GIjOE print advertising reached an undisputed zenith in the late 1990s with each inclusion in the outstanding FAO Schwartz catalogs. The photographers and designers at FAO clearly understood that GIjOE was an “ACTION Figure” and always strove to show him in motion or on a mission. This stunning, full-page masterpiece promotes the superb “Golden Knight” figure (an FAO exclusive), smartly depicting its highly detailed parachute in full deployment. An absolute STUNNER! (Courtesy: Mark Otnes Collection)
Most GIjOE ephemera collections began with the first four service manuals printed in the 1960s. Included with each figure and most of the equipment sets, collectors soon had multiple copies. (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection) Click to enlarge.
You had it—And threw it away.
An often overlooked aspect of GIjOE collecting is the accumulation of Joe-related paper materials, also referred to as “ephemera.” Somewhat different from amassing a collection of books (see previous article HERE), this category of collecting includes a variety of “lesser” paper goods such as product brochures, instruction sheets, club newsletters, magazines, comic book ads, catalogs, posters, print advertisements, etc.—wherever GIjOE has appeared in printed form.
Also included with most figures, the ubiquitous “Boot Removal Sheets” came in different sizes and colors, providing helpful tips for removing stubborn footwear. Do YOU have a copy of the rare blue version?
(Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
Let’s begin by admitting there’s NO WAY for any one person to know everything about GIjOE ephemera. As its name implies, most of it was intended only for short-term use, before being thrown away and forgotten. The reality is there’s simply been too many products created over too many years, in too many languages (and variations) to know about them all. “Lost” items are constantly discovered by collectors. It’s AMAZING how much material is out there!
Our goal in this article will simply be to discuss the more familiar examples of GIjOE ephemera; their origins, rarity and importance. From there, we’ll open the floor up to YOU, our readers, in hopes that you will suggest your own unique ephemera findings and/or their previously unknown variations.
The Origins of GIjOE Ephemera Collections
Fans of “Golden Age” ’60s and ’70s GIjOEs all began their ephemera collections as children. Instruction sheets, service manuals and GijOE club newsletters were regularly provided by Hasbro during those heady early years, and from 1964 to 1978, it was difficult NOT to accumulate a wide variety of printed Joe materials. Fans who came of age during the “Silver Age” of the ’80s and ’90s (aka the “Classic Collection and RAH Era”) enjoyed another avalanche of new products and related ephemera.
The next piece most fans added to their “Joe ephemera” collection (or used and mailed away) was most likely the club membership brochure. Note its many sizes and subtle variations. (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collectiion) Click to enlarge.
During both periods, some of the more “forward thinking” fans will remember leafing through full-color “adverts” of their Sunday paper and coming across new GIjOE “store exclusives” advertised in a Sears, JCPenney, Target or Walmart flyer. “I’m gunna keep this!” you may have wisely decided; perhaps if only to remind yourself to make a quick “Joe Run” later in the week. Then, months later, long after the advertisement’s usefulness had expired, instead of throwing it out, you decided to KEEP that piece of flimsy newsprint. Years later, those old ad are some of the rarest examples of GIjOE ephemera. If you saved them… Smooth move, EX-LAX!
Hasbro wisely inserted attractive, full-color product brochures into many packages to encourage future sales. Always a pleasant surprise, many kids would unfold them and tack them up as posters. (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection).
The Catch-22 of Ephemera Collecting
Once a collector realizes all those little pieces of paper are a bona fide part of GIjOE’s “history,” it becomes a simple matter to get caught up searching for them. In no time at all, you find yourself scrapbooking every GIjOE ad, catalog, and brochure you can lay your hands on.
Foreign-based Joes such as Action Man, Geyperman and Action Joe are suddenly fair game. Some ephemera collectors even compile notebooks full of ’80s RAH trading cards and backing data sheets. It’s amazing what people will collect, store and archive.
To take a closer look at this burgeoning segment of GIjOE collecting, I enlisted the aid of fellow Joehead and vintage-fanatic, Robert Findlay. Together, we went through piles of various GijOE ephemera to search for a general representation of this category of collectibles. Here’s just a FEW of the examples we found:
Don’t throw away those envelopes! Today, one of the RAREST of all GIjOE “papers” is the original envelope that the 1960s Hasbro GIjOE club used to send out their membership packets. Their most unique feature was the little window that showed a sneak preview of the big plastic dogtag inside. Of course, the vast majority of these envelopes went right in the trash, leaving very few remaining examples for today’s collectors. (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
You can’t call yourself an “offical” fan of GIjOE without one of the original GIjOE club membership certificates. Mine was tacked up on the wall in my room for 10 years until I became a teenager and finally took it down…and threw it away. D’oh! (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
Talk about RARE. The membership packet also included one of these super-cool iron-on transfers. I remember my Mom putting it on a white T-shirt which I quickly wore out…and then threw away. D’oh! (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
Another “boring” paper item routinely tossed by most kids in the 1960s-70s, this ORIGINAL “welcome” letter from the Hasbro club is indeed a rare piece of ephemera today. Good luck trying to find one! (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
Early (original) examples of membership cards too, are now hard to come by. Sure, you can copy this easily, but it’s not the same. Psst! Hey, James Wuerfkin… We know where your card is, dude! (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
Of course, if you were born 10 years later, the Adventure Team Club was more your speed. Instead of a dogtag, you received one of these nifty AT pendants, plus the AT-version membership card. Psst! Hey, Kevin Strattor, does this look familiar? (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
The Adventure Team era also saw an increase in the production of GIjOE mini-comics. Kids read these so many times, they wore them out! Reprints are now available, but original copies in good condition are scarce.
(Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
Remember when toys featured ARTWORK that wasn’t created with Photoshop? Check out the superb paintings of Action Marines in this vintage brochure. Ooh-rah! (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
Newsletters, flyers and promotional handouts are all historically significant pieces of GIjOE ephemera. (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
Instruction pamphlets were included with most Adventure Team equipment sets in the 1970s. Do you have them all? (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
Helpful, colorful, and now…COLLECTIBLE. Oftentimes, the most commonly discarded items become the rarest. Look at this great AT instruction pamphlet. WOW! (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
Original GIjOE product catalogs provide a wealth of information with their full-color closeup photographs showing all accessories and options for a given year. Reprints are available, but nothing beats an original copy. (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
Instruction sheets were helpful for the first 10 minutes, then largely discarded. Did YOU keep them all? (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
As we poured through the piles of Joe ephemera, we came across a few that most collectors have never seen before, including an obscure ’70s ad for Super Joe’s “Laser Communicator.” Talk to Joe’s dino-buddy, Terron, with a beam of light. How cool is that? (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
Yes, even fans of “Super Joe” were given a chance to belong to their OWN club. This is one side of the incredibly rare membership form you mailed in to join. (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
Don’t forget all the foreign Joe ephemera out there. It’s just as much a part of GIjOE’s history as anything else. Foreign catalogs such as this one featuring “Group Action Joe” in France, are often the best remaining evidence of these obscure figures, uniform sets, and equipment. (Screenshot: delcamp)
Don’t forget all of the GIjOE “knockoffs.” And for ephemera collectors, the more obscure, the better. This rare vintage advertisement for the now infamous GIjOE-knockoff, “Fighting Yank,” reveals just how ambitious the Yank’s plans to copy Joe actually were. Fortunately(?), the Yank was taken to court by Hasbro, declared a real dud—and was yanked from the stores! (PGD Inc.)
Major department store catalogs are also a good source of ephemera. This spread in a 1966 JCPenny catalog reveals a new line of “Combat Man” uniform sets the store had produced in an attempt to “piggyback” on GIjOE’s burgeoning popularity. Old catalog pages like this are a great information source when trying to identify pieces of suspected “knockoff” gear or uniforms. (JCP Inc.)
Another outstanding example of GIjOE advertising, this half of a 2-page spread in an FAO Schwartz catalog depicts an exciting scene with exclusive F-15 pilots. WOW. How could you EVER have thrown this in the recycle bin? (Courtesy: Mark Otnes Collection)
Die-hard collectors consider any appearance of GIjOE in print, TV or film to be an occasion worth remembering. Here, the MP Joe is looking sharp in another JCPenny catalog. Heck, that helicopter looks good too. Did YOU buy one? (Courtesy: Mark Otnes Collection)
Here’s one of the best “general audience” ads EVER created for GIjOE. It’s unusual because Hasbro rarely advertises their toys in adult-oriented publications. But because of Joe’s wide-ranging appeal, they made an exception and placed this superb full-page ad in the April 24, 2000 issue of TIME magazine. If you can find an original copy today…GRAB IT! It’s another important piece of GIjOE history. (Courtesy: Mark Otnes Collection)
Another great example of the rare full-color ads used to promote GIjOE in the late ’90s through early 2000. At that time, Hasbro’s “Classic Collection” line was a brisk seller in stores, and many adults were setting up their new figures in much the way they are shown in this ad. Look out for that white tiger, Joe! (Courtesy: Mark Otnes Collection)
Even ads and catalog pages showing vehicles made for 1:6 scale figures are considered to be a type of GIjOE ephemera. This nice page from a JCPenny catalog shows a Jeep, Helicopter and the elusive YF-22 from Fairlandtoys. (Courtesy: Mark Otnes Collection)
Convention exclusives also come with their own unique GIjOE ephemera, such as this superb mini-comic featuring artwork by Scott McCullar.
(Courtesy: Mark Otnes Collection)
Small instruction sheets have always been regular casualties of the recycling bin, but many are even educational. This one contained history of the confederate flag included with the Robert E. Lee figure.
(Courtesy: Mark Otnes Collection)
Yes, even tiny items such as this ticket stub to a GIjOE movie, can be considered as collectible Joe ephemera. Do YOU have one?
(Courtesy: Mark Otnes Collection)
Ah, the “power of print.” Some ephemera is just too cool-looking to toss out. The vintage “Counter-Intelligence Manual” is one of those items. Superb! (Courtesy: Robert Findlay Collection)
We can hear you now…”What about all those Andy and George comic book ads from the 1960s? And how about those ‘Your Mom Threw Them Away’ types of posters?” Yes we know there are MANY more pieces of Joe ephemera out there. Much more than we could ever hope to list here.
If you’re interested in joining the search, you can find photos of a multitude of other pieces in various price guides and GIjOE books, but none of them are ever going to be 100% complete. It’s simply impossible for any one source to show them all!
Well then, you may ask, where does GIjOE ephemera collecting end? It doesn’t! But if the producers of TV’s “Hoarders” ever ring your doorbell, peer in your windows, and see a 10-foot high pile of precariously balanced Joe papers in your livingroom…it may be time for you to slow down a bit.
Bottom Line: GIjOE ephemera may be trashed, but it will NEVER be forgotten, thanks to the borderline-hoarding nature of many GIjOE collectors. If you think of any more categories or unique examples of “Joe papers,” please leave a comment here on The Joe Report for other collectors to read. Who know? Your tip may lead to the next great GIjOE ephemera discovery!
