Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Vintage Star Wars Packaging

I am a huge Star Wars fan, and have been for a very long time. Unfortunately as a kid I never owned any fresh out of the package Star Wars figures. I was born in 1982 when Return of the Jedi came out. By the time I saw Star Wars and knew what it was the toys were pretty much out of the stores. I remember seeing some of it on store shelves as a kid before I knew what it was.

In addition to that, I really like backer cards and card art for action figures. I love how different lines do their "cross sell". GI Joes has the card art shrunk down on the back. MOTU has little drawings of the action figures, and Star Wars had a photograph of the entire collection of toys.

I have tons of backer cards laying around from various toy lines, and when I find them cheap I like to pick up old ones. I like to have an example of the packaging from each line. More recently I started saving a carded figure from most lines, but for the old toys I just like to have a card back.

At Retro Con one of the dealers had some old Star Wars card back for a dollar a piece. I decided to get a few. You will notice that many of them have a circle cut out. This is the little emblem that was clipped and mailed in for figures like Boba Fett and the Emperor. When I picked these out I went for variety on back of the card back (example 12 back or Boba Fett offer) as well as for toys I like.

Luke Skywalker (Cross sell is drawn art of the characers - the early bird art)
R5-D4 (Rocket Fire Boba Fett promotion on back)
R2-D2 w/ Sensor Scope (ESB Cross Sell Photograph)

Luke Skywalker (Jedi), Princess Leia (Bosh), Han Solo (Endor)
I really like these versions of the characters. 
They were all great toys and Show of the Return of the Jedi Collection.
Rancor Keeper (I think of my buddy Brian every time I see this guy so I had to get him)
C-3P0 (I felt like I needed his cardback to go with R2-D2)

Amanaman and EV-9D9 both are just cool toys from the end of the series.
 These cards show off pretty much the entire line of vintage Star Wars toys with a few exceptions.

6 comments:

  1. I think my favorite cardback cross sell has to be the Return of the Jedi cardbacks. That was the 65-77 toy photo lineup. I loved seeing all of the action figures standing in on that yellow display! I would dream about getting them all!

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  2. That is some real history there. I would have gotten some too!

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  3. I still get a kick out of the old G.I. Joe cardbacks.The dramatic artwork on them had a way of drawing you in as a kid.

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  4. oh yeah, I love them. I wish I could buy prints of some of the Card Art or Vehicle Box Art.

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  5. If they ever released a book with just G.I. Joe cardback art,I would definitely pick it up.I would have a ball flipping through something like that.

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  6. I recently sold all of my loose cardbacks, but I do love them. Either for the art, photos of the live characters, or pics from the toy line. Always cool to see.

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