THE STORY OF MONOPOLY, SlLLY PUTTY, BINGO, TWISTER, FRISSBEE, SCRABBLE, ETCETERA by Marvin Kaye Page A
Authors: Marvin Kaye
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be disguised or altered without losing whatever residual consumer identification still exists?
Hasbro and its advertising agency undertook a study to explore possible ways of changing Joe’s image. New versions of the toy were tested on children, to see which might be the most fun to play with.
A great deal of soul-searching went on during this period throughout the industry. Manufacturers finally realized that the consumer really meant it when he said he was disenchanted with toys of violence.
In 1969, Hasbro found what it believed to be a new, acceptable format for G.I. Joe: an adventure team concept. Joe was now a member of a quartet of efficient technicians who aided individuals and governments in adventurous undertakings such as the recovery of missing treasure, aquanautic exploration, and capture of wild animals.
“At first, the idea was only moderately successful,” explained Behling. “We had to work through the old inventory, altering it to fit the new look of the toy. And, anyway, image is a hard thing to change. Part of the problem was the military-sounding name. But we could not change that, because some buyers would not have bought the new toy without the old name.”
By the second half of 1970, Hasbro was seeing a strong upswing in G.I. Joe sales. The message of the altered image was getting across, and the old inventory had been exhausted. Newer, gadgety accessories were put on the market. 1971 nearly doubled 1970’s sales, by mid-1972, the firm expected G.I. Joe to rack up record money again.
G.I. Joe is still paramilitary in that his clothes and equipment are all strictly functional. A typical G.I. Joe adventure kit is called “Secret of the Stolen Idol.” The kit includes a small comic book that tells of a quest for a stolen Buddha-like idol with jewels in a secret compartment. G.I. Joe, presumably serving as a good-will ambassador from the West, agrees to help an Oriental sect recover its object of worship. Assembling a prefab helicopter, Joe surveys the area and eventually sees five villains escaping with the idol. They drop their loot and run away in terror. Landing his chopper, G.I. Joe approaches and finds that a giant cobra is coiled near the idol, which is perched precariously on a mountain ledge.
The old G.I. Joe probably would have blown the snake’s head off and been done with it, but not the adventurer. He gets back in his helicopter and drops a winch with a loop of rope over the idol. After several tries, Joe secures it and returns the totem to the grateful natives.
According to Hasbro, when the boy receives the stolen idol kit and reads the comic book, he gets out his G.I. Joe doll (sold separately) and puts it through the script of the adventure with the accessories in the kit: a miniature helicopter with a working winch and blade, a replica of the idol with secret compartment filled with “jewels,” and a toy cobra. The new G.I. Joe allows the young boy to indulge in adventure fantasies not unlike the old radio and movie serials— Captain Midnight, Jack Armstrong, and the like. When he tires of the script, he can create his own tales using the component toys.
Fantasizing, of course, is the major appeal of the G.I. Joe doll. But, according to Behling, the boy does not project himself into the character of Joe himself, as girls do with Barbie. Instead, the boy tends to think of himself as a slightly younger pal of Joe, accompanying him at the time of the adventure. Also, whereas a girl pictures herself as a teenage Barbie, boys imagine themselves as Joe’s grown-up, although younger, friend. “A girl,” said Behling, “thinks of herself as a teenager at a prom. A boy of the same age might think of himself as a football player, but not in high school; he would imagine himself a professional.”
The looks of the two dolls, G.I. Joe and Barbie, certainly do reflect different preoccupations. A girl’s doll must look very pretty and graceful. Although Joe is an appropriate
Hasbro and its advertising agency undertook a study to explore possible ways of changing Joe’s image. New versions of the toy were tested on children, to see which might be the most fun to play with.
A great deal of soul-searching went on during this period throughout the industry. Manufacturers finally realized that the consumer really meant it when he said he was disenchanted with toys of violence.
In 1969, Hasbro found what it believed to be a new, acceptable format for G.I. Joe: an adventure team concept. Joe was now a member of a quartet of efficient technicians who aided individuals and governments in adventurous undertakings such as the recovery of missing treasure, aquanautic exploration, and capture of wild animals.
“At first, the idea was only moderately successful,” explained Behling. “We had to work through the old inventory, altering it to fit the new look of the toy. And, anyway, image is a hard thing to change. Part of the problem was the military-sounding name. But we could not change that, because some buyers would not have bought the new toy without the old name.”
By the second half of 1970, Hasbro was seeing a strong upswing in G.I. Joe sales. The message of the altered image was getting across, and the old inventory had been exhausted. Newer, gadgety accessories were put on the market. 1971 nearly doubled 1970’s sales, by mid-1972, the firm expected G.I. Joe to rack up record money again.
G.I. Joe is still paramilitary in that his clothes and equipment are all strictly functional. A typical G.I. Joe adventure kit is called “Secret of the Stolen Idol.” The kit includes a small comic book that tells of a quest for a stolen Buddha-like idol with jewels in a secret compartment. G.I. Joe, presumably serving as a good-will ambassador from the West, agrees to help an Oriental sect recover its object of worship. Assembling a prefab helicopter, Joe surveys the area and eventually sees five villains escaping with the idol. They drop their loot and run away in terror. Landing his chopper, G.I. Joe approaches and finds that a giant cobra is coiled near the idol, which is perched precariously on a mountain ledge.
The old G.I. Joe probably would have blown the snake’s head off and been done with it, but not the adventurer. He gets back in his helicopter and drops a winch with a loop of rope over the idol. After several tries, Joe secures it and returns the totem to the grateful natives.
According to Hasbro, when the boy receives the stolen idol kit and reads the comic book, he gets out his G.I. Joe doll (sold separately) and puts it through the script of the adventure with the accessories in the kit: a miniature helicopter with a working winch and blade, a replica of the idol with secret compartment filled with “jewels,” and a toy cobra. The new G.I. Joe allows the young boy to indulge in adventure fantasies not unlike the old radio and movie serials— Captain Midnight, Jack Armstrong, and the like. When he tires of the script, he can create his own tales using the component toys.
Fantasizing, of course, is the major appeal of the G.I. Joe doll. But, according to Behling, the boy does not project himself into the character of Joe himself, as girls do with Barbie. Instead, the boy tends to think of himself as a slightly younger pal of Joe, accompanying him at the time of the adventure. Also, whereas a girl pictures herself as a teenage Barbie, boys imagine themselves as Joe’s grown-up, although younger, friend. “A girl,” said Behling, “thinks of herself as a teenager at a prom. A boy of the same age might think of himself as a football player, but not in high school; he would imagine himself a professional.”
The looks of the two dolls, G.I. Joe and Barbie, certainly do reflect different preoccupations. A girl’s doll must look very pretty and graceful. Although Joe is an appropriate
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