Greetings dear readers! Hope 2023 is treating you well. It’s still new so I can’t say I totally trust it yet. 😉 That’s okay though, I’ve got my little doppelgängers to keep me safe and inspired.
And n all pseudo seriousness, me and mine are moving into the new calendar cycle feeling pretty good. Almost as good as Superman living his best life…
If only everyone could be so super chill.
The mad rush that begins Thanksgiving and concludes the day after the new year starts has once again been a whirlwind. Food with the fam, Black Friday at the day job, my birthday where I get spoiled by my girls every year. This one with more gingerbread…
Say what you will but they’re cute!
Then follow that up with my baby girl turning 13 and then of course Christmas where everybody gets some extra TLC (Tendered Loads of Capitalism) from Santa 😉 He stole the show this year with this one…
I must say, while it didn’t fit under the tree, the Christmas magic certainty gleaned from the screen.And everyone was drawn to the retro pixels.
And no Christmas season would be complete without a final stop of the year to Silver Dollar city where the lights were certainly stunning…
A fun slice of Americana.
Still… not as stunning as my fun loving Mrs.
Yeah. She’s mine 🙂 #wishyouwereme.com
And now the dust is settling and I get to take this time to sorta relax and observe my gifts and what all they mean to me.
Zorro rounds out my new “A-Team” of Funko Pops. I pity the fool who crosses these law dogs. So very much more to the story of this figure taking a place on my wall but we’ll save that for later. Much love to you my brotha! This site here is still one I’m so surprised and grateful that they came to pass. Never have to settle for Horshack again. (Again another story for another time).
On the end of it all, 2022 was what it was and was and despite excuses we can all come up with and blame, in the end every year and more importantly every day is what we make of it. For me, moving forward that will never again be forgotten nor taken for granted.
This toy box isn’t a “business”. It’s a way of life full of opportunity and adventures just waiting to be had.
Jim’s Toy Box isn’t getting any kickback on these links at all. I’m doing this shout out solely for the purpose of celebrating a small business that earned my business the old fashioned way: AMAZING CUSTOMER SERVICE!
Late night heads up thanks to my brother from another mother, Tom. Movie Posters Etc has the new Mego reproduction figures of Superman, Batman, Robin, Aquaman and Shazam and the wish list figures they missed of Green Lantern and The Flash in hand and shipping now! Needless to say, I got my order in! Anyway, when you click on any of the picture links below you’ll see that their price is incredibly good even with shipping figured in and is better than a certain mega retailer that doesn’t need the free advertising.
To note, the Toy Box isn’t getting any kickback on these links at all. I’m doing this shout out solely for the purpose of spreading the Mego heads up and giving a shout out to a small business that earned my business the old fashioned way: AMAZING CUSTOMER SERVICE! I’ll share more about that story soon but for now, go Collect ’em All!
Jim 11/19/2022
All are officially-licensed, approximately 8″ Classic action figures released to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of MEGO’s release of the DC super hero characters. The figure is produced by MEGO and remains new and sealed in MEGO’s original NEAR MINT window box-style packaging.
UPDATE!!!!! Want to let you all know that right now (11/20/2022) You can order the new 50th anniversary Mego Superheroes from Movie Posters Etc NOW! I know I stressed the “retail experience” and I do hope to do that BUT more importantly I want what I want and I also would MUCH RATHER see a small business benefit from your purchase. Check ’em out and Collect ‘Em All!
Jim’s note: This post will be updated throughout the day. Check back or refresh the page often.
Introduction: Why it all matters to me. They’re just dolls for God sake. But not really. They’re a life long source of inspiration, entertainment and joy for nearly 50 years. And now we’ve come to a bookend.
Preface/ prelude 11/05/2022: the discovery.
HAPPY MEGO DAY? 11/06/2022
5:50 am: up and at em! Fall back in full effect. Feel pretty good with the “extra” hour of sleep I got. Now for the morning chores with the cats and dogs. Then off to work.
7:11 am: popped into the home base Walmart. Nothing as expected but tried anyway. Now on to work… best word for today: Anticipation!
7:46 am: thinking about it all (which is always my thing anyway), how to make a game of it beyond the silliness of it all, my mind is pondering using these 50th anniversary figures as a reward system. Trade the treat for a bad or non existent habit I want to break or create. In essence treating myself like a kid who needs to finish his vegetables before desert . So silly. Time to do the day job… bet your bippity that my mind will be filled with ideas for the blogs and podcasts to come inspired by this new hunt.
8:35 am: in regards to last point… work tasks are getting done quicker. So much for the passage of time being manipulated by distraction. I
10:25 am: I truly enjoy and appreciate my day job… but man oh man would I like to be able to check those pegs right now! Not completely obsessed as much as I want to see this happen.
But regardless of the days final results… my heart will go on. Just like Celine sang 😉
Going for a better outcome then these two.
The trick is to just focus on the workday stuff. I swear, these posts come at times that are ethical. No slacking here from this fanboy.
1:34 pm: Lunch time but not enough time to run across town. AKA adult problems. “Just call or order online.” How about no. This about the retail experience and showing support at the register for the company. More on all of that later.
2:01 pm: Could it be any slower? As Johnny Cash so intensely sang; “Tome keeps dragging on.” Now, while I’m not stuck in a prison, the clock is certainly an annoying warden at the moment.
Like sands through the hourglass that doesn’t actually have a hole in the middle. Welcome to my Sunday.
3:33 pm: just found out I have dinner plans right after I get off sooooooo…. I broke and called the store. The young man was nice but had no clue even after looking. The tension builds like a Willie Wonka meme.
4:42 pm: So close to quitting time but the dinner plans have taken precedence. Grrrrrr…. But the biggest reveal so fat is how much I’m getting a kick out of these timeline updates. Something to this form of storytelling 🙂
5:07 pm: dinner party is still waiting for the table sooooo….. update shortly. 🙂
5:28 pm: Nevermind . Family first. 🙂
7 pm: Almost done with dinner. Anticipation slightly muted by post pasta grogginess. Honestly though, I’m not feeling that the final stop is going to turn out with a happy ending.
7:59 pm: It appears to be a bust. But I ain’t going without some digging…
Photo credit: Alicia. She totally gets me and I appreciate that more than you know.
8:18 pm: Learning new things. While the system shows that the figures will be here, when is actually an uncertainty.
“not in transit”
So in at the end of the day the anticipation was left unfulfilled, but most certainly not a waste of day or unbearable disappointment. Watch this space for more on this “Happy Mego Day” that wasn’t plus the podcast that will talk more about the true significance of all of this silliness.
Now, go play!
Jim 11/06/2022
P.S. Not a total bust at the CCP Superstore. Found this fun little star of the FNAF universe from Funko for Freddy’s biggest fan. We call her Kaitlynn. 🙂
Recently I received a really cool gift from a buddy of mine; the ZLC Collectibles exclusive Rocky Balboa “training variant”. It’s a fun figure with sweat suit outfit, black beanie and shoes and athletic taped hands.
Overall it’s a nice and solid Mego action figure but the greatest part about it to me is the fact that it’s an exclusively produced figure. It’s nice to see a company that obviously loves the brand and product enough to go all in and working a deal like this. Real teeth in the game. As such I hope you consider ordering one today.
Another thing I really like about this figure is that it gave me the opportunity to put to some kind of use to an idea I turned into reality a couple months back.
One October morning I challenged myself to do something for the the sake of doing something fun and funny graphic wise. What popped into my head was a parody cereal box. Long story short, I have a real appreciation for the art that goes into cereal boxes. If you think about it, the makers put a lot of thought into adding value to that packaging. The old school days of a “prize inside” was great but it was also cool to be able to spend breakfast time reading the box.
With that top of mind I decided to apply my general love and inspiration that comes from the Mego style toy to this project. What you see here is the final culmination of that. Silly and kind of pointless in general, my efforts popped into a practical use when I got the Rocky. So now I share with you the pics as well as a version to print and make for yourself.
Right now you can finish your day just like the Italian Stallion starts his, with a big ole bowl of MegO’s cereal and imagination.
Now, go play!
Jim – 12/10/21
P.S. Here’s another fun little project I’m working on you might want to take a look at… we’ll, so long as you’re not scared of being “red-pilled” 😉
In case you missed it the most epic announcement of the actions of a pop culture icon just dropped: William Shatner is going to space! How amazing is that? Captain Kirk going to space for real?!?! I’m not that big of a Trekkie but I sure do love me some William Shatner!
And while this is awesome in and of itself, this isn’t the first time that the influence of the fictional “Star Trek” has manifested in our real world. For those who may not have known or forgot, once upon a time ago the bridge crew of the Enterprise were the guests of honor when the REAL Enterprise was rolled out for all to see… well, everybody but the Captain…
I guess this is the Shat’s way of making up for that really stupid blunder on his part. As of this writing, I haven’t been able to find an official reason as to why he wasn’t there but ego’s were ego’s back then. Oh well, let the past be the past right? Right!
Being as fanboy as I can be, this announcement gets me stoked about Kirk Merch (plus that sounds kind of cool)… and on that note, I’m thinking to commemorate the moment I just may go aheaad and get my hands on the new 14″ Mego Kirk via my longtime pals at Entertainment Earth. Hmmm……
Hell, I think I may need to give in to more impulse buying and round out the whole old school crew via the Mego way. Also could be a really good time to give the folks at ZLC Collectibles a shot…. I see tribble size trouble on my hands if I give into all this madness.
But what a way to go! I think I’ll start right here…. I’ll let you know how it goes 🙂
“Come with me and you’ll be
In a world of pure imagination.”
Strife and division. Negativity and combativeness. Exclusion and loneliness. Adjectives that I never much cared to use in the opening of any article let alone one for the Toy Box. However, it’s impossible not to call out those horrible elephants hanging out in the room if one is to ever clear said room of horrible elephants and have a fun place to play that doesn’t smell of elephant dung.
After 18 months of introspection, self realization, a few really good books, a complete exodus from social media, an 8 inch action figure released by the Mego Corporation and a buried truth unearthed from the deepest parts of my subconscious, I’ve broken free from the mental trap that led me down; dark roads, ignorant decisions, hateful and irresponsible actions online and a general disdain for the things that l loved most: creating, educating, inspiring and encouraging you, dear reader to do the same. To prove that, I’ve packed in some Golden Tickets that got me through the aforementioned dark times that I hope you will enjoy.
“Hold your breath.
Make a wish
Count to three.”
Willy Wonka – 1971
A little preface
Since 2010, this Toy Box had been the refuge for all of my creative expressions (audio, video, still photography, the written word and/or a combination of them all) but the last few pre-2020 years, I went a completely wrong direction with my attitude. And frankly, I know I nearly wrecked this Toy Box. To say the least, I certainly lost touch with its intent and let me tell you, that’s a truly horrible feeling.
On the journey that led me back to where we are, I did a whole lot of soul searching as to why I couldn’t let this online playground go but at the same time I lost the desire to enter into its realm. What was at the root? At the core? In the very essence of my need to be surrounded by plastic representations of childhood memories let alone talk about ’em?
Was it nostalgia? Honestly, no. Was it a sensation or feeling? Yes! But still not exactly the answer. Why on God’s green Earth am I talking to myself? Because I’m insane.
That conversation began in March of 2020 as I too was hunkered down into the start of an 18 month “15 days to flatten the curve” world. It took 12 months (and a helluva lot of frustrating circumstances) for the true answer to begin revealing itself too me. Then, almost to the day in March 2021, I heard from my neighbor that a certain purple clad, top hat wearing mad man was spotted on the shelves in the Electronics Department.
A spark was struck and away I went to see this anomaly for myself. I arrived to find he and his three clones were perched precariously on a shelf along with 4 each of a vampire, a cyborg, a Japanese superhero, a scarlet skeleton pimp, a clown with pink eye, a possessed spawn of Satan and a snotty looking guy in a dress. Yes, Mr. Willie Wonka, away from his factory and encased in a plastic bubble was looking for a ride to my place. I consulted with President’s Washington and Lincoln and our first Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton if they were cool with an exchange. They agreed and there we went, back to the house.
Unbeknownst to me at that moment, the answer to the question I had been pondering for so long and hard, was being answered. The cure to my ailment of attitude, and not just for a desire to indulge in ramblings about toys, but towards life on the whole, was being revealed through this 8 inch Gene Wilder doppelganger. Encapsulated in this action figure was a reminder and reintroduction to the most powerful force in the universe:
IMAGINATION
Imagination is a multi directional street. Most instinctively presume it only refers to a wondrous mental landscape of joy and wonderment solely for the flights of fancy of children. And it absolutely SHOULD be that way. However, there is a dark side to it when it is overtaken and labeled as worry, anxiety and fear. Those of course are regulated to being the standard and to be expected “adult” experience. Which is an absolutely terrible mindset and perception. I had read something to that effect but it didn’t sink in until I was examining Mr. Wonka more closely and my creative mind kicked back in and realized he was missing something so simple yet crucial; He needed Wonka bars and I needed to make ’em! So I did and in doing so the rusty gears of my imagination factory began to turn and as such began breaking down the false labels attributed to that most wonderful and readily available super power which leads to my first Golden Ticket for you. Below you’ll see a picture of Wonka bar wrappers that you can print out to make your own perfect accessories. I’ve included a simple how to video to help you in the construction process.
Now you too can be a candy man. Print these off and add your own sunrise, and sprinkles of dew.
Just trying to have a little fun, folks. That’s all.
There’s more to come from this story (and more Golden Tickets so be sure to check back soon…
Now, Go Play!
Jim 08/22/2021
Side note: Halloween’s coming… check out our new affiliate partner!
“Come with me and you’ll be
In a world of pure imagination.”
Strife and division. Negativity and combativeness. Exclusion and loneliness. Adjectives that I never much cared to use in the opening of any article let alone one for the Toy Box. However, it’s impossible not to call out those horrible elephants hanging out in the room if one is to ever clear said room of horrible elephants and have a fun place to play that doesn’t smell of elephant dung.
After 18 months of introspection, self realization, a few really good books, a complete exodus from social media, an 8 inch action figure released by the Mego Corporation and a buried truth unearthed from the deepest parts of my subconscious, I’ve broken free from the mental trap that led me down; dark roads, ignorant decisions, hateful and irresponsible actions online and a general disdain for the things that l loved most: creating, educating, inspiring and encouraging you, dear reader to do the same. To prove that, I’ve packed in some Golden Tickets that got me through the aforementioned dark times that I hope you will enjoy.
“Hold your breath.
Make a wish
Count to three.”
Willy Wonka – 1971
A little preface
Since 2010, this Toy Box had been the refuge for all of my creative expressions (audio, video, still photography, the written word and/or a combination of them all) but the last few pre-2020 years, I went a completely wrong direction with my attitude. And frankly, I know I nearly wrecked this Toy Box. To say the least, I certainly lost touch with its intent and let me tell you, that’s a truly horrible feeling.
On the journey that led me back to where we are, I did a whole lot of soul searching as to why I couldn’t let this online playground go but at the same time I lost the desire to enter into its realm. What was at the root? At the core? In the very essence of my need to be surrounded by plastic representations of childhood memories let alone talk about ’em?
Was it nostalgia? Honestly, no. Was it a sensation or feeling? Yes! But still not exactly the answer. Why on God’s green Earth am I talking to myself? Because I’m insane.
That conversation began in March of 2020 as I too was hunkered down into the start of an 18 month “15 days to flatten the curve” world. It took 12 months (and a helluva lot of frustrating circumstances) for the true answer to begin revealing itself too me. Then, almost to the day in March 2021, I heard from my neighbor that a certain purple clad, top hat wearing mad man was spotted on the shelves in the Electronics Department.
A spark was struck and away I went to see this anomaly for myself. I arrived to find he and his three clones were perched precariously on a shelf along with 4 each of a vampire, a cyborg, a Japanese superhero, a scarlet skeleton pimp, a clown with pink eye, a possessed spawn of Satan and a snotty looking guy in a dress. Yes, Mr. Willie Wonka, away from his factory and encased in a plastic bubble was looking for a ride to my place. I consulted with President’s Washington and Lincoln and our first Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton if they were cool with an exchange. They agreed and there we went, back to the house.
Unbeknownst to me at that moment, the answer to the question I had been pondering for so long and hard, was being answered. The cure to my ailment of attitude, and not just for a desire to indulge in ramblings about toys, but towards life on the whole, was being revealed through this 8 inch Gene Wilder doppelganger. Encapsulated in this action figure was a reminder and reintroduction to the most powerful force in the universe:
IMAGINATION
Imagination is a multi directional street. Most instinctively presume it only refers to a wondrous mental landscape of joy and wonderment solely for the flights of fancy of children. And it absolutely SHOULD be that way. However, there is a dark side to it when it is overtaken and labeled as worry, anxiety and fear. Those of course are regulated to being the standard and to be expected “adult” experience. Which is an absolutely terrible mindset and perception. I had read something to that effect but it didn’t sink in until I was examining Mr. Wonka more closely and my creative mind kicked back in and realized he was missing something so simple yet crucial; He needed Wonka bars and I needed to make ’em! So I did and in doing so the rusty gears of my imagination factory began to turn and as such began breaking down the false labels attributed to that most wonderful and readily available super power which leads to my first Golden Ticket for you. Below you’ll see a picture of Wonka bar wrappers that you can print out to make your own perfect accessories. I’ve included a simple how to video to help you in the construction process.
Now you too can be a candy man. Print these off and add your own sunrise, and sprinkles of dew.
Just trying to have a little fun, folks. That’s all.
There’s more to come from this story (and more Golden Tickets so be sure to check back soon…
Now, Go Play!
Jim 08/22/2021
Side note: Halloween’s coming… check out our new affiliate partner!
“Make mine Mego! ” and not just because I love the toys, but because I’ve grown to truly respect and appreciate the CEO.
“Make mine Mego! ” and not just because I love the toys, but because I’ve grown to truly respect and appreciate the CEO.
They’re HERE! Well, sorta….
Taking a little time to share some thoughts and a little personal stuff with you in lieu of a great thing that has happened in the toy community. That big thing of course is the return of the Mego Corporation. As I’ve mentioned previously, this is an amazing story to me. After over 30 years, the premiere Action figure company of the 1970’s has returned to what they do best and headed by the man who started it all; Marty Abrams. I could wax on and on about how awesome that is to me but right now I want to get to a more important aspect of it all to me personally: This development has been a major inspiration for me personally as well as creating opportunities for my own toy dreams to come true.
You see, dear reader, watching and mindfully observing the return of Mego Corporation has led to a whole lot of learning for your old buddy Jimbo. It got me asking a lot of questions to not only myself, but to people inside the action figure world. Not just collectors but the makers. And those conversations have led to an incredibly exciting opportunity that I look forward to sharing with you all very soon. Ever the tease, I know, but it’s all about timing. Which is another point I’d like to make in this writing.
These 3 along with Jimi Hendrix and Kelli Garrett seemed to be all that was left by noon at Target.com. Other figures have returned since.
Over the weekend (July 29, 2018 specifically), Mego fans everywhere in the nation were clambering to finally get their hands on the first new official Mego’s at Target stores across the country and online. To say the least, the roll out by Target has been a bit clunky, but it’s resolving itself even as I type. Initially though, some stores didn’t have them in stock, others said they weren’t going to stock them at all and the online extension, sold out of the most popular figures at almost lightning speed. This led to a whole lot of disappointed fans. And rightfully so. Come on, these folks have been waiting on this very moment since the first Regan Administration.
Social sites such as Facebook, started feeling the rumbles and wrath of the angry and disenchanted collector almost immediately after midnight when the online ordering became available and items were showing up “Out of Stock”. Arguments and whining, coupled with apologists and genuinely positive people flooded the trending threads on the matter. It was an emotional outburst that I don’t think any toy brand could ever or will ever match. Seriously, it was impressive to watch. A resurrected toy company just sparked so much emotion that Hasbro, Mattel and whomever else is out there that is considered a “big boy” should take note. And that’s where the question arose in my head; “Why?”
“Why were so many people getting so heated over toys?” One would almost think this was like a Christmas in the 80’s when Cabbage Patch Kids or Tickle Me Elmo became so scarce that fights were literally breaking out in the aisles. Thankfully that didn’t happen (to the best of my knowledge) but still outside of the anticipation that so many had building up for a couple of months, why exactly such a strong response? At around 6PM (EST) Sunday afternoon, the answer came in a very impressive way. Marty spoke.
Mego Corp. President and CEO Marty Abrams talks directly to the fans via LIVE social media announcement. Addressing concerns and calling out the scalpers.
Mego insiders had been monitoring the situation closely throughout the day and began making plans to address the concerns of fans. Not through some generic, cookie cutter press release or Tweet, but by Marty himself going LIVE on Facebook, to look eyeball to digital eyeball to his fans, supporters and customers to explain the situation. While the roll out was completely out of Mego’s control, their response to their brand and fans was. And in true Marty Abrams fashion, he owned it and rocked it. Not only did he clear the air on what can only be considered messy as far as product availability at the moment, he did what I’ve never seen anyone do; Slap down the scalpers.
Sweet Lord do I admire and appreciate that!
Now it’s Monday, July 30th, 2018. Target stores are still working on their major resets in toys. Target online is restocking the Mego figures. Fans are getting their itches scratched and their Toy Boxes filled. And I do hope that Marty knows how impressive his effort in addressing concerns head on, has done in a wonderfully positive way for the toy collecting community. I’d love to see any other CEO man-up like that. That’s; Impressive, Inspirational, Motivational and most importantly for this fan; That’s Mego!
Greetings gang! As any reader who has ever been to the Toy Box more than once by accident should know, I’m a HUGE fan of the MEGO line of action figures from the 70’s. They were and still are my first toy love. And while I rave, rabble and rant about the new retro, Mego style action figures, nothing can top the originals… or their father; Marty Abrams…
I share with you now this fantastic article from January ’99, inside the former go to publication of all things action figures; Tomart’s Action Figure Digest. See where it all came from Action Figure fans!
Just saw 8 inch figures from Quentin Tarantino’s new film “The Hateful Eight” are getting the retro treatment from NECA. And man oh man do I hope these don’t get the social media beatdown that cost us the Django Unchained figures. I know I for one am going to be pre-ordering these for so many reasons: NECA is KILLING it with their 8 inch releases. Snake and Eddie as the Trooper have made collection a much happier and tougher place plus I LOVE the cowboy figures. Here we have it all in one wonderful assortment.
I haven’t seen the film yet but will soon but no matter what I know these are must haves for the Toy Box. I’m telling you gang I’m beside myself with excitement about these 8 awesome figures!
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