G.I. Joe Club Old Snake & Stealth BATS in stock!

Old Snake & Stealth BATS

The G.I. Joe/Transformers “Old Snake & Stealth BATs” set is now IN STOCK at the G.I.Joe Collector’s Club store!

The past few years have seen more G.I. Joe/Transformers crossovers than I would have thoguht possible including three SDCC exclusives from Hasbro.  This year Fun Publications, the company behind both the G.I. Joe Collector’s Club and the Transformers Collectors Club, announced two different crossover sets– one featuring Marissa Faireborne, the daughter of Flint and Lady Jaye, and a second featuring a beloved character from the Transformers episode “Only Human.”  In this episode, the villain Drath approached an indvidual named “Old Snake” for his synthoid technology, something that Cobra had used numerous times in the G.I. Joe cartoon.  Old Snake, as most fans will immediately recognize, was intended to be the future version of Cobra Commander! Continue reading

Arctic Dr. Mindbender Review

arctic dr. mindbender

I never thought I’d own an Arctic Dr. Mindbender figure.  More importantly, I never thought I’d want to own an Arctic Dr. Mindbender figure.

When this figure was announced at the 2014 G.I. Joe Collector’s Club, my reaction was less than enthusiastic.  After all, who would want a figure based on a character’s appearance in just a few short scenes in the animated G.I. Joe: the Movie?  Plus, hadn’t Mindbender already been released back in 2009?  Was there really a need to update him?  Apparently, there was and the result is surprisingly… well, you’ll have to read the review to find out this Joe fan’s opinion!

Check out the Arctic Dr. Mindbender review in the G.I. Joe Collector’s Club Review Index!

Sunbow G.I. Joe is now live on Vimeo!

Vimeo logo

95 episodes of G.I. Joe are now LIVE on Vimeo!

Today’s the day, Joe Fans!  The entire Sunbow animated G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero series is available on the internet video-sharing service.  As we reported previously, Vimeo will apply following rates to content:

  • 24 hour episode rental – 99 cents
  • Single episode purchase – $1.99
  • Complete series purchase – $40.00

To paraphrase Roadblock: “If you’re hankering for some Sunbow G.I.Joe, head on over to Vimeo!”  And now you know…

RIP John Stephenson – voice of Hawk, Dr. Quest, and more

George Stephenson

Rest in peace, John Stephenson.

General Hawk, General Franks, Dr. Benton Quest, Doggy Daddy, Mr. Slate– these are all characters that were brought to life by the incredibly talented John Stephenson.  The voice actor passed away on Friday May 15, 2015 at the age of 91.

His career spanned an impressive 57 years in the entertainment industry with his first credited role listed in 1953 and his last in 2010.  Before his move to voice acting he was a prolific character actor in the early days of television with appearances on notable series such as The Lone Ranger, F Troop, The Beverly Hillbillies, Get Smart, Perry Mason, and even Hogan’s Heroes. He was also the voice that announced the verdicts at the end of episodes of the popular series Dragnet.

Later, he moved to voice acting and was possibly the most-used talent at Hanna-Barbera Studios providing voices for Fred Flintstone’s boss Mr. Slate, Doggy Daddy, and was the original voice for Dr. Benton Quest on Jonny Quest before the role was assumed by the late Don Messick.  His IMDB page lists over 230 acting credits.

Eventually John Stephenson went to work on many of the Sunbow animated series that fans of JBL are familiar with– providing the voices for such characters as General Hawk (substitute in “The Spy Who Rooked Me”), General Franks, General Flagg, Dr. Lucifer, Granak, Kup, Thundercracker, and Huffer for G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, Inhumanoids, and The Transformers.

In his final years he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and had been living in a retirement home.

Rest in peace, John.  Thank you for all the hours of entertainment you’ve given us. Your talents will be missed.

DiC G.i. Joe Series on Clearance

G.I. Joe: Series 2, Vol 2

The DiC G.I. Joe animated series is now 70% off!

In my haste this morning to post the links to the complete Sunbow series sale I missed another bit of G.I. Joe animation that is on an ever deeper clearance– the DiC G.I. Joe series is also getting the close-out treatment.  With low stock remaining, the two volumes of the second G.I. Joe animated series are 70% off. Continue reading

G.I. Joe Complete Series Now 50% Off!

g.i. joe complete sunbow series

Do you miss having the Sunbow G.I. Joe Complete Series on your favorite streaming service?  Well, now you can pick up the classic animated cartoon saga for 50% off!

That’s right, it’s every single episode of the classic G.I. Joe Complete Series that ran from September 1983 to November 1986 in first-run syndication.  All 95 episodes are presented in this single slim pack case collection; everything from Fatal Fluffies to Cold Slither to Excalibur to the window cleaning services of “The Viper.”  Even better, it’s in a nice case that stores better than the previous footlocker edition. Continue reading

2013 JoeCon: Sunday voice actor panel with Bill Ratner and Mary McDonald-Lewis

Wow– one of the single greatest events of JoeCon 2013?  That would be the Sunday voice actor panel with two of the greatest stars of the Sunbow G.I. Joe animated series– Bill Ratner and Mary McDonald-Lewis.  That’s right, the voices of the original Flint and Lady Jaye were on stage together and they didn’t disappoint!

To open the Sunday panel, Bill and Mary took the stage and performed an impromptu script reading with a little help of Fun Publication’s own Pete Sinclair.  The story was entitled “Flint & Lady Jaye Have a Baby” and detailed the events of a G.I. Joe mission in which Lady Jaye reveals that she’s expecting.  After foiling the efforts of Cobra and returning to headquarters, they decide upon a name for their daughter– Marissa.  It was a nice homage to both the Sunbow G.I. Joe and Transformers animated series and marked the first time that the two had performed their respective signature characters since production on the original series ended.  Honestly– it was a fan written script performed at a convention and it still caused me to grin from ear-to-ear when two of my favorite animated characters seemingly returned to life in an auditorium in Indianapolis.  In many ways, it was like being a kid again and rushing home from school to catch the animated adventures of Flint and Lady Jaye each weekday afternoon.

Following the performance, the two took audience questions and related a number of anecdotes about the production of the original Sunbow series.  (Who knew Michael Bell carried a “man purse” or that Chris Latta was always late coming back from lunch?) Mary Mac and Bill both discussed the differences between voice acting and stage acting as well as their fondness for the days of radio performances.  In the end, the hour went by far too quickly  and the audience gave these two a standing ovation.  2013 marks the first ever JoeCon appearance for either of them and it would be fantastic to see their return in the future.

To catch-up on what these two talented voice actors are working on currently, visiting the following links:

Check out a few images from the panel below:

G.I. Joe Con 2013: Bill Ratner joins the guest list!

Bill Ratner

If you’re a fan of the Sunbow G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero series you’ll want to be at this year’s G.I. Joe Collector’s Convention!  Just added to the guest list is Bill Ratner- better know as the voice of Flint, the team’s premiere warrant officer!  Ratner will be joining Mary McDonald-Lewis (Lady Jaye) for what is sure to make for some exciting panels and fan interaction!  I mean– who didn’t like Flint?  (Plus, some of us remember Mr. Ratner from the Variety Arts Radio Network productions of The Adventures of Doc Savage!)

Check out the official announcement from the Club below:

01/28/2013 – We are thrilled to announce an additional guest to the GIJoeCon line-up. On hand for the entire weekend will be Bill Ratner, voice of Flint from the G.I. Joe: A Real American Heroanimated series!

Check out our special guest showcase and read their project bio’s…Click here! All will be scheduled for discussion panels and autograph sessions over the convention weekend.

Mr. Ratner was a guest on the popular What’s On Joe Mind podcast– featured in Episode #70!

For more information, visit GIJoeCon.com!

Amazing “vintage” Adventure Team commercial– featuring 1:18 Joes!

G. I. Joe Adventure Team

It’s time to place blame where blame is due.  The G.I. Joe Collector’s Club is turning me into an Adventure Team fan.  Those nefarious scoundrels in their evil headquarters on Cattle Baron Drive in Texas have managed to take my initial impression of the fuzz-headed Joes as “those older dolls” and turn them into full blown Jonny Quest-styled heroes.  Part James Bond, part Indiana Jones– the Adventure Team has come to life in the form of the monthly Adventure Team Chronicles comics in the Collector’s Club newsletter.  In fact, and here’s the frightening portion of this confession, I read the AT comic BEFORE I read the A Real American Hero strip.

So, imagine my newly-found AT giddiness when the Club posted the following video up on their Facebook page.  Posted by YouTube user “vidmystery”, the commercial showcases the modern 1:18 AT figures in the style of a classic 1960’s commercial.  Seriously– that’s just too much awesome for one short video!  (This seems to be the Club’s official YouTube page– so my hat’s off to the video’s actual creator!)

Continue reading

Remembering Chris Latta

Today would have been Chris Latta’s 63rd birthday.

Chris Latta

Chris Latta

Born on August 30, 1949, Christopher Charles Collins was an actor, comedian, and voice artist whose talent breathed life into countless characters.  Among his most famous were the Sunbow animated versions of  Cobra Commander and the treacherous Decepticon Starscream.   Other characters included his first voice role Sgt. Knox (Starblazers), Wheeljack (Transformers), Gung-Ho (Duh!), D’Compose (Inhumanoids), and the debut appearance of Montgomery Burns (The Simpsons).    Other live-action appearances include Road House, Married… With Children, and Stop! or My Mom Will Shoot!

Chris Latta died on June 12, 1994.

Happy birthday, Chris.  You’ve touched countless lives through your performances.

William Shatner introduces Chris (Latta) Collins at the Improv

 

Starscream Cobra Commander