Glimpses of Childhood

Were over at Moonbase Juniors house celebrating his Sixth birthday. Here are a few glimpses of his world.

Was your childhood full of cool stuff too?

Pics of his prezzies to follow.

ELECTRIC RAY GUN YAMATO ART?

Is that another Yamato ship on this box art?

SWEET STADIUM

I love this Pez stadium.

What a cool way to display those nifty dispensers.

This candy grandstand was on Etsy. It could even work for action figures like Star Wars or GI Joe?

What do you think?

PS. are these called bleachers in the US?

Things of Power

I was in two minds about The Rings of Power on Amazon. Episode 1 was an ice-breaker I guess. We had come to expect so much after Peter Jackson's two terrific trilogies.

As I've watched the next few episodes shown so far I have begun to enjoy RoP very much and now look forward to Fridays when it airs!

Wanting more Middle Earth, I've re-watched the Hobbit trilogy with the Missus. With the Hobbit set far in the future from Rings of Power you can still see the various pieces forming and moving round the table of Tolkien's earlier world.

I wonder if there'll be any toys?

I've also seen terrible reviews of Rings of Power too. Panning it. What do you think so far readers?

MR.ROCK: CAN HE REALLY FLY?

I've always been fascinated by Lincoln International's  Mr.Rock figure.

So when I saw this Mr. Rock Cosmic Space Flyer I was intrigued.

Mr. Rock was a mid-Seventies knock-off of Mego's Mr. Spock action doll. 

From Spock to Rock. That was easy!

The original blister carded figure, a prized collectable, came with an Action Man style flare gun and a cheaper pink doll radio. A sort of pick n mix from various different toys.

Mr. Rock must have done OK for Lincoln if they then decided to release a Cosmic Space Flyer. It shares similar card art and pictures the man himself flying over, where? Vulcan?

Further Googling revealed that the Cosmic Space Flyer was given away by Plaid Stallions Toy Ventures magazine #5.

Did Toy Ventures create the Cosmic Space Flyer as a modern freebie?

Or is it real? Did they find a box full?

Does anyone know?

Incidentally, when I first saw Mr. Rock online on sites like Megocollector ( it's their picture above) and Plaid Stallions I had thought he was made by Lion Rock, a toy firm I associate with Bradgate and my beloved Little Big Man in the Sixties. 

Alas, Mr.Rock and Little Big Man don't know each other.

Do you know Mr.Rock?

ROBOTS RUNNING ROBOTS

 Browsing the brilliant Alphadrome, something I've done for years, I came across this space toy gun. 

Space Captain Dart Gun.

https://alphadrome.net/data/displayimage.php?album=lastup&cat=0&pid=4564#top_display_media

The toy looks great but its the card art that really caught my eye. 

Just what is happening with that robot? It's full of little red robots who appear to be working the big one! They have thin arms and pincers. Its such an unusual image. I love it!

The spaceman is firing at the head and the mini-men seem to be up in arms about it! 

Have you seen any other artwork like this readers?

Sometimes a Great Motion

Sometimes ( often! ) I get a bee in my bonnet, especially when I'm off work with another rotten stinker of a school cold. I've got time for those bonnet bees.

This particular bee is called the Victim. 

This morning whilst sat on the throne I was looking at Mr. Rock on the Plaid Stallions Website and noticed the blonde Barbie knock-off they call the Victim.

I've mentioned her before on MC as she's an elusive Lincoln and part of the mystery of their monsters.

Seeing said Victim I thought, hmmm, I've seen something like her before. I plundered my brain and eventually dragged from my deepest ID where and what I'd seen.

A cheap blonde doll wearing a floral jump suit .......

To be continued!

TREBOR TR12 MODEL MYSTERY

This card template came with a bunch of Action Force comics I got in a few years back. Its an old make your own card model of a TR12 car. It says TREBOR on the bonnet, the mint confectioners I assume.

 Anyone know anything about this card, which I guess was cut from a box?

Its a mint mystery!

PAINT QUERY

 How would you paint a red plastic 2001 Space Glider yellow?

Which paint would you use on plastic?

To go from this ....

.... to this.

ROCKETS AWAY!

 There's nothing quite like a long launch ramp for a rocket.

Here are two famous ones.

The Ark from When Worlds Collide.

Fireball XL5

Can you think of any more readers?

have you got any models like these?

THE AGE OF REPTILES MURAL

 

Watching this video I realised that I'd seen the mural before. In fact I grew up with it in sections that were featured on and in many of my dinosaur books. Lots of familiar creatures, the brontosaurs, dimetrodons and the feeding T. Rex, I saw them all as a kid as I'm sure did.

Do you remember these images readers?

DART

Well NASA pulled it off.

They altered the path of an asteroid!

It's the stuff of SciFi come true. Think of the movies Armageddon or Meteor. It's now reality!

I'm amazed by this particular escapade. Like hitting a marble with a pin from across the room. 

The probe was called DART. The asteroid Dimorphos. DART is no more. Dimorphos is on a different orbit. Howzat!

DART would make a superb toy, along with a mock asteroid on a card. Something like a Tri-ang SpaceX toy. 

Further smiles came when Google sent a probe 'into' my mobile, where it exploded and tilted the screen! 

I'm clearly not the only one excited by DART. Are you too?

Image: NASA

SNALIEN

I'd never seen a Snalien before until I came across the Hideous Plastic website from Oz.

I love these creations. They remind me of snail Netsuke from Japan.

So glad snails are gentle really.

But hey, what's this ....

Is there a snail in your world readers?

TO CAP IT ALL

 

This toy helmet on auction caught my eye. Described as a Star Wars inspired item I'm struggling to see how.

There's more American Football here than Star Wars!

What do you think readers?

PAUL A's AUCKLAND TOY FAIR

Hi,

Auckland has just had its first toy fair in ages, and it was packed!

With all the Covid restrictions and gathering limits, there have not been any fairs lately, so everyone came out for this one. A very long queue to get in, and the hall itself was full. Very hard to move around or to see anything at first, but it did thin out later. Everyone seemed to have a bag full of treasures, and I got a good haul.

Two aircraft books.

Three kits. A US Sherman tank, the M4A1 version with a cast hull, 1/72nd scale by Dragon.

A 1/32nd scale Airfix Volkswagen starter set with paints, two paint brushes, and cement.

Best of all is the Lindberg re-issue of the old (late 1960s) IMC F-100 Super Sabre. This was one of a series of six aircraft kits that could be built either as a normal model, or as a Battle Damaged version using optional parts. 

They also included markings for either high visibility or camouflaged versions. Lindberg later re-issued four of the kits, and I already have two of these, so just one to go. The two kits they did not re-issue would be very hard to find today.

The DeLorean Time Machine from the Back to the Future films, done as a Monster Truck with huge wheels. This is a fairly recent model, but I have not seen it in the shops, and I did not want to miss out, so grabbed this one. Also a Lledo Vanguards model of a Morris Minor van in EverReady Batteries livery.

A 1960s Corgi model of Steed's vintage Bentley, in red, from The Avengers. This model is missing its windscreen, and side-mounted spare wheel. The left front wheel also looks to be a replacement. It was very dusty, but looks a lot better after a gentle clean with a damp cotton bud.

I can make a new windscreen, but the wire-spoke wheel might be more of a problem.

The rest of the die-casts are all loose Matchbox models from the 1950s to the 1970s. Some of these came in different sizes over the years, as Matchbox models grew in size throughout the 1950s and in to the early 1960s.

Front row, then back row, these are:

Road Tankers, early and late versions

Magruiz-Deutz Crane Truck

ERF 8-wheel truck

Quarry Truck, first version

Site Dumper, third version

Road Roller, fourth version

Aveling Barford Tractor Shovel

DAF Tipper Truck

Land Rover, first and second versions

Long Distance Coach, early and late versions

Bluebird Dauphine Caravan

Ford Galaxie Fire Chief Car

Ford Group 6 racing car, Superfast wheels

Porsche 910, Superfast wheels

A very good day. Now to save up for the next fair!

Paul Adams from New Zealand

WAYNE'S BOND

Terranova47 sent me this interesting link. What do you think readers? Adam West as James Bond?

https://www.handitv.com/stories/adam-west-almost-became-james-bond-perhaps-thanks-to-a-chocolate-milk-ad

A Mooch Round Selby

Today the Missus and me went walkabout round the North Yorkshire market town of Selby. Famous for its huge abbey in the town centre, it also has great brick architecture and old streets.

Here's a few of the bits we saw in the charity shops there.

See anything you like?

Loads of girls' annuals from the Sixties a snip at £2 each.

I don't recall London's Burning on TV at all. This old board game was priced £10.

We visited a quiet olde worlde cafe new to us as well, in an old and rare high street department store called Wetherells. My sausage butty and pot of tea was fab. The Missus had coffee and a cherry Bakewell.

Here's the main meals menu. Anything you fancy?

This tin reminded me of how much I loved jelly creams as a kid, where milk was used instead of water to set jelly. Talk about delicious. Not had it for decades. Is it something you remember?

Boxed Bionicles were aplenty.

And there was my fave coffee jug with wooden handle. I just love it's curves.

Vintage books are always of interest. Here's Len Deighton's Billion Dollar Brain, a story unknown to me and  paperback Thunderball. Do you collect OO7?

Badges and badges. What's the yellow stripe on blue one in the middle?

Do you recall Dumpy books?

This was a whole cupboard full of vintage goodness 

Records always draw me in. Beatles covers are possible collectables in charities as they often turn up. This stack contained about 5 45rpm cover versions including Eine Kleine Beatlemusic from Germany. Do you collect the Beatles?

Abba cover versions are unusual and here's an LP full by Bobbs.

Hits Hits and Top of the Pops LPs are a potential collectable I've often thought of starting. Have you any?

This looked interesting. Moog!

This wall hanging would please a Dexter fan.  If memory serves he was a killer surgeon. Yikes!

And finally this knock-off set ( what is that TV show?) made me think of Thunderbird 2, which is always good!

GALAXY SPACE GUN SPACESHIP MYSTERY

The card art of this Galaxy Space Gun caught my eye on an online auction. I wondered just what that cool flying ship was. Fortunately there are two toy positions and you can see the image clearly on the left.

Anyone know what that ship is?

Do you have any space pistols?

EDAF COORDINATOR SPACE STATION

I liked this Coordinator space station when I saw it on Spain's Todocollecion.

I think its a card model and one of four.

Which do you like readers?

FRYING SAUCERS OF NEW ZEALAND

Hi,

You recently mentioned Flying Saucers, a type of lolly - not sure if I ever had one of those, or if they were available in New Zealand. 

However I do recall Frying Saucers, which were advertised on TV. 

Again, not sure if we ever had any, but the name stayed in my head for a few decades, so the ad campaign worked. 

They were made by Irvines. They were meat and vegetable combinations, cooked in a frying pan.

Here is a short item from TV-1 in NZ about them.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=723277771340595

Anyone know them or know anything like them?

Paul Adams from New Zealand

CLASSIC CAR SHOWS 2: TERRANOVA47'S CONNECTICUT

Here's reader Terranova47's local car show this Autumn in Torrington Connecticut. Now that's a show! Which cars do you like readers?