Stalco Seattle Space Needle Hobby Kit: The Other Century 21

Hi

Here is something that might interest Moonbase. A plastic kit of the Seattle Space Needle tower, with a Century 21 logo on the box. Do not get too excited, this has nothing to do with Gerry Anderson, and the name is just a coincidence.

This kit was mentioned, very briefly, on Max's Models Livestream 67. Intrigued, I decided to have a look at its history.

It is a plastic kit of the Space Needle - the theme symbol for the 1962 Seattle World's Fair. Basically a very tall observation tower, with a revolving restaurant at the top. The box top describes it as an official Souvenir Hobby Kit from the Fair, and it is now rare. It does not seem to have ever been re-issued.

Made by Stalco Products Corporation, and bearing a Century 21 logo on the box. This has nothing to do with Gerry Anderson, but relates to the Fair. The logo reads Century 21 Exposition, with a globe symbol. Stalco also made a Coliseum Coin Bank (money box) souvenir.

The Century 21 Exposition, or Seattle World's Fair, was held in Seattle, Washington State, from 21st April to 21st October 1962. Construction work on the tower only began in April 1961. It stands 605 feet tall, or 184 metres. Diameter is 138 feet, or 42 metres. It has since become a Seattle landmark - although I should think it would be hard to miss.

Wikipedia entries for the Fair, and the Needle.

Century 21 Exposition - Wikipedia

Space Needle - Wikipedia

The kit Stock Number is SWF 298 (was that the retail price of the model ?). The finished model was an impressive 18 inches tall, and stood on a circular base. No scale is given, but that makes the model around 1/400th. The base is inscribed with the words Space Needle - Seattle World's Fair - 1962, with the Century 21 logo.

It came in a tall, narrow cardboard box, with a lift-off lid. Usually moulded in cream coloured plastic, but there was also an orange version. Cream and orange being the colour scheme of the real tower. According to the parts list on the instruction sheet, there are 23 parts. Testor's Paints were recommended for painting the model. Stalco Products Corporation, 11827 E. 165th St., Norwalk, California. Made in U.S.A.

There have been other kits of the Space Needle, in wood, cardboard, and metal from Metal Earth.

This is the Scalemates entry for the kit, and there is a photo of the instruction sheet. It is the only kit listed for Stalco.

https://www.scalemates.com/kits/stalco-swf-298-space-needle--1257030

Some more photos from Worthpoint:

Stalco Space Needle Souvenir Hobby Kit With Space Needle Decal and PostCard | #1889075477 (worthpoint.com)

Stalco Space Needle Souvenir Hobby Kit With Space Needle Worlds Fair 1962 Mint | #1889344326 (worthpoint.com)

1962 World's Fair Space Needle Century 21 Plastic Model Kit Unbuilt VTG Seattle | #1979300375 (worthpoint.com)

Stalco Space Needle Souvenir Hobby Kit With Space Needle Worlds Fair 1962 Mint | #1899368088 (worthpoint.com)

Inscription on base

Vintage 1962 Model of Seattle Worlds Fair Space Needle 16" Plastic Model Kit | #1909424577 (worthpoint.com)

Orange version

Vintage rarer "Orange-Plastic" 1962 Stalco Century 21 Space Needle model kit | #2729747321 (worthpoint.com)

All photographs from Worthpoint.

Anyone got this kit?

Anyone been to a World's Fair?

Paul Adams from New Zealand

Bodge Central

 Bodging abounds at Moonbase at the mo. Kevin very kindly donated a bundle of old toy vehicles last week and I've been busy and happy sprucing them up ever since! 

This was Kevin's bundle of joy to me.

So I got my tools together.

And sorted out what's what.

The Trident Starfighter got patched up and left to dry.

The glorious Kennet SSP Dune Digger got cleaned, the red patches were chromed and a plan formed regarding the missing side panel rods. Operation pen stopper to begin soon!

The lovely but patchy Dinky SPC was cleaned and touched up with a red Sharpie. I glossed the body with varnish for a shiny finish.

I couldn't solve the non-functioning jet noise but I made a simple aerial from this shampoo bottle.

Front wheels stolen from my Batmobile and voila!

Not perfect but scarlet enough for my cabinet.

Bill is supplying some repro decals and that will be it.

Thanks Kevin!

HMS VICTORY

Here is an amazing HMS Victory kit I was given as a gift - a giant wooden kit. 

Hope you like the look of it.

Paul Adams from New Zealand

The Magic Robot Knows the Answer

 A short summer mooch round the Charidees proffered just a few chattels today.

A 10 inch aircraft carrier made in China, with completely shot battery unit. A challenge for me for sure! Can anyone date it from the old Asda battery?

The Magic Robot seen at the top , a modern repro set, came home too for Moonbase Junior.

Tower of Brahma game by Waddingtons, for a friend who collects small puzzles like this.

The skittles came home too, for the Grandkids. I was tempted by the LBZ top, a lovely toy.

Passed on all these.

And these.

Even passed up on the talking Barbie dentist.

I thought this tree house would be dear and it was. £30. I Passed.

Similarly passed up on this gaggle of robots. Moonbase Jr. Already has the bottom two. Nice though.

Anything here you like readers?

WAS GARY SEVEN ALONE?

I recall a Star Trek episode involving a character called Gary Seven. Do you?

His mission was to tamper in some way with the first Apollo moon shot as the rocket stood ready on the gantry. I forget what he had to do.

It reminds me of something similar in the Men in Black films. I think its 2 or 3, where a young Tommy Lee Jones' character has to put something on the Apollo rocket.

I imagine there are more instances of this in film and comics. Did it ever happen in Gerry Anderson's worlds?

Laser Sharp!

The Galaxy Laser Team by Processed Plastics and Tim Mee Toys are a staple of space toy figures.

Most of the time we see these figures in their simple factory colours so I was pleasantly surprised to see these fully and precisely painted versions on an old auction site. The paint has brought out different characteristics, the left shooter being very Buck Rogers, the lady looking like a Star Trekker, the ape soldier now dressed like a workman and the right figure given the complete Greek warrior look!

What do you think?

Have you got any Galaxy Laser Team?

Is there or isn't there?

Much is being made about the presence of 'organic' compounds discovered in Jezero Crater on Mars, by the Perseverance Rover recently. News headlines seem to infer that it is proof of life on the red planet, or at least a smoking gun, to indicate that it was present in the distant past. However, we are coming up to the 'silly season' for the press and perhaps the information is being misrepresented.

The official JPL Mars Perseverance site has nothing in the news section recently, to indicate such findings and the story behind the headlines, as published in Nature, is keen to point out that the molecules, although organic, are not necessarily evidence of life and only increase the 'possibility of a possibility'. JPL say that the compounds may have been deposited from a meteor shower, or have been created naturally. 

The original Viking Lander mission, over 40 years ago apparently discovered traces of salient compounds, but it is suggested that the scientific processes, used to detect the presence of life, may have accidentally destroyed it again. One of the experiments used by the probe, added water to the samples and scientist now think that it may have been too much for the delicate dehydrated organics.

https://www.space.com/41689-nasa-viking-mars-life-search-gil-levin.html

So for now, the bug hunt must continue..

https://www.reuters.com/technology/space/nasa-rover-reveals-new-evidence-about-organic-molecules-mars-2023-07-13/

 https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/news/

Whitman Publishing - Authorized Television Adventure Series Books

The American publishing firm of Hamming-Whitman was founded in the early 20th Century, and bought by Western Publishing in the 1930s. 

What was now Whitman Publishing, of Racine, Wisconsin, was therefore a division of Western, and best known for its children's book line. It also began to publish coin collecting books and ancillary items in the 1930s. The company still exits today, as a specialist publisher of books covering various collecting fields, especially coins.

From 1941 to 1947 Whitman published a series of books featuring various 1940s actresses in mystery stories for girls. These were called Whitman Authorized Editions. That name was later used for another series of books based on various film and TV characters.

The new Whitman Authorized Editions were hardback novels, with a number of illustrations in a single colour. All were based on American TV shows or movies, many of which never made it to New Zealand. Some shows were only represented by a single title, others were covered by half a dozen or more books.

Book sizes varied. The earlier volumes I have are 143 mm x 197 mm, but in the late 1960s the width was reduced slightly, to 133 mm x 197 mm. All contained just over 200 pages. Many have a couple of pages at the back listing other titles available.

The covers were either paintings, or photographs from the show, some were in a swirling 1960s style. Many had covers that wrapped around the spine and the back. Most had the words Whitman Authorized TV Adventure on the spine, and inside the books. The only one of my books which lacks this is the Annette volume, which was a Disney title. Each book also contains a copyright notice for the TV company which made the original series.

The name of the author does not appear on the cover, only inside, on the title page. Some volumes do have the surname of the author on the spine. The illustrator is also credited on the title page.

These tie-ins were published between 1951 and 1975, and covered a vast range of subjects, including many science fiction, spy, and action shows, as well as comedies and Walt Disney. Westerns were very popular in the early days of the series. There were also a number of books that featured a well known star, that were not tied directly to an individual TV series - similar to the original Authorized Edition series.

There does seem to be some doubt as to how many of these books were published in total, with different listings giving different totals - most list over a hundred titles. In part this depends on how the books are counted, as some list the personality, movie, and Disney books separately from the TV books.

All of my books have their printed paper cover glued directly to the hardback covers, without dust jackets, although some titles did come with dust jackets. The series number appears either on the back of the early books, or on the spine of the later books. Whitman re-used numbers, so some books published several years apart can have the same number. This also means that a low number does not automatically mean an early publication date. Even my few volumes show this mis-match.

1505 Lucy and the Madcap Mystery, Cole Fannin, 1963. Staring Lucille Ball.

1505 Lassie - The Mystery of Bristlecone Pine, Steve Frazee, 1967

1519 The High Chaparral - Apache Way, Steve Frazee, 1969

1541 Sea Hunt, Cole Fannin, 1960

1541 The Man From U.N.C.L.E. - The Affair of the Gentle Saboteur, Brandon Keith, 1966

1543 The Man From U.N.C.L.E. - The Affair of the Gunrunner's Gold, Brandon Keith, 1967

1545 The Invaders - Dam of Death, Jack Pearl, 1967

1547 The Rat Patrol - The Iron Monster Raid, I.G. Edmonds, 1968

1553 Hawaii Five-O - The Octopus Caper, Leo R. Ellis, 1971

1572 The Beverly Hillbillies - The Saga of Wildcat Creek, Doris Schroeder, 1963

1574 Walt Disney's Annette and the Mystery at Smugglers' Cove, Doris Schroeder, 1963. Annette Funicello was one of the Mouseketeers on the Mickey Mouse Club, and made many Disney movies.

Bookshelf: Whitman TV Tie-Ins - Television Obscurities (tvobscurities.com)

whitmantv (tripod.com)

Uncle Atom: Search results for whitman tv books (atomicuncle.blogspot.com)

Whitman Authorized TV Adventure Books Gallery (tonystrading.co.uk)

My collection is very modest, but covers a good range of subjects. I might have a few others, but these are the ones I could find at the moment. Most of my titles seem to date from the 1960s, up to 1971, so the middle period of the series. We have looked at one or two of these in detail before, but this is a more general look at the series.

I do not recall having any of these books as a boy, although I might have had one or two, without realising what they were. Since then, I have picked up the odd title in a second-hand bookshop, or at a fair. They are not expensive (although something like the original Star Trek novels might be an exception).

There has been at least one book devoted to this series, and other reference volumes on children's books also cover the line.

Whitman Juvenile Books : David Brown : 9780891457404 (bookdepository.com)

These are fun items to look out for, if you are a fan of old TV shows.

What do you think?

Paul Adams from New Zealand