The Toy Box

Show Biz Babies (Hasbro)

Show Biz Babies
Hasbro
1967 - 1968

When I first started looking into Hasbro's vintage Show Biz Babies line, I had no clue the can of worms I was about to open. I thought the line comprised solely of four figures based on the iconic group, The Monkees. Boy was I in for a surprise.

What maks Show Biz Babies such a fantastic line is that it's not just about the miniature doll inside the package. In addition to the fantastic psychedelic art on the front, the cardback featured an autographed photo of the musician on the back. If that weren't enough, each one came packed with its own unique 33 1/3 flexi disc record full of facts on the artist.

While oogling over the groovy Monkees characters, I stumbled across another quartet of characters featuring The Mamas And The Papas. Admittedly, I don't know much about their music, especially as compared to The Monkees. As I looked through a listing of their "hits", the only two songs I recognized were California Dreamin' and Monday Monday.

It was at this point that I started digging in deep to the line and uncovered even more dolls. I never would have expected to find the likes of Bobbie Gentry, Herman from Herman's Hermits, Mitch Ryder and Spencer Davis. Much like the Mama's And The Papas, I recognize the names, but not necessarily the music.

Even though I'm not too well versed on the tunes, I dig this line. These little dolls may be creepy, but between the cardbacks and the records, these little packages have it all - Including a ridiculously high price tag on secondary markets. You're going to drop at least fifty to one hundred dollars for a loose doll, without the record, and upwards of five hundred for a mint in package one. If you can track down loose records, which are very rare, they'll cost you between twenty-five and fifty dollars each.

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Ah, The Good Ol' Days

Remember how awesome toy shelves used to be?

You know, back when supply met demand.

***UPDATE***

I enjoyed putting the above photo together so much that I decided to do a series based on the entire vintage Kenner Star Wars line from 1978 - 1979.

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Mortal Kombat 2021

I remember seeing both of the 90's based Mortal Kombat films in the theater, and while they don't hold up well to the test of time, not that the second one made a great impact the first time around, I enjoyed them back in the day. Though I waited in anticipation of a third film, time came and went, and Mortal Kombat eventually left my vocabulary as both a video game and film series.

Then 2019 hit, and rumbling started making the internet rounds about a new film in the works. With so many films being in speculation mode, and then falling back into dark crevices, I took the rumors with a grain of salt. The pandemic followed a year later, and the film once again fell off my radar.

However, something interesting happened as 2021 geared up. Not only was the film in its final stages of post production, but it was coming to HBOMax. The film went from a, "Yeah, I guess I'll watch that," to full blown excitement upon seeing the teaser trailer.

Well, today was the day I got to sit down and give the rebooted film a viewing. In short, it was okay. Going off memories, I want to say the original 90's film was better. I think the biggest flaws for me were the fact that a tournament didn't actually happen. I'll try not to spoil the film, but this starts out as the premise, and is even the main focal point of the trailer. However, when it comes down to it, that plot is abandoned completely, and in the end it just turns into good versus evil fighting it out in general.

Overall, it was a decent film, and I'd see a sequel. If for nothing else, to see what "new" characters get introduced to the world. I know a lot of people complained that Johnny Cage wasn't in the film, but he gets an honorable mention in sequel baiting, but not by name.

It's by no means a perfect film, but if you want a good popcorn movie with a lot of action and violence, then this one is definitely worth checking out. It's a solid nod to the video game franchise it originates from, and if nothing else, serves as a good escape from a couple hours of the day.

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I Guess Major Bludd Is Coming - G.I. Joe Classified

George over at G.I. Jigsaw pointed me towards this one. Looks like a seller on ebay has the upcoming Major Bludd figure in hand from G.I. Joe Classified, and it will apparently be a Target exclusive.

As of this writing, the listing has four days left, and you can get your bid in now. It's currently sitting at the low low price of $10,300.00 with fifty-two bids. Major Bludd? More like Major Rip-Off.

Must be nice to have rich people problems. As for me, I'll wait until it gets released in stores.

***UPDATE***

After several bid retractions, the figure has dropped down to $500.00. Still pricey, but far from a house down payment.

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Retro Spins: Prince - For You

Prince has for a long time now been one of my favorite artists. His Purple Rain, Batman and 1999 albums will always rank among what I would call perfect. For me, Prince started to really shine right around 1980 with his Dirty Mind album, and continued to deliver non-stop through his 1990 Graffiti Bridge soundtrack. While his two follow ups, Diamonds And Pearls and O(+> (aka The Love Symbol Album) began his faltering and inevitable decline from popular mainstream.

It's because of this that I don't necessarily give his two albums from the 70's, and much beyond 1992 all that much attention. I mean, I have all of his albums, but there are definitely a lot of failures towards the end of his career.

Despite this, I thought I would go back in time to his debut album, For You, and give it a follow up listen to. Though I've heard it a few times, because I more so stick to his 80's albums, I don't tend to remember this record all that well.

What's very obvious from the moment it starts up is that Prince had a talent for crafting music. The multi-layer intro, aptly titled For You, sets a high bar, despite its overall simple composition. However, to really dig deep into the genius behind the album, one has to acknowledge the liner notes on the back which state, "Produced, Arranged, Composed and Performed by Prince." The man literally did everything himself on this (and most of his future albums). I dare say had they let him, he would have pressed and distributed his own records as well.

There's not denying that Prince was a talented artist. However, where this album falters is that it doesn't necessarily showcase him at his best. He may have been giving his all, but this wasn't the sound that would ultimately become the Purple One.

Another aspect I'm not necessarily into with For You is that he sings the majority of his songs in a falsetto key. Can Prince sing high? Yes. However, that's not really for me. I much prefer his tenor vocals.

Overall, it's a decent album, but it's far from my favorite. It's worth adding to your collection if you're an avid Prince fan, but if you're much more into his hits, you won't find those here. As much as I like Prince, there's only two songs from For You that make the cut for my shuffle list. Those are Just As Long As We're Together and I'm Yours. As for the rest, they can pretty much be skipped.

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Disclaimer: They Toy Box does not endorse or contribute to piracy. Retro Spins posts are intended for educational and entertainment purposes only. None of the music discussed here is available for sale, downloading or distribution.

Another One Bites The Dust

Though it was posted about a month ago, it was disappointing to learn today of yet another Blogger who has hung up his hat. Branded In The 80's has called it quits as of March 16th, 2021. Dang it...Another great site gone to the way side.

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Retro Spins: Huey Lewis And The News - Sports

Why Sports? There's no songs on the album about football, basketball, baseball, soccer, etc. So what's the correlation here?

Sports was the hit album Huey Lewis & The News needed. It was their third and final contractually obligated album with Chrysalis, and if it didn't pan out would have most likely been their last. Fortunately for the sextet it delivered four hits and a multitude of success which would eventually lead the band to an offer from Coca Cola, which they declined, and the soundtrack to Back To The Future - Which skyrocketed them into orbit with their monster hit Power Of Love.

The irony of the band was that they weren't a group most people in the 80's dared admit they listened to. At least not in the circle of kids I ran with. They weren't rad, and you weren't cool if people heard the likes of Heart and Soul coming from your lips.

But I'm an adult now, darn it, and I don't need peer approval for the music I like and listen to. While I won't proclaim them as my favorite band, not even close, I'll admit they have some great hits which I enjoy listening to.

Sports delivers with tracks like, The Heart Of Rock & Roll, Heart And Soul, I Want A New Drug and If This Is It. As I typed that last sentence, and sit here thinking, I believe my introduction to the band was actually through "Weird Al" Yankovic's parody, I Want A New Duck (Dare To Be Stupid - 1985).

A couple of "new" tracks from the album which caught my attention were, Walking On A Thin Line, Finally Found A Home and You Crack Me Up. I went ahead and added them to my 80's mixes for future listening sessions. It will take few more to determine if they were just decent or will actually stand the test of time.

Overall, Sports was a pretty decent album. While it didn't leave me clamoring to hear more from the group, it definitely didn't turn me off of the idea either. I'll make it a point to have a list of their 1986 follow up, Fore! in the near future.

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Just Doodling: Cara Dune

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Puddle (Russ Berrie & Company)

Puddles
Russ Berrie & Company
1986 - 1987

Russ Berrie & Company was founded in a rented garage in 1963 by the man of the same name. From its inception, it produced a plethora of customer favorite items which took up residence across countertops, desks and dashboards across America. Among these was their most popular plush toys, Fuzzie Wuzzies, troll dolls and the Bupkis Family. Their items were so popular, that by 1966, the companies sales exceeded one million dollars.

Since then, it's become one of the most successful small businesses across the United States, recognized by Forbes, and with sales topped at two hundred eighty-five million. It's because of this, if you owned a stuffed animal, or any of the aforementioned products, then you may have unknowingly owned a Russ brand item, and didn't even know it.

Though the company has an extensive catalog of toys, today I want to hone in on one specifically. Their stuffed dog, Puddles, which assumable was released between 1986 and 1987.

At a glance, this nine to ten inch plush would look like just another common stuffed dog. However, there's history to this one, which to the most formidable nostalgic collector makes it a little more desirable than your average run of the mill stuffed animal.

Puddles can sometimes go by another name, Scraps. This persona was seen in the 1987, unfortunate flop, Monster Squad. He's toted around by Phoebe in practically every scene which she's in and plays a formidable inanimate role throughout.

Though it was relatively unknown to most fans of the movie, Kelly Kinsley solved the thirty year old mystery of Puddles in March of 2020, sharing a side by side photo of the two. No doubt it was an identical match.

Though Monster Squad's ten million dollar budget may have bombed at the box office with only three point eight million in returns, there's no doubt that since then it has gained a successful cult following. As word spreads about Puddles, I'm sure fans will jump at the opportunity to grab a bit of physical nostalgia from the film. Currently, they can do so for around fifteen dollars.

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Order Of Battle: The Spectacular Spider-Man Magazine 1 - 2

Due to the increasing size of my comic book collection, I have found it necessary to not only break them up by title, but for some of the larger series, by groups. This will be an ongoing post of my Marvel published The Spectacular Spider-Man Magazine 1 - 2, as I obtain them. All photos are actual scans.

The Spectacular Spider-Man Magazine 1

The Spectacular Spider-Man Magazine 2

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Order Of Battle: Spider-Man One-Shots And Promotional Comic Books

Due to the increasing size of my comic book collection, I have found it necessary to not only break them up by title, but for some of the larger series, by groups. This will be an ongoing post of my Marvel published Spider-Man One-Shots and Promotional titles, as I obtain them. All photos are actual scans.