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In the summer of 1964, Hasbro Toys unleashed the dogs of war into the toy aisles with the release of the G.I.Joe action figure for boys all across America. He stood 11 1/2" inches tall and was made of 21 movable parts. G.I. Joe had a distinguished trademark scar across his right cheek. Joe was manufactured for abusive play, though he didn't always survive the firecracker attacks and the family dog chewing on him. G.I. Joe revolutionized the toy industry in the 1960s and was the granddaddy of all action figures. Just don't call him a doll.
The Golden Age of G.I. Joe Hasbro Toys originally offered four lines of G.I. Joe action figures: Action Soldier, Action Sailor, Action Marine and Action Pilot. He was outfitted with his branch-specific uniforms, weapons and gear. G.I. Joe was posable with his 21 points of articulation and came in four painted hair colors In 1966, The Soldiers of the World were released with foreign edition versions that included a German stormtrooper, a Japanese Imperial Soldier, a French Resistance Fighter, a Russian Soldier, an Australian Jungle Fighter, and a British Commando. Over in England, the Palitoy toy company licensed G.I. Joe from Hasbro Toys and produced Action Man. By 1967, G.I. Joe was given a mechanism to allow him to talk when kids pulled his dog tag.
G.I. Joe shifted gears in 1969 as the military theme was dropped to allow Joe to become an adventurer and explorer. In 1970, the G.I. Joe Adventure Team was born and Hasbro added life-like hair and beard that was flocked on the action figure's head. Whether he was facing mummies, spy island, white tigers, pygmy gorillas or sharks, Hasbro had him equipped with the latest gadgets and gear to complete his tough assignments. In 1974, Kung-Fu Grip was given to Joe to allow him to hold his weapons better, but by 1978, G.I. Joe was phased out. Yo Joe! In 1982, G.I. Joe resurfaced for a new generation of kids in the 3 3/4" action figure scale that was popular with kids due to Kenner's STAR WARS action figures. This time around, G.I. Joe was re-introduced in a smaller size and individual characters like Snake-Eyes, Duke, Scarlett, Stalker and Gung-Ho. The G.I. Joe Mobile Strike Force Team was a covert operations special forces unit that fought terrorists everywhere that included Cobra Command. In a multi-media blitz, kids could follow G.I. Joe's exploits in a cartoon series after school and in Marvel Comics with stories written by Larry Hama. Almost a decade later in 1991, the ever popular Duke was released as a 12" Hall of Fame action figure that conjured up the nostalgia for G.I. Joe in his larger scale. Hasbro once again returned to producing 12" G.I. Joe action figures in the Hall of Fame series and Classic Collection.
In 1996, writer John Michlig and G.I. Joe creator Don Levine reproduced the original vintage G.I. Joe action figure in a Masterpiece Edition boxset with book. Soon afterwards, Hasbro began releasing the Timeless Collection series that began to reproduce key vintage sets and/or other G.I. Joe adventures and missions that was reminiscent of the Golden Age of G.I. Joe. The culmination of the reproduction series transpired in 2004-05 for the 40th Anniversary in which Hasbro Toys re-released the majority of the 1964-65 line. Unfortunately these past few years, Hasbro Toys as all but abandoned the 12" market and no longer mass market produces 12" G.I. Joe. Occasionally, store exclusives will release special edition Timeless Collection G.I. Joe action figures in limited quantities. The Official G.I. Joe Collector's Club is the current torch holder that is still trying to keep the flame alive with release Timeless Collection reproductions.
I was born in 1971 and thus caught the tail end of the Adventure Team craze. My first G.I. Joe was a 1974 Sea Adventurer with kung-fu grip. I also got a Talking Adventure Team Commander and I had the Trouble Shooter orange ATV. I still have my original Sea Adventurer. In the 1980's, my younger brother collected the 3 3/4" Joes and I played together with him and his collection. I often read the G.I. Joe Marvel Comics series and that greatly influenced me to where I am today with my work in comics. I got back into Joe collecting while in college with the release of the Target Hall of Fame Duke that my mother gave me for Christmas in 1991. Since then, I've been actively collecting 12" G.I. Joes and other 1:6th scale figures. My son, Mitchell, is starting to play with G.I. Joe also -- though he prefers the small 2" Sigma Six, the 2" Star Wars Unleashed line and 1/35th scale action soldiers.
I am an active member in the Official GI Joe Collector's Club and I illustrated a comic booklet for the 2006 G.I. Joe "Fight for Survival: Polar Bear Attack" convention boxset that was released at the New Orleans G.I. Collector's Club Convention. I am also active locally with the Central Illinois Division of the G.I. Joe Collectors' Club. Both the national club and the local division are looking for fellow collectors to join us!
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Please note, the contents of this website reflects the work and opinions of Scott McCullar and does not necessarily reflect the opinions or views of Benedictine University at Springfield or any other of his affiliations or publishers.
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