Aldens Exclusive Air Force Steve Austin Six Million Dollar Man Figure

[Mr. Hollywood]

Good afternoon fellow members,

Thought I would post my newest finds. As titled above.

We know that Alden's was a discount department store like JC Penny's back in the late 50's through early to mid 1980's.

Obviously this outfit is rare but does anyone have any idea just how rare this outfit is? As a SMDM collector it wasn't until January of this year that I even knew this outfit existed! The first time I saw it was on another thread here on the forum.

http://megomuseum.com/community/showthread.php?82490-Six-Million-Dollar-Man-Mystery/page5

Fellow member Mightymegs posted a photo of this very outfit sporting no shoes, but it did include a cap presumed to belong to this figure.

Another photo of this figure I found on flicker.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/34544977@N00/5565152696/

Like mine it sports no cap, and has the same black molded running shoes like Maskatron.

Outside of these three photos (mine included) I have not seen any others. Any fellow members here have one or have info on when these were offered through Alden's? Pleas post your photos here if you have one in your collection.

Enjoy!

[slats7]

AF uniform? Looks more like an airline pilot.

[Mr. Hollywood]

AF uniform? Looks more like an airline pilot.

I always thought it looked more like a bell hop!

Yep it's his "Air Force" uniform.

[Jason73]

Wow, I've never heard of this version before. Cool.

[shazam7208]

I hadn't seen this one either...looks great!

[Mr. Hollywood]

Thanks guys.

It's definitely a cool piece. I just wish there was more information on it. I would love to know just what accesories it came with, what the card backing looked like, or did the outfit come complete with the figure? If so did it have "official packaging" or did it arrive in store in a simple brown box?

In 1984 my local toy shop in the mall was offering a preorder exclusive Michael Jackson doll. It was supposed to be him in the Thriller costume, exclusive only to Michaels Toys Store.

After a 6 week wait the doll arrived at store and my mom and I went to pick it up. Man the line was long with all he parents and kids there waiting. When I finally got the box, it was a simple brown box, and inside was the doll not in the Thriller outfit, but he was wearing the American Awards red bell boy outfit.

Not long after I saw my "exclusive" figure on the shelf in a full graphic box at another toy store. That experience makes me wonder.........

1. did this figure receive similar treatment in terms of packaging
2. was it only the outfit that was sold exclusive to Alden's
3. was it a figure and package combo etc.

Any information would be great!

[Mr. Hollywood]

I was doing some research this weekend regarding the outfit/ figure. There is so little out there, that I am still stumped.

Any thoughts?

[MightyMegs]

Congrats! It's an awesome outfit... and tough as nails to find. I'm STILL searching for a pic in an Alden's catalog or ad that shows it. A packaged sample would tell us everything... if it was an official Kenner exclusive, or (more likely) a 'generic' made (some Bionic Woman generics were actually made by Mego). If we keep asking, someone's got to have the answer.

[starsky]

that's awesome! never even knew it existed. ran into this listing on ebay and this guy might know something about it. they have a bunch of different custom outfits for steve austin.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kenner-SIX-MILLION-DOLLAR-Bionic-MAN-Action-Figure-Collection-w-FREE-shipping-/261197589268?pt=US_Action_Figures&hash=item3cd096eb14

[Mr. Hollywood]

I spoke with a former Kenner Designer here in the Cleveland area that my friend knows. He confirmed that this outfit along with a few others were offered through limited retailers, such as (Sears, Aldens, jc pennys) and were designed and made by Kenner. He didn't have a ton of info on each suit package he helped design but he recognized the suit right off the bat. He referred to some of the smdm team projects he worked on as "the pilot" costume, Kung fu, osi, and test flight.

One partial mystery down.

He also said that there were smdm outfits subcontracted by Kenner to other companies for the UK market which included a powder blue track suit, and "sporting wear".

May not be a ton of info, but it's ,more than what we had, and it's first hand.

Mightymegs..........I wonder if Mego was the subcontracted company used for the UK market.

[Mr. Hollywood]

that's awesome! never even knew it existed. ran into this listing on ebay and this guy might know something about it. they have a bunch of different custom outfits for steve austin.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kenner-SIX-M...item3cd096eb14

I saw this add, some neat stuff for sure.

[71roadrunner340]

I tried for this lot and lost :(
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-1960...vip=true&rt=nc
It has the jacket, pants, and hat in it. There is also one shoe, but there is also the shirt and pants for Maskatron, so it is still not clear if it came with shoes

[MightyMegs]

I saw that one too... I watched it jump from $28 to $83 in the last few seconds.

I tried for this lot and lost :(
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-1960...vip=true&rt=nc
It has the jacket, pants, and hat in it. There is also one shoe, but there is also the shirt and pants for Maskatron, so it is still not clear if it came with shoes

[Mr. Hollywood]

Unreal. This is now the 4th set of this rare clothing I have seen.

I really believe that the figure came with the back madkatron shoes as a cost savings measure for Kenner. My set came with the shoes, there is another set on Flicker that I highlighted earlier also with the black Maskatron shoes.

The hat in that photo appears to look like a dress cap that could match the uniform. Interesting indeed.

[Mr. Hollywood]

Alright fellow members.........here is my UK Exclusive SMDM figure. This figure was authenticated by a former Kenner employee who was a designer for the line.

You can see that the pattern is identical to the standard red version, however the material is a bit thicker. Not too unusual since there appear to be a couple versions of this suit with the foreign releases with slightly differing materials and shades of blue.

The shoes are the standard red versions, but in blue. The previous owner did replace the rubber skin on the arm. No big deal, as the suit itself is complete and authentic. The rarest of the rare!

Enjoy!