Just occasionally something completely new turns up. Earlier in the year Wotan and Terry Harle found the miniature SWORD spaceships, which were just brilliant. Well, browsing this morning, coffee in hand, I stumbled across the Morphy auctions Space sale archive from 2009 and, lo and behold, contained within was this fantastic Flying Space Rocket shop display from Japan complete with SWORDised header card! Looking at the header a bit closer below we can clearly see Task Force 1 and the Booster Rocket. There's also a rocket powered Gemini for good measure! I don't recognise the UFO or the trademark. Anyone?
Comparing the header card to the actual SWORD box tops below we can see immediately that the TF1 and Booster Rocket illustrations were lifted wholesale, even down to the SWORD badge on the Booster!
That is an incredible find, Woodsy!!!!! Those oics certainly appear to me to have been copied direct.
ReplyDeletethe rocket powered gemini is probably based on the 'X' series toy with the smaller red mercury capsule tucked in behind the Gemini. cant make out the logo - presumably the flying saucer is supposed to be the toy itself ? i thought they were watches! doh!
ReplyDeleteI thought they were watches too!
ReplyDeleteEeeek, what happened, Wote? Bad hair day? (grins)
I had a version of this toy, probably around 1964-5, although made in China. The centre sphere was printed tin. You ran the winged sphere rapidly up the metal skewer-like object, and if you didi it quickly enough, it flew for a short time. Like many other small space toys, wish I still had it...
ReplyDeleteActually, thinking again, I think it may have been made in Japan.
ReplyDelete