Yesterday I wrote about and shared our Ghostbusters Japanese Movie Program. If you were wondering I don’t have a Ghostbusters II Japanese program to archive and share. Today I wanted to discuss (well talk about) that internationally Ghostbusters merchandise and collecting was ahead of its time (or got the ball rolling…wait, was their a Ghostbusters ball?) compared to GHOSTBUSTERS™ merchandise in the North American markets.
With GHOSTBUSTERS™ rushed production schedule and narrow minded executive thinking, movie suits couldn’t see much of a market for Ghostbusters. Thankfully (though not for our wallets) that would change in the next three decades.
The best we had early on was the official fan club, (GBI) followed by cereal. Of course their was the usual merchandise. i.e.: t-shirts, vinyl records and tapes, and your new dinnerware. (GBI)
North American ghostheads couldn’t have imagined they would have wanted nor possibly needed more functional Ghostbusters merchandise.
Beyond the soundtrack and Ray Parker Jr. were an assortment of logo t-shirts, a sweatshirt, and two choices of baseball caps/hats. Sweet, wait their’s more!
Fanny Pack
I don’t know what the Japanese called them, in America we call a zippered space to carry your stuff buckled around your waist a “fanny pack.” Which also seems funny as no American wanted to call it by its more American English name. Either word isn’t correct anyway as its worn more around the waist. I can admit at a somewhat early age I’d wear one or use a similar product with my sweet bike. If I had had a stylish choice of 2 Ghostbusters fanny packs, I might have carried it like a championship belt.
Hard Hat
Japanese Ghostbusters merchandise doesn’t get any odder than this. Or does it? As an American its unclear why Japanese ghostheads might even need a Ghostbusters hard hat. However, if people worked on a job site where a hard hat was required, they could not only do their job, do it in style, and if someone else was to look closer (safety first) they too could see Ghostbusters Inc. was looking to expand our company globally.
Towels (or Bags)
I’m not exactly sure, (if you do, please let me know) early fans could have bought what appears to be hand or dish towels. The only reason I called them bags or pouches too is because their appears to be some kind of string. For all I know this could have been culture wall art.
Watches
When Japanese ghostheads wanted to be stylish and on time, their seemed to be a men black watch and a women white watch.
Keychain, Assorted Buttons And Pins
Ghostbusters keychain, just about a necessity for every ghosthead. With the assorted buttons and pins, they could also be magnets or stickers. Whatever they really were, this might have been the earliest Stay-Puft merchandise. Possibly pre-dating Tsukuda’s Stay-Puft (GBI) model.
GHOSTBUSTERS Novel
You would think certain merchandise would take priority in the hierarchy of Japanese Ghostbusters collecting. That doesn’t seem to be the case with I think the GHOSTBUSTERS™ novel being advertised on the back inside cover. At least the Japanese Ghostbusters movie program allowed for ample space.
Posters/Wall Art
I’m not exactly sure if the three posters are in fact posters. Even if they were various kinds of art, they still beautifully captured Ghostbusters imagery.
Ruler
When you need to measure something (in whatever bizzaro metric system Japan uses) why not use a ruler with international Ghostbusters logos on it, also scenes from a one day to be iconic movie?
Case
At least I think its a case. I don’t want to commit 100% that its a pencil case. In the 80s we had similar cases with and without character art work. Their was also boxes for kid school storage. That might have held a small toy or maybe a marble. If Japanese ghostheads had this case they were the envy of their friends who were waiting to see Ghostbusters in pan and scan.
GHOSTBUSTERS KITE
That’s right, 31 years later the Japanese Ghostbusters Kite still deserves so much respect. I can’t say without statistical research how popular kites were in either America or Japan during the 80s. My family would occasionally go fly a kite, I wasn’t that good at it. Maybe because I was still growing. I’d still have fun.
Look at the magnificent Ghostbusters kite! I was never that envious of international ghostheads. I’m experiencing feelings I could have had in 1984 right now. With a sorta hammer head shark design and two international “no ghost” logos, I’m surprised Japan was able to function as a civilization.
Fun fact: In The Real Ghostbusters episode Flip Side their was a more American version of a Ghostbusters kite.
Ecto-Containment 