Matt Mason was Mattel's man in space in the Sixties.
Could other toys have worked for Matt in his missions?
How about the Astro Launch FighterShip?
It sure looks the part with its black and white styling. Very Matt Mason. I think the box art may vary and the flying disks came in different colours.
The White Witch ship of the Star Wars Droid universe looks like it too!
The Astro Launch looks too small to be of use to Major Matt. Anyone got one?
Yes, I see what you mean, Woodsy. The design and B/W styling of the Astro-Launch does have a MMM look to it. I like the plastic disks which remind me of Matt's Satellite Launch Pak. I remember seeing plastic disks like this, which served as satellite's or projectiles, in a lot of space toys from a bygone childhood era.
ReplyDeleteI loved the MMM Launch Pak more than any other accessory set Tone! Maybe the Gama Ray Guard came close with kits baco-foil party popper ray! Those plastic rotor disks remind me of the MMM alien called Or and his ship. Never seen one but read about it. Not sure of they were ever made.
DeleteI can't say I've ever heard of a MMM alien called Or, Woodsy? Wonder if it was a prototype ? It would be brilliant to see a pic of this alien and his craft if anyone has one to share. Although I'd guess, even a pic would be very rare :)
ReplyDeleteOr was a prototype I think Tone. I've seen reproduced adverts for it in old toy reference books I have. He was a little squat alien bug, which sat inside a dome on top of one of those flying disks called the Orbitor. I think the disk was meant to be sent flying vertically by way of a foot pump stick. You can read about it on John Eaton's excellent Wildtoys website here http://www.wildtoys.com/MMMPage/MattelPlaysets/6356.asp [ a site on which our own Paul V, regular contributor and SpaceX enthusiast, wrote the MMM Knockoffs "Micro Machines" page http://www.wildtoys.com/MMMPage/MMMmisc/MMMmicro/index.asp ]
DeleteThanks for the two links, Woodsy. That's brought me up to speed... I'd never heard of Or before. Also, an excellent article by Paul V. Thoroughly enjoyed reading about the brilliant Apollo Exploration Set. A beautiful vintage toy to have in a collection.
ReplyDeletePaul is a great article writer Tone. Like you! That set is brill. I have one of those tho' its not complete. A full set has tons of parts in it!
DeleteI Can only imagine the hours of space adventure fun this extraordinary playset must has given kids and collectors alike. There are some very cool and colourful little pieces in that huge micro set, Woodsy. Sadly, I'm only speaking about pics I've seen... I don't have the set myself :((((((
ReplyDeleteHi guys. I don't think I've ever contributed to the fantastic pages - I love it all, having grown up in 60s/70s, a 'child of Apollo', playing with MMM, SpaceX, Marx Lunar Exploration sets, etc. (Actually, I don't think I HAVE gown up, yet! Ha-ha!).
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to add something to this particular discussion: With the advent of 3D printing, with the right 3D s/ware and (of course) a 3D printer, the possibilities for creating new MMM accessories are potentially mind-boggling! This is definitely on my 'bucket list', although I have to invest some time and money into making this happen, naturally.
A couple of initial ideas that I had were:
1) A Terrain Drilling Pak, a foldable tripod with a hole/bracket at centre to hold a drilling/blasting device, and/or 'canabalise' a Space Power Suit for its hammer device;
B) A scanning/observation device/devices like that depicted in Ralph McQuarie(?)'s painting of the Mooonbase astronauts for "2001: A Space Odyssey ";
C) A 'new' MMU Jet Pak a la "Marooned" (God, I love that film!).
Anyway, just some suggestions.
As I don't often get to browse through these wonderful pages, do feel free to contact me by email, as well: steve@salmonceramics.com
Hi Starfish, thanks for the kind words. Sorry for the tardy reply. I've been working a lot. Those are ace suggestions for new kit for the Major! I don't think we've ever featured anything made from 3D printing, certainly not from a reader of the blog. It has yet to become a household facility I reckon.
DeleteThe idea of Major Matt drilling is a cool one. Oddly enough part of Project SWORD's mission in the comic strips was to mine for fresh resources on new worlds, although no real mining vehicles feature in the toy fleet apart from the Moon Ranger, a sort of Space Bulldozer.
Like you say the Firebolt Lazer Canon might forma drill somwehow. If the turret could be up-ended and slid upwards it might act like a lazer drill rather than a canon! Cap Lazer looks a bit like a miner!
Bob McCall's 2001 painyings are just iconic and I can see whole realms of possibilities for MMM code 3'ing 3D'ing. Same for Marooned. The Liftng Body in it reminds me of the Space Gliders in the SpaceX and SWORD toy ranges. Its a pity Marooned didn't spawn any toys that I can think of.
If you have a space toy collection and would like to see it on Moonbase Central just let me know.
Cheers and welcome aboard,
Woodsy
Sorry, guys: The 2001 Moonbase painting was by Robert McCall. Oops!
ReplyDelete