Marx Dr. Frankenstein Robot Sales Sample

[fmofmpls]

I know we've discussed this before, but I came across another picture of the Marx Dr. Frankenstein robot sales sample I hadn't seen before (pic #1). This one is a larger pic. If only they had released this as a companion piece to the monster robot. How cool would that have been?

[Monster Bob]

It would have been cool- if it's true. I am still not convinced it is real, and I held it in my hands like 15 years ago or better.

On the flip side, I am convinced that in the early 1980s I DID hold in my hands a Marx Frankenstein Robot that had an all plastic body (like the windup, but bulkier looking). I hadn't seen many Marx Franks at that point in time (in hand), but I was sure the toy only came in tin. I figured it must have been a Marx prototype of some sort, as there was Marx stuff supposedly leaking out of factories regularly back then. The tin Frankenstein itself was an incredibly rare toy you rarely saw in the 1980s, pre-eBay days, and it was a toy everyone wanted (robot collectors, monster collectors, antique tin collectors, etc.). If one popped up on the market, it was quickly bought up, so reference on this toy was thin. Still wished I would have bought  the plastic one- $600, non-working.

[bigbud]

It would have been cool- if it's true. I am still not convinced it is real, and I held it in my hands like 15 years ago or better.

On the flip side, I am convinced that in the early 1980s I DID hold in my hands a Marx Frankenstein Robot that had an all plastic body (like the windup, but bulkier looking). I hadn't seen many Marx Franks at that point in time (in hand), but I was sure the toy only came in tin. I figured it must have been a Marx prototype of some sort, as there was Marx stuff supposedly leaking out of factories regularly back then. The tin Frankenstein itself was an incredibly rare toy you rarely saw in the 1980s, pre-eBay days, and it was a toy everyone wanted (robot collectors, monster collectors, antique tin collectors, etc.). If one popped up on the market, it was quickly bought up, so reference on this toy was thin. Still wished I would have bought  the plastic one- $600, non-working.

Monster Bob, the mention of "pre-Ebay days" could bring on quite a discussion. One of my favorite toy guides- Toy Bop which zeroed in on the cool large plastic toys of the late 50's and early 60's theorized on the rarity of it's contents due to the large size and plastic fragility. Then on comes the internet and E-bay and scarcity of several of our treasured rarities was out the window! I got  my G. I. Joe collection deflated by the sudden appearance of a Joe in every closet!       Bud

[GAKENSTEIN]

I gaze upon this tin toy medico and three words come to mind:  Ben Casey.

[raycastile]

Sideshow, Toy Island, Jakks, Hasbro, Imperial, Remco, AHI, Lincoln, Tomland, Mego, and Aurora never gave us a Dr. Frankenstein figure, but Marx was going to give us THIS crazy thing.

[Scatter]

I gaze upon this tin toy medico and three words come to mind:  Ben Casey.

I take it math isn't your strong suit Gak?? 

[GAKENSTEIN]

I take it math isn't your strong suit Gak?? 

My strongest suit is my corduroy 3 pc. with tin elbow patches and chain mail vest.

[Scatter]

My strongest suit is my corduroy 3 pc. with tin elbow patches and chain mail vest.

Here's mine...........

[Toy Ranch]

I'm curious if this was painted over a standard issue Marx Frankenstein, or if it was painted onto a blank?  I don't think it rules out the idea that it's a "sample" if it was painted over, but it gives more credibility to the notion that it actually did come from Marx if there isn't a Frankie paint underneath.

Also, I still think that it's something that was made up as a gift for someone's doctor or a friend or relative who was a doctor, rather than as an actual prototype for a toy design.  Marx made a lot of weird toys, but it's very hard for me to believe that a toy designer would actually ever think that this was something that would sell to kids, especially at the price point, enough to do a mockup of it.  It makes no sense whatsoever.

[Monsters For Sale]

Seems to me, if this were a manufacturer created/modified item, they would at least have removed the electrodes from the rubber neck.  Two quick slices with a sharp blade and they would be gone.

[Monster Bob]

All i know, was when it was 'market fresh' (and I was one of the first to see it) it was just as you see it here, but dirtier. By the time it got to Hake's several years later, it had an "official" Marx prototype hang tag attached. That alone tells me something is fishy!

[Toy Ranch]

The (legit) prototype Monster Mansion playset used a painted-over Robin Hood castle, some parts from other sets (some modified) and MPC figures.  If Marx had moved forward with it, they would have sculpted their own figures, and probably created a different building base and other accessories.  It was just made as something to look at and consider. 

Someone adding the hang tag later doesn't mean it's not legit, but let's say someone who worked at Marx comes along and says, "Yeah I remember that.  Old Joe D. put that together one afternoon when we'd gone and had a couple shots at the bar instead of grabbing a sandwich.  He threw it out there and old man Marx came down and told him to lay off the sauce during work hours."

It's now guaranteed legit.  What's it worth, and who wants it?

[Monster Bob]

Yeah...that was my deal at the time- bottom line, all told, I just didn't want it. Admittedly though, I originally stared at it for about 3 minutes, slack-jawed, wondering 'what the heck is this?' (!)

[raycastile]

Unless they were just throwing anything against the wall to see what stuck, I can't imagine professional toy designers thinking this would sell.  If someone turned up a similar Dracula and Wolf Man, then I could see this doctor as part of a larger set.  It would make more sense if they were planning an entire series of monsters and did mockups of different characters, ranging from likely to unlikely.