GI Joe: Overview
The GI Joe series hit the US market in 1964 when it was released by Hasbro. The toy manufacturer was inspired so much by the success of the Barbie doll that they wanted to see if similar phenomena could be recreated for young boys; the idea was to produce a doll that would capture the their imagination. It was decided that military themes would be the main focus and the name GI Joe was chosen based on the name of an old army movie from 1940s. GI Joe action figures are also the inspiration for the UK line of Action Man figures.
The original GI Joe action dolls were all based on World War Two themes. There was a different doll to represent the different branches of the military; action marine, action navy, action pilot, and action solider. Each of the figures was 11 ½ inches tall. As well as releasing the main figures Hasbro also produced many accessory packs that contained additional clothes and weapons. Within the first few years of production the GI Joe range was constantly expanding to include soldiers from around the world and in 1965 the first black GI Joe was introduced.
During the early 70s the theme of GI Joe shifted from military action to adventure. A big reason for this was that people were suffering from war fatigue due to the constant stream of bad news coming from Vietnam. GI Joe became influenced by the surge of interest in martial arts and a doll was produced with a kung-fu grip. New adaptations were introduced in 1976 with the arrival of eagle eye; this was also the year when GI Joe’s enemies started to be manufactured.
The original series of GI Joe action figures ended in 1976 but this was not the end of GI Joe. In 1982 he made a comeback in the form of GI Joe; a Real American Hero. These were smaller than the original action figures and were produced for the next twelve years. The last outing for GI Joe was in 2005 with the Sigma 6 series. That ended in 2007, but Hasbro have made mumblings of there being another new line of GI Joe figures in the future.
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 G.I. Joe Figures Collection with Fighter Jet  US $60.00
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 GI Joe from 1964 US $50.00
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 G.I.Joe,,,Vintage Action Figure---Body Part---Left Elbow---- US $2.75
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GI Joe: Overview
GI Joe: Store
GI Joe: Storyline
GI Joe: The Bad Guys
GI Joe: The Good Guys