Power Droids 20-back Proof Card (Kenner, 1979)

You're looking at one of the pride and joys of my Star Wars collection. While the Power Droid figure is just what it appears to be, the card itself is something special. It's called a proof, and it's a rare piece of pre-production material used by Kenner to make sure everything was okay with the toy's packaging. Once approved, production on the cards could begin. They're really cool, and on top of it all, only a handful exist.




A lot of collectors go after any and all proofs, but I'm pretty picky -- I only want them if they're for my favorite characters. And yes, despite his limited role in the film, I'm a huge fan of the Power Droid. Or as he's known to his friends and agent, "Gonk." Not only does he appear in all three films -- stretching himself as an actor, he takes on a variety of roles, including torture victim in Jabba's palace -- but he's also one of the cooler looking action figures. He's weird and boxy and totally believable as a mechanical thing, and his legs make a satisfying clicking noise. A clicking noise! (Yeah, I'm easily entertained.)

I had a Power Droid figure as a kid, so there's also a strong, strong feeling of nostalgia connected to the toy. From the moment I started collecting Star Wars figures, he was a droid I was looking for. (Bad pun alert!)

So yeah, the Power Droid proof card was high on my list of wants, even though I was fairly certain the few that existed were locked up in other collections, never to be pried loose.

I'm guessing that by now, many of you are scratching your heads and wondering why it's a big deal. Fair enough -- I felt the same way when I first learned about proofs.

As I said, proofs were one of the final stages in producing the toys' packaging, and today are extremely rare. They were made in small batches for internal use only, and were always considered disposable. And of course, no one ever thought that years later anyone would care one way or the other about them. Consequently, by the time collectors started looking for these historic pieces of memorabilia, most were long since trashed. Out of all the proofs from the entire run of vintage Star Wars toys -- including Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, Power of the Force, and a few other odds and ends -- some of the rarest today are from the first 21 figures.

Today, proof cards are collected for a number of reasons. The rarity, certainly -- c'mon, it's fun to own rare stuff -- but more importantly, their historic significance plays a huge role in why people like them. They help illustrate the process by which these toys we love so much eventually came into production. They peel back the curtain and give us insight into how Kenner -- and toy makers in general -- worked. They help answer questions that people who are obsessed with Star Wars toys like to know.

On top of everything else, proofs are a great way to collect some of the coolest toy art ever made! They're like mini posters, with no bubble residue, price sticker, or blemishes.

So how can you tell a proof card from a regular card? First, you'll notice that the bottom corners are square instead of rounded. Sometimes all four corners have sharp edges; regardless, all production cards have four rounded corners. Another tell-tale sign is the position of the peg hole, which on production cards is more to the right. Finally, proof cards are printed on thinner cardstock than production cards, and when you hold them both, you can immediately feel the difference. Of course, being preproduction pieces, some proofs differ in even greater ways from their final production examples -- these are even rarer and are highly sought after by collectors.




This is known as a 20-back proof card because it features 20 figures on the back -- the original 12 plus the eight new releases. Further, it's known as the "20-c" because it's the third version of the 20-back released by Kenner. This is denoted by first the Boba Fett offer on the front, and then by the full-on description of the rocket firing figure on the back.

Versions "d" and later lacked this description. As many collectors known, Kenner eventually released Boba Fett without the rocket firing mechanism after some kid choked on a Battle Star Galactica toy's missile. Once the decision was made, Kenner quickly covered up the mechanism's description with a plain black sticker (the "d" card) and then replaced it entirely with a new description of the toy (the "e" card onward). So the 20-c has an extra bit of historic significance that I think makes it super cool. (The "c" card was actually released, but it's tough to find today because Kenner pulled the plug on that version of Fett pretty quickly.)



I was pretty psyched to get this on my shelf, but it almost didn't happen. Mostly because I'm a dumbass.

A friend of mine and long-time Star Wars collector offered it to me. I really wanted it, but balked at the price. I hadn't quite made the leap into the deep end of the Star Wars pool, and my thought at the time was, "Heck, I could use that kind of money to buy a really nice vintage robot!" (For those who don't read my other blog -- Doc Atomic's Attic of Astounding Artifacts -- I also collect vintage robots and ray guns from the 1930s through the 1960s. Check 'em out!) After some soul searching (and bank account checking) I reluctantly told my friend I'd pass. Then I went to sleep.

I woke up the next morning in a panic. I'd had dreams about the proof all night long (yes, I dream about my collection...) and I realized I'd made a terrible mistake by turning it down. I'd never -- never -- have another chance at a 20-back Power Droid proof, and frankly, later proofs of the figure just didn't interest me -- I wanted his first appearance. So I desperately sent an email to my friend telling him that maybe I made a mistake, and if the proof was still available, I might be interested if there was some wiggle room on the price, or a payment plan, or something.

I know... I wasn't exactly in a position to haggle, but I figured it couldn't hurt.

He wrote back and said he'd already offered it to someone, but if that person turned it down he'd knock a few bills off the price and I could have it. I was on pins and needles the rest of the day... But then finally, that afternoon, I got an email from my friend saying the other guy had also passed and if I wanted it, the card was mine. I didn't make the same mistake twice, and said yes immediately.

Gonk!

Double Telescoping Lightsaber Prototype (Kenner, ca. 1978)

As I mentioned in this previous post on the Star Wars Early Bird kit, the Luke Skywalker figure with the double telescoping lightsaber (a.k.a. the "DT Luke") is one of my all-time favorite action figures. When I finally picked one up for my collection, I figured my DT lust couldn't be any more satisfied.

And then a fellow SW collector offered up a double telescoping lightsaber prototype for sale, and it was like my brain did a back flip into a pool made of awesome. Of course I had to get it!



I made this stand using pieces from a wrecked 12-back card. The description of the lightsaber use is specific to the DT saber; it was used even after Kenner abandoned this version of the toy, though they did change the text on later versions of the 12-back card.

The prototype DT lightsaber differs from the final production piece in many ways. First, note the upward curve. This is because the saber was attached to its sprue (the plastic frame that models are initially part of when being molded) by only one point. As the plastic cured and hardened, it curved upwards. Later sabers were attached to the sprue at three points to prevent this bowing.

Second, you can see bits and pieces of flash -- jagged plastic edges -- at both the front and rear of the piece. This is because the lightsaber was quickly manufactured in only small batches at the Kenner headquarts, without any of the precision and quality control you'd find at a larger factory. Since it wasn't intended for the public, no one was worried about making it look pretty.



And finally, perhaps the coolest difference: The saber is translucent. There are a couple theories floating around as to why Kenner used translucent plastic for this round of the DT prototype. One of them is that it was so engineers and execs could actually see the double telescoping mechanism. Another is that Kenner might have possibly considered making the saber translucent -- hey, it's supposed to be made of light -- and were just trying out the material or something. (The former theory comes from someone who really knows a lot about these toys; the latter is my own random speculation and has no real evidence to support it.)


Light shining behind the saber shows how the inner piece fits into the body.


1. Close up of the translucent effect; 2. & 3. Bits of flash from the molding process.


1. More flash; 2. The break point where the prototype was attached to the sprue; 3. The handle is marked "MM," which designates the mold used; 4. More flash along the saber's top edge.

Prototype collecting is a big part of the Star Wars hobby, and there are many people out there with amazing collections of pre-production items. I know people who own the original design drawings for Darth Vader figures, clay sculpts, card artwork, you name it. Pick a stage in the manufacturing process and you'll find collectors out there who own pieces from it.

Unfortunately, it's also a potentially expensive part of the hobby, and I don't really expect to own much other pre-production stuff. It doesn't help that I'm attracted to the earliest Star Wars toys -- prototype material is much less common, much more desirable, and way harder to get than stuff from the later part of the toys' runs.

But that's okay. If I can have only one piece, for me, the DT prototype is really the piece to have. So I'm pretty happy!

Star Wars Early Bird Set & DT Lightsaber Luke (Kenner, 1978)

I love Star Wars, and I love vintage Star Wars toys. But not just any old vintage SW figure'll do. I only really like the very earliest stuff, the toys that captured that initial "Holy crap!" moment when Star Wars transformed from a movie into a movement. And nothing captures that for me like the very first set of action figures known as the Early Bird Set.


My Early Bird set in a custom display case by Oscar's Cases (oscarscases.com). I added the dorky, little banners at the top.

"A Long Time Ago, In a Galaxy Far, Far Away..."

This is where it all began, kids. It's an often told story, but just in case you haven't heard it: No one anticipated that Star Wars would become a hit when it was released in May of 1977. But of course it was the most gigantic, amazing, fantabulous, galactic-awesome movie ever. (Duh!) And that meant that Kenner, the toy company who held the license to produce SW toys, had a really big problem.

Because Christmas was a mere seven months away, and they didn't have any action figures.

So the president of the company, Bernard Loomis, came up with a brilliant idea: Kenner would release a coupon for Christmas redeemable for a set of four action figures. It'd be packaged in a wide, thin box that could fold down to become a display stand, and would include a membership to the Star Wars Fan Club, some stickers, and a catalog of upcoming Kenner releases. Children would send in the coupon and a few months into 1978 they'd get their figures in the mail.

Let's take a moment to think about this. For Christmas, Kenner was asking parents to buy their kids what was essentially an empty box.

Insane, right? And yet... it was the scheme that kicked off a toy-making empire, leading to unimaginable profit for both Kenner and Star Wars creator George Lucas, and the gleeful smiles of children everywhere. Years later, it also helped create a toy that's super duper collectible, and the object of my deep, un-abating lust.


The Early Bird tray was made out of a very thin plastic that often cracked over time.

The Early Bird set holds four figures: Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia Organa, Chewbacca, and R2-D2. Each was sealed in a bag marked with the words Hong Kong. The set also includes a small baggie of pegs that could hold the figures to the cardboard display stand. It was shipped in a plain white box that would come to symbolize all of Kenner's future mail-away figures.


The box has its original mailing label on it. I blacked out the name and address to protect the innocent.

There's a lot of discussion about why Kenner would include such an odd assortment of characters. Certainly, most people would have picked Luke and R2, but why Leia and Chewie? There's nothing wrong with them, per se, but it's hard to imagine playing with any Star Wars figures without having some villains. Most collectors that I've spoken to would have swapped those two out for Darth Vader and a Storm Trooper. Or at least Vader and Han Solo.

But the general consensus seems to be that Kenner wanted to try hitting the female market with Leia. And Chewie was included because when you're making toys for a movie about a galaxy far, far away that's populated with all sorts of weird and fantastic creatures, you sure as hell better include some sort of alien. Since Chewie was the most prominent non-human in Star Wars, he got elected for the job.

Anyway, that's what other collectors who I've spoken to seem to think. If anyone else has any concrete info, by all means let me know.

Leia, Chewie, and R2 are all standard figures, the same as the ones you'd find in stores across the country. (Though it should be noted that all Early Bird figures were made in Hong Kong, whereas carded SW figures came from factories in a variety of countries.) This is why I've kept them in their baggies. I've got loose examples to play with er...display, so I'd prefer to keep these as originally issued.

The Luke figure, is something special. Or, rather, his lightsaber is.

(Note: The following photos show Luke outside of his baggie. Don't freak out. He was purchased this way; in fact, the baggie he was stuffed into when I bought him is incorrect. I've got some strong feelings about opening -- or not opening, depending on the circumstances -- packaged vintage toys, but I'll save that for another time. Suffice it to say, no damage was done by me to this figure, his baggie, or any of the worker gnomes who I hire to polish my toys with magic fairy sweat.)

"It's Your Father's Lightsaber..." Or is it?

The common lightsaber found on Luke, Vader, and Ben Kenobi figures is a simple piece of plastic that slides up into the figure's arm. There's not much to it, it's charmingly wonky, and it gets the job done.

Many of the Early Bird Lukes, however, came with something called a Double Telescoping lightsaber. It's made of two pieces: an outer tube and an inner rod. The tube slides out of the figure's arm, and then the rod slides out of the tube. Double Telescoping. Pretty straight forward.




Early Lukes from Hong Kong -- including many that came with the Early Bird set, have limbs that turn pinkish over time. Many also have slightly different colored legs. I have no idea why...

Ultimately, Kenner decided to discontinue the DT Luke (as it's known today) due to the cost and time involved in manufacturing this particular lightsaber -- they switched over to the single-piece saber most people know of today. Consequently, this version of the toy is very rare. Not every Early Bird set comes with the DT Luke... though it should be pointed out that some DT Lukes did make it into the standard packaging. You need to inspect the toy carefully to know what you're getting.

(By the way, a number of Vader and Obi-Wan figures were also released with DT lightsabers. These are significantly rarer than the yellow Luke version...)

Getting this set was a big thrill for me. While most everyone says Han Solo or Darth Vader are their favorite Star Wars characters, I always gravitated towards Luke and R2. To have their very first appearance in plastic is a distinct pleasure. And to have Luke holding an amazingly cool version of what is arguably the best weapon in science fiction -- certainly my favorite weapon -- is like the most delicious icing ever on a cake that's already filled with sweet and sugary awesome.

Stay tuned for one more post about the DT lightsaber... Trust me, you'll dig it.