One of the most recognisable and unusual toys of the sixties was the Major Matt Mason (MMM) Space Crawler. Fantastic design and unique appearance made it an obvious target for the plagiarists. Apollo Moon Exploring sets made a beeline for MMM stuff and besides some small white vehicles which bear more than a passing resemblance to the Majors equipment Paks, they plunged straight in with a direct lift from the Mattel toy, copying the design and colour scheme pretty accurately. Eldons Billy Blastoff line also felt that their astronaut needed a crawler, so they took the basic idea and made it their own, adding an extra leg to the wheels for stability. Marx line of mid-size action figures, Johnny and Jane Apollo decided to grab a piece of the crawler action too and added a large, chunky vehicle to their line, but took the time to distinguish it considerably from the Mattel design by including a glass canopy and steering as well as the extra spindle on the wheel.
Finally, not to be left behind, Tri-ang Rovex sneaked in a rare model into their 1970 line of toys, the MoonMobile. Taking a pinch of Gerry Anderson and adding that to the mix, the Tri-ang machine has a slightly Flash Gordon feel to it with its streamlined body. The figure sitting in the cockpit has more than a little Captain Scarlet about his uniform and the rockets included with the toy are from the Dinky SPV, so Tri-ang obviously making full use of their co-company Meccano! Wotan.
You big crawler! Woodsy
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