Tag: Kenner

Kenner Instructions: Proton Pack

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Normally I’m one of those toy collectors who would rather have sealed/mint in box or mint on card toys which I don’t open and enjoy in adulthood by display. There are exceptions depending on circumstances or if it was one of my favorite toys. Kenner’s Proton Pack with P.K.E Meter is one of those toys. When I won my Kenner proton pack from a popular internet auction site it had been open in years past. It included the instructions and that gave me the idea that if I’m brave enough to open my sealed The Real Ghostbusters toys I’ll scan them to share with Kenner and the Ghostbusters community. To the best of my knowledge I haven’t or rarely seen these instructions on-line at all or for free.

My original pack instructions were pretty aged. I’ve cleaned them up and tried to make them look as new as possible. Their are still imperfections. To correct the aged imperfections it may take a graphics tablet which I don’t have.

Kenner’s Proton Pack Instructions are 6 png files. A separate file includes the proton pack decals. Their isn’t a RGB ID card because although it was suppose to be included, through an oversight or because it had gone missing Kenner’s original wasn’t in the open box. A reason why I prefer to buy mint in box toys.

Custom Figures: Ghostbustin Mutagen Ooze

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therealraph

I knew once Playmates released its Mutagen Ooze figure line it’d only be a matter of time before creative ghostheads would transforms Ghostbusters inspired Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles into ectoplasm fighting machines! A Raph Mutagen Ooze figure was customized by ghosthead Slaysghosts.

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Ghosthead Derrico13 took a Mutagen Ooze Leo (pictured at top obviously) and modeled it more on Ghostbusters then The Real Ghostbusters, replacing Leonardo’s swords for a certified (it was right?) proton pack. Derrico even customized a Mouser to look like a ghost. Good or bad it reminds me of Slimer.

More pictures can be seen in Derrico13’s auction.

Kenner: Nutrona Blaster & WaterZapper

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waterzapperboxfront

Imagine if Egon and Ray had figured out a way to get rid of ghosts with a proton stream, no actual pack needed, and a Ghost Trap wasn’t required. That was the idea behind the Nutrona Blaster.™

The WaterZapper™ either came about because kids needed a better water gun or Kenner was an innovator years before the Super Soaker came to market.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turt…Busters?

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mutagenralph

It isn’t a secret that the ooze (you had to go their Rich) changed 4 pet turtles and their rat master into “lean, green fighting machines.” Their exact origins vary depending if you’re going by the original comic, cartoon, or 1990 movie that didn’t have a popular ninja rap. Not surprising as a child of the ‘80s I think of the cartoon first. Then their first words, “pizza.” Ahh.

Ghostbusters, The Real Ghostbusters, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will be forever linked by the period they were around, how both shaped impressionable minds, which franchise’s toy lines would ultimately spend more of our parents hard earned money, the debate that TMNT was a factor in RGBs ending, and now a current toy line that sorta emulates our beloved ghostbusting heros.

Playmates who have the rights to TMNT toys have been making them since I was about 9 years old. Is this important to this entry? Sometimes their turtle variants were strange and out there. Same could be said of Kenner’s RGB figure lines. What we didn’t know then was that more figures made respective toy companies a lot of money. Hit cartoon series and marketing with the best toy commercials made us want a lot of the “out there” figures.

I doubt Playmates would have dared to make “heroes on a half shell” figures that looked like they were ready to team up with The Real Ghostbusters. TMNT has been enjoying a renascence (smooth) in the twenty teens. With a serious lack of Ghostbusters figures at this time Playmates released their Mutagen Ooze figure line. Why didn’t they just call it Mutagen Ooze blower?

Two out of the four figures wear flight suit type outfits and all 4 mutant turtles have “back packs” that can be filled with ooze. Need more proof someone at Playmates was thinking of Ghostbusters? A prototype Leonardo even included a name tag.

Kenner: First Series Card Backs

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US Original Card
US Original Card

Before I expanded what was The Real Ghostbusters sub site into Ectocontainment and began collecting M.O.C Kenner The Real Ghostbusters figures in 2011 I’d search on-line for detailed The Real Ghostbusters packaging. Which included the figures card backs. With running a The Real Ghostbusters site that has Kenner figure write ups my intention was to include detail card backs, straight from the toys.

It took longer then I originally anticipated, using my own collection I’ve scanned the back of my first series hero and ghost figures. Unfortunately they’re not all first run or even all American. Frequent visitors to Ectocontainment know my Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man was originally sold in Germany.

Each scan is high res and comes in at about 6MB per picture. I may provide more scans from other Kenner The Real Ghostbusters card backs in a future update.

Can You Tell Me How To Get To Kenner St?

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kennerst

Dan Flarida at Kenner Collector has a great post looking at the origins of Kenner, the toy company. As part of their Kenner Collector’s Kenner Tour of Cincinnati feature.

Without toy history knowledge or some “internet encyclopedia site” most of us wouldn’t know that Kenner came about because the Steiner brothers, (not Rick and Scott) worked on Kenner St. prior to selling toys. There’s more to it that isn’t common knowledge.

If you’re into collecting, toy history, and/or a fan of Kenner I’d definitely give it a read.

Photo Credit: Dan Flarida/Kenner Collector

Sears Christmas The Real Ghostbusters Pages

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87searschristmasbookpg431

I haven’t made a separate post for Kenner Collector in the past. It’s a web site run by Dan Flarida and John Wooten that is all about the toy company Kenner. Who as we know made many iconic and memorable toy lines, which included The Real Ghostbusters. You thought I was going to mention a certain space movie?

While I was looking at the most recent post by Dan, a link in the post lead to another site (Plaid Stallions) who has a link to Wishbook Web. A site that’s all about Christmas catalogs going as far back as the 1930s! I pursued the limited catalogs from 1987 and up to see if The Real Ghostbusters were in them. As a child of the 80s I vividly remember looking at Christmas toy catalogs. I didn’t remember as a 34 year old early The Real Ghoatbusters advertising.

1988searscatalogsleepbags

Fortunately Wishbook Web has Sears Catalogs from 1987 and 1988. Where I found three scans advertising The Real Ghostbusters toys and a sleeping bag. Also feel nostalgic for the Transformers toys that mattered.

Kenner: Ecto-Charger Pack

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ectocharge

When it came to toys based on Ghostbusters II Kenner didn’t fully capitalize on the potential opportunities. Even with a The Real Ghostbusters episode, Partners In Slime which has the most Ghostbusters II influence.

The toy someone was bound to make because of Ghostbusters II was the Slime Blower. Fortunately as Kenner made The Real Ghostbusters toys and had previously made a Proton Pack they created the Ecto-Charger Pack.™

Kenner: Ghost Grab-A-Meter

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ghostgrabameterboxfront

When it came to The Real Ghostbusters toy weapons and tying them into Ghostbusters II their was only one you could say is directly from the movie. That’s the Ecto-Charger. The Ghost Grab-A-Meter™ on the other hand while not exactly based on equipment from Ghostbusters II reminds me of a Slime Scoop merged with a Giga Meter.