A Blue FAB1?

 I mentioned the other day that I would like a blue FAB1.

Shigeru Komatsuzaki back in the day offered us a glorious illustration of one on the Imai box art.

This appears to have been a simple blueing of Shigeru's original pink FAB1 box cover.

Both models were the classic pink regardless of box art, so to get the blue sheen you would have to paint over it. 

Which do you prefer? 

Moto-Cross by Exitoy: Cor!

 I picked this up in Selby yesterday. It's a gorgeously boxed Moto Cross game/ toy by Exitoys of Czechoslovakia.

I fell in love with with box art on sight, harming back to those fabulous boxes on games and toys back in the Sixties.

Inside is a lovely card track with parts, one of which looks like joystick. It's magnetic so I guess the parts move round the track. 

Fir a diver I was chuffed to pick up something original, in good nick and with gorgeous artwork. I just need to get that pesky Charity price tag off now.

You ever seen anything like this? 

Equinox Cover Art: It's Supernaturally Good

 I only discovered this film as an adult. It passed me by as a kid. I was 10 when it was released and never saw a thing about it.

Originally a Dennis Muren short in 1967, it went on to become a full movie, in cinemas in 1970. Read it only cost $8,000 to make and grossed nearly $900,000! Astonishing. Reminds me of the similar Blair Witch success decades later.

I've always liked the poster and cover art and here's a small gallery of some I found online.

The fantastic Mountain Super 8 film box.

A poster showing most of the stop-motion creatures in the flick. 

An unusual illustration, I'm unsure what this is off.

This wide shot, perhaps my favourite, is a melting pot of images, which appeared on other media. 

The JM Video release with the ghastly face from the picture above.

Another VHS, this time with the title changed to the Beast. I wonder why they dropped Equinox? 

Finally, the DVD box art, which I have, a set containing both Dennis Murren's shirt film and the full movie.

Have you any Equinox ephemera or items readers?

Have you seen the film?

Tarheel Photo Box Art

I've often wondered about the process that toy companies commissioned box art or VHS makers commissioned video cover art. I guess it's all online now but at one time it won't have been. For example, one of my favourite American boxes is the Tarheel of Tarboro Probe Force 2 photo art. How did they achieve that in 1967? Was it an artist or a photographer do you think?

Terranova47, having experience of box art and commissioning, gave me his thoughts:

Hello Woodsy

Well, I know that when I worked on VHS Tape packaging, the art was supplied as it was from the publicity material created for the cartoon, movie or TV show.

 It was a matter of cropping and fitting in all the information, copyright etc. Only on a few occasions, where the tape was a documentary, was a photo chosen from stock photo libraries.

The Project Sword box was probably a photo of the toy against a background painting. A photo retoucher added the motor stream to a print and it was re-photographed. In this case any other toys from the range may have had the same background. So it was both an artist and a photographer plus a designer for the text box and side and ends of the lid.

Now, photo retouchers used to take a print, sometimes they would bleach away areas then airbrush or paint in a replacement image. They were talented, skilled and expensive. 

These days the cost of the software, Photoshop for instance, would be the equal cost of one retouching job done the old way. Now it's possible, and I've done this, to hire someone online to substitute a person in a group shot for $25! 30 years ago that would have been hundreds of dollars!

Terranova47

USA

*

What are your thoughts about the American Project SWORD Probe Force 2 photo-box art?

Game On!

Seeing this German board game, ÖL,  on one of my Kleinanzeigen searches reminded me how I used to collect vintage board games for the beautiful box art like this.

Always arresting and high quality, board game box art was fabulous in the Sixties and Seventies, standards which took these games around the globe. I guess you could call it boomer box art, when everything was still an adventure.

Here's the UK and Finnish versions, OIL and ÖLJY.

Other fantastic boxes I've found over the years include these Waddingtons beauties, all good enough to hang on a wall:

Do you have some favourite board game box art readers?

What If Kit Box Art Video 19: Thunderbirds Pod Vehicles

Hi Woodsy,

The very talented artist Matteline 1967 has just done another of his videos, featuring box art for model kits that never existed, but certainly should have.

 What If 19 mostly looks at the pod vehicles from Thunderbirds.

All are in imaginary Airfix boxes, and are to the standard scales that Airfix used for their real kits. These being 1/600th for the ships; 1/144th for the rockets and large aircraft; and 1/32nd for the vehicles.

It is a great pity that Airfix ignored the 60th Anniversary of Thunderbirds. There are so many Gerry Anderson craft that would still make great models.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8b3wO8P3U4

What do you think?

Paul Adams from New Zealand

Custom SpaceX Moonbase Box and Board

Another old gem from Worthpoint, a custom made box and board for SpaceX no less!

What do you think?

The description read

 "Includes a professional custom mars landscape and custom box. What you see is what you get. Very unique. Very large set...will be shipped in 2 boxes. The Mars Battle board landscape is large enough for 54mm too. BattleBoard made by Jim Clouse, terrain artist."

Cover Story: the T in a Circle Chieftain and Nichimo

Hi Woodsy

I saw your great Chieftain toy tank from Arto. Very nice.

I do not know if you have noticed, but the box top for this Hong Kong toy is almost identical to a Nichimo kit of the Chieftain. Nichimo being a Japanese company.

According to the Scalemates site, this was the original box design, and dates back to 1967. The kit was to 1/35th scale, and was available with Remote Control.

Compare the photos side by side, and they look the same except that the Saracen wheeled Armoured Personnel Carriers and helicopters have been eliminated from the background. The second Chieftain remains.

The tank commander has also been given a helmet rather than a beret, and the vehicle markings deleted. What do you think ?

One photograph from Worthpoint, and one copied from Moonbase !

Paul Adams from New Zealand

Creature Feature: Recreating the Penn Plax Creature from the Black Lagoon Aquarium Figure

Years ago when I started buying reference books on monster toys I became aware of an iconic Sixties collectable among Creature from the Black Lagoon fans, the Penn Plax aquarium action aerating monster.

Original examples in the fantastic window box are much sought after and here's one on the Hakes auction site.

Here's a clip of it in bubbling action.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=mcKS-nRVQdY&feature=shared

So beloved by monster collectors and aquarium buffs, it was re-released in 1999, in a somewhat less interesting bubble box.

With a resurgence of interest in this fishtank gill man, some astute modern toy companies have rejuvenated the Penn Plax classic in their own way.

Here's Mego's, who have largely stuck to the original box design, albeit slimmer.

And ace nostalgia makers Super 7's creature has recreated the Penn Plax big box.

Never ones to shy away from a challenge, Bill and me decided to have a crack at one ourselves! 

First, I was lucky enough to source this loose Penn Plax figure from Hong Kong for £28 including shipping on eBay. It kicked off the project well.

Next up, the box art. Bill came into his own here. We decided to adhere to the Sixties Penn Plax original, a complex window box with internal inserts! 

After researching the box and recreating the design, Bill had created a final and fabulous box art template. 

I then set about on stage three, making up the box. 

Boy! And what a job it was!

Finally, complete with a plastic window, here's the latest MoonBase International effort, our very own Penn Plax Creature from the Moon Lagoon!

Hope you like it.

Dave Barnacle, Palitoy Box Artist

I know there are many Action Man fans among Moonbasers, so I thought this You Tube video would be of interest.

A look at the work of Palitoy box artist Dave Barnacle, who sadly passed away this month, April 2025.

He did many of the Action Man boxes in the 1970s, as well as other lines, such as Planet of the Apes, and Star Wars.

There is even a look at some concept art for figures that never made it in to production.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdkC7yN-fJc

Paul Adams from New Zealand

The Man from Uncle Cane Pistol: our Custom Toy Job

Continuing our custom reproductions of carded spy toys, here's our version of the Man from Uncle Cane Pistol by Marx.

Bill created the stunning graphics from stills on Hakes auctions (see bottom) and I fashioned the cane from a litter grabber. A label and some glued-on bits, the set was completed with red beads giving the impression of the ammo.

Here you go, UNCLE's cane pistol a la Moonbase International. Hope you like it.

Our visual inspiration, ignited by a reference iny Spy Toys book, was Hakes' auction image.

Home Run! Our Secret Sam Bazooka Bat

 Here's our latest custom.

Topper's Secret Sam Bazooka Bat.

The wonderful card art is by Bill and I sourced a modern plastic beige baseball bat and white ball, emulating as far as I could the originals. 

This custom take on the bat concludes our Secret Sammery and, together with the Cane Shooter, form our personal homage to the mighty Topper.

Here they are as a pair. See what you think.

Now in the transit station - our bookshelf - before going into storage, here's one more Topper shot.

Next up, the Man from UNCLE Pistol Cane.

The Lone Star Custom Armoury

 Before they all go into storage, here's a final group shot of our five custom Lone Star swords. 

Which is your favourite?

Merit Special Agent Kit Update: the Original Box Art by Sam Peffer!

Years ago I found an incomplete Merit Special Agent boxed set and it started a sort of blog legend, blogged several times starting over a decade ago.

For years I kept an eye out for missing parts , which was fun but as with many a noble quest it wasn't to be. Still, it was a lot of fun and I've always stayed interested in this set.

So I was so pleasantly surprised to stumble across - and I mean stumble - an amazing website showing the original box art for this set and not only that, the original photographs of the artist's models and props for creating the box art!

https://www.tikit.net/2019/Sam%20Peffer/SpecialAgent.htm 

It really is fabulous.

The box artist's name was Sam Peffer, signing his work as Peff.

Click on 'Artists' on the Tikit site to find him.

The Tikit site, worth checking in its entirety, is essentially a tribute to PAN paperbacks and Sam did cover art for them including the old paperback James Bond covers. 

It makes sense then that it would appear from this site that Sam also did the box art for the fantastic Merit Avengers Shooting Game, which we've also covered on the blog before including Arto's terrific example.

It seems likely then to me that Sam Peffer also did the box art for the uber-cool Merit Saint Shooting Game.

How I would love to see the artist's photographs for these shoots!

What do you think readers?