Big Jim’s P.A.C.K

I love these early catalogue pages for Big Jim’s P.A.C.K, which was Mattel’s clever rebranding of the popular sports and adventure character.  Anyone who scans this site probably can figure out how happy a memory this toy line was for me. This ad is still using the original storyline where the P.A.C.K is made up of […]

Toy-Ventures: Mattel Space:1999 Moonbase Alpha Playset

    This week, we’re heading back to Space:1999 and talking about Mattel’s Moonbase Alpha Playset. This neat set uses parts from another classic space toy line. Check out the original commercial here: https://youtu.be/CBEAa5O42Yg #space1999 #mego #mattel Other Mattel Space:1999 videos we’ve done: Mattel Space:1999 Eagle 1 Spaceship   Mattel Space:1999 Zython Action Figure ISSUE […]

1978 toy catalog with oddball action figure assortment

This past week I picked up a wishbook from a regional chain of stores called “Monroe,” mainly because of its cover and the most 1970s people ever (see below).   I mean, the only thing missing from this is macrame and a fresh pot of Chicory brewing. However, the more curious thing is the selection […]

Dungeons and Dragons VS Dark Tower

Which was better for Milton Bradley’s The Dark Tower or Mattel’s Electronic Dungeons and Dragons? I’m sincerely asking because I’ve never played either. Not for lack of trying, mind you. I was ten when the fantasy craze started in the early 1980s, and I got swept up in it. I tried to play Dungeons and […]

Toy-Ventures: Big Jim Kung Fu Studio

Toy-Ventures: Big Jim Kung Fu Studio New to the channel? Subscribe! ►https://bit.ly/3D3zxJK Everybody’s Kung Fu fighting on this week’s Toy-Ventures with an in-depth look at the Mattel Big Jim Kung Fu Studio playset. We also discuss the Martial Arts craze that inspired this iconic 70s toy. Toy-Ventures Magazine is now available for subscription: https://www.plaidstallions.com/reboot/shop Pod […]

1976 Mattel Sunshine Family Catalog

I’ve been quite open about the fact that the Mattel Sunshine Family dolls kind of freaked me out as a kid, it’s the blank eyes, sedate expression and well, even their name sounds like a Grindhouse horror movie. The Sunshine Family was devised in the mid-seventies by Mattel and seems to be grown-up hippies now […]

1979 Italian Mattel Shogun Warriors Catalog

Mattel sold the popular Shogun Warriors brand around the world and in Italy in 1979, it was simply known as “Shogun”. The popular line even had the foresight to introduce cartoon characters popular in Italy at the time.. Goldrake was sold in Italy and in France (where he was called Goldorak) because the show played […]