AVIVA/HASBRO: Dark Crystal - Unproduced Toys

[ryan0001]

Thanks Michael

 

[Bluestars]

I just had to bumb this...any idead with regards to my last questions in this thread, Justin?

 

[Justin_Kerns]

Hi Michael,

Sorry I've been meaning to investigate that for you but recently had another daughter and haven't had a chance. I will check it out soon and report back.

 

[Justin_Kerns]

Ok I went through a bunch of stuff tonight and have some answers. First of all to the person who wanted a closeup of Fizzgig - here you go:

Now for your items Michael - I have a ton of card art and concept work and none of it shows a punch except for some hand drawings that show a SW shaped punch at the center top of the card. None of the proofs or anything else I have shows any evidence of this though so I don't know what the production plan was.

All of my proofs have no holes or tape/adhesive residue or tearing on them. The carded figures I have obviously have stapled blisters. So it seems perfectly logical that some proofs may have been mocked up with something taped to them but I have no evidence of that in my stuff or photography. For the moment I guess it remains a mystery.

Here are some photos of a few other pieces I thought might be of interest:
Garthim box proof flat - this is *large*:

Large photos of the 3 deluxe box mockups (I wish I knew if any of these survived):

Assortment of figure proto photos (I wish I knew where that Aughra 2up was....):

And lastly for now the very large, *original* airbrushed cardback art (sorry it didn't photograph too well):

 

[Michifromhell_de]

Justin thanks sharing those really fantastic pics with us.

I can´t stop looking over and over again. Those DC items are really fantastic and those design looks beautiful

 

[AllanB]

Thanks again so much for posting, Justin. In.....credible. Just incredible....

This is such a special collection, & i just couldn't be more appreciative of you posting it so thoroughly for us. Thanks again, & please keep us updated whenever you get a chance.

- Allan

 

[chipcataldo]

Allan's a [censored], but I have to agree.

Just a stellar collection & soooooo impressive.

Peace,

Chip

 

[AJ_van_Zelst]

This thread is the only reason why I visit this part of the forum!

Amazing new items you've shown us Justin. I want to say I love this piece or that piece, but you've got so many fantastic items I realy can't.

I still love to see how you've displayed it all.

-Alex

 

[Bluestars]

speechless...Justin, seriously, u have to make a small magazine/brochure one day with all your items and knowledge inside. I mean, I am not aksing you, you just have to!

I might also accept a website, but nothing less.
But first of all: all the best for you and the new member of your family!!!

 

[Justin_Kerns]

Thanks Michael! I appreciate the feedback. I may do something at some point if I have time. But it won't be immediately that's for sure....

 

[Joshua_A]

As always.. I am so jealous of seeing your stuff Justin, but happy in knowing it is together like it is!

Still waiting for that PM with the for sale list of your Dark Crystal spares

 

[darth_sidious]

Great photos, its a shame none of these ever made it to retail. I'm a fan of the DC, but I only have a few items...the new Chamberlain action figure and a custom diorama I made of 2 Mystics that were cast off the pewter originals.

 

[darth_sidious]

I thought I'd share a picture of my custom Dark Crystal diorama - the Mystics are based off the pewter miniatures, but these are done in resin and painted. I also painted the 'great conjunction' on the base - as seen in the Mystics camp.

 

[Alyssa]

I just love this post. Haven't visited it in a while. Great custom and love seeing the toys.

~Alyssa

 

[Justin_Kerns]

Thought you might like this photo. This is 10 of the 12 known carded figures together:

Some of the duplicates are for sale if anyone is interested. Just get in touch with me through PM or at jkerns25 "at" gmail.com.

 

[Alyssa]

PM Sent

~Alyssa

 

[Cosmic_Cow]

Thought you might like this photo. This is 10 of the 12 known carded figures together:

Some of the duplicates are for sale if anyone is interested. Just get in touch with me through PM or at jkerns25 "at" gmail.com.

Wow, just wow. I'm speechless. If only my financial situation was better...

 

[Bluestars]

Nice Shot, Justin. Where the hell did u get the duplicates from?

If anyone is seriously interested in purchasing a true piece of DC History, I would highly recommend contacting Justin. This may be a once in a lifetime opportunity to get one of the 12 (of which 8 are locked in black hole collections!).

 

[Shane Turgeon]

OMG Justin, that picture is disgusting (in a wholly amazing and fantastic way)! Wow! What a sick set!

Seriously, i don't get dumbfounded by many things in the hobby but that one has me blown away.

 

[Bantha5]

That is an amazing run Justin. I was fortunate enough to see a full set of these at Cloud City years ago. I was impressed then and I'm still impressed now. I love seeing unproduced figures and these are up there with the vintage Kenner Alien line. Ryan

 

[chipcataldo]

*sigh*

I'm trying to resist, but...e-mail sent on the MOC dupes.

Peace,

Chip

 

[Bluestars]

You saw a full set of six??? That must have been Justin's set? I thought Justin had the only Aughra and Skesis known?
or the other story I heard was true. I know someone who told me he had a full set that was destroyed in hurrican Kathrina..he obviously had no proof left...

 

[Justin_Kerns]

I'm sure Ryan is referring to the same set as mine since I bought the set from Tom Derby back when he was Cloud City. Not only is there (sadly) no evidence of more Skeksis & Aughra figures surviving, I actually have a letter from an Aviva employee saying they were all destroyed except for the 2 in my set. There are other facts in the letter that have turned out to be incorrect though, so the possibility still remains that more are out there - albeit a dim hope.

 

[Justin_Kerns]

OMG Justin, that picture is disgusting (in a wholly amazing and fantastic way)! Wow! What a sick set!

Seriously, i don't get dumbfounded by many things in the hobby but that one has me blown away.

Thanks Shane - coming from you that is big praise! It's a fun collection to have and work on.

 

[Bluestars]

Just wanted to show my latest addition and wantes to say a HUGE thank you to Justin for making this possible. I m not known for keeping items forever, but as this is the main character of the first movie I ever saw on the big screen and there are only 3 knonw in existance, I am very positive that this item is from now on locked in a black hole collection.

This is the actual example as shown in Tomart's Action Figure Digest #100.

Justin, thank u so much, u made my day !!!

p.s. hey, with 4 figures, I'm getting close to the top league of DC collectors, right? Justin, make sure that u sell the remaining figures on a 1/1 basis only

 

[AJ_van_Zelst]

Congrats Michael!!

Did you find a proofcard/sheet already or is that on the backburner for now? They seem to stay in the collections where they are for now it seems, but heck those came on the market only a year or 2 ago.

-Alex

 

[Guest]

thanks alex! I already had an uncut proof but had to sell it to by the jen. The MOC "includes" a cardback, so I can take the loss

yes, the set of u was sold in 2008 via Hake's.

 

[Justin_Kerns]

Michael,

Your collection is looking good! I still have the other figures available if anyone is interested. I've been too busy to really try to sell them but I hope more people will get involved as DC collectors!

Justin

 

[ryan0001]

Wow, best thread ever. I didn't have internet for the last four months, so this is the first time I've seen a lot of this stuff.

I'm loving that Mystic diorama and the coloration in that Garthim proof.

 

[Guest]

I have one of those Mystic minis and there's nothing mini about it, the thing is a brick. That diorama is probably a lot larger than people would think from the picture. It looks very impressive.

Justin, that Garthim proof would be a great backdrop for your Dark Crystal figure collection.

 

[ryan0001]

Oops, that was me right above, forgot to login.

 

[Guest]

that is a wonderful photo in an amazing thread. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Joshua_A]

Just wanted to show my latest addition and wantes to say a HUGE thank you to Justin for making this possible. I m not known for keeping items forever, but as this is the main character of the first movie I ever saw on the big screen and there are only 3 knonw in existance, I am very positive that this item is from now on locked in a black hole collection.

This is the actual example as shown in Tomart's Action Figure Digest #100.

Justin, thank u so much, u made my day !!!

p.s. hey, with 4 figures, I'm getting close to the top league of DC collectors, right? Justin, make sure that u sell the remaining figures on a 1/1 basis only

Great stuff Michael!

 

[darth_sidious]

I totally lost track of this thread - its cool to see people like the diorama I made, I really wanted something that has a vintage look. Its also great to see those prototype figures - how much do they tend to go for?

 

[Jarrod_Zutton79]

Justin, this thread is awesome, your collection is insane! I can tell that you really have a passion for this toy line and have put a lot of hard work and research into this. Thank you so much for sharing. All of these pieces are just amazing!

 

[Justin_Kerns]

back to the initial thread. 2 question with regards to the proof cards:

1. Justin, do u have any idea how the punchhole would have looked like? I havent seen a punched card. If one looks at the top of the card there is hardly any space for it without touching the graphic? or would they just use a small round hole?

Michael I've made a discovery that relates to this question. Here is a hand-drawn mock-up I recently found. It shows what the intent was for the punch and also various possible bubble layouts:

 

[CantinaDan]

Just read through this whole thread and wanted to add my "Wow" to the discussion! I had seen that Aviva image but never the prototypes so I'm completely blown away by your collection. Thanks much for the care and passion (and moolah) you've invested in this property. We all benefit!

Yes, please create a web site!

 

[timtotall783]

Thanks for the positive comments! The Slave Pod Peasant proof is missing, however I'm hopeful that it will surface.

I know many of these photos aren't new, but I wanted to put together a cohesive post in this forum.

I was just wondering if you know how much these toys are worth. I was the sculptor of the original puppets and worked for Muppets on Dark Crystal. I also sculpted the Mystics, Garthim, and Land strider for Hasbro. I still have these toys no cards.
Tim

 

[michael_mensinger]

Hi Tim,

It's a real pleasure to hear from an industry insider like yourself in relation to these figures. I'd estimate your figures should sell in the $500-1000 range individually. Are they something you're interested in selling? If so, I'd love to chat further with you via email and also hear about the work you did on the film as well. I can be reached at michaelmensinger@aol.com.

Thanks,
Mike

 

[gijigsaw]

You can add my "WOW" as well. Just stumbled across this thread. I loved Dark Crystal. Those vintage prototypes are awesome.

One possible way to share the collection is creating a book on Beautiful photo books and book printing. Make your own book | Blurb Books. Software is free, creating the book (both photos and text is simple) and you can sell copies of the book as people order them. I have done this for several of my toy collections.

Football Sports Figure Encyclopedia by George Steven Hegedus: Sports & Adventure | Blurb Books