Now, Why Haven't I Started Collecting These?

Let me take you back to the mid 70's. As a kid, I was obsessed with a few things. Spider-Man, Batman, Superman, Star Wars, The Beatles were among the things that kept me busy. But then there was lunch boxes. Man, I loved them. All the different characters, colors shapes and sizes of these things kept me drooling over them. I would always look at my classmates lunch boxes and then look at my brown paper bag.

See, I never did own one. I had to obsess over everyone's lunch boxes and obsess I did. Whenever someone bought a new one I had to be the first to give it the once over. When my mom went shopping I would find a lunch box I liked and would beg her for it. But she never relented. She would always tell me I would lose it. To her, a brown bag was dispensable. To me, a cool looking lunch box was a status symbol. By the time my mom started to consider buying me one, I was already on my way to Junior High School and was perfectly OK with a brown paper bag.

So, now that I am an adult and have started some collections, yet I STILL have not picked up any vintage lunch boxes for my collections or started a lunch box collection. After watching a couple of lunch box collection videos on YouTube,  I started thinking about why I had not picked up any. I came to the conclusion that 2 factors, lack of room for displaying them and money has kept me from picking any up. Vintage lunch boxes have become a costly hobby, but if I do come across any that I can afford, I may start picking some up and finally start that lunch box collection I have been dreaming of since I was 5.

Which ones would I pick up? Well, let's start off with the obvious ones:

Superheroes:

I have been wanting that vintage Batman lunch box forever. It's a pretty expensive lunch box, so I probably wouldn't go after it as a starter for my collection and would probably put it with my Batman collection anyway. The Superman The Movie lunch box would probably be a better one to start off with, price wise. I love the Hulk lunch box, but I never understood why Spider-Man never got his own lunch box. I always see him with other Marvel heroes on a lunch box. As much of a Super Friends fan I am, the Super Friends lunch box is a no brainer for me. I have come lose a couple of time to acquiring one, but could never agree on a price.

The Beatles

These two Beatles lunch boxes will have to wait until I hit the lottery. These are pretty high end pieces.

TV Shows I liked as a kid:

I had fun watching all these shows as a kid and in some cases still do watch them. I would love to pick up these lunch boxes to remind myself why I loved lunch boxes as kid and why I want to start a collection of lunch boxes.

And of course the movies I love:

I have to have the Star Wars lunch boxes. I was and still am a huge fan of Star Wars, but if Luke Skywalker is on the lunch box, it would probably go with the rest of my Luke Skywalker collection. Too bad a Back To The Future Lunchbox was never made. With all the Back To The Future stuff being released, maybe they will make one.

And finally, 2 music acts that I would have to add to my future lunch box collection:

How did I get from Kiss to The Monkees? I love them both, that's how. Even though Kiss has really been annoying me as of late from lip syncing their performance at the Kings/Ducks game at Dodger Stadium to not performing at the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame induction. Still, the lunch box is something I've wanted for years and would jump at the chance to own one.

After looking through all the pictures and videos of all the lunch boxes that are out there any collection, no matter how big or small, would be a great one. My hope is that one day, maybe I will fulfill the dream of a 5 year old me and one day get that monkey off my back by picking up a few.  The fact is I have loved these things for far too long. For me not to own any vintage lunch boxes is a personal crime and hopefully, one I can make right for my inner kid.

Star Trek Has Always Been There

Let me start off by saying this: I am not a Trekkie. Not by a long shot. I couldn't tell you why Kirk joined Star fleet or even if that's the name of the academy or whatever it is. But, for some reason or another, Star Trek has been a part of my life for one reason or another. Be it something I had seen or a toy or whatever, James T. Kirk and company have not been too far behind ever since my geek roots were laid.

Believe it or not, the 1960's series was not my first exposure to Star Trek, it was the animated series that first introduced me to the world of Spock, Kirk, Scotty, McCoy and the rest of the crew of the Starship Enterprise. From 1973 to 1974, Filmation produced a series simply called Star Trek. It's now called Star Trek: The Animated Series to differentiate between this show and the live action show. It was a Saturday morning show that aired on NBC and featured the voices of William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelly, James Doohan, George Takei and Nichelle Nichols. Walter Koenig was the only actor who didn't return because the show's budget could not afford the complete cast, which really doesn't make sense to me. I'm sure Koenig was not commanding top dollar to lend his vocal talents to the show, although he did later write an episode of the show.

I know I saw this show during it's first run because I cannot find any instances where this was rebroadcast on later on syndication until the 1980's when it aired on Nickelodeon and on Sci Fi Channel in the 1990's. I was only 3 years old when the show finished it's second run, but I remember vividly sitting on the floor in my grandmothers home, watching the show. How many episodes I watched I could not say. May have been only one or maybe the whole run. All I knew was something about this show interested me enough to warrant my attention when I could have been playing with my Megos instead. Once the series ended, I am assuming, I had nothing to do with Star Trek for the next few years.

The next time Star Trek entered my life in December of 1979 when my mom took me to see Star Trek: The Motion Picture. By now, I was 8 years old, but I still did not know who these characters were. I didn't realize that these were the same characters I had watched on T.V., animated, only 5 years prior. Having seen Star Wars the year before, I thought since this was set in outer space too, it had to be just as good, right? Well, let me be completely honest with you guys, I have not seen this movie since I saw it in the theaters back in 1979. I am guessing the movie didn't leave a great impression, so I never really bothered to see it again. Not when it was shown on T.V. nor have I purchased a copy of this movie on DVD or Blu-Ray. But I do remember wearing a blue Star Trek shirt with the sewn on and begging my mom for some of the toys from the movie.

I didn't have much, but I do remember having these two figures:

These are not mine. I do wish I had these. These are the Mego 3 inch figures from the movie. I don't recall what happened to them. Probably the same thing that happened to my Star Wars figures, which I am still trying to figure out what happened to those to this day.

I remember having both these plush figures from Knickerbocker. These were my favorites from the Star Trek stuff I had and Lord, I wish I still had them. I had some emotional attachments to these for some reason. I used to always carry these around with me until the school bully knocked me down and ran off with them. My mom's response was "I shouldn't have taken them to school". A bit harsh, but I now know she was teaching me a lesson about taking care of my cherished toys.

I finally got around to watching a couple of episodes of the original series. The show was always shown here in NYC on WPIX-TV at various times, so I could always catch it whenever I wanted, which was not a lot. I don't know if it was because I wasn't impressed or I had other things to watch. I can honestly tell you I did not nor have I watched very many episodes to this day of the OG show.

In 1987, Gene Roddenberry gave us a Star Trek show I actually tried to watch on numerous occasions, but ultimately gave up on. I could never get behind Capt. Jean-Luc Picard, Data, Warf, Riker and Wesley. I saw certain shows like when Spock returned and such, but I can't really say I was a fan of the series.

A few years later, I met my best friend, George. He was (and still is) the Ultimate Trekkie. He is a huge fan of the original show and could do a great impression of William Shatner. Because of George, Star Trek was a huge part of my life and I would go see the movies with him, or in the case of Star Trek V, make fun of him (I call Star Trek 6 The Apology).

I have to say, I hated the Next Generation movies. I found them boring and not well written. When I saw Generations, I snickered at the fact that William Shatner's stunt double looked like Huey Lewis. I walked out at the end of Nemesis and vowed I would never see another movie again. By this time, I had had it with space, the final frontier. I had liked Deep Space Nine, but not enough to keep up with the series and I never seen Voyager or Enterprise. From what I heard, I'm better for not seeing either.

A funny thing happened in 2009. I saw a trailer for the new Star Trek reboot movie and instantly became interested in seeing the movie. I'm not sure if it has to do with the casting of Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto, who look like young versions of William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy or because it was an origin story, one that I never got to see. When it came out I went to see it and was instantly blown away by the movie. J.J. Abrams directed the hell out of this movie and it showed. Not only did I think Pine and Quinto do a great job in the movie, but I also enjoyed John Cho's Sulu, Simon Pegg's Scotty, Karl Urban's McCoy and Zoe Saldana's Uhura. Casting Eric Bana as a Romulan named Nero was the icing on the geeky cake and I instantly became a fan of this film series.

I just saw Star Trek: Into Darkness today and loved it. All the elements that made the first movie fun was there in this movie and again, the casting of the villain was perfect. I won't say too much more as I don't wish to ruin it for anyone who hasn't seen it yet. All I have to say is, if you enjoyed the first, you will love this one. I will see it in the theaters again soon.

After seeing Into Darkness, I now have an interest in going back and watching some of the stuff I may have taken for granted. I'm older now. Maybe I will dig the stuff that I didn't when I was younger. I have always had a soft spot for William Shatner (his version of "Rocket Man" is awesome) and, truth be told, I have been wanting to re watch Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Now, I may pick up the Blue-Ray and spend a day watching it. I also have The Animated Series on my Netflix que.

It seems to me that over the years, no matter how hard I tried to shake it loose, Star Trek has stayed a part of my life for almost 30 years. I guess it's time to embrace this classic piece of American pop culture geekness and enjoy the voyages of the Starship Enterprise and boldly go where just about every other geek before me has gone before.

League Of Extraordinary Bloggers: Spacemen

This week, The league was given one simple topic: Spacemen. We could write whatever we wanted as long as it was about those daredevils who saved worlds, fought evil empires and, at times, won the love of a beautiful woman. 

So, what to blog about. Do I write a 500 word essay about how awesome spacemen are? Do I do a blog about how well spacemen toys sell? Maybe write about a great spaceman toy collection? 

Nahhhhh. I will take the easy way out and list my 5 favorite spacemen. Yeah, I know, another list. But it's what I do best. That and eat. I love to eat.

5-Han Solo

How can you not love the scoundrel who turned into a key figure in the Alliance's movement against the Empire. Solo goes from conceited, wisecracking smart ass who captains his own ship to a conceited, wise cracking smart ass who is a captain in the Alliance. And, he wins the heart of a Princess in the processes. What a guy.

4-Buck Rogers

  

When I was a young Sexy Geek, I remember my mom taking me to see the Buck Rogers movie. I knew nothing about the character before I saw the movie. I don't remember much of the movie, except the robot Twiki kicking someone which cracked me up. I did, however watch the show, which came out later that year of 1979. I enjoyed the show and always hoped we would see another Buck Rogers movie. I feel this is a character that should be revived in someway. 

3-Captain James T. Kirk

 

I'm not the biggest Star Trek fan. Yes, I remember watching the original series as a kid when it was shown here on WPIX, watching the cartoon, seeing the movies and owning some of the toys from the first movie. But Star Trek never captured my imagination like Star Wars had. It wasn't until I met my best friend that I appreciated the greatness of Captain James Tiberius Kirk. Kirk was a fighter, a leader and loved more women, green and not, than any other Captain who's come before and after. Screw Picard, give me Kirk anytime!

2-Superman

 

OK, he might not be what is typically considered a spaceman, but he is to me. He was born on another planet, he has traveled to other worlds and has powers us other mortals can only dream of. Superman is THE superhero and he is not even of this planet. 

1-Luke Skywalker

Skywalker is my all time favorite spaceman. He always had a good heart, despite a temper that could have led him into the Dark Side of The Force. He came from humble beginnings but would eventually become a key member of the Alliance and a Jedi Knight. I have a small Skywalker collection and I am always looking to add more to it. A lot of kids liked Solo because he was the cool guy. But for my money, Luke was the man and will always be. I hope he is a huge part of the new Star Wars movie that J.J Abrams is going to direct. I would be greatly disappointed if he was not.

I will admit, I am not a huge Sci-Fi guy. I do have my favorites, which I listed here and there were a few others I left off the list, like Lt. Starbuck, Uncle Martin and Astronaut Taylor. But, I do think that spacemen are very cool and I do enjoy watching movies and t.v shows about them. 

Here are some other fellow Extraordinary Bloggers you should check out:

http://monstercafesaltillo.blogspot.mx/2013/01/league-assignment-spacemen.html

http://aeiouwhy.blogspot.com/2013/01/loeb-post-spaaaaaaace-post.html

http://coolandcollected.com/buck-rogers-poster-by-laurent-durieux/

http://shezcrafti.com/mtv-moon-man-tribute/