Does anyone know if there were more WGSH figures planned in the 70s?

[FamousCoversFan]

Hi,

I was wondering if there is anything know about plans or prototypes for more WGSH figures?
I thought it was one of the best selling lines for mego but the amount of different figures is quite limited. Especially considering the time they were produced and sold in stores.

Thanks :-)

[Megotastrophe]

I think it was probably the most extensive line made in toys until star wars and gi joe rah. Figures vehicles playsets and exclusive outfits...

[palitoy]

Hate to say this but the consensus from Mego folks I talked to was that the sales didn't follow the expanded character selection of 75-76. I've never gotten a feeling we missed anything. No stories of Flash or Green Lantern.

[SWCWorld]

Hate to say this but the consensus from Mego folks I talked to was that the sales didn't follow the expanded character selection of 75-76. I've never gotten a feeling we missed anything. No stories of Flash or Green Lantern.

Interesting, and that seems to fit my recollection. I remember buying (or actually my Mom buying) the figures when they were first stocked and out at the local TG&Y store; and these included the first 8 including the removable cowl Batman and then later the 4 villains, which we all thought were very, very cool. Other than the Planet of the Apes figures, I don't remember seeing any of the later 1975-76 WGSH figures at the local TG&Y. The last figure I ever got was the Riddler. I remember sometime in 1975 or 1976 seeing the newer figures (Conan, etc.) at a Toys By Roy store in a Dallas mall (probably Valley View) but did not get any. I remember also thinking "cool" new Megos....

[palitoy]

I personally wanted any WGSH I saw, I lost my marbles when I saw the Heroes World ads.

However, most of my friends only had Batman, Robin, Superman and Spider-Man.

[FamousCoversFan]

Hate to say this but the consensus from Mego folks I talked to was that the sales didn't follow the expanded character selection of 75-76. I've never gotten a feeling we missed anything. No stories of Flash or Green Lantern.

That's too bad. It would have been cool to hear about what could have been. Let's hope the revived Mego can one day do marvel and dc in 8-inch format.

[ovenmitt]

DC Megos had Adam West and George Reeves reruns, Super Friends, Shazam (and Isis) Lynda Carter and Christopher Reeve to promote them. Marvel did not have TV exposure until late 70s. Spider-Man had always been extremely popular and Mego Hulk became a best seller due his TV series. I did not know Captain America and Falcon, Iron Man, Thor and Conan. The Thing cartoon got me to pick a Fantastic 4 comic book as a party favor so I knew them. I wish Mego had continued WGSH past 1977 and we got Legion of Doom, X-Men, Spider-Woman, Iceman, Firestar, etc. Mego is back and making DC Megos again at 14”. Can 14” Marvel and 8” WGSH be far behind?

[Ninersphan1]

I think the only possible "planned" MEGO was Doctor Doom. There's a long held belief that the reason Iron Man has a nose is that his head sculpt started out a a sculpt for Doom. Now whether there is any validity to that theory, we'll likely never know.

[palitoy]

I think the only possible "planned" MEGO was Doctor Doom. There's a long held belief that the reason Iron Man has a nose is that his head sculpt started out a a sculpt for Doom. Now whether there is any validity to that theory, we'll likely never know.

It's just fan conjecture. Iron Man was sculpted with a nose based on whatever reference they had. There were no plans for Doctor Doom. I'm sorry to report, these guys weren't huge Marvel comics fans.

[SWCWorld]

At the time in the early-to-mid 1970s, the Marvel exposure on TV was the Spider-Man animation series from the 1960s (excellent series, worth a pickup if still in DVD print), as well as some of the other limited animation Marvel series from the 1960s such as Iron Man, Hulk, Captain America, and Thor.... Interestingly enough, all characters done by Mego...

[MRP]

I think the only possible "planned" MEGO was Doctor Doom. There's a long held belief that the reason Iron Man has a nose is that his head sculpt started out a a sculpt for Doom. Now whether there is any validity to that theory, we'll likely never know.

In the mid 70s the Iron Man armor featured a nose in the comics, so the head sculpt was likely modeled after that...





-M

[PNGwynne]

^Yep. There was a whole thread about it here somewhere.

Regarding more 8" WGSH, I wanted the Superman movie figures to be 8" so badly when I was a kid. I also pined for DD, Red Skull, Dr. Doom, and Dr. Octopus.

[ovenmitt]

In the 1997 Toyfare #2 in an interview with John Bonavita he said Dr Doom was planned but he went a few cents over what Mego could spend on an 8” figure so Doom was cancelled. Mego retooled Doom’s head into Iron Man thus the nose. John said Mego would have used Knights armor for Doom and he would have been an elaborate Mego. Too bad I wanted 8” Lex Luthor too but John said Mego thought Luthor was just a bald guy. *what year did Luthor start wearing his purple and green jumpsuit? Until then Lex wore regular clothes, is that a reason Mego passed on him because no costume yet?

[PNGwynne]

I'm curious--what were Bonavita's sources for the Doom and Luthor explanations and cost-out?

[palitoy]

There was never a Doom planned. John got a lot right and he's a total pioneer but there was no Doctor Doom. Total myth. I've spoken to a lot of people at Mego, it isn't a thing.

The Luthor explanation is totally plausible, the purple suit didn't appear when the villains were picked for WGSH.