A month or so back, I was poking around a toy show, and as usual, I didn’t find much that interested me. (That kind of thing happens when your tastes become more and more obscure I guess… dang it)
In sad situations like that, I eventually get to the point where I’m thinking, “I paid to get into the show… I’m leaving with SOMETHING.” This actually forces me to backtrack and look over every square inch of these dealer’s tables. And that is when you’ll find some little thing you’ve previously overlooked (and be you’ll be forced into more awkward toy conversations).
And what I initially overlooked is this little gem.
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What the hell is it?
I dunno.
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He’s 5.5″ tall with no markings whatsoever. The dealer I bought it from didn’t know a thing about it. He assumed it was from an old G.I.Joe toyline, but I’m fairly certain it’s not. I was actually hoping it was some strange Star Wars bootleg, because it looks like a wookiee choking on a jawbreaker or eating a ping-pong ball or something.
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The distressed, yellow paint job, agonized facial expression and ball in the creature’s mouth – sure, he looks weird, but in my heart I knew this figure had a simple, sane origin. It’s probably from some vintage safari-themed toyline.
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Well, with a little bit of digging (AKA asking some buddies on a toy discussion board), I discovered that this is actually a yeti figure from a vintage Evel Knievel playset by Ideal Toy Company – “Escape from Skull Canyon.”
Evel Knievel playset photos courtesy of ToyNerd.com.
Evel Knievel playset photos courtesy of ToyNerd.com.
Apparently one of Evel’s death-defying stunts was driving through a canyon occupied by an angry Yeti who drops boulders on him.
This guy reminds me a lot of the green monkey I featured here a couple years ago.
They’re both equally weathered, and the yeti looks just as angry. (Do these emotions stem from years of the toy’s having been neglected?)
So, now that we now know what this toy is, I’m still left with some unanswered questions. Why is my yeti figure yellow? And…
So, a couple of weeks ago, I was actually in South Africa visiting with my wife and some of her family (they’re all Afrikaners). We were all super-busy and touristy out there, but I did have one day dedicated to toy shopping (thanks Monty and Alec). I hit up a bunch of antique shops and toy stores. I didn’t find much, but here’s a little something I definitely want to show you.
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It’s Weepy the Wee-Wee!
I’ve seen this guy here and there at flea markets over the years, but according to the shop owner I bought this from, this one is from the 40s.
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I think I believe her. It does look like a vintage/antique Weepy. He has a better color scheme and paint job than the more modern reproductions.
It appears that Weepy just gets re-released with new packaging and new color schemes every once in a while.
I have no clue who makes Weepy or where he comes from. I’m not sure of how long he’s been around, and I’m not even sure if Weepy is his original name. (Can anyone help me out with this?)
For those unfamiliar with Weepy, he’s basically a cute little kid with an innocent (yet sly) look on his face. Looks like he’s hiding something.
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Oh no!
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Wait!
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He’s peeing on everything!!
I never thought I’d own a urinating toy.
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Yep. Simply fill Weepy’s base/reservoir with water, pull down his shorts, and voila – the cutest, little urine stream you’ve ever seen in a toy.
Here’s Weepy in action.
As you might have noticed, this toy is pretty old and kinda cruddy.
He has stains and aged glue where some previous owner has made lame repair attempts. His pee action still works, but it’s a bit weak (I hear that happens with age).
While searching for info for Weepy, I came across a really disturbing version of him.
This Weepy definitely doesn’t have the charm of the original Weepy.
He’s got his hands in his pockets, and he’s wearing shorts over his pants. Weird.
Hey folks! Merry Christmas! (I would say “Happy Holidays,” but I don’t feel like being politically correct today.)
Don’t worry, all you non-Christmasy types. I’m only focusing on the commercial side of the holiday. That’s right –Santa Claus!
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Wow, this isn’t the jolly ol’ Santa we all know and love. This looks more like the homeless, mentally disturbed Santa we’ve always feared.
All the signs are there – wandering eye, disheveled clothes, bloody nose. Damn. Looks like he’s been stumbling through the streets of the North Pole for well over a week.
He is the perfect stocking stuffer for the weird toy lover in your family (who is probably you).
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What we have here is a vintage Santa Claus Push Puppet by Kohler Bros. I think it was released in the 1960s. (No wonder Santa looks like hell. He’s been lost on the Island of Misfit Toys for the past 40+ years.)
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I’m sure you’ve seen toys like this before. For those unfamiliar with push puppets, they are basically miniature, marionette-type of toys whose segmented body parts are held together by string which is tied taut to a solid platform encased in a cylindrical base.
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Once you “push” on the platform inside the toy’s base, it releases the tension of the string, resulting in the sporadic movement of the character. If given enough pressure, all of the body parts will fall limp.
Sheesh. That written description of a push puppet was a bit overkill. I think a quick video will more quickly express what I’m talking about.
Merry Christmas folks! Enjoy your food, drink, family, friends and whatever else it is that you do. I hope Santa leaves something weird in your stocking.
Well, it’s the holiday season. I hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving a week or so ago. Did you celebrate it the way most Americans did? You know – rushing to the shops to find their super-great deals. Well, not me. I decided to spend nearly half a day on the road driving to York, Pennsylvania – home of the Greater York Toy Extravaganza, where I’m not guaranteed to find good prices or good toys at all. Worth the risk? I dunno. I’ll get back to you on that one.
I didn’t go to the York toy show alone. I actually went with my father-in-law. Yep. He’s into toys too. Luckily he’s a fan of old, die-cast cars and stuff (Dinky Toys mostly), so we don’t compete. Anyway, when traveling to York last year, we went by plane which turned out to be a nightmare. We had hellacious layovers and weather delays, so we figured this year we’d try to control our own destiny by driving.
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Not only did we drive to York, but we arrived to the toy show a day early. Some folks don’t know it, but they have an “Early Buyers” admission to the show. You can pay to get in the day before the show (or you can pay to get in a couple hours early the day of the public show). The dealers set up Saturday and sell to each other and other suckers like me that night. At last year’s show, we only knew about the Sunday opening. We were kind of rushed with our toy shopping, because we had to catch a flight. But now, we had plenty of time.
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And as you can see, maybe we had a bit too much time. Yeesh. Maybe getting there first thing really wasn’t the best use of our time or money. As it turns out, the dealers are getting there the same time as the early buyers. It’s kind of annoying actually. Why make the dealers wait until 5:30pm to set up shop?
Oh well. At least I bought a couple of things… maybe even stuff that would’ve been gone the next day had I not nabbed it first (at least that’s what I’m saying to convince myself it was worth the $20 early admission). Another good thing about getting in early is it gave me a good lay of the land. I figured out who and what I should be checking out the next day.
On Sunday morning, I got in early again, but this time more of the tables actually had toys on ‘em. Good thing, or I would been severely disappointed.
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I know I’ve always mentioned how the photos I take don’t really capture the essence of these large toy shows, so I actually took some video footage of each hall. What you’ll see here are walthrough clips of the two toy halls – The West Hall (which was filled with more antiquey and automotive stuff) and the East Hall (which seemed to be more kitschy and “modern”).
Don’t worry, the videos are really quick, but they’ll make you seasick. (Unfortunately, the East Hall video ends a bit too soon, because I ran out of space on my memory card. In fact, that’s the main reason I have so few photos to show you.) Enjoy.
West Hall
East Hall
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G.I. Joe Headquarters. Does it get any cooler than that? Nope? Then you should probably stop reading now.
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On the first night, I picked up this set of “Tales from the Cryptkeeper” toys. (Why do I have the sneaking suspicion that these are from a lame cartoon series trying to make the old EC Comics and HBO series fun and child-friendly? Sure looks like it.) I got a great deal on them… or at least I thought so. After I bought them I noticed their old price stickers. They were from Kay-Bee and sold 3 for $5.00. Ha!! If only I’d seen ‘em years ago.
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Next, I bought a handful of windups. The carded ones are some strange, celebrity caricatures. The only ones I recognize are Arnold Schwarzenegger and Michael Jackson (The rest must be fütbol stars or something ). I also picked up the Q*bert, the little, orange ball guy, and a freaky-looking Fozzie. Really freaky.
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The last set is probably what people would expect at these shows. Vintage 80s He-man toys. Well, as you can see, some are Masters of the Universe, but others are knockoffs or monsters from Dungeons and Dragons and Inhumanoids.
The coolest piece is the Conan figure. It’s pretty rare, and I got a pretty good deal on it. Unfortunately, it’s not even for me. In fact, most of those fantasy figures were for a buddy of mine (it pays to be buddies with Weirdo Toys I tell ya). Don’t worry. I didn’t do it out of the kindness of my heart. I did it for a trade
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I’m thinking this guy didn’t sell a single one of these Beanie Babies. Not sure what he was thinking.
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Looking back on it, I’m not sure if the show is really worth it. Well, lemme take that back. If you’re within an hour or two drive, it’d be great, but I drove from South Carolina. That’s a long-ass way (I type this knowing I’ll probably go next year. It wouldn’t be as bad if I could get a small group to share in the expenses).
It cost me more in food, shelter and gas than I spent on toys. And not only that, but most of the cool toys I wanted were way overpriced (I sure sound like a cheapskate huh?). I’m serious. This isn’t like the Allentown Antique Toy Show were the toys are inherently expensive. This is a case of selling a dirty, broken-armored, incomplete He-Man figure for $25 (the one I got was nicer and cheaper by the way). Gimme a break. I even had a guy laugh in my face when trying to negotiate a price on a toy (Oh well. Just another guy I’ll never buy from if I ever see him again). It’s almost as if some of the sellers are there just to show you what cool stuff they have, having no real intention of selling anything (you know… like I do on this blog ).
In the end, it wasn’t too bad. There were plenty of nice folks with great deals – all there to share in the joy of toys. I’m happy I had the opportunity to be in York to do a little toy shopping, and I’m glad I have this opportunity to share it with you all.
As most of you know (and as some have felt), the world’s “financial situation” isn’t too great right now. Here in the U.S., folks are saying we’re in a recession (I think the media helped perpetuate that status with their incessant fear mongering, but nonetheless, that’s where we are). I know a lot of folks are losing jobs and homes, so I feel extremely fortunate to still have my job and home, and I even have the time and money to maintain this goofy blog.
… which leads us to our theme for today’s entry – Money. To be more precise – saving money.
No, I’m not gonna be providing any cost-saving tips for toy collectors or anything like that (God knows you can’t get cheaper than some of the crap I’ve picked up over the years). I’m actually referring to something I’d never imagined would be on the Weirdo Toys blog – coin banks.
What better way to save money for weirdo toys than by placing loose change in a couple of other weirdo toys.
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I came across these two beauties at the York Toy Show, and they just kept chanting, “Put me on the blog. Put me on the blog. Put me on the blog….”
As you may have noticed, the first bank posted there is Bert(or seems to be).
Of course we all know him from the children’s show, Sesame Street. He hangs out with his buddy (or brother… or lover), Ernie.
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As you may have noticed, Bert’s a bit off-model. With his round, red clown nose and military-style buzz cut he’s not as cute and “muppety” as his TV show depiction.
Look! He even has a slight smirk. Bert should NEVER show emotion (other than frustration or anger)!
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This Bert is just awkward. He appears to be more squatty than I’d ever imagined. In fact, he’s so short, he’s having to pull up his long shirt so he doesn’t step on it… and his shirt’s totally the wrong color. It looks like it’s striped, but I guess the manufacturer couldn’t afford more than four stripes (according to his markings, this guy was made by New York Vinyl Prod. Corp. in 1971).
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Actually, now that we have a better look at the the back, it actually looks like Bert is holding a towel around his waste. What the hell? I know Sesame Street had scenes of Ernie in the tub, but I never remember scenes of Bert in the shower. And as with all sub-par quality toys, only the front of the toy is painted (unless you count the full paint app of the hair).
He’s ugly and totally wrong, but that’s what I like about him. He just has a peculiar charm and is “off” just enough to make him intriguing. He’s a pretty good size too. He’s stands slightly taller than 12″, and he’s made of pretty sturdy plastic.
As a side note, I wanted to show you something I found while searching Google for images of Bert. It’s live-action Bert. Freaky.
Next we have Disney’sMickey Mouse. Arguably the most popular cartoon character in existence (also the most mind-numbingly dull). That’s why I was totally shocked when I found this little beauty.
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I have to tell you a little bit about the guy I bought this from. I was strolling around the show, going table to table, and I came across this guy with a table full of vintage Mickey Mouse stuff. It was all super-old, antiquey and expensive. I could clearly see high price tags on most of the items there, so I was reluctant to even check the price on this ugly bank I spotted. I picked up the bank. Flipped it over. No price. Before I even had a chance to put it down, the guy blurts out “I’ll do a dollar on that!” I know I had to have a look of excitement in my eyes when I replied, “Really? Okay!! I’ll take it.” The guy paused for a second. I could see the gears turning in his head. He eventually spoke up again and asked “Wait. What is it? Why are you so interested in it?” I just laughed and simply told him, “Because it’s so horrible.” He joined in with some obligatory social laughter, but I could see the doubt and soon-to-be regret he was going to feel for the rest of the show… wondering just how much money he threw way by letting this jewel out of his possession for a mere dollar.
I’m sure the joke’s on me… but I think it’s worth the buck I paid for it. I hope you agree.
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First thought – This thing is messed up. Seriously.
I’m pretty sure this thing isn’t a Disney product at all (thank goodness). Just look at it.
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Half-assed, off-register paint job, flimsy-ass plastic and a horribly sloppy, jagged seam. Harsh words I know, but it’s only because I love him so much.
Outside of that, I love that Mickey is wearing a little cap and long pants. He looks like a little jockey riding his big money bag.
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Only bad thing about the Mickey bank is that there’s no alternate opening to get the money out once you’ve filled the thing. There’s just the slot on top, so once the money is in there, it’s most likely not getting out (guess that’ll guarantee some savings).
Hey another side note. I normally don’t do this, but when I was Google-searching “Mickey Mouse” I came across this intriguing and hilarious photo of Mickey and Minnie Mouse at Mardi Gras. I just had to share it (This one’s dedicated to you Reis ).
). I also picked up the 
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