Death Star Space Station Playset

 The Death Star Space Station was a full 20 inches tall, with four floors on which one could recreate a whole range of exciting Star Wars scenes. It had a really cool looking gun mount on its top level, a retractable bridge in its middle portion, an elevator, even a working trash compactor component. It even included a Dianoga!

This playset came out in 1978 and 1979. I remember going to a mom and pop toy store in either 1983 or 1984 and seeing this for sale. I totally wanted it, so I put it on layaway. I was only getting a weekly allowance so it took several weeks to finally pay for this. At one point I actually begged my mom to pay for it but she refused. Harumpf! I finally finished paying for it and was so happy to take it home. It has been in my collection ever since. 

Still have the hard to find rope. 

The Dianoga is still in the trash compactor waiting for victims to drag under the gross water! Unfortunately, I no longer have the foam trash because they totally degraded. I tried to protect the foam by putting them in a plastic bag but somehow the bag got a hole in it and there went the foam. Oh well!

The put the instruction sheet and the Kenner "We Really Do Care!" slip in a frame and put it on my wall. Looks great!!!

I was being a total dork and forgot to include the large gun in the photoshoot, but I still have that too.  

Han Solo's Revenge novel

The purpose of this blog is to archive my collection. Well, this book is a part of my collection so I post a picture of it here. It was written by Brian Daley and originally published in 1979. It is the second of three books in the Han Solo Adventures trilogy.  Here is the plot summary: 

Plot summary

Down on their luck after a botched smuggling run, Han Solo and Chewbacca resort to accepting a job offer from an anonymous employer. However, after flying the Millennium Falcon to the planet Lur for the pickup, they discover that the cargo they're meant to be shipping are slaves - something for which neither Han nor Chewbacca has any tolerance.

After dealing with the slavers' attempt to commandeer the Falcon, and still in dire need of funds, Han and Chewbacca head for the planet Bonadan, where the slavers' leader was meant to meet his contact for payment.

Instead of the contact, though, they cross paths with Fiolla, an assistant auditor-general with the Corporate Sector Authority. She convinces Han that his only chance of getting paid now is to help her in tracking down the slaving ring.

The slavers are watching Fiolla and are now keeping their eyes on Han and Chewbacca as well, forcing the two smugglers to split up. Chewbacca takes the Falcon, while Han and Fiolla board a cruise liner. The two parties make plans to meet on the planet Ammuud, to investigate the slavers' connection to one of the governing clans there.

Han and Fiolla arrive on Ammuud and uncover the evidence Fiolla needs to implicate high-ranking Authority officials in the slaving ring. Outwitting the Authority forces who have been sent by Fiolla's superior to detain them, Han and Chewbacca are able to collect their payment at last and depart the planet safely.

Vintage Millennium Falcon Vehicle

This is my Millennium Falcon that I got back in 1980! I played with this thing a lot! I really loved this toy. I got it on Krismas morning and I was so happy. 

It has seen better days though. My Falcon is rather dirty and I am afraid to clean it because of the stickers. I don't want the stickers to get wet and ruined. Also, the stickers are so old that the glue has degraded and they are falling off. It might actually be a good thing because then I could just save the stickers and once they have all fallen off, I could was the Falcon. The stickers would be easy to replace all I would have to use is a glue stick. 

All of the parts are still there. The only thing is the motor is frozen so it no longer makes any noise. Also, the ramp is broken so I have to display it with the ramp up. I have been tempted to replace the ramp but finding one that is not broken is rare. Actually, finding one that is not broken is expensive. Yikes!

Vintage Large Size C-3PO Figure

Now this figure I totally remember when and where I got it, because it was a special day. Way back in 1987 I went to the Starlog Salutes Star Wars 10th Anniversary. It was a Star Wars convention and it was pretty basic. This was in no way like the Star Wars Celebrations of today. This was your basic convention with very little fan fare because in 1987 only the die hard fans of Star Wars would even care to go. I had to go! It was the 10th anniversary man!!! I got to look at the models and props from the movies, and meet some of the actors. They didn't have any of the BIG actors but I remember that Peter Mayhew was doing a signing. I did not go on that day. I went on the day that George Lucas was going to be there. They did a showing of Star Wars on a big screen and then Lucas came out for a Q&A. It was a lot of fun. As I walked through the merchant booths I happened upon a Blue Snaggletooth and was horrified that it would cost me $20 to get it! Ha! That was crazy! LOL! As I perused the other booths I saw this C-3PO for $20 and decide it was a better deal because it is bigger. Of course!

Vintage Large Size Obi-Wan Kenobi

This Ben figure is another one I got in the lot of large size figures. When I saw the picture on ebay I was pretty excited because it was Han, Leia, Luke, Darth Vader, Chewbacca, Stormtrooper, C-3PO, and R2-D2!!! Wow! I got them for a great deal. They were not all complete, like Luke didn't have his lightsaber, Darth didn't have his lightsaber, etc. In the picture it showed the yellow lightsaber next to Luke and I thought it was  a discoloration, so I just shrugged it off. Once I got the figures and then saw that the Ben figure is supposed to include the yellow lightsaber I was so happy! The Ben figure is totally complete!!! Yeah!!!! AND he looks great! This is a fantastic addition to my collection. 

Vintage Large Size Boba Fett

Kenner's large size rendition of Boba Fett is really cool! Great looking character, great likeness, and great articulation. It has nine points of articulation, including ball joints at the shoulders and elbows, so that the arms had a full range of pose-ability. This meant that the figure could be made to hold its rifle in a natural way. It also has a detachable backpack with a removable rocket, a movable range finder, and a "site" built into its head, which allowed kids to "see" what Boba was "seeing".  The toy comes with two "wookie scalps" which I don't have. It is also supposed to include a cape which I also don't have. Sadness! Also a pretty neat looking belt.   Also, there are three elements on the chest: a round sticker emblem, a white rectangular thing in the center of the chest, and a lenticular "badge," off to the right which are still on my figure. Yay! This is a figure I really, really wanted when I was a kid back in 1979 but never got. So totally bummed!!! Eventually, I got this with a lot of other large figures in the 2010's, like the Darth Vader figure. Some day I will get the missing parts. Oh yes! I will! 

Vintage Darth Vader Large Size Action Figure

Here is another item I acquired later in my collecting. I probably got this in 2015. I can't be totally sure because as usual I didn't bother to record when I got stuff. Released in 1978, the large size Darth Vader is really cool. The only problem I have with the large size figures is that they kind make things a bit difficult to use with accessories and ships. These are huge and to make vehicles for these figures would mean they would also have to be HUGE!!! While I am glad to add the large size figures in my collection, I am please they didn't continue because I prefer the smaller figures.

Star Wars Action Figure Survival Kit

This is not the survival kit that was offered free with 5 proofs of purchase. That set included the Jedi training backpack and the asteroid gas masks. This set has the backpacks for the Hoth figures and the grappling hook, belts, and weapons. They all seem made for the Hoth action figures. I have completely forgotten where this set comes from. Oops!!! I should have logged my collection so I would have detailed information about when, where, and how I got them.

I did get the survival set from the free mail away, but that had been opened and played with. All the parts are scattered in different parts of my collection.

The gas masks fit really well on the action figures. I remember using them when I was playing with the figures as if they were in the asteroid as seen in The Empire Strikes Back. Good times!!! Unfortunately, due the exposure and time the gas masks have begun to yellow.

These backpacks are another cool accessory for the Hoth figures. It's really cool how back in the day Kenner would just offer their products for free. I mean, they didn't even charge for shipping! I miss those days. Sigh!

Vintage B-Wing Fighter Pilot

Here's a set of cool action figures. The B-Wing pilot flew the totally awesome B-Wing Fighter! The figure on the right has been in my collection since the 80's and the figure on the left has been in my collection since the 2010's. I can't remember exactly when because I was going crazy at the time and bought lots of figures. Sometimes I'd buy lots of the 24 or lots of 12 so to remember individual figures and when I got them has lost me. Oh well! As can be seen, the figure on the right looks much better because I took really good care of my figures. This figure came out in 1984 during Return Of The Jedi and I was too old to be playing with my toys. I still took them out of the card only because I would display my figures on my dresser. I have a picture of me with my collection in the background. Maybe I'll share that sometime. Maybe:p