Dinosaurs!

[Hepcat]

And, you can forget those prices listed in the Fredericks book. They were way off when it was first published.

The prices listed in these books aren't of great importance to me. The reason I buy them is for the cataloguing function of what was produced. Does the Frederick's book do a good job in that regard?

An entire book could be written about the history of toy dinosaurs, and I mean a HUGE book filled with real information, as opposed to the Fredericks book which is mostly photos with little real meat.

Are there any other books on cereal premium collecting or toy dinosaur collecting that you can recommend?

I've heard from several sources over the years that Lido made the Nabisco dinosaurs and mammals.... You will find much misinformation trying to run down accurate information on this stuff. The Toy Soldier website is probably just repeating second or third hand information which may, or may not, be factual.

That though is precisely my fear, the endless repeating of someone's initial error soon makes it appear to be fact. I've seen it happen before in collectibles that aren't found often. In this case, someone could have once attributed Nabisco's first dinosaur premiums to Lido for whatever reason and this then became conventional wisdom. Someone is mistaken somewhere, and I'm in no position to judge where.

[Count_Zirock]

Walmart now carries the Schleich animal figures, and has some pretty cool dinosaurs. The T. Rex has rubbery, "real-feel" skin, a hinged jaw, and goes for about $28.

[horrorhunter]

Are there any other books on cereal premium collecting or toy dinosaur collecting that you can recommend?

Slim pickings in that regard. No one has done that great reference work for dinosaur toys like David Horne did for all things Warren with Gathering Horror. If you can find them get Plastic Figure & Playset Collector #64 and Freaky Magnet #11(lotsa luck). Also, several back issues of Fredericks' magazine Prehistoric Times have good dino toy info, especially on Marx prehistorics. There are probably good info sources on cereal collecting that I'm unaware of. I'm mostly into the dinosaur toys.

[horrorhunter]

That though is precisely my fear, the endless repeating of someone's initial error soon makes it appear to be fact. I've seen it happen before in collectibles that aren't found often. In this case, someone could have once attributed Nabisco's first dinosaur premiums to Lido for whatever reason and this then became conventional wisdom. Someone is mistaken somewhere, and I'm in no position to judge where.

Neither am I. My opinion on what is fact sometimes changes when new information presents itself. I think this is the case with every single thing we believe. Some so called "facts" just don't hold water, but it takes varying amounts of time to discover that. You just have to keep an open mind and weigh everything constantly to decide what to believe.

[Dr. Madd]

I've seen some of the art shown here in my Golden Book Encyclopedia set from the 1950's.

[Hepcat]

Which in particular?

[Dr. Madd]

York distributed a set of forty Dinosaur cards in peanut butter and packages of peanuts in 1962. Here's a picture of the album for the cards that I lifted off the net:



These are a lot tougher to find these days than the York 1961-62 or 1963-64 Hockey cards. Here's a scan of some of my Dinosaur cards:

These were in my encyclopedias.

[horrorhunter]

Where did you get your info on what a complete set should contain? Was there any variance in the contents that Marx included in the set over the several year production run?

I found a website with comprehensive information on the history of Marx prehistorics: www.dinosaur-toys-collectors-guide.com
     Go to Marx dinosaurs, then the monograph on the history of Marx dinosaurs. This is the best info source I've found for Marx dinos.

[Hepcat]

Good resource!

While the later issues such as the current ones by Papo set new standards for realism and quality, as kids' toys they're lacking since you'd never see them as sets on rack cards or in boxes of cereal.

[horrorhunter]

Good resource!

While the later issues such as the current ones by Papo set new standards for realism and quality, as kids' toys they're lacking since you'd never see them as sets on rack cards or in boxes of cereal.

Yes. I own several Carnegie Safari dinos which look great on the shelf, but are so expensive that a Marx-style playset of them would cost $400 or more. No dinosaur toy could ever be as cool as a Marx Prehistoric Times playset. The website I posted above doesn't give the detail given by the magazine articles I mentioned earlier, but it is the best source for this info that I've found on the web. Also, it gives the best total overview I've found anywhere, including the after-Marx sets.

[Unknown Primate]

I just found this, rummaging through my wife's drawers (insert joke here).  Didn't even know she had it!  I was like, yeah, I'm taking this!  The base is amethyst.  She said someone gave it to her a long time ago (days before man, when huge creatures called "dinosaurs" ruled the earth).  It is TINY!  Check it out!



To give you an idea of it's size.

[japfeif]

     Yes. These are MPC dinosaurs. They were never referred to as "Nabisco" dinosaurs the way the Lidos were because the vast majority of MPC dinos were sold on blister cards and in playsets from around '64 through the '70s. MPC and Lido recasts have shown up in other companies playsets through the '80s, '90s, and perhaps after 2000. Most of these molds got traded around and many MPC recasts showed up in "after-Marx" sets in the last few years mixed with Marx, Lido, Ajax, and even Tootsietoy recasts. An entire book could be written about the history of toy dinosaurs, and I mean a HUGE book filled with real information, as opposed to the Fredericks book which is mostly photos with little real meat. And, you can forget those prices listed in the Fredericks book. They were way off when it was first published. If you want to know what the stuff really sells for haunt eBay religiously for a few years then you'll get an idea.

Hi guys! First time here, I am a frequent visitor to the Classic Horror Board, and just found this board by accident! Looks like a cool place.

I wanted to weigh in on the dinosaur thing here...if anyone is interested, I am currently in the finishing stages of an extended book (6 years in the making) on just this very subject. The tentative (but probably definitive) title is "Dinosaur Playsets: an illustrated Guide to the Prehistoric Playsets of Marx and MPC". The book is fully illustrated with full color photos of each & every major dinosaur set by both Marx and MPC, as well as some of the more familiar knock-off companies, such as Superior, Toy Street, and Winneco. The book is being sent to the publisher in a few weeks, I am just putting a few last pics into place, and if all goes well should be available by summer's end. Included will be such info as the mold groupings, notes of color, what figures were found in what set, different versions of sets that were reissued, etc. Hopefully it will be a useful help to some of the afficianados of Marx and MPC dinosaurs out there!

I know this was basically a cheap plug, but since the conversation was totally hitting close to home, I wanted to introduce myself and to let those interested know that a book should be available very soon (fingers crossed) that should make the convoluted story of Marx & MPC dinos at least a little bit clearer.

Thanks all, Jeff

[japfeif]

I'm confused. You're saying that the dinosaurs included in the Nabisco cereals were made by MPC. The links indicate that the Nabisco dinosaurs were made by Lido.

If this helps, the early cereal premiums (in the 50s) were indeed different than the MPC figures. There is currently (as you can see) some disagreement as to the actual maker of these figures, whether Lido produced them or if they were actually produced by Nabisco itself.
By the 60s, the Nabisco cereals (Wheat Honeys & RIce Honeys) were using MPC dinosaurs instead. These cereal MPCs were made in different colors than the "typical" MPC figures. The Nabisco dinos were generally molded in very bright, garish colors of purple, yellow, orange, and greens, in shades that were not seen in the "regular" MPC dinosaur figures. Nabisco only used 12 of the 24 MPC figures for their cereals.

[Unknown Primate]

Sounds like a great project!

[Hepcat]

... I am currently in the finishing stages of an extended book (6 years in the making) on just this very subject. The tentative (but probably definitive) title is "Dinosaur Playsets: an illustrated Guide to the Prehistoric Playsets of Marx and MPC". The book is fully illustrated with full color photos of each & every major dinosaur set by both Marx and MPC, as well as some of the more familiar knock-off companies, such as Superior, Toy Street, and Winneco....

Oh man, that sounds great!

If this helps, the early cereal premiums (in the 50s) were indeed different than the MPC figures. There is currently (as you can see) some disagreement as to the actual maker of these figures, whether Lido produced them or if they were actually produced by Nabisco itself.
By the 60s, the Nabisco cereals (Wheat Honeys & RIce Honeys) were using MPC dinosaurs instead. These cereal MPCs were made in different colors than the "typical" MPC figures. The Nabisco dinos were generally molded in very bright, garish colors of purple, yellow, orange, and greens, in shades that were not seen in the "regular" MPC dinosaur figures. Nabisco only used 12 of the 24 MPC figures for their cereals.

Yes, that does help! Makes me look forward to your book all the more.