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The Last Star Fighter Prototypes Found

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    Museum Robot
    • May 9, 2007
    • 5788

    The Last Star Fighter Prototypes Found



    This past week I got one of those emails that I just absolutely live for and that is from the owner of the hand painted set of prototype figures for the Last Star Fighter. Pictured about is the original catalog page we showed here.

    Originally proposed by Galoob, these figures never saw light of day, probably due to the film's lackluster box office (it's a good movie too, I saw it opening weekend). It haunts collectors such as myself a little and that's why this image and the following story made me smile.


    More after the Hyper Jump!



    How did the owner come to get these, well I'll let the owner explain that in his own words, this story goes back 25 years.





    "A friend of mine at the time wanted to become a sculpture for movie makeup and he had met a guy who did that for a living. I was asked to go over with him as he did not want to go alone."




    " We got to his house and he had his garage set up like a flea market with a bunch of stuff he either worked on or had gotten while working in the industry. I think he worked with Phil Tippett because he had stuff from Star Wars and the Terminator as well as stories about working on the Terminator."




    "He had the figures with the other stuff and wanted to sell it, he had found religion and did not want anything from his past in the movies. I remember he had some Strawberry Shortcake stuff as well that I did not have the money to buy."




    "So I ended up with the 6 figures as well as some model kits and a few props as well as a Gumby that was used in a Gumby movie."

    Pretty neat stuff and I also know someone in the special effects field who now sculpts for toy companies, it seems to be commonplace. It still doesn't take away the pain of these never getting made.







    The owner is now considering parting with them , so he's asked to me to share them to gauge any interest. Got any questions? Fire them to me via my gmail (kid70s) and I'll forward them on down!










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    More...
  • Goblin19
    Talkative Member
    • May 2, 2002
    • 6108

    #2
    Those are great. I loved the movie as a kid. We saw it at an advance show. I remember because they were giving away posters and stuff and I don’t think we had ever been to one of those before.

    Comment

    • Werewolf
      Inhuman
      • Jul 14, 2003
      • 14616

      #3
      Wow that is wicked! You know, they look rougher than I had expected after finally seeing them in such clear close up pictures after all these years. A real piece of history. I'm surprised the owner didn't try to offer them to Funko or Super7 first. This seems right up their alley.
      You are a bold and courageous person, afraid of nothing. High on a hill top near your home, there stands a dilapidated old mansion. Some say the place is haunted, but you don't believe in such myths. One dark and stormy night, a light appears in the topmost window in the tower of the old house. You decide to investigate... and you never return...

      Comment

      • enyawd72
        Maker of Monsters!
        • Oct 1, 2009
        • 7904

        #4
        Cool! I recognize at least a couple of those as being reworked Remco Sgt. Rock figures.

        Comment

        • Nostalgiabuff
          Muddling through
          • Oct 4, 2008
          • 11290

          #5
          Originally posted by enyawd72
          Cool! I recognize at least a couple of those as being reworked Remco Sgt. Rock figures.
          I was noticing the same thing. these are an awesome piece of toy history. I loved that movie when it came out. the effects are pretty primitive by todays standards though

          Comment

          • Bruce Banner
            HULK SMASH!
            • Apr 3, 2010
            • 4327

            #6
            Amazing. Great to see those figures.
            Always liked the movie. I remember me and a group of friends went directly from school to the theatre to see it during opening week.
            PUNY HUMANS!

            Comment

            • Hedji
              Citizen of Gotham
              • Nov 17, 2012
              • 7246

              #7
              Breathtaking!!!!!!!! I too saw it theatrically, probably opening week.

              I got to meet the Director, Nick Castle, at a Con last Spring. One of the best convention personalities I've ever met. I could talk with him for hours, and he probably would indulge me if given the time. Just a warm, pleasant, and down to earth dude. I asked him if he knew why (concept artist) Ron Cobb doesn't do more work, and he explained that sadly, Ron recently had a stroke and isn't well. I told him how much I appreciated Cobb's contributions to his film, as well as Star Wars and ALIEN, and he was so touched, he asked if he could take my picture and send it to Ron as a way of saying people still care and appreciate him!

              Nick Castle also has a real love for music, and musicals. If you're not aware, he wanted Last Starfighter to play a bit like a musical in its tone, pacing, and characters. He wrote the original draft of HOOK, which was going to be a musical, and much of that intention remained when Spielberg took over the project and collaborated with John Williams. Nick Castle himself has also has worked with composers who have turned in crackerjack scores for his films like Last Starfighter (Craig Safan), The Boy Who Could Fly (Bruce Broughton), and Dennis the Menace (Jerry Goldsmith). And on top of all that, he is John Carpenter royalty, having helped write Escape from New York, and yes, he is the first actor to play "The Shape" in Carpenter's Halloween, and will be reprising that role in the 2018 sequel!

              But back to these luscious figures that I wish I could buy...

              So, I can't help but notice the Red Kodan, Zur, and Alex all have the same arm style as the vintage Return of the Jedi "Weequay" figure, with the left palm turned up. Think they kit bashed using that?

              Comment

              • Redmiller
                New Member
                • Jun 19, 2018
                • 22

                #8
                Wow, That is Awesome. I too saw the movie when it came out in the Theater. Was one of my and still is Favorite Movies. I used to go to the Arcade and play Games thinking maybe this was just a test as well.
                It was a great movie with some good actors and actresses.
                Would have loved to have those Figures!

                Comment

                • Werewolf
                  Inhuman
                  • Jul 14, 2003
                  • 14616

                  #9
                  Originally posted by enyawd72
                  Cool! I recognize at least a couple of those as being reworked Remco Sgt. Rock figures.
                  Originally posted by Hedji
                  So, I can't help but notice the Red Kodan, Zur, and Alex all have the same arm style as the vintage Return of the Jedi "Weequay" figure, with the left palm turned up. Think they kit bashed using that?
                  Wow, yeah and Centauri looks to use a M.A.S.H. figure as a base. These are all rough mock ups using existing figures.
                  You are a bold and courageous person, afraid of nothing. High on a hill top near your home, there stands a dilapidated old mansion. Some say the place is haunted, but you don't believe in such myths. One dark and stormy night, a light appears in the topmost window in the tower of the old house. You decide to investigate... and you never return...

                  Comment

                  • sprytel
                    Talkative Member
                    • Jun 26, 2009
                    • 6539

                    #10
                    So are the catalog figures different from these prototypes? The figures appear to have slight variations...

                    Comment

                    • Mikey
                      Verbose Member
                      • Aug 9, 2001
                      • 47242

                      #11
                      Wow !!!

                      Crazy cool to see !!!

                      Comment

                      • Earth 2 Chris
                        Verbose Member
                        • Mar 7, 2004
                        • 32498

                        #12
                        Who would have ever thought we'd see these. Thanks to everyone involved in letting us get a good look at them!

                        Chris
                        sigpic

                        Comment

                        • Klosterheim
                          Persistent Member
                          • Mar 23, 2013
                          • 1121

                          #13
                          Those prototypes are really amazing.

                          I liked The Last Star Fighter movie too, liked just about anything that was science-fiction.

                          An early experiment in CGI. At the time, I preferred all spaceships as models in movies, but now, looking back, it is a very fun time capsule with an unforgettable look. It is an all-around enjoyable film.

                          P.S.

                          There may have not been figures to buy, but I didn't miss out completely on having something to accompany the movie when it was out, I had Last Star Fighter Game by FASA. It was a small boxed game. It didn't have a traditional board, but it was a table-top game, with cardboard counters. And it had a nice picture box. I think their Star Trek game of that size was for Star Trek III: The Search For Spock.
                          Last edited by Klosterheim; Sep 22, '18, 7:45 PM.

                          Comment

                          • nvmbrsdoom5
                            Persistent Member
                            • Mar 1, 2005
                            • 1627

                            #14
                            I loved this movie when it came out. I was just about the age where I stopped buying toys so I don't know if I would've bought these had they come out, but it's really cool to see them now! I love the fact that stuff like this still surfaces all these years later.

                            Comment

                            • LordMudd
                              Persistent Member
                              • Aug 22, 2011
                              • 1331

                              #15
                              Originally posted by Werewolf
                              Wow that is wicked! You know, they look rougher than I had expected after finally seeing them in such clear close up pictures after all these years. A real piece of history. I'm surprised the owner didn't try to offer them to Funko or Super7 first. This seems right up their alley.
                              I agree, Funko or Super 7!


                              CCC.

                              Comment

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