Gold Nuggets: Bags of Gum

Like all kids I loved sweets. Alas, I still do! One of my favourites in the Sixties were Gold Nuggets [pictured]. They were a pile of little golden bits of chewing gum [or spuggy/chuddy as we called it], which filled a small cotton bug with a neat pull-string top.

 

 

The character on the bag was a sort of prospector [no, not a moon one], a Klondyke Pete type. They were everywhere back then. For some reason the Gold Rush, like pirates and cowboys and indians, spies and astronauts, was part of our juvenile world-view. There were Golden Nuggets cereals and I remember clearly a gold mine ride on Blackpool Pleasure Beach that I went on; a crazed runaway train of a thing that zoomed through creaking joists and crooked tunnels. It may have even popped outside in the open air now and then too! Ah, what joy!

 

 

So, my 'spice' was found in a small cotton bag. What was or is your favourite sweety/ choccy/ candy?

Ferryman's Fabtastic SWORD Fleet: UK and US Probe Force 1

Probe Force No. 1

by Century 21 Toys, UK [art box]

and Tarheel, USA [photo box]

Ferryman Collection

 

 

Anyone got any different ones?

Thundervids

One area of Andersonising that I have never really got into is collecting the various DVD formats of the Anderson TV series and films. This is odd as I'm an avid VHS video collector but for some reason I've never made the leap to an interest in DVD, As a consequence DVD improvements such as HD and Blu-Ray have so far passed me by as well.

 

 

However, I'm aware from my VHS collection that the picture and audio quality, duration, country of release etc can matter a great deal and whole collections can be built around acquiring the various different versions. With advances in DVD technology this is probably even more important for DVD collectors particularly when box sets are produced in different countries like the recent 7 - disc Blu Ray package from Japan.



This got me thinking as to what is currentkly available for Thunderbirds Are Go. I've got lots of Thunderbirds VHS including the movie but is there a DVD package with lots of doumentaries and extras? The only UK version I could, on Amazon, below, find looks rather lacklustre in terms of extras

 

Is there a really good DVD version of Thunderbirds Are Go with tons of extras about Zero X thrown in?

Comic Relief

Who's your favourite comic artist? Ron Embleton, Frank Frazetta, Eric Eden, Jack Kirby, Ron Turner, Steve Ditko? So many fabulous talents but who is your number one and why?

Ferryman's Fabulous Toy Fleet: Zero-X and Skyship One

Top: Zero-X, Century 21 Toys, 1967

Bottom: Skyship One, Bandai, 1968

 

 

Could it get any better?

I Am Not A Number Plate

I’ve always liked the surreal 60’s TV series The Prisoner starring Patrick McGoohan. Every week the iconic opening title sequence would show McGoohan - the future Number 6 speeding down what looked like a runway in a green and yellow Lotus Seven car. He is seen driving through London on his way to angrily hand in his resignation. As he packs a suitcase to leave for sunnier climes knock out gas blows through the keyhole. He wakes to find himself in the mysterious Village!

Marvellous stuff - Like most kids I loved sporty cars and would have loved to have had a model Lotus to go with my Corgi James Bond DB5 and Saint Volvo P1800.

However, it would seem McGoohan was apparently reluctant to licence merchandise at the time, and no Prisoner Lotus appeared.

That being said, Dinky did somehow manage to secure the rights to produce a die cast model of the Prisoner Mini Moke made up to look like the Village taxi. Nice but it ain’t the Lotus!

Over the years some Prisoner merchandise has cropped up - books, paperbacks, and of course, badges. But no Lotus.

Then, in 2004, the publishers, DeAgostini produced the Prisoner Fact File and anyone subscribing received, amongst other things a small Lotus Seven scale model car bearing the number plate KAR 120C. - Orange Alert!

It took a while but as they say everything comes to he who waits.

Be seeing you!

More Pirates of Apollo Moon Exploring: Funmate's Space Command

I'm always chuffed when I see a new variation or brand of Apollo Moon Exploring knockoffs. Recently on Hebay were two such goodies completely new to me. First up and shown above was this carded SPACE COMMAND by FUNMATE, who are more well known for plastic cars than space toys. There appears to be an Apollo capsule, a US flag, radar array and LEM. The astronaut is more Giant than LP/ SpaceX. I particularly like the Earth-moon system card art. Anyone know any more about this set?

 

 

The second set was a foursome of small space toys in a bag pictured below. It contained a blue Capsule, a silver LEM, a small orange space car and a neat tube of Apollo USA model cement. I was lucky enough to win this set and will report back once it lands on Moonbase. Anyone seen the items before?

Fireflash Toys?

Fireflash was such an extraordinarily cool plane design in Thunderbirds. I'm surprised it didn't get the star treatment like Zero-X in its own movie. At the very least Century 21 should have made a toy version. Have there been ANY toys or models of Fireflash?