wanted to have, I've never seen the "Science Fiction" pack before, anybody have it? What reels came with it.

Christmas is a Disco Shirt

I was unaware of this custom but according to this catalog, it's some sort of tradition. I love anything Disco in catalogs, they always have somebody looking goofy, like the gentleman at the bottom right...

Space Warriors

I love knockoffs, these "Alien Warriors" and "Fighters from Afar" from Tomland (which was part of Marx) went by a lot of names. "Star Raiders", "Creatures from Other Worlds", "Famous Monsters of Legend", the Wards catalog gave them the "nudge, nudge, wink, wink" name of "Kantina Kooks"!

Note how much "Flash" (bottom middle) resembles a certain wookie.....

Galactic Slumber Wear

I'm not sure what weight lifting has to do with Star Wars Pajamas but somebody at Aldens thought they mixed. What's more intriguing is the set of Micronauts PJs pictured at the bottom, I wonder if any of those survived?

70's Superhero Mall Appearances

Thanks to the generous donation of our blog readers I have some fantastic new images of 70's mall appearances by Superheroes, Jawas, Micronauts, Apes and even Lee Majors! This is a subject I will admit to being obsessed with so if you have photos like these and want to share please drop us a line, I'll send you a prize pack for your troubles!

Put Togethers Claim Another Victim

Not only are "Put Togethers" the goofiest clothing line since "Man Mates" but they've incorporated Plaidstallions mascot Brick Mantooth into the mix. Nooooooooooo!

Actually, this is the kind of stuff my Uncle Bob wears to family gatherings, the fashion train stopped for him.

Why I love Catalogs

For me, my enjoyment of catalogs boils down to images such as this G.I. Joe page and a single moment in time. When I was two years of age, I caught croup something bad and had to be left in the hospital. I was panicked and inconsolable, my mother remembered having an Eaton's catalog on her and gave it to me, I went silent. Apparently I didn't even say goodbye, something I'm still reminded of to this day.

Thanks to everyone for making July the best month plaidstallions has ever had, we've been growing steadily for the last eight months but July was over the top. I'm glad I'm not alone in my love of this material.

Fisher Price Impulse Buys

Well this was inevitible, after a family trip to an antique mall I officially began collecting Fisher Price Adventure people. Although I resisted the urge for years, I blame this site and blog as the reason I did this.

The Adventure People were some amazing toys though, I spent many happy hours playing with this set. Unlike many of the other items in my toy room, this is one the piece my kids will be able to touch and play with any time they like.

The Stepford Family

Smiles, everyone, smiles....

Best Star Wars Ad Ever

So I was reading a Man From Atlantis comic to my son ( how this kid is popular with a dad like me I'll never know ) and we came to this ad. This one really took me back to a time when Star Wars was all shiny and new, ads like this served as your action figure checklist. The art, provided by the Kubert school is also wonderfully slightly off model, love it!

Oh and German superstar "Hans Solo" is awesome.

Yet Another Smelly Old Lingerie Catalog.....

Even though I swore I'd never do it again there was something fun about the previous House of Kesman Lingerie catalog so I had to find another. This one is more of the same with models that slightly resemble your aunt with airbrushed nipples showing off the finest in non breathable bedroom fabrics. Oh and ladies? There's a little eeeewww-la-la for you too......

Disclaimer: Eventhough it seems impossible, it might be prudent to deem this page NSFW as it does feature scantily clad ladies.

Cool Reasons to Rummage in your Parents Basement

Gumcards! Gumcards! Gumcards!

Vintage Valentines

What's left of childhood friends.

I also found several old Eaton's catalogs, I can't believe I moved out of there without this stuff. My wife was thrilled to see me pull up with a "basementy smelling" box.....

Salute!

These Hee Haw inspired dress alike outfits remind me of cornpone erotic films of the early seventies like "The Pig Keeper's Daughter" and "Sassy Sue" but maybe that's just me.......

Carson City : One Cool Cardboard Town

I don't own any of the Gabriel Lone Ranger series nor did I as a kid but I do have a lot of respect for it. It's one of the best made toy lines of the 70's and holds it own. Case in point this Carson City playset, what a quality product this is. I'm a playset junky mind you....

Previous Lone Ranger Musings

Happy Monday!

Everything's coming up POSIES!

Am I Normal?

I was shown this sex ed film in grade nine, thanks to the magic of the youtube, I can now relive it. Made in the late seventies and looking it, I even remember my gym teacher laughing. I couldn't believe how much of this I remembered twenty three years later.

Boys have baseball bats, girls have catcher's mitts

doing his research

Being a zookeeper, I see a lot of penis

AMT Model Catalog from 1975

AMT was a pretty big deal in the mid seventies, they had some terrific car model kits but for those whose tastes ran geekier they had an amzing line of kits based on Star Trek. I can't tell you how many of these great kits I ruined with my crummy gluemanship and sloppy testors paint jobs. Check out what was new for AMT in 1975 here.

Thanks to Mike Rogers, I can see what the kits were supposed to turn out like.....

Put Togethers Aren't Just For Fellas

Even ladies aren't safe from the fashion massacre that is the Put Together. More on this all July, it doesn't get better, I assure you.

More Welcoming Back for Mr Kotter

Seeing as Gabe Kaplan is making news as an author these days it seems cool to revisit the Mattel Welcome Back Kotter dolls. The classroom playset had a record so you could reenact your favourite moments, the Sweathogs motorcycle was a clever recycling of Big Jim's motor cross bike. Mattel never throws anything out!

Swimsuit Tuesday

Seriously, I like this bathing suit, it's kind of "star trekish" in a sort of sexy way.

The Ultimate Outfit

That red number in the corner is the piece I have been looking for, it's what I plan on wearing to weddings of people I don't really like.

Does anyone else hate the word "slacks"?

1977 True Value Toy Catalog

Today, we go back 30 years (!) to the 1977 True Value Toy Catalog to look at some of the hot items of the day, it was a banner year for toys with memorable items such as Telestar, Stretch Monster, Fuzzy Pumper Barber shop, The Sunshine Family, Pulsar, Charlies Angels and so much more.......

Previous True Value Toy Catlogs on Plaidstallions:

1974 1976 1978

Batteries not Included

Remote Control seemed to come on real strong in the late 70's, wireless toys became more cost effective I guess. I had the remote controlled R2-D2 (which broke quickly!) and remember desiring Tobor greatly. That Batmobile by Remco would have been killer too.

Put Togethers : A New Name For Terror

Not content to let JC Penney's Man Mates collection roam the earth unchallenged as the world's only "Permanent Bachelor Wear" so Monkey Wards came up with "Put Togethers" a series of outfits that should have made God angry. All this month we'll be featuring new put togethers, leaving you to judge which line is worse. For now, enjoy Captain Lime and the Pastel Force.

More Rack Toys at Plaidstallions.com

Two killer updates to the rack toys section at plaidstallions.com, the first being this very rare Filmation Space Sentinels Magnetic Figure. This is one of the only pieces of merchandise I have ever seen for this series.

I remember reading about this Ghost Rider set in a heroes world comic back in the day, I was disappointed when I finally saw it. I always assumed it was a mego figure as a kid..

Be Careful Who You Look Up To

"As your mentor, I think you should buy this stylish ensemble Billy"

The Six Million Dollar Man with Bionic Grip

a little six million dollar love this weekend

Ready Ranger : a whole mess of promises

I've always been intrigued by the Ready Ranger pack, in comic ads and catalogues it seems to make a lot of promises. I mean, Power Pack, signal light, compass, weather forecaster, PA and a compass? If that all worked it would be so bad ass. I've heard from friends that this was not the case however. Anybody have it?

The Adventures of Big Red?

I found this odd toyline in a spiegel's 1974 Christmas catalogue recently. I was first caught by his resemblance to Dr. Quest but then I started to recognize the pieces. Big Red is actually better known as "Mr. Action," a G.I. Joe wannabe produced by LJN that we all probably have pieces of in our toyboxes and didn't even know it. I still have that flightsuit.

Pieces from this line appeared in several G.I. Joe catalogue pages and the dolls themselves were sold worldwide, just under many different names and aliases. You can't fool me Big Red if indeed that is your real name......

Other Forms of Child Abuse

I think this explains itself.