The swinging sixties saw the launch of Action Man onto the unsuspecting British public, and soon after the world! Following on from the success of the 12 inch G.I. Joe figures in the U.S. in 1964, Palitoy and Hasbro Inc. released Action Man in 1966 to the U.K. and the “moveable fighting man” remained popular for 18 years when it finally ceased production in 1984. Many shops continued to sell their stock for another 2 years or more however!
So that was the end for Action Man, or so we thought, until 1994 and Action Man was reinvented and re-released in the U.K. and Europe. Initially just repackaged G.I. Joe dolls the popularity of these 4 figures persuaded Hasbro (who now owned Palitoy) to re-launch Action Man and a whole new generation became instant fans. As in the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s, Action Man was the 90’s best selling boys toy year after year and even spawned a line of James Bond Action Man figures! With the decline in popularity of army toys however Action Man was re-branded as an extreme sports crime-fighting hero and in recent years the toys contained less and less guns and more things like disc throwers.
Action Man as a toy line disappeared from the shelves once again in 2006 to be replaced by a spin off product A.T.O.M. (Alpha Teens On Machines), a smaller scale toy range with a more futuristic theme.
In 2009 Action Man was back in action! The new range was hotly tipped to become the hottest toy at Christmas.
In 2016 Action Man returned again with the 50th Anniversary Collection which was followed in 2018 with a more child-friendly range of basic and deluxe Action Man figures.
Here you will find all sorts of interesting info, images and more from lifelong fans! Our aim is to gather news, vintage videos, rare images and more from around the world.
If you have any images or sounds of Action Man you think maybe of interest to fellow Action Man collectors please contact us and we’ll try and add it to the site!