Comments on: Classic Movie Monsters by Imperial Toy

By: atombat

atombat — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 16:48:51 +0000

I have the Frankenstein’s “Monster” he has a great paint job on his face, the paints come of his giant hands though. I wouldn’t mind the Dracula.

By: Justin Gammon

Justin Gammon — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 22:32:36 +0000

Wow! You really know your stuntmen

Thanks for all the info. I’m glad you stumbled across this site.

By: Jeff

Jeff — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 21:17:57 +0000

What makes the Mummy figure even more “weirdo” is the fact that you called him “the mummy’s stunt double”.
Well, guess what…the part of ‘Klaris’ in “Abbott & Costello meet the Mummy” was played by veteran stuntman Edwin “Eddie” Parker who actually was Lon Chaney Jr.’s stunt double in the Mummy movies!
He also stood in for Bela Lugosi when things got rough in “Frankenstein meets the Wolfman” & “Bride of the Monster”.
Heck, he even donned the pointy-eared cowl of Batman to battle the bad guys in the Caped Crusader’s very first serial appearance.
Wasn’t even his first appearance as a monster menacing comedians Bud & Lou…he was the bestial bearded & bushy-browed Mr. Hyde (who would have made a GREAT action figure as part of the set!) to Boris Karloff’s sinister Dr. Jekyll in “Abbott & Costello meet Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde”.

By: Justin Gammon

Justin Gammon — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 21:29:08 +0000

@ John Rozum & @ Jeff – Thanks for the Abbot & Costello info. It is great that this Mummy is from one of their movies. It makes him that much more “weirdo.”

I found this image online of the Mummy in action.
http://www.briansdriveintheater.com/comedy/abbottandcostello/aandc10.jpg

By: Jeff

Jeff — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 21:22:56 +0000

The mummy is definitely ‘Klaris, Prince of Evil’ from “Abbott & Costello meet the Mummy”, & Imperial probably chose it over the classic Kharis/Imhotep version because, let’s face it, that one looks like just some wrinkled old guy painted grey, & what little kid would want that?
Okay, well, yeah, anyone who would write in to here obviously…but still, it is the only action figure out there based specifically on one of the monsters from the Abbott & Costello horror comedies, & I for one applaud the fact that it even exists at all.

By: John

John — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 17:45:34 +0000

In addition, I remember these being sold in the bubble packaging as seen here or just loose with a tag stating official Universal Studios Monsters.

By: John

John — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 17:43:42 +0000

I have the Frankenstein. I also have the Imperial King Kong, plus the Imperial two headed Dragon. I used them against my 1983 Bandai Godzilla and Mecha-Godzilla.

@ Justin, the Universal Monsters your talking about were 3 and 3/4 Remco figures. They were scaled down versions of the 9 inch releases from the very late 1970’s. I believe the little ones came out in 1981 or so. I have the Haunted Mansion and the whole collection.

By: Justin

Justin — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 21:22:24 +0000

I’m like 80% positive I had one of these when I was a kid.

But my favorite Universal monster toys… I don’t remember who made them, but they were about the size of a GI Joe (4″ or so). They were made of a vinyl-y soft plastic, and they all had glow-in-the-dark parts. Frankenstein, Dracula and the Wolfman only glowed where their flesh was visible i.e. hands and faces, but the Mummy and the Creature from the Black Lagoon (my favorite) glowed full body. So cool! I loved them because I could use GI Joes and play out the movies.

By: Poe Ghostal

Poe Ghostal — Thu, 28 May 2009 13:15:00 +0000

I’ve got Drac and Frank, and I love them. I had them when I was a kid (though I had to re-buy them off eBay later). I passed on the Wolfman and the Mummy, though…they’re pretty awful.

These days, my favorite UM figures are the Toy Island ones. I know, the Sideshow 8″ figures are better sculpted and painted, but the TI ones are more fun toys.

By: John Rozum

John Rozum — Sat, 23 May 2009 05:12:18 +0000

I think the Mummy is actually meant to look like the one that appears in “Abbot and Costello Meet the Mummy.” If you see a picture, you’ll see the resemblance and why this A&C movie rates so low. If you think this thing looks goofy as a toy, then imagine what it would be like to watch people in a live action movie supposedly being menaced by it.

I never got around to buying these when they were released. Back then I thought they were really cool. After Sideshow tackled the Universal monsters about a decade ago, everything else ended up looking pathetic in comparison, but they do have their charm.

By: Blue Herring

Blue Herring — Fri, 22 May 2009 01:12:16 +0000

Great toys and great commentary, as always! I feel like a kindred spirit, I prefer to collect odd, obscure, and knockoff 80’s era robots, so I totally get where you’re coming from.

By: The King of Bootlegs

The King of Bootlegs — Thu, 21 May 2009 01:08:15 +0000

When i dig em out I’ll post em for all to see

By: Bubbashelby

Bubbashelby — Tue, 19 May 2009 19:21:18 +0000

I picked up Frank and Drac last year. They’re fun to have around at Halloween.

The mummy would look awesome along with some larger GI Joe figures, lying in a cot or something. He totally looks like an overwrapped hospital patient!

By: Jason

Jason — Mon, 18 May 2009 15:12:44 +0000

These guys are just too goofy. I think i like injured stuntman the best because of his awkward/goofiness. The franky monster is SO funny though. His puffy WTF look is classic. Good find.

Your fun view/writing of these guys really brings out the weirdo essence. Keep up the good work.

By: Justin Gammon

Justin Gammon — Mon, 18 May 2009 11:45:47 +0000

@ Mittens – Glad you like

@ harris – I think you’re right.

@ King of Bootlegs – I’d like to see the McD versions. Also, I’m Justin. my brother’s name is Jason. Common mistake though

@ Oldman – Thanks for the support. I don’t wanna be known as Mr. Sarcasm though. Maybe I should cut back on it.

By: Oldman

Oldman — Mon, 18 May 2009 09:23:53 +0000

Great sarcasm in your individual descriptions. If all else fails maybe you can land a job on The Glenn Beck show or John Stewart’s show. It’s good
to know there are jobs out there for just about any toy maker. These guys
really deserve to be honored on this Blog of yours.

By: The King of Bootlegs

The King of Bootlegs — Mon, 18 May 2009 07:31:17 +0000

I have the McDonald’s versions of these. Awesome find Jason!

By: harris

harris — Mon, 18 May 2009 07:24:37 +0000

that dracula looks a lot like Lon Chaney Jr.

By: Mittens

Mittens — Mon, 18 May 2009 06:16:07 +0000

we’ve got dracula who’s ready for a night on the town, a frankenstein’s monster who’s made of chimp parts, an accident prone fella and a wolf man that looks more like the victim from that mcfarlan werewolf playset. LOVE THEM.