BIG Mego distribution question???

[ddgaff1132]

I have mentioned this in previous post numerous times. But I figured I should address the question precisely and see if any knowledge exists regarding distribution of Mego's back in the day. I know Brian H. had a lot of insider knowledge on this issue due to his Dad's job.
In the towns outside of Pittsburgh PA. in the early seventies we had a Montgomery Wards. From this location I recieved my first Batman, Robin & Batmobile. I was there at purchase and noted several Mego's available. I also assume this is where an earlier Christmas AJ & Snowmobile were bought. Later after this store was closed. A K-mart had been cunstructed and became the leading shopping outlet for the area. Their Mego stock seemed less impressive as Marx and GI Joe ate up more of the toy aisle. Also Note in regards to Marx. Pittsburgh is near W.V. The home of Marx toys. So was it my location or the outlet venues or other that led to the Mego Poor showing in my childhood?

[Myoldtoys]

I grew up east of Pittsburgh. Most of our shopping was done in Greensburg, PA. I don't recall the Montgomery Wards being a hot spot for any toys (although they did have a large assortment in their Christmas catalog). I vividly remember shopping at Toymart in the mall, and Children's Palace. Both had an abundance of Mego superheroes.

[ddgaff1132]

I would have to admit a lack of experience with the Malls back then. I think my Father had a dis-like of them like some have for the Wal-Marts of today. I can only recall one trip to a Toys r Us (or KB toys) back in the day. It was post Mego though.
(I think I was in toy-shock over the abundance of toys in one location.)

[ddgaff1132]

How long was the "Kresge" card produced? Maybe that can help me figure out something about this issue. Our K-mart was was established using the modern name from its inception. So that should give an idea of the timeline.

[AcroRay]

I grew up down in Uniontown, PA - relatively near to Pittsburgh. We had a couple of mall toy stores, but most of my family's toy-related shopping was via Hills, K-Mart and a couple of smaller places that had pretty decent toy departments like McCrory's, Ben Franklin & Health-Mart. I never really noticed any lack of Mego product, although by the time Shogun Warriors, Micronauts & Star Wars toys hit the pegs I barely noticed any of Mego's traditional costumed action figures in order to say if they were in short supply - although their 3 &3/4 inch products were in good supply.

[cjefferys]

In southern Ontario, we had plenty of Megos (I mostly bought them at Zellers and a local independent department store, Rosbergs, along with occasional trips over the border). I remember seeing everything, even the more obscure lines like the pirates, knights and Robin Hood.

[samurainoir]

At a toy show last year, I had the pleasure of being introduced to the gentleman who distributed Mego action figures in Canada (he still goes into work everyday). The company is still in business.

It was this gentleman who was apparently responsible for the 12" Superhero line, and they were initially distributed in Canada only, on the "skinny" hero body, before they made the more heroic portioned body for the US.

It came up in conversation yesterday that Canada never got the Teen Titans, which explains why I had never seen them outside of the comic book ads as a kid.

[Tothiro]

As I've mentioned I was born rather too late, I think, for the actual Mego onslaught, but even still there was a fair showing at that stage of the game considering WGSH was tooling down... Maybe it was the high percentage of dead stock. I grew up in south Florida, and there were a few local mom and pop toy stores, one of which was really a model train specialty shop which built a permanent brick and glass enclosed raised scale train setup as a kiosk under the large overhang in front of their strip mall location and I used to love checking that out even though I wasn't a train kid. They were high priced, but I believe this is where my OMBC dudes were purchased, only because it's the only shop I ever saw them in (and the boxed Hairy Rhino and Trex on the shelf!) The other mom and pop (a place called Toy Tree) was in another closer strip mall, and the only place I ever saw 12" Star Wars (top shelf away from the kiddies - too expensive to ever swing, and dead stock too... several years after they were discontinued)

There was also a McCrory's department store that had the left over lunch counter - always good for an emergency grilled cheese. They had dead stock open box Batmobiles for years.
The big game in town was Lionel Playworld - a bit of a drive. That's where I picked up Lords of Light and Interchangeables figures, and they had the deadstock clearanced Pin Pin Fantastic Four. There may have been other 8" around, but I don't particularly recall seeing them and like I said, it was late in the game.
The stores were lousy with 3 3/4" mego lines though. Dukes were all over the place, so were Buck Rogers toys. I had a Vincent and such from Black Hole, and the first wave of Micronauts Aliens were actually picked up from our local Grocery Store one early Xmas. I even remember seeing CB McHaul rigs on the shelves.
Largely 8" not so much.

At a toy show last year, I had the pleasure of being introduced to the gentleman who distributed Mego action figures in Canada (he still goes into work everyday). ---
It was this gentleman who was apparently responsible for the 12" Superhero line, and they were initially distributed in Canada only, on the "skinny" hero body, before they made the more heroic portioned body for the US.

Aw cool! He was mentioned on the MM Podcasts too.

[ddgaff1132]

In retrospect, It seems like the recent Mattel Retro Action line got the same treatment as Mego's did back then around here. As museum posts here were proclaiming that Wave2 and Wave3 were seen at local TRU. I was rushing to TRU only to find the remnants of the original line warming the pegs. My county of PA must be considered a poor sector for toy sales and not worth stocking a good variety? Both recently and back in the Seventy's

[VintageMike]

Most of my Megos were bought in places where toys were a huge focus, like Toys R'Us or a local place called Toy and Sport Warehouse. Can't speak on the Kresge's but I remember when I was very young TRU having what are now tough pieces like Riddler and Supergirl. "Last six" seemed to be around forever frustrating myself and my friends as my did not know "cool" figures Thor or even a Green Goblin for Spidey to fight wer eno longer being produced.