1961
was the best of times. JFK and Jackie were in the White House,
NASA was in space, Elvis was back from the Army, and Marx Disneykins
were introduced on toyshop shelves throughout the Western world.
Made of injection molded hard plastic and hand-painted by artists
in British Hong Kong, each Disneykin figure was a perfectly
packaged "miniature masterpiece" of postwar technology. Playfully
packaged in bright candy-like boxes and intriguing shadow box
scenes, Disneykins were a perfect cartoon fantasy universe unto
themselves. Carried in pockets and schoolbook bags they could
spring to life at a moment’s notice, providing hours of imaginative
fun and make-believe.
Disneykins embodied both the self-assured innocence of the times
and the Walt Disney Productions’ cartoon mythology. The figures
included representations of almost the entire Disney pantheon
of toon stars, from everyday favorites like Mickey Mouse, Donald
Duck, Goofy, Pluto, Dumbo and Peter Pan (from the first series)
– to more exotic personalities like Bongo the bear, Professor
Ludwig Von Drake, Uncle Scrooge, Toby Tortoise, the Mad Hatter
and Willie the Whale (from the second series) – to name a few.
The
Louis Marx Toy Company manufactured Disneykins from 1961 right
up to the company’s demise in 1972-3. By the end of the line,
the Marx Company had produced a large number of completely different
Disneykins and Disneykin lines, with a total of over 160 figures
at last count. Basically, Marx made a Disneykin representation
of nearly every major character in a Disney animated film that
was released (or re-released) during that twelve-year period.
When
combined, the original 1961 "First Series" of 34 figures (the
most common Disneykins) and the rarer 36 "Second Series" figures
(called "New" Disneykins) feature the major cartoon stars of
PINOCCHIO, BAMBI, ALICE IN WONDERLAND, PETER PAN, SLEEPING BEAUTY
and DUMBO. Other more film-specific Disneykin lines that followed
were: the 1961 101 Dalmatians series (sold primarily in Europe
and Great Britian), 1962’s Babes in Toyland series (soldiers
and flats, in two sizes), Lady & the Tramp (1962), The Sword
in the Stone (released in 1963 and only available as a large
playset), 1967’s The Jungle Book, and closing with the scarce
Robin Hood cartoon line in 1972. In addition, a special Pinocchio
series was briefly marketed during the film’s 1962 re-release,
as well as a separate Ludwig Von Drake series of figures and
playsets which tied-in with both NBC & RCA and his Wonderful
World of Color (NBC-TV) appearances.
Featured products from the Disneykin era
included many finely detailed, way-out miniaturized toys such
as:
The
Lady & the Tramp Kennel Box Set -- with the entire film’s cast
of 12 dogs and cats in kennel windows.
The
Sword In The Stone Playset -- a larger HO scale boxed playset,
which included a castle, playmat, knights, Madame Mim and Merlin’s
houses and the entire cast of character figures.
The
"See and Play" Disneykin Dreamhouse Playset (Marx/Montgomery
Wards, 1968) -- an intricate see-through 2 story suburban house,
complete with landscaping, two cars, Disneykins, and all modern
conveniences, including a 60s-era kitchen, gaudy dining room
set, TV, carpeting, pool and even a bathroom).
The
101 Dalmatians Playset line -- which featured the film’s complete
story, uniquely illustrated in six boxed playset scenes, with
figures, props and furniture -- which came in two different
sizes.
A Brief History
Like many Marx toys from the 1960s, Disneykins were basically
a recycled product, having their roots in the previous decade.
Most of the Disneykin figures are essentially the "grandchildren"
of the 38 soft-plastic, 60mm unpainted Disney character figures
from the large scale Marx "Walt Disney Television Playhouse"
(1953) along with the 13 additional character figures. The "kin"
evolutionary path went through a few more essential steps ---
such as the metal hand-painted Linemar line, and the German,
Holland and Japanese figures – before being miniaturized, hand-painted
and rechristened "Disneykins." They are essentially the same
figures with the same poses – only the scale and materials differ.
Disneykins were usually packaged and sold
in four basic formats:
Single
figures -
in little candy-colored individual boxes, with or without a
window
TV-Scenes
-
one or two figures and props in a small 3" x 3" television-like
window display box.
Playsets
-
larger, more elaborate window display boxes which housed five
to eight figures in a stage-set scene, with furniture, props
and a themed background.
Gift
Box -
a large window display package which included all or most of
the figures from an entire series, each in its own individual
cubby hole with name tag. This format is frequently misidentified
as a store display.
In addition, some Disneykin series included larger combo gift
boxes of multiple playsets and TV-Scenes. The playset combo
is called a Triple Playset and featured three separate playset
scenes in one box, and the TV-Scene Gift Box included six separate
TV-Scenes in one box. Again, these packaging formats are frequently
misidentified as store displays.
The ingenious, and confusing aspect of the Disneykin packaging
was not only the large variety of interesting box formats and
packaging used to sell (and re-sell) the same items, but the
fact that a child would have to purchase nearly every playset
in a line just to assemble one film’s cartoon cast. For example,
in the First Series: The "Mickey Mouse & Friends" playset includes
Peter Pan, the "Donald Duck Pier" playset has Captain Hook,
and Tinkerbelle appears in the "Dumbo’s Circus" playset alongside
Alice. In the Second Series it became even wierder: the "Lost
Boys" playset features Flower the Skunk from Bambi, the "Lady
& The Tramp" playset scene has the two clowns from Dumbo, the
"Three Little Pigs" playset included Brer Fox standing in for
the Big Bad Wolf, and the "Cinderella" scene box has Peter Pan’s
Wendy masquerading as Cinderella alongside the Owl from Bambi.
(Note: a Big Bad Wolfe figure was eventually produced in the
early 1970s lineup, and Marx never made a specific Cinderella
figure.)
Although many of the Disneykin figures were available for over
ten years (mostly the original 34 "First Series" figures), they,
like many of the Marx products, went through various stages
of de-evolution – eventually succumbing to inferior casting,
sloppy paint jobs and inconsistent coloring due to waning interest
from both the buying public and the Marx Company itself. For
the Disneykin connisseur, the earlier "Hong Kong" editions are
usually the best – with clean casting, detailed painting and
strict color consistency -- and are likewise more valued. Fueled
by the initial success of the Disneykin line, the Louis Marx
Toy Company quickly produced two other similarly-marketed miniature
universes:
TV-Tinykins
-- a 1962 line of cartoon figures based on the ever-popular
calvacade of Hanna-Barbera TV toon stars, like Huckleberry Hound,
Yogi Bear, Top Cat, Quick Draw McGraw, and The Flintstones.
Fairykins
– a line of cute but generic figures based on well-known European
fairy tales and nursery rhymes, such as Jack & Jill, Old Mother
Hubbard, Humpty Dumpty and Jack & the Beanstalk, to name a few.
(Also from 1962)
Store Displays:
The most compelling and sought-after items in the Disneykin
collectible market today are the colorful store displays. The
most well-known of these is The Disneykin Castle store display
(1961 and 1962), which consists of a large die-cut cardboard
Disneyland Castle with all 34 original series figures glued
onto stair-cased rows, each with their name. The scarcity of
actual store displays is magnified by the fact that only one
store display was shipped per case of figures, and, many were
actually used as store displays and were thrown out or ruined
by the close of a given promotion. Other impressive large store
displays were made for the six Playsets and the 12 TV-Scenes
of a given Disneykin series. These consisted of a free-standing
colorful cardboard frame and holder for the packaged products
– with the Disneykin logo and castle motif and price usually
on top . Marx also made smaller, easel-type cardboard display
cards, some with two and three dimensional die-cut printed graphics.
These easel stands usually featured actual individual Disneykin
boxes glued to them . These were mainly used for the sale of
individual figures.
The intriguing design and variety of all Marx Disneykin store
displays make them some of the finest (and less common) collectibles
form the 1960s.
Because Disneykins seem to cut across many pre-designated collectors
markets – such as those who collect cartoon memorabilia, die-hard
Marx Toy collectors, and Disney fans in general – serious collector
interest in the miniatures has greatly escalated over the past
few years. This is probably due to a number of reasons: the
aging and financial status of the baby boom generation, basic
nostalgia for the 1960s, the World Wide Web, and money.
Most hardcore Disneykin collectors had and loved the miniature
figures as children in 1960s and fondly remember them (whose
ranks include this author). These afficianados pursue the hobby
with the ultimate goal of acquiring every single Disneykin figure
and packaging format. This task seems to grow more difficult
with each passing year due to today’s escalating prices (especially
on rare items), global competition and the fact that the comprehensive
list of all Disneykin figures and packaging variations – which
includes Marx prototypes – has not yet been written.
For more details on Disneykins, more features and more great
pictures visit
disneykins.com
Visit the WCN Disneyana pages and message boards
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This article originally appeared in Plastic Figure & Playset
Collector magazine, Issue #10, 1989. Disneykins.com features
a new version revised by the author.
Text copyright 1999 by Abby Weissman & the Flubber Gallery.
All rights reserved, cannot be reproduced without permission.
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