Like most kids in my generation, my cousin Tony and I began getting Star Wars toys around the age of 5, which for us was in 1980. This was our mutual obsession until 1982, when the introduction of G. I. Joe changed everything—for Tony. As for me, my parents were a tad stricter and felt that conventional warfare was too realistic for my youthful innocence. Science-fiction was much more comfortable. For the next few years, I was generally aware of Joe's development through commercials and my cousin's ever-expanding collection. But I myself only had two figures (Grunt and Airborne), bought in 1983 to resemble Rebel troops on Endor. Then in 1985 came the cartoon series, which aired just before my newest interest, Transformers. My parents saw the show and realized that it had far fewer dying pilots and severed limbs than the Star Wars movies, and that the characters were likable and well developed. When the colorful new figures came out around March 1986, I asked my mom if I could buy Sci-Fi, and she agreed with no reservations. For the next seven years, most of the allowance I received went toward G. I. Joe, especially once I moved beyond Transformers. Oddly enough, that was about the time Tony lost interest in his own Joes, and I picked up several of the older figures with his help.
Since I was older then, my Joes were more for display than for playtime. By the time I was in high school, I had a hundred figures and about fifty vehicles. Even more than toys, I collected information, memorizing names, birthplaces, and other Joe data. But as the years went by, I found myself growing progressively dissatisfied with new releases. This was probably due to the increasing distance between myself and the target age group. By 1993, I was tired of the political correctness, overly macho tone, endless ninjas and repaints, neon colors, and weapons that "really shoot!!!" As I would be heading off to college in a few months anyway, I ended my collecting that April with about 250 figures and 100 vehicles.
A few years later, as I was becoming familiar with the Internet, among the many sites I frequented were G. I. Joe pages put together by Corey Stinson, Eugene Son, and Conor Malone. Here was a wealth of information about my favorite toy. I learned that the toy line had been cancelled in 1994 and replaced with larger figures. But in 1997, when these sites merged into Yojoe.com, they soon announced that new Joes would be released around Christmas. I also discovered that they offered a classified page whereby I could find figures I'd missed out on earlier. I was financially well off during those months (I miss those months . . . ), and over the next year and a half, I managed to pick up just about everything I was missing. I continued to regard the bulk of the 1993 and 1994 releases as an insult to G. I. Joe; that opinion has since softened, but nevertheless they will never be a part of my collection. For a number of reasons, I finished off my regular collecting with the end of the 1982-2001 construction of figures, but there is no end in sight for G. I. Joe itself. The year 2004 was the original Joe's fortieth anniversary and saw the release of over 180 figures, and as of 2007 there are over 1200 figures total and the line is going strong. I bear no shame in calling myself a 33-year-old G. I. Joe fan. Yo Joe!
G. I. Joe began in 1962 in the mind of Stanley Weston, who suggested that the Hasbro toy company produce a line of twelve-inch figures based on his television show, The Lieutenant. The goal was to create a toy line for boys as successful as Barbie had been among girls. The television tie-in was ultimately rejected, but Hasbro's creative director Don Levine approached Hasbro president Merrill Hassenfeld with the idea of a "movable soldier" (not a "doll"). The figure was designed by Walter Hansen and Phil Kraczkowski and marketed with uniforms of the four branches of the service under the name G. I. Joe. The name was inspired by the 1945 movie The Story of G. I. Joe. (On a trivial note, a star of that movie, Burgess Meredith, also had a starring role in G. I. Joe: The Movie in 1987.) The figure itself was articulated in 21 places (to distinguish it from mere "dolls"); had a scar on its face, and a thumbnail on the wrong side of its thumb—a manufacturing defect later used to protect against copyright infringement.
The G. I. Joe Action Soldier, Sailor, Marine,and Pilot series were produced from 1964 to 1968, and soldiers from other countries began appearing in 1966. Perhaps due to the unpopularity of the conflict in Vietnam, the focus then moved from warfare to adventure. Series to follow included The Adventures of G. I. Joe (1969), Adventure Team (1970-73), G. I. Joe with Kung-Fu Grip (1974-76), and the less successful Super Joe (1977-78). By 1978, the oil crisis led to a jump in the price of plastic, and G. I. Joe was among the toy lines discontinued in that year.
Also in 1978, Kenner began releasing a toy line based on the popular movie Star Wars. The line introduced figures standing (on average) only 3 3/4 inches tall. While detailing was crude, the toys were more affordable both to produce and to buy, and vehicles and other accessories were easier to design for the smaller figures. Star Wars spawned a number of copycats, and it totally dominated the toy industry for several years.
The patriotism arising from the 1980 Olympics (in which the U.S. team took the gold medal in hockey) and by Ronald Reagan's presidential campaign inspired toymaker Bob Prupis to try to revive G. I. Joe. Though Hassenfeld was pessimistic about his efforts, Prupis helped develop a new G. I. Joe concept on a Star Wars scale. As 1982 drew near, the designers of the new 3 3/4" line teamed up with Marvel Comics and its animation company, Sunbow, to design a comic book and animated commercial to launch G. I. Joe. The commercial showed animated scenes from the first comic book issue at rapid-fire pace and featured the "Real American Hero" jingle in its complete form. The pitch reportedly received a very emotional, and very positive response. As preliminary development continued, an enemy force was conceived, and the name Cobra was suggested by Marvel comics master Archie Goodwin.
In March 1982, Marvel Comics' G. I. Joe # 1 and the first assortment of toys were released simultaneously, and the comic book commercial was aired, considered the first book ever advertised on television. The toys flew from the shelves, and it would only be a few years before the success of G. I. Joe overshadowed the Star Wars toys.
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