I’m back from my trip to Rochester, New York, where I spent time in the Strong Museum exploring the Playthings magazines of the eighties. I only managed to get through three complete years — 1982, 1983, and 1984 — and snapped over 1,800 photos of articles and information relevant to my current projects and plans, top of which is a new G.I. Joe book.

There’s a lot of information to sort through and document, but this short article from the April 1982 issue is too good not to instantly share with all of you. Look at how many different brands get listed, and look at those sales numbers for action figures in the late seventies and early eighties. How did the action figure category drop so much in the first years of Kenner’s Star Wars line?

Action figures called to active duty

Category fights back with top licenses, heavy TV support, new playsets

Action figures, long known as ‘boys dolls,’ have re-emerged as a category filled with top licenses, realistic features, and line-extension playsets, all supported by heavy television campaigns.

Manufacturers took a serious look into action figures in the late 1970s as sales slipped gradually from $50 million in 1977 (at manufacturers level) to a severe $14 million in 1980. The result was that the category jumped back to $33 million in 1981.

Kenner, a major powerhouse in licensing, boosted its 3 3/4-inch Star Wars action figure line with this year’s addition of a micro sized line, as well as characters from Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Likewise, Hasbro, with its famed G.I. Joe collection, brought Joe back with new front-line features and play opportunities.

Gabriel, home of the Lone Ranger figures, broadened its line to include Zorro. Both lines will be featured in a 1982 national network television production.

Mattel entered with its Masters of the Universe with rebates and TV.

Mego sports the Eagle Force action figure line, featuring 12 different figures ready to combat anarchy and terror. Each is done in 1/25 scale, die-cast metal.
– Playthings Magazine, April 1982