I Hate Palmers!

[Anton Phibes]

Those always looked neat, but I could never bring myself to start actually looking to get a set.  Now the Marx fuigures on the other hand, those I bought up rabidly!

[Bogey]

This seller has the Kong with the Fay Ray....$600 and it's coming your way.  Yikes!



http://cgi.ebay.com/PALMER-1960s-KING-KONG-FAY-RAY-MONSTER-FIGURE-RARE_W0QQitemZ250024964534QQcmdZViewItem?_trksid=p3286.m20.l1116#ebayphotohosting

[Anton Phibes]

It aint coming my way.  $600 clams...yikes!!!!!!

[raycastile]

I think that seller has had that listed a long time.  Maybe he's just trying to show off the fact that he has it.

[Dr.Terror]

I like the Palmers, but could never bring myself to spend the money on them.  There seems to be plenty of them out there, they are by no means rare, so I really don't understand the prices. 

There is just no bang for your buck with them.

and that $600 for kong is just stupid.  Like you said ray,  he's showing off.   Or he could just be one of those sellers who never discounts stuff no matter how long they've had it listed at that price.

[Bogey]

Why do most of the Palmers I see look brand spanking new?  Was there a warehouse find at some point?

[Toy Ranch]

I like the Palmers, but could never bring myself to spend the money on them.  There seems to be plenty of them out there, they are by no means rare, so I really don't understand the prices. 

There is just no bang for your buck with them.

and that $600 for kong is just stupid.  Like you said ray,  he's showing off.   Or he could just be one of those sellers who never discounts stuff no matter how long they've had it listed at that price.

I've seen them sell for $400 - $500 with Fay Wray before, several times.  That is a really minty one.  $600 is not "just stupid".  Red is a good color, too.  It's a bit high, and if it were a blue one it would likely be gone in a flash at that price.  I wouldn't be at all surprised to see it sell at some point.

I have a lot of things listed at high prices in my eBay store.  Other things are bargains.  The high priced items are things I am not in a hurry to sell, but would sell at those prices.  It costs me 6¢ a month to keep them there.  Eventually they do sell.  Or someone makes an offer, and frequently I accept it.  It's not "showing off". 

If you want a King Kong with Fay Wray Palmer figure, you can either pay that price or wait and try to get one for less.  You may be waiting a long time.  It's not worth that to me, or it appears others here, but that doesn't mean it's not worth that to someone. 

[Toy Ranch]

Why do most of the Palmers I see look brand spanking new?  Was there a warehouse find at some point?

I don't think so.  They are durable.  They don't have parts that break easily.  I've seen many that had condition issues, but the most common condition issue aside from mold defects or paint on them is chew marks.  Aside from gnawing down on them or painting them, there's not a lot you can do to mess them up with normal play.

[Mike Scott]

If you want a King Kong with Fay Wray Palmer figure, you can either pay that price or wait and try to get one for less.

Hmmm? Little plastic toy that don't look much like Kong, or Sideshow replica of the Kong armature? It's so hard to choose! 

[poseablemonster]

I think that the Fay Wray came with the Kong that was packaged in the target set; that is the only packaged example of Palmers that I've seen with the Fay Wray included.  I've also only ever seen it in red.  It is a scarce item to be sure.

And, crazy as it may sound...I'd much rather have the plastic palmer than the sideshow replica.

[Mike Scott]

And, crazy as it may sound...I'd much rather have the plastic palmer than the sideshow replica.

Would you say that if they were made 40 years ago and hardly ever turned up for sale?

[poseablemonster]

Yes, I probably would.  I had a conversation with Ray about the armature replica once, and my take on that is that the real armature is an amazing piece of movie history...but a replica of it just doesn't interest me at all.  Maybe if it were a replica of the actual maquette, I would be more attracted to it, I dunno.  Either way, it's a prop replica of sorts, and I am not really into those.

[Mike Scott]

Either way, it's a prop replica of sorts, and I am not really into those.

I guess every monster toy is a replica. Some more acurate than others. 99% of things being sold as "King Kong" just look like some monkey, to me.

[Toy Ranch]

Well, I have the replica Kong but I don't have a Palmer with Fay Wray.  The replica is disappointing in some ways.  The metal they used on it is soft, and it's not as usable as it might appear.  It's hard to find a position you can put it in where it will hold it's pose, in fact.  I try not to touch it because it may fall out of pose and then I worry a great deal that something is going to break when I try and get it back.  :/

[raycastile]

Andy and I both have the Palmer Kong with Fay Wray, but neither of us have the Sideshow armature.  That shows our priorities.  If the armature had skin and fur, I'd be more excited about it.  If it had been made 40 years ago, I'd definitely be more excited.  But then, they didn't make stuff like that 40 years ago.  And I guess that's kind of the point. 

I can imagine a 60s "stop motion play set" with a smaller, more rudimentary Kong armature and some kind of do-it-yourself fur "skin" that you would have to apply and paint.  I can imagine a little Super 8 camera packaged with it, maybe a crude little jungle backdrop.  It would have been an expensive item in a Christmas catalog.  The box would show an excited boy grinning as he posed the Kong.  Maybe his sister would be pointing the camera at it. 

In the 00s, we have the Sideshow armature.  That is the difference between 60s/70s and 90s/00s.  It's not just the number of years that have elapsed.  It's the style, the attitude, the intention, the target market, the construction, the packaging, everything.