From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Captain Action
Captain Action
Captain Action was an action figure, from 1966, equipped called the "Super Queens Posin’ Dolls", which featured
with a wardrobe of costumes allowing him to become Batgirl, Mera, Supergirl, and Wonder Woman figures. Un-
Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, Captain America, Aqua- like Captain Action and Action Boy, the Super Queens
man, the Phantom, The Lone Ranger (and Tonto), Flash dolls were each individually based on a singular super-
Gordon, Buck Rogers, Sgt. Fury, Steve Canyon, and the heroine (instead of a base "Super Queen" doll with in-
Green Hornet. Captain Action was the Ideal Toy Compa- terchangeable outfits).[1] Also, a vehicle called the "Silver
ny’s answer to Hasbro’s G.I. Joe — although the protago- Streak," a 2-foot-long (0.61 m) amphibian car with mis-
nist dolls of both toy lines were created and designed by sile launchers, was added, large enough for both the Cap-
the same toy-and-idea man, Stan Weston. tain and sidekick. Several sets meant to be used by Cap-
tain Action in his Captain Action identity was designed
Historical overview for the character as well: a four foot working parachute,
a jet mortar, a jet pack, weapons arsenal, and several oth-
Toy developer Stan Weston went to Hasbro’s Don Levine er secret weapons to add to the Action Cave, which the
with the idea of an articulated doll in the form of a soldier special box for the Streak could convert into. Both the
— a basic figure, and with limitless accessories. Levine Captain and Dr. Evil received "secret lairs," which dou-
and his Hasbro team took the concept, making it into G.I. bled as carrying cases for the figures, but which are now
Joe,
Joe the first, modern, action figure for boys — and the quite rare. All this was an attempt by Ideal to build the
first to carry the action figure generic name, an attempt "Action" line and focus on Captain Action as a hero in his
to remove the term "doll" from a toy for boys. Weston own right, rather than just a base figure for other heroes.
took his money from the G.I. Joe venture and founded his After just a few years, the Captain Action line de-
own licensing company, representing DC Comics, Marvel clined in sales, in 1968, Ideal Toys discontinued it.
Comics, and King Features Syndicate. Though Captain Action was produced for only two and a
After the success of G.I. Joe, Stan Weston’s company, half years, the characters and accessories have become
Leisure Concepts, then brought the idea of a new, artic- amongst the most fondly remembered, and expensive to
ulated, twelve-inch (305 mm) action figure to Ideal Toys obtain on the collector’s market, action figures of the era.
Corporation, who were seeking an action figure of their Throughout the 1970s, Captain Action leftover uni-
own, to remain competitive in the toy market. Weston forms and boots were used on knock-off, blow-molded
proposed Captain Magic, a many-in-one hero, who could figures from China (where the original was cast and as-
adopt the guise of several heroes, all of whom Leisure sembled) and Ideal itself reused the original body molds
Concepts represented. The name was changed to Captain to rush a Star Wars-like toy to the market, the Knight of
Action, and first marketed by Ideal in 1966. Darkness, in 1977. Captain Action collectors would buy
The figure itself had a rather sad and worried ex- the figure (cast in black plastic) often using the hands
pression, a strange shaped head (so the masks of the to replace the sometimes missing hands of the vintage
various heroes would better stay in place over it) and a figures. The Ideal Toy company’s S.T.A.R Team toy line
more detailed musculature than G.I. Joe’s. The original was deemed copyright infringement by LucasFilm, and
Ideal base for the line was Captain Action in his blue and resulted in a failed lawsuit by George Lucas.
black uniform, with lightning sword and ray gun includ-
ed in the box. Separate Superman, Batman, Lone Ranger, In comic books
The Phantom, Flash Gordon, Captain America, Sgt Fury, National Periodical (DC Comics) licensed the character
Steve Canyon and Aquaman costumes (with accessories) from Ideal and published five issues of Captain Action in
were available; the next wave (1967) added Spider-Man, 1968,[2] illustrated at first by Wally Wood, then by Gil
Buck Rogers, the Green Hornet, and Tonto, with a Blue Kane. The scripts were by Jim Shooter and Gil Kane. The
Lone Ranger variation (matching the still popular Clay- comic book story line had little to do with the toy con-
ton Moore series) and collectible flicker rings in each cept, as some of the heroes licensed for use as costumes
box. for the Captain Action doll were not owned and pub-
In 1967, Captain Action proved popular enough to ex- lished by DC (Spider-Man and Captain America for ex-
pand the line, adding a partner, Action Boy, and an en- ample, were Marvel Comics characters), therefore the
emy, Dr. Evil, a blue skinned alien with large bug eyes ability to change into different characters was entirely
and an exposed brain, wearing a modified Nehru suit dropped. Instead, Captain Action came to possess magical
and sandals. A line of female figures was also released
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Captain Action
coins, each of which provided him with a spectacular one shot comic of her own in 2010, and continues to play
power from a Greek, Roman, or Norse mythological god a pivotal role in the Captain Action ongoing Series.
(in a similar way to the original Captain Marvel). Captain
Action was given a real name of his own, Clive Arno, Captain Action returns
and was identified as a widowed archaeologist and mu- After 30 years off the market, Captain Action was revived
seum curator, and was described as having located "the in 1998, by retro toy company Playing Mantis. In addition
coins of power" in a buried city. Action Boy’s comic-book to Captain Action and Dr. Evil, costumes released boxed
alter-ego was Carl Arno, son of Clive. Dr. Evil was given with Captain Action figure were The Lone Ranger (in red
a back-story too, having been Captain Action’s father-in- and black outfit), Tonto, Flash Gordon, his never-before-
law, then going mad in a mishap. made nemesis Ming the Merciless (with a new flesh-tone
In 2008 Moonstone began a new series and created Dr. Evil figure), The Green Hornet, and his never-before-
a new back-story for the character. Captain Action was made sidekick Kato. The line met with lackluster sales,
now Miles Drake, a former Marine who discovers a cache and carded costumes-only were issued separately: Green
of alien weaponry during the Vietnam War. The weapons Hornet, Kato, Lone Ranger (in blue outfit), Tonto, The
are connected to a race of alien parasites called the Red Phantom, and his never-before-made enemy Kabai Singh.
Crawl, who have been taking over world leaders in a bid Also revived was Action Boy (now called Kid Action, due
to dominate the earth. The Red Crawl’s main represen- to Hasbro owning the rights to the name Action Man) and
tative on earth is Dr. Eville (based on Dr. Evil from the retro long box packaging for Captain Action and Dr. Evil.
Ideal toy line). Drake becomes an agent of the A.C.T.I.O.N. The changes made little difference in the general sales
Directorate, a secret agency operating outside the gov- and the second coming of Captain Action ended in 2000.
ernment and dedicated to defending earth from the alien
menace. The name of the organization in an acronym Captain Action today
for "Advanced Command for Telluric Interdiction Obser-
Currently, Since 2005 Captain Action Enterprises holds
vation and Nullification." Eventually, the A.C.T.I.O.N. di-
the licensing rights to this toy icon, recently inducted in-
rectorate is able to use the alien technology to create
to the Toy & Action Figure Hall of Fame. CA Enterprises
superheroes and the Red Crawl is apparently defeated.
LLC has been producing a wide array of new Captain Ac-
The series also tell the story of a second Captain Action,
tion items, including statues, toys, comics, trading cards,
Miles’s rebellious son, Cole Drake, who inherits the hero-
collectibles and apparel. In 2010 a collector’s coffee table
ic identity in the 21st Century. It is revealed that the Red
book entitled Captain Action: the Original Super Hero Action
Crawl was never actually defeated and that the super-
Figure written by Michael Eury, and published by
heroic Protectors are actually under their control. Cole
TwoMorrows Publishing. The book, which chronicles the
must struggle against the renewed alien menace and the
history of the character as a classic toy and beyond, was
rogue superheroes. The stories of the original Captain
released in its second edition as an all color hard cover
Action are told in the 1960s where the character is a cos-
edition.
tumed super spy. The identity-changing aspect of the toy
A new Captain Action comic book is being published
line shows up in Captain Action’s ability to use a material
by Moonstone Books The initial six issue arc written by
called "plastiderm" to disguise himself as almost anyone.
Fabian Nicieza ran from 2008–2010 and was collected in
In the modern stories the younger Captain Action used
a limited edition hardcover. A Captain Action Special was
the most advanced "plasmaderm" which allows him not
also released in 2010 as well as a 2 issue mini series team-
only to assume someone’s likeness, but any powers they
ing up Captain Action with The Phantom written by Mike
possess. Thus Captain Action is finally able to change
Bullock. In July 2010 Captain Action Season 2, the ongo-
into other superheroes, though this only works for orig-
ing series written by Steven Grant debuted.
inal characters like Savior rather than for licensed char-
In addition to CA Season 2, Moonstone Books is also
acters like Superman. The exception to this has been
releasing Captain Action: Classified, which focuses on
a crossover adventure with the Phantom whose adven-
stories of Captain Action’s earliest adventures in the
tures Moonstone was also publishing.
1960s.
Moonstone has featured a similarly revised Action
Also in the works under the same CA Classified title
Boy. In this version he is Sean Barrett, the son of a famous
is a collection of original prose stories edited by Richard
naturalist whose identity is assumed by Dr. Eville. His sto-
Dean Starr and featuring top-selling authors of science
ries also take place in the 1960s. Moonstone has also cre-
fiction, fantasy, horror, and mysteries.
ated an original character, Lady Action, who works for
In March, 2011, Round 2 Corp. and CA Enterprises an-
the British branch of the A.C.T.I.O.N. Directorate. Both
nounced plans for a redesigned 1/6 scale Captain Action
Action Boy and the newly introduced Lady Action ( AKA
figure. In addition, through a licensing agreement with
Nicola Sinclair), have been featured as back up stories in
Marvel Comics, costume sets of Spider-Man and Captain
the Captain Action comic. Lady Action also debuted in a
America will be available in the Fall of 2011 at Toys’R’Us
2
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Captain Action
and other specialty retailers. Plans are for additional re- • Michlig, Jon (1998) GI Joe The Complete Story of
leases of Marvel character costume sets, including Iron America’s Favorite Man of Action
Man and Thor, to follow in 2012.[3] • Dial B for Blog, part 1
• Dial B for Blog, part 2
Notes • Dial B for Blog, part 3
• Dial B for Blog, part 4
[1] "Super Queens: Super Collectibles". Diamond • Dial B for Blog, part 5
Galleries. http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/ • Captain Action Now.com - Character Background
public/ • The History of Captain Action, Part I (Captain Action
default.asp?t=1&m=1&c=34&s=264&ai=42582. Now.com)
Retrieved 2011-12-26. • The History of Captain Action, Part II (Captain Action
[2] Levitz, Paul (2010). 75 Years of DC Comics The Art of Now.com)
Modern Mythmaking. Taschen America. p. 420.
ISBN 9783836519816. "Captain Action was DC’s first
toy tie-in title...Editor Mort Weisinger...brought in
External links
his young firebrand Jim Shooter to craft an identity • Captain Action Enterprises Homepage
and back story for the character." • Captain Action figures and accessories
[3] "Spider-Man and Captain America Captain Action • Cheeks the Toy Wonder reviews the Captain Action
Sets To Hit Shelves In The Fall". Mtv Geek. MTV comics
Networks. http://geek-news.mtv.com/2011/03/ • Moonstone Books Nabs Captain Action at THE PULSE
15/spider-man-and-captain-america-captain- • Preview of Captain Action #0 from Moonstone Books
action-sets-to-hit-shelves-in-the-fall/. Retrieved 9 • Captain Action as The Spider fan costume and
April 2011. accessories
Captain Action can also be found on Facebook.
References
• Eury, M. (2002) Captain Action: the Original Super-Hero
Action Figure. Raleigh, NC: TwoMorrows Publishing.
ISBN 978-1-893905-17-7
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Captain_Action&oldid=467837422"
Categories:
• DC Comics titles
• Action figures
• Playscale figures
• Toys of the 1960s
• Ideal toys
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