If like me you know little about Topper's Johnny Lightning die-casts then this 10 minute film from a couple of US die-cast enthusiasts may help differentiate them from Superfast and Hot Wheels.
There's not too much on Johnny and more on Superfast but it's great to see all these mint packages and the lady's voice is hypnotic!
From 5 years ago on You Tube.
Have you got any of these cars?
What beautiful condition those models are in. I think I might have had the Matchbox Superfast No45, but I would need to check. Not sure if Johnny Lightning ever made it to NZ, I certainly do not remember them. Here, it was mainly Matchbox; Husky, which later became Corgi Juniors; Zylmex; and a local brand called Fun Ho! which were never in the same league as Matchbox.
ReplyDeleteWe had Johnny Lightning here... I'm not sure what the video guy is talking about with the dates they were made because I know I've seen them on shelves well past the early 70s. They had a certain aura too them, the packaging art and the designs were a little more gritty and dangerous feeling somehow. Like maybe they were toys for tougher kids.
ReplyDeleteDates - as I understand it, Topper Toys only made JL cars from 1969 to 1971. More than two decades later Playing Manis acquired the name, and began to make reproductions of the original Topper line, and later new models. After several changes of ownership, the JL range was dropped. This second era lasted from 1994 to 2013. The line was revived again in 2016, and seems to be still going. There is not a lot of published information on these models, with only one book devoted to the brand - Tomart's Price Guide to Johnny Lightning Vehicles, Mac Ragan, Tomart, 2001. More general guides to die-cast models also cover the brand. Does this help ?
ReplyDeletePlaying Mantis. (The t's popped out for a cup of tea.)
DeleteVery informative Paul, thanks.
ReplyDeleteI apologise for the error, spelling was never one of my best subjects. It is indeed Playing Mantis.
ReplyDeleteI had maybe a dozen of Johnny Lightning. I had a twin engine VW Bug, a twin engine rail dragster, a twin engine tow truck and a barrel bodied land speed racer. Those are the ones I can recall. The last two had plastic snap on parts that allowed you to customize the look and rubber rings that made the tires fat and like drag slicks.
ReplyDeleteYou would have liked the Nucleon model as it was very Space X in design. https://static.wixstatic.com/media/240714_5b8f83e2af034e0ab3d7f2d2906c57db~mv2_d_4032_3024_s_4_2.jpg/v1/fill/w_784,h_588,al_c,q_90,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01/240714_5b8f83e2af034e0ab3d7f2d2906c57db~mv2_d_4032_3024_s_4_2.webp
I also had some sort of wasp waisted car as well.
JL was a nice line that was a bit over the top in designs but that was part of the charm. Speed wise on the orange track, they were second, faster than Matchbox but slower than Hot Wheels. JL was not as solidly built as the other two, mainly loose windows and some models had no interior detailing.