Scoop's cool zany Zeroids reminded me just how big a success they were in the Sixties. Along with SWORD toys, Major Matt Mason, Billy Blastoff and Action Man, my Zeroids were never far away from the carpet wars raging in my bedroom. I can clearly being thrilled when I got one as a prezzy from my parents after I had my appendix out in Preston Royal Infirmary around 1969/70. Better than grapes that's for sure!
As we've seen with every successful toy line there's always a tailwind of clones never far behind. Zeroids were no different and imitations came clicking out of the woodwork. The biggest challenge any cloner faced with Ideal's creation was it's motor, so in classic knockoff style here are a few cyberspace examples of what they did:
Our friends at Durham Toys came up with the Astroid and settled for a simple clockwork mechanism to emulate the Zeroid's iconic forward and backward roll. It was part of their Sidewinders line. I quite like the detailing on this toy, which included the classic Ideal arms and hands. Durham often worked hand in hand with Tarheel Industries down the road, who gave us the US Project SWORD range, so I wouldn't be at all surprised if Tarheel produced a Zeroid Astroid as well.
Super cloners AHI, or Azrak Hamway International, never missed a trick either and came out with their own pirate Zeroid called, wait for it, Robot! Wow! That must have taxed their brains with that one! the arms are pretty basic flexi's with mitten hands and much of the detailing has gone. Still, they had a shot at a battery operated remote control. AHI had a pop at most successful toy lines in the late Sixties and early Seventies. TV's Toy Hunter found an AHI Lost in Space cloned robot in someones garage recently. AHI even knocked off Century 21's beautiful Moon Ship and came up with something equally as gorgeous in the process!
Dispensing with any form of traction altogether, our Apollo Space Exploring chums over at Imperial Toys went for the rubber look, producing these cool Zeroid bendies. Everything big was bendied: Planet of the Apes, Batman, Universal Monsters, they were all rubberised by various companies. I really do like the colours on these Imperials. There may have been more styles, I'm not sure.
Last but not least is this oddity I found whilst researching knockoffs for this post. It's what appears to be a proper Ideal Zeroid but plainly boxed for SS Kresge stores in the US. Simply called a 'Battery Operated Robot' I can only assume that this was at the end of the Zeroid craze and excess loose stock was cheaply boxed and flogged in chains.
These end of line re-brands are really quite fascinating and the same thing appears to have happened to Project SWORD, which was rebranded Project Moon and sold mail order by Regent Toys of London.
Are there any more knockoffs and end of line Zeroids out there folks? Don't forget, it's not Ideal!
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