Toy OTD: Toy Factory Hägar The Horrible Plush: Helga (2004)

Here's more evidence of my weakness for obscure pop culture characters. I've hardly ever seen merchandise for the Hägar The Horrible comic strip: good, bad, or otherwise! Fortunately, this plush is pretty good.

Hägar isn't one of my favorite comic strips, but the designs are simple and appealing. Like Hanna-Barbera's Flintstones or Roman Holidays, it's essentially a sitcom moved to a different time period. Most of the comic deals with a Viking family: Dad (Hägar), Mom (Helga), teenage daughter (Honi), younger brother (Hamlet), pets (Qvack & Snert) and goofy best friend (Lucky Eddie). Since Hägar was created by cartoonist Dik Browne, co-creator of the suburban comic Hi and Lois, it makes sense that the strips have a common foundation.

Helga is a feisty Brunhilde matron, more than a match for the disheveled Hägar. She's simply constructed, with her hat, cloak, head and hair formed from elemental shapes. The plush captures the forms (and the design) pretty well. Her cloak is now colored a sort of lavender in the strip, but I do remember it being blue back in the day. I'm not sure about the belt detail, but the overall look (aside from the lack of the cloak's collar) seems quite faithful to the character's design.

The construction is average, though the belt's stitching is a bit sloppy. The shapes could be tighter (especially involving the 'helmet'), but it's not bad - the facial expression is cute, and the braids do a lot to add appeal. The bright colors help evoke a comic-strip feel, too.

Like most plushes, it has balance problems, but the right-sized doll stand (or leaning it against the back of your display case/shelf) might fix the problem. A small acrylic stand (like those sold at Office Depot) also might work.

I bought this plush loose at a convention, but I have a feeling this toy wasn't packaged, but rather sold tagged instead. Unless you're concerned about shelf presence, damage, or shipping ease, boxing a plush isn't all that necessary.

Since this toy isn't all that old, the ease of finding it depends mostly on how many were made. I found an auction for one right away on eBay - you can buy it for $7.00 + shipping, or start the bidding at $4.95 + shipping (which isn't all that much more than what I paid: $4.00 flat). There's also a Hägar plush up for auction on eBay, too. Happy bidding!

PS - If you're interested in reading a sample of Hägar The Horrible, there's a new compilation of the first year of the strip. You can buy it at Amazon.com for $10.83 + shipping.

Toy OTD: Knickerbocker Hanna-Barbera Plush: Yogi Bear (1959)

Most of the time, I'm a fanatic about how similar a toy looks to its original source - the more "on-model", the better! Sometimes, though, "off-model" toys have a certain charm. There's few toys more oddly appealing than Hanna-Barbera merchandise from the late fifties and early sixties.

It's amazing that stuffed Yogi here still looks cute in spite of the fact that the entire head was molded in the muzzle color, making Yogi look as if he'd been shaved. In fact, there's not much fuzziness to be had anywhere - only the paws look fairly cuddly. While Yogi's usually brown, it's fairly safe to say that this toy wasn't, even if you account for fading. As crazy as this doll may look when you set it next to the cartoon character, this is nothing compared to other old H&B toys!

This toy is pretty sun-bleached, and who knows how much fur has worn off in the last fifty years. I'm pretty sure that it's complete, but just because it has all of the clothing that's featured in the drawing doesn't mean that something isn't missing! Toys from this period will be colored in crazy ways or sport clothing, accessories - even fur! - that they never had in the cartoons.

There is something really great about this toy, though, and that's simplicity. The shapes and colors of the plush may be way off, but overall the design's not much more complicated than the original artwork. There's four paint passes on the head - that's it. Grab the closest modern toy within reach, and unless it came from a party store, there's probably a lot more than four paint passes. There's just four fabric colors/types on the body, too.

I really like the use of vinyl heads atop plush bodies. That's pretty rare these days, as it probably doesn't pass muster under modern safety standards. Still, you get the design crispness of vinyl combined with the cuddliness of a plush, which I think is pretty cool.

I know that some Knickerbocker toys were packed in boxes, but I'm not sure if this particular item was - I think some may have simply been sold with a tag. The package designs weren't dazzling, if I remember right... mostly some red/blue text graphics on cardboard-colored boxes, similar to the old Fisher-Price containers from the same period. The tags weren't all that exciting either, but they had a boldness and simplicity to them.

This toy is old enough that you'll need to look at toy shows or on eBay to find one. I think I paid about $65 for mine, so you might have to pay more if you find something in even better shape. Still, a lot of people are cashing out their collections these days, so you may be able to find a deal. There's a great-looking 26" version on eBay right now, in fact! Here's another one starting at $6.00. There's several more for sale, but many are missing the tie, so be careful. Look sharp and happy bidding!

PS - Now that I've pored over some eBay photos, I'm a lot less certain that my Yogi plush was originally yellow.

Photo by Jeff Pidgeon.
Yogi title card art courtesy of Warner Brothers and this blog.

Toy OTD: Musical Banana Splits Plush: Snorky

Here's yet another late '60s Hanna-Barbera show that I don't like all that much, but still feel compelled to collect the merchandise! What can I say? I like Iwao Takamoto's character designs, like many of the other H-B programs.

The show was essentially Laugh-In for kids. The Splits (animal musician costumes created by Sid & Marty Krofft) would 'perform' songs, which were broken up with animated segments (The Three Musketeers), live-action serials (Danger Island) and various non sequitur comedy bits.

There was a fair amount of toys spun off from the series, but Splits figures haven't been made all that often. So when a set of eight-inch 'beanie' plushes surfaced in the UK, I snapped up the best-looking one: the drummer, Snorky!

As you can see, my love for these characters transcends my finicky nature - it's not very accurate to the later Snorky, much less the early version of the design. The trunk, hands and feet are inexplicably dark, and the eyes seem small and poorly mounted. Simply changing the eyes' pupils, lowering their position on the head, or maintaining better alignment would boost this toy's appeal in a big way! The polka dots on the ears seem too large and too close together, and the fur seems to be a bit too dark. The proportions are fine otherwise, and the plastic hat is a great touch.

Ideally, it'd be wonderful if this toy could stand or sit on its own - my biggest issue with plushes is that the majority of them can't - but that doesn't detract from things all that much.

There's also a musical feature - squeeze Snorky's tummy, and he (she?) plays the Banana Splits theme song. Kids will probably enjoy it, but the novelty wears off quickly. It's a nice detail, but personally I'd rather that the effort had gone into the plush itself.

I still can't find these for sale in the U.S, but you can get Snorky right now (not to mention the other band members) on eBay.uk starting at £2.99 + £2.00 shipping. Good luck!

Toy OTD: Monsters On Ice Toys: Smitty & Needleman Plushes

These plushes are some the rarest Monsters, Inc. toys that I have - I think they were only sold at the Monsters On Ice show that toured a while back, and I've never seen them again. Not at the theme parks, not on eBay... they just disappeared!

I really love Smitty and Needleman, so I bought these toys in spite of the fact that they're just okay, quality-wise. In a way, though, they feel a little like hand-crafted toys - they've got a naive charm to them!

The basic shapes and colors are there, and most of the simplified features look fine. The fabric 'hardhats' and Needleman's pinched upper lip are the most awkward details. I'm not sure Needleman really needed his chin hair, but it's an interesting touch. To their credit, the designers and manufacturers didn't add anything to the characters, either - at least they're not dressed with/holding extraneous clothing or props that the characters didn't own or wear in the film.

Neither of them stand up very well, there's no wire armature inside to make them posable, and there's no accessories (not that I really need any). Some plushes manage to balance on feet loaded with heavier plastic 'beans', but no such luck here.

I have no idea who manufactured these - the tag only has licensing information on it. These were sold loose at a handcart (or maybe a kiosk) outside of the show, and I think they were both less than ten dollars each.

I still can't find these toys for sale online anywhere - all I can say is keep that eBay favorite search running... good luck!

Toy OTD: Sababa Fraggle Rock Plushes: Wembley, Red, Boober, Gobo (2004)

It's hard to believe that these toys are four years old already! These plushes were released a little before (or alongside) DVD collections of the show that have now culminated in the full-season box sets we enjoy today. They're affordable, accessible versions of the characters, and as such, they work quite well. The toys are good likenesses of the characters, and the colors and clothing are pretty accurate.

The biggest minus here is the pom-pom antennae the some of the characters sport. There's no internal support for them, and the fluffy tips seem too limp most of the time (I worked hard to get them to look right in this photo). I'm sure it's for safety reasons, but Red suffers the most from these choices, and it's the one aspect where you might wish there was a version made for older fans.

The next minus is that a couple of primary characters are missing - Mokey and Traveling Matt. I'm sure that there's fans who want an even bigger line, but not producing all the main characters is disappointing (especially since I think Matt is one of the neater looking Fraggles). Hopefully that'll change if the DVDs continue to sell, but the gap between this toy line's release and now is pretty big at this point.

You can get all four toys - Wembley, Red, Boober & Gobo - at toysrus.com easily. Don't ask me why, but Wembley and Boober are $11.99 + shipping (each), and Gobo and Red are $12.99 + shipping (each).

Toy OTD: Gemmy Industries Hocus Pocus Plush

Here's a simple beanie-plush from Gemmy's Frosty The Snowman line, I'm assuming that there's two reasons why plastic 'beans' are added to the majority of small plushes - 1) it helps them stay upright; and 2) it lumps them into the Beanie Baby category, which I'm sure helps them sell better. Maybe, anyway - I'm not sure there's any heat left to the beanie craze.

This is a pretty basic toy, but it's a good likeness of the character. The embroidered eyes help preserve some of the original 2-D design. The shapes and texture are nice and straightforward, and there's no gratuitous branding or labeling to clutter it up - a really nice job for the price point.

I can't find this toy for sale online right now, so you'll have to cast your net on eBay and see what turns up. Good luck!

Toy OTD: Dakin Dream Pets: Mimi Octopus #16, Flying Tiger #6 (2004)

This line of plushes began in the late fifties and ran for over twenty-five years, spawning thousands of different characters. Some of them were revived as inexpensive replicas a few years ago, and I love them! Simple designs with appealing colors and shapes - here's a couple of them, along with an excerpt from cuddlycollectibles.com:

The year was 1957. R. Dakin & Company began importing electric trains. The early trains were packed with six small (quirky) velveteen stuffed critters whose intended use was to cradle the trains on the long journey. Unexpectedly, these sawdust-filled funsters created more excitement than the trains they were intended to protect. R. Dakin's packing material, Dream Pets - the Original Stuffed Toy - were about to become a cultural icon adored by everyone around the world. As popularity and demand for Dream Pets grew over time, so did the Dream Pet community. By the mid-seventies, there were over 2000 different Dream Pets born, to fulfill the fantasies and capture the imagination of millions. Dream Pets were a phenomenon for over a quarter of a century. Today R. Dakin & Co. is very proud to welcome Dream Pets back into the world and into your hearts.

These sold for about $8-$10 in 2004, but I don't think they sold all that well. They were quickly remaindered for just a few dollars each, so if you run across any these days, they'll probably still be pretty cheap. As you might expect, cuddlycollectibles.com has both of these for sale - and plenty of the others - for $9.99 + shipping each. Not rock-bottom dollar, but they haven't risen in price, either - a great design value!

Toy OTD: '60s Ideal Peter Potamus Doll

This is a really nice vintage doll I found on eBay a while back. It's unusual that a plush can stand on its own, so it gets big points just for that (I think there's a bendable frame within the stuffing)! It's still cuddly, and quite well made - the designers made the head out of plastic so that material could do the heavy design lifting. Nice colors and simple details - the leg wrinkles even work for the character! Good proportions, too.

I think this toy cost around $60.00 or so. There's one for sale at gasolinealleyantiques.com for $79.50 + shipping, but it's not in very good shape. I see the phrases rare! and hard to find! thrown about by dealers so often, I never really know when to believe it.

Toy OTD: Modern Pets Wind-Up Baton Poodle

This is a tricky item to research - I'm not sure if Modern Pets is the name of both the manufacturer and the line, or just the line. At any rate, this is the current Japanese equivalent of the Dakin Dream Pets toy line, consisting of a completely different series of animal designs.

This character is called "Baton Poodle", and it's somewhat unique - while there are many plushes and some vinyl figures of the various designs, this is the only wind-up toy in the line (that I'm aware of). As you'd expect, it shakes its batons about when wound up.

I bought mine for around $18 or so at Super 7 in San Francisco, but they don't have them in stock any longer. If you can read Japanese, you can buy a wind-up Baton Poodle here for 1,344 Yen (or $11.59 USD) + shipping.