Playset Magazine #102 November/December 2018
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Item Number: PM102
Playset Magazine #102 November/December 2018
Is that true? Is Christmas really coming? You bet, and if you have gotten a little blasé about it, it’s no wonder, besieged as you are with the worlds current state. Let us take you back a bit, slipping under the waves of time to another, happier place. The year is 1962, and 9-year-old Bobby Jones has been waiting for Christmas now for about 10 days. It’s been heck. A deliveryman for Sears, Roebuck & Co. dropped off the Christmas wish book the first weekend of October and Bobby, for whose family Christmas is about the ultimate time of joy, pored over it as if it were a menu at suppertime. I mean, they really gave it a going over.
But Bobby’s attention, when he got the book, stopped on page 210. He had seen the Marx D-Day set with the new Germans, and the SAC Base set with the new bombers B-52; the Big Inch Pipeline and even the Custer’s Last Stand set. But now he had turned the page and there was the greatest, most epic thing he had ever seen. It was the greatest Marx combat set Christmas ad ever done; it was and still is actually thrilling. And now, Bobby realized he had three whole months of waiting to see if he would even get that set. It was huge, and expensive--$9.99—but he hoped his parents would come through for him.
Would they? His hopes were so high. But this was the ultimate set and his desire for it the ultimate hope. And when Christmas came, his father Calvin, who was so good with a camera that he was thought of as a near professional photographer, caught some amazing photographs of how the whole thing turned out. This issue, Playset Magazine wants to drive away the doldrums and show Christmas as it really was, exactly as it all happened to Bobby Jones. And we’ll explore the playset he wanted so much—the Marx #6019 Army Combat with extensive coverage and show the ad also. P.S.—its such a great photo it made the cover for this year’s Christmas issue! Rick Eber helps guide us through the intricacies of the color variations possible, and the differences between the early year production sets and those from later in the year.
We are so happy to present this true human story about a boy for whom a Marx playset meant so much. But another big set, and one shown this issue, is a mint in box opening of the 4788 Wagon Train set. The staples were clipped and our photos show you the exact contents of the set, right down to the exact contents of every bag, putting to rest any mystery you may have had about the Seth Adams character figure and its mysterious disappearances.
But that’s not all! This time we’ll travel to Chicago for the great Chicago Toy Soldier Show formerly known as OTS–the Old Toy Soldier Show, named for a long-ago newsletter that sponsored it. This year, Playset Magazine sponsored the show, and show producers Jan and Roger Garfield brought it to life “Bringing it well into the 20th Century!” said Roger. As we have been saying, here is the future of collecting the past. There was a lot to celebrate–Playset Magazine’s 100th issue was feted in the now annual 5th floor lobby gathering organized by Mike Kutnick and the Shop With A Cop auction. This year LOD brought out a charming new Christmas theme as well as those tremendous Revolutionary War figures in the first ever collaboration set with Ron Barzso’s Yorktown Playset, examined in detail right here. This is a great theme anyway, but given Barzso’s incredible historical touch with a brand new battlefield centerpiece, a fort-like redoubt, six new cannon plus a huge Rev War siege gun, and lots of accessories and figures. Awesome to say the least. This year at the show, Craig Remington and Rick Eber gave an early Christmas gift by opening an important Marx playset, the #3543 The Alamo from 1961. “Opening a stapled playset for all to see is an expensive proposition,” Craig said, announcing to the expectant crowd in attendance, “This year we’re opening a sealed Marx Alamo playset, in honor of the new Marx Alamo book!” Oh, that’s right. There’s a brand new book on the Alamo playsets, and Davy Crockett toys of the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s, plus a section on Dioramas and one the Modern Alamo playsets, and it had its official show debut at the show.
Also, we’re planning on revealing the parking lot deal that heralds proof of a set no one really believed existed: Davy Crockett’s Fort Apache. Yes, it’s an official Marx playset and almost certainly the missing link between the Walt Disney Fess Parker TV show, The Disney Alamo, and Fort Apache. Never before reported or shown, whoa. Since we’re in the final stages of getting the magazine ready, we don’t know if it will be in this issue or the next.
Also this issue is the First Nativity set by Marx, presented in mint boxed form and as a rare playset demonstrator courtesy George Kroll, and a new Marx Memory, “The Long Delayed Set,” for your enjoyment. And we think you’ll find a lot more. In addition to our current playset news stories, you’ll see a bountiful ad section to find your favorite sets, places where you can buy the new products that are being offered, and have a splendid time overall. So c'mon and spend a few hours of great Christmas fun with Playset Magazine and your favorite beverage. As always, it’s the bright new future of collecting the sparkling, ever-engaging past, brought to you by the services of many elves who wish you a Merry Christmas and a festive holiday season.
Do remember to take all the time you need for family, friends and loved ones. And thanks for reading Playset Magazine.
