Autumn Brainteaser

There weren't many published photo's of SWORD toys

during the techno-beat drenched 1980's but here's one of the Apollo Saturn, with little robot chum, from 1984.

But which publication Swordheads?

Gothenburgian Nostalgimässan

Arto's wonderful finds at the recent Gothenburgian Nostalgimässan.

New Art by Andy B

Scout Ship on Approach to Earth

by reader Andy B

Still Life

Arto sent through these Pathe stills from yesterday's post. Thanks also to Toad and Maverick for help.

Stills owned by British Pathe and shown for educational purposes only.

The Reel Toys

More British Pathe Newsreels spotted by hawk-eyed reader Darth! Enjoy!

German Toys: Submarine, jets, moon track, Gama moon rover, Major Matt Mason 1969

Model makers, Hounslow, Essex - planes, Thunderbirds and Mac's Car! 1968

[is this the famed Space Models who were contracted by Century 21?]

Eastbourne Model Railway and Space Models [near the end] 1959

Triang-Pedigree - six minutes! 1971'ish

Soviet Moon Concept Rocket 1957

Space Helmets and Exhibit 1960

Grumman MOLAB 1965

cool or what! Well spotted Darth!

All we need now is footage of a boxed Moon Base!!!!!

Window Boxes: Spacex Superset and Sears Rocket Launcher in Sixties London

Eagle-eyed Canadian reader Darth has spotted these amazing newsreels on the British Pathe website

[sorry about the adverts at the start!]:

BOXED SPACEX SUPER SET

IN SHOP WINDOW

in Christmas on Carnaby Street, London [1969?] Silent, colour.

Spacex set in the window briefly at different points in the film.

UNBOXED 'SEARS' ROCKET LAUNCHER
[Apollo Saturn forerunner]

IN SHOP WINDOW, Oxford Street, London

in Xmas Round The World December 1964 - sound, black and white.

'Sears' Rocket appears unboxed at 1.02 minutes for a few seconds [along with a working Dux Astroman!]

Darth's clip pushes back the date for the earliest known sighting of the 'Sears' Rocket by a good six months from June 1965 [reader Jim's TV21 ad] to December 1964.

Anyone know how to screengrab a still of these two toys? It says they can be viewed as stills but I can't seem to fathom it!

Films owned by British Pathe.

Battery Operated Deadly Danger by Jim Lewis

JR 21 Toys’ enthusiasm for FAB 1 was such that they went as far as to produce two different versions of the now iconic vehicle. Both used the same basic body mould but incorporated different internal workings. Here we see the more expensive, at the time, battery operated version. Like the battery-operated THUNDERBIRD 1 in the same range its namesake was driven with the traditional friction power many toys of the period utilised. This battery operated version boasted headlamps which lit when the forward and reverse motion was in use.

Hand operated variable wheel control allowed the car to move to the left or right or ultimately go around in a circle much as it did when stolen by crooks in the episode ‘Brink Of Disaster’. Inside the clear canopied vehicle we see partial painted figures of Lady Penelope and Parker. A chrome effect too was applied to appropriate sections of the car to offer the impression of quality and craftsmanship one would associate with the ‘real’ vehicle. A button also engaged forward firing machine guns just as any good 1960s secret agents car should!

Nowhere in advertising or packaging is the vehicle referred to as a Rolls Royce and there is no ‘Spirit Of Ecstasy’ on the grill. The box has a variant design with one, as shown here, having a plain painted image of FAB 1. The other has a descriptive “Special Features” listing incorporated into the artwork. Both designs however have the now famous Lady Penelope motto:

ELEGANCE CHARM AND DEADLY DANGER

F.A.B
Jim Lewis

21 Pen Salute

Here's a close-up of my new prized possession in the Moonbase collection, the SWORD Cape kennedy Set box top autographed at Fanderson's TV21 con last weekend by Century 21 actors, staff and one mega-collector! Alas, no Gerry.

[see post below for who's who].

SWORDtastic!

PS. Pity this version of the painting ['Roll Out'] doesn't include the artists's printed signature, of one Robert McCall no less, as appears on the 1960's Look and Learn magazine original. Nothing's perfect!