"For mash get Smash!", the almost immortal (if you're of a certain age) tag-line jingle that ended the humorous TV adverts' for Cadbury's instant mashed-potato powder! Technically 'Martians', they appear to be Robots (the actual Martians never being seen?), they were such a successful campaign several toys resulted, these pencil tops being possibly the most common, but a chunky Bendy exists and a Marx clockwork wind-up. Argentine copy (pink) of the female space warrior (black) from Britains compared, the lower shot is out of focus (obviously) but the upper one was a poor choice of background, so I've put them together as I can't re-shoot at the moment, they're buried in a shipping container! We saw these not that long ago, but I'd shot them for the Faceplant group, so here they are again! Mattel GUTS! Laser Fighters space figures, the helmets are all different, as are weapons, while equipment layout and colours also differ from figure to figure, so more a bunch of space pirates or mercenaries than an organised force! We should have had these here too, in a show report, but I can't remember posting them, so it may still be in the queue somewhere. I did post them as shelfies from someone else's table once though - Vision von Anderen Sternen or 'Vision of Other Stars'.
Elastolin's hysterical lobster-hula-cow lady ('Venus Amazona') and 'Saurus Saturn' the turquoise space-ant eater! These were as rare as rocking-horse shit, but when the factory shut down a huge heap of them turned-up and I think everyone who wanted a set got one! I previously dubbed them Rubber-girl (catalogue No. 8304) and Dino-grinch! 8300.
I was a small-scale collector at the time but can remember loads of them on several tables at the Herne show, only to see people wanting pretty silly money for the few on show up in London! I sort of paid silly money for these, but they don't turn-up now like they did 15-odd years ago - because they are all in collections! And to be fair I didn't pay what I know some are happy to pay for all four!
The Astronaut (8310, who didn't get a name . . . Raumy?) was originally the most expensive (separate helmet?) at DM 1,50 pf. (about 30p in the 1970's?), with 1.25-each for the previous two and only ,90-pfennigs for 8302 the 'Jupiter Gorilla', or Crab-Taz the Lobster-man! And while some sources claim they were game-pieces for a board game (Perry Rodan?), they were issued in a bilingual (German French) clear carton. Clearly though they were some kid of experiment or one-off, from Elastolin, the non-standard bases, painted different colours, singling them out as not the norm, and reputed to be sculpted by a Max Weißbrodt, they didn't take off, or didn't get the head-office support they needed, and consequently a shed-load turned-up at the end! The catalogue numbering though, suggests the line was to be expanded? Finishing with a question-mark, anyone know who this is or what toy-line he's from? The hole in the back of his helmet and rather smoothly-finished back-pack seem to point to a missing attachment or fixing of some kind, he's nylon or polypropylene and about 54mm, I suspect he's quite modern or even relatively current? Although, he also looks a bit 1980's 'straight-to-video' post-apocalypse punky!
5 comments:
I don't know Hugh. Stick figures with pencils up their bum are rather avant-garde wouldn't you say?
Hahahaha! All the rage mate, people are fighting for stick-figures with pencils up their bums! I'm surprised you've missed the trend!
H
Hi Hugh!
You posted about the Elastolin Space Figures here... ;-)
https://smallscaleworld.blogspot.com/2012/12/r-is-for-run-raumfahrer-run.html
And this is the Elastolin Catalog entry for them...
https://www.conradantiquario.de/img/katalog/hausser1961/29.jpg
Thanks Anon', useful link, I've since picked-up on of those Africans, the chap falling backwards in the upper line-up, I was told he's not rare?
H
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