"Porky's Audition!" (Warner Brothers, 1943): Wartime cartoon short, guest starring Uncle Sam. When Buddy is knocked out of action due to a case of the chicken pox, Porky Pig auditions to fill-in as Uncle Sam's side-kick. Hilarity (plus an important lesson in homefront recycling and buying bonds) ensues. [Ted Brengle] (Image courtesy Steve Mollett)

    The Justice Society Of America Toy Line (Mattel, 1946-1952; reintroduced as The Justice League Of America Collection in 1955): The popular JSA toy line began as an outgrowth of Mattel's hugely successful G.I. JOE franchise in 1946, when the toy company released a commemorative 12" action figure of Captain America under the G.I. JOE rubric. Brisk sales led to the official launch of the JSA line the following fall with Green Lantern, The Joker, The Flash and Red Knight being the first figures released. Toy collectors have long maintained that these JSA figures were some of the finest action figures ever made, 12" or otherwise. The Red Knight, for example, was the first action figure to be battery powered--allowing his famous flaming broadsword to really glow when placed in the Scarlet Sentinel's gauntlet--while the quality of the accessories that came with The Joker figure had to be seen to be believed, including a light-up Joker Signal and a working miniature whoopee cushion and joy buzzer.

    Shortly after their introduction, LexCorp. attorneys, acting on behalf of several of the heroes, quietly suggested to Mattel that a portion of the profits be donated to charity. Mattel agreed and the line continued successfully for several years, eventually including figures of Blue Beetle, Stonewall and The Wraith. Although discussed, Harley Quinn and Catwoman figures were never introduced (much to future collectors' dismay) due to the preconception that female action figures would have limited appeal to boys. There were brief talks at Mattel of introducing both Harley Quinn and Catwoman as apart of the Barbie line, but this was quickly decided against as both women were judged to be too "unladylike" to fit in with the rest of the line.

    Changes in the toy market, the disappearance of the Flash and the death of the Red Knight, not to mention the dissolution of the JSA itself, brought the line to an end in 1952.

    In 1955, however, the line was reintroduced as The Justice League Of America Collection. Many of the old figures were repackaged, but without many of the flourishes that had made the JSA editions so much fun. Collectors further maintain that the quality of the figures themselves was on a decline, pointing to the paint job on the Joker as a prime example. Even more distressing was that the promised redesigns of original figures "to bring them up to date" were either insufficient or missing all together. The new Red Knight figure, for example, was exactly the same as the old one, except that it now lacked the light-up broadsword. If the new Red Knight figure was disappointing, the new Blue Beetle was unforgivable. Completely ignoring the large changes in the hero's appearance, Mattel merely put the old figure in a new box with new art featuring a pattern for "New Blue Beetle Battle Armor!" on the back that kids were supposed to cut out and tape to the figure. If attempted, the results were predictably laughable.

    The new figures were also a major let-down. Titan's figure appeared to be a poorly conceived repaint of the Stonewall and the less said about Zero Man the better. The only bright spot was the Daredevil figure. Well sculpted and equipped with a extendable truncheon accessory, it was the only new figure to suggest the craft of the original JSA line, although many collectors also point to the JLA Sky Cycle Vehicle as a nice product.

    An Amazing Ghost Fighter^TM figure was designed but never manufactured due to copyright difficulties.

    The Uncle Sam figure (above) from the later JLA series is sadly representative of the line's quality.
    (Image by Steve Mollett and Ted Brengle)

The Uncle Sam Pez Dispenser: First introduced in 1956 to commemorate the first anniversary of The Second American Independence Day. A perennial best seller ever since. [Ted Brengle] (Image courtesy Steve Mollett)
 

Uncle Sam serial (General Foods, 1959):  This attempt to ride the coat-tails of an American hero proved to be a costly public relations disaster for General Foods. Many people simply didn't like the idea of linking Uncle Sam with the term "A Natural Laxative." Complaints led to the abolishment of the product within three months. [Ted Brengle] (Image courtesy Steve Mollett)