Figures

An action figure is a posable plastic figurine of a character, often from a movie, video game, or television program. These action figures usually are marketed towards boys. more...

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Redressable action figures are sometimes referred to as action dolls as a distinction from those which have all or most of their clothes molded on.

Action figures are useful in making stop motion movies which are gaining popularity among children due to the availability of easy to use computer software for making animated movies.

History

The term "action figure" was first used by Hasbro in 1964, to market their G.I. Joe figure to boys who wouldn't play with "dolls". G.I. Joe was initially a military-themed 11.5-inch action figure proposed by marketing and toy idea-man Stan Weston. The action figure featured changeable clothes with various uniforms to suit different purposes. In a move that would create global popularity for this type of toy, Hasbro also licensed the product to companies in other markets:

Argentina – Joe Super Temerario by Verili SRL.; Brazil – Falcon (early), Comandos em Ação (later) by Estrela.; Britain – Action Man by Palitoy.; Canada – G.I. Joe by Hassenfeld Bros.; France – Group Action Joe by Ceji; Germany - Action Team by Schildkroet; Italy – Action Team by Polistil.; Japan - New G.I. Joe by Takara.; Mexico - Hombres de Accion by Ledy.; Spain – Geyperman by Geyper.; Uruguay – Hombres de Accion, and Chicas de Accion by Juguetes Iberia.;

These different markets had a combination of uniforms and accessories that were usually identical to the ones manufactured for the US market by Hasbro, along with some sets that were unique to the local market.

The Japanese market had at least two examples where a Hasbro licensee also issued sublicenses for related products. For example, Palitoy issued a sublicense to Tsukuda, a company in Japan, to manufacture and sell Action Man accessories in the Japanese market. Takara also issued a sublicense to Medicom for the manufacture of action figures.

Takara, still under license by Hasbro to make and sell G.I. Joe toys in Japan, also manufactured an action figure incorporating the licensed GI Joe torso for Henshin Cyborg-1, using transparent plastic revealing cyborg innards, and a chrome head and cyborg feet. During the oil supply crisis of the 1970’s , like many other manufacturers of action figures, Takara was struggling with the costs associated with making the large 11 ½ inch figures, So, a smaller version of the cyborg toy was developed, standing at 3-3/4 inches high, and was first sold in 1974 as Microman. The Microman line was also novel in its use of interchangeable parts. This laid the foundation for both the smaller action figure size and the transforming robot toy. Takara began producing characters in the Microman line with increasingly robotic features, including Robotman, a 12" robot with room for a Microman pilot, and Mini-Robotman, a 3-3/4" version of Robotman. These toys also featured interchangeable parts, with emphasis placed on the transformation and combination of the characters.

Read more at Wikipedia.org