TV and Movie Collectables

Disney DInosaur

Dinosaur toys product tie ins can be as valuable as the movies they come from. A new Jurassic Park movie is needed to give Hasbro sales a boost.

Movie and Television spin offs, the Og Son of fire Radio show is the earliest known prehistoric toy tie in with several metal cavemen and a dinosaur.  Several children's shows had action figures and dinosaurs marketed but the Dino Riders / Dinosaurs and Cadillac's animated series were the first high quality figures to be made.  Dinosaurs marketed in conjunction with JP have set the standard for future movie tie-ins.   In addition to selling their own lines, the movies influenced existing companies to produce new figures.  The larger number of Gallimimus and Velociraptor figures after JP 1 and the explosion of the carnotaurs and Iguanodons after Disney's Dinosaur movie are a good example.

Dino Riders / Dinosaurs and Cadillac's used Tyco’s articulated dinosaurs with a variety of action figures and accessories.  There was also a craft set to make Dino Rider accessories that came with a hard plastic Tyrannosaurus and Pteranodon.

Ice Age 1 2 3 animated movie. The first had one set of fast food premiums in addition to a set of small porcelain figures from France used for children at Epiphany.   Prehistoric Mammals just don't seem to have the same cachet as dinosaurs, unfortunately. The second movie has generated a big release of action figures. There was a McDonals happy Meals for 3 had dinosaurs.

Jurassic Park (JP) I, II, III, JP 3D movies, dinosaur toys, premiums and play sets were produced by HASBRO, Playskool, Ambelin as well as several other companies, and released additional figures for each new movie.  Figures have been produced in solid plastic, vinyl and metal.  The articulate and electronic figures are of high quality and very collectable.  Some limited production figures have become very sought after, such as the King of the Dinosaurs toy spin-off - Rumor is that Hasbro discontinued the line.  You will find JP figures scattered around the dioramas and I have not put together a Hasbro page since there are a plethora of sites out there already with that information.

Disney's Dinosaur Movie, dinosaur toys, premiums were produced by a variety of companies such as Mattel, McDonalds and Bullyland.  Several sets of articulated figures, including a giant Aladar and Carnotaurus, were produced.  There was a nice set of mini plastic figures sold in eggs.  This was actually a pretty decent picture with several panoramic scenes in the beginning and at the end.  It was aimed at an age group a little older than Land Before Time, and not to the range of age groups the JP movie did.  Still, I think the movie is underrated. 

Dinosaur Train, PBS program Learning Curve releasing made by Takara figures and other companies also marketing products. Big release some articulated figure mostly solid vinyl figure with big feet and bright colors. Big relase 50+ figures.

Dino Dan, Nickelodeon progam, figures by GeoWorld, distrubuted Wild Creations originally the directly by GeoWorld.

Go Diego Go from Fisher Price based on the TV show. Playset with figures released. Some etras in toobs released.

Land Before Time, animated Video series aimed at young children.  Little Foot and his friends have adventures aimed at the plush animal crowd with, surprisingly, not much merchandising.  There were some fast food premiums, puppets and at least one set of figures.  See Safari Wild Safari babies and Playskool figures for similar styles. 2007

Land of the Lost was a children's Saturday TV show.  Two soft Playskool style dinosaur figures were sold.  The mvoie slated for 2008 may generate some toys.

King Kong by Michael Jackson has produced a large theropod and medium and small sets of articulated figures. The is also a set of premiums from Japan. These are not exactly the dinosaurs we know after all 65 million years have gone by. Best guess is the 3 fingered theropod is a carchardontid and the sauropods are titanosaurs. There is also a large raptor. There was supposed to be a lambeosaurid and ceratopsid I guess they were cut?

Miracle Planet NHK from Japan an education program of DVD's had a set of figures made. See Yujin.

Primeval UK TV show also on BBC America has some hard to find action figures with some prehistorics.

Sega Toys Dinosaur Kings. Large hollow vinyl fugures sold in Japan. Based on TV program. Playmates makes smaller soild figures. There are also small collectables and a diorama set. Collectable uncommon in US. Tie into to electronic games and anime series.

Walking with Dinosaurs (WWD) this series of documentaries (WWD, Big Al, Chasing Dinosaurs, WDRA When Dinosaurs Roamed America, Walking with Prehistoric Beasts, Dinosaur Planet, Walking with Dinosaurs 3D. generated one formal set of dinosaur figures by the Toyway company in England.  These are now said to be out of production. 

There is a rare Toyway Ornithocheirus that was only released as a magazine give away. 

Two sets from TS Toys, a vinyl and a smaller rubber skinned and a nameless small plastic set  from China, look like they were inspired by the show.  There were WWD skeleton premiums in Europe.  There are a lot of WWD style figures coming from China like UHA figures. 

There was also a set of French premiums by the Quick restaurant chain. 

HLBS produced a metal Dwarf Allosaurus in the WWD style. 

QRF produced a series of figures to use with it game Survive a Saurus based broadly on the animals from the Triassic installment of WWD and some from WDRA.

Vivid Imaginations produced figures for WWD 3D.

Golden Links WWD 3D figure.