Yes, I am an addict. I have a mania for buying dolls… er, I mean, action figures. It began when I was nine back in 1965. Yes, G.I. Joe got me hooked. Specifically, the G.I. Joe sailor. I still have that sorry pusher. He has detached arms held on by strings and the shirt that he wears. He is play-worn and so far from mint that he’s only valuable to me. I still have the Marine dress uniform hat on him, the sole surviving piece of the second costume set I ever got for him. The first costume, given to me for the same birthday, big number nine, was the frogman uniform, long since disintegrated into black rubber pulp.
Of course, it wasn’t exactly like my sister’s Barbie. Yes, the idea was to buy costume after costume, the drive for fashion being the primary source of income for Hasbro and Mattel. I did a bit of that. But in 1966 I wanted the German G.I. Joe from the Montgomery Ward Christmas Catalog for my birthday. Mom and Dad bought me my first Captain Action instead. After many tears and bitter disappointment, I actually started to play with it. Christmas brought the Aquaman suit for Captain Action, along with the German G.I. Joe. After that, Spiderman… Captain America… more Joes, and a 1969 G.I. Joe Mercury capsule complete with astronaut. Man! What you could get back then for less than twenty dollars!
So this is the foundation of my obsession. Of course, as a child I did not have my own money to spend. I always wanted more than birthdays and Christmases could account for. Once I became an adult and had my own money… look out! I could’ve impoverished myself had I not established the rules for my personal collection. Twelve inch action figures are rule number one. Rule number two is twenty dollars or less. I try hard not to break those rules. The collection has grown all out of proportion.
I got married, and that had an effect on my addiction too. I began to buy Barbie action figures too. (Heck, she’s a twelve inch figure too.) I had kids too, but never even thought of using that as an excuse. I bought Barbies for my beautiful wife, but if I bought action figures for my kids, then they wouldn’t be mine, and how do you explain to a six year old that you can’t actually play with that cool Batman figure?
I am showing off a few of my figures here and now. Maybe more will come later. But for now, it’s enough to get this terrible secret off my conscience.
Gandalf is a 12 inch action figure bought from a sale table at Kaybee Toys. He was $8.99 because someone had pilfered the sword from his scabbard.
Wolverine is a pose-able PVC action figure, and 12 inches tall. He cost $9.99 at Toys-R-Us.
Batgirl came from the Warner Brothers Store for $9.99.
Daredevil from Walmart. $7.99
Catch a Falling Star 