Johnny Apollo
Encyclopedia
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| Manufacturer | Marx Toys Louis Marx and Company Louis Marx and Company was an American toy manufacturer from 1919 to 1978. Its boxes were often imprinted with the slogan, "One of the many Marx toys, have you all of them?"-Logo and Offerings:... |
| Era | 1960s |
| Category | Action Figures |
| Web address | |
Johnny Apollo was a Marx Toy Company
Louis Marx and Company
Louis Marx and Company was an American toy manufacturer from 1919 to 1978. Its boxes were often imprinted with the slogan, "One of the many Marx toys, have you all of them?"-Logo and Offerings:...
toy line featuring two astronaut
Astronaut
An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft....
s, first released in 1968 in response to the then current interest in outer space
Outer space
Outer space is the void that exists between celestial bodies, including the Earth. It is not completely empty, but consists of a hard vacuum containing a low density of particles: predominantly a plasma of hydrogen and helium, as well as electromagnetic radiation, magnetic fields, and neutrinos....
and the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
/Soviet Space Race
Space Race
The Space Race was a mid-to-late 20th century competition between the Soviet Union and the United States for supremacy in space exploration. Between 1957 and 1975, Cold War rivalry between the two nations focused on attaining firsts in space exploration, which were seen as necessary for national...
. The astronauts were Johnny and Jane Apollo, stood approximately 8" (20.32 cm) in height and came with a variety of space gear, including helmet, backpack and hand tools.
The toys first appeared in the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1968 and continued through the early '70s. Johnny Apollo's body was molded in white plastic with hinged joints and "flesh" colored hands and head. His accessories were molded in gold plastic. Jane Apollo was molded in blue plastic with "flesh" colored hands and head. Her accessories were molded in blue plastic. Both could be found boxed with accessories or boxed with a Space Crawler or Moon rover vehicle (the former was battery
Battery (electricity)
An electrical battery is one or more electrochemical cells that convert stored chemical energy into electrical energy. Since the invention of the first battery in 1800 by Alessandro Volta and especially since the technically improved Daniell cell in 1836, batteries have become a common power...
operated: 2 D
D battery
A D battery is a size of dry cell. A D cell is cylindrical with electrical contacts at each end; the positive end having a nub or bump...
-Cells, which powered spoke-like wheel
Wheel
A wheel is a device that allows heavy objects to be moved easily through rotating on an axle through its center, facilitating movement or transportation while supporting a load, or performing labor in machines. Common examples found in transport applications. A wheel, together with an axle,...
s). The vehicles were each sold with a Johnny Apollo figure, separately or as part of a deluxe "Lunar Exploration Set", featuring both figures and both vehicles.
Johnny and Jane Apollo were marketed by all the major toy stores and also in department store catalogs like Sears
Sears, Roebuck and Company
Sears, officially named Sears, Roebuck and Co., is an American chain of department stores which was founded by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck in the late 19th century...
, JCPenney, Montgomery Wards, and Spiegel in their Christmas Catalogs. There is a box variation that was produced for Cape Canaveral
Cape Canaveral
Cape Canaveral, from the Spanish Cabo Cañaveral, is a headland in Brevard County, Florida, United States, near the center of the state's Atlantic coast. Known as Cape Kennedy from 1963 to 1973, it lies east of Merritt Island, separated from it by the Banana River.It is part of a region known as the...
marked "Astronaut" instead of with the Johnny Apollo label. These were probably purchased in the US Space Center gift stores.
Variations include Mark Apollo, marketed for the kids in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
(unlike Johnny, Mark was molded in orange and came with white accessories), several vintage silver-bodied "made in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
" knock-offs, and more recent blue-bodied knock-offs. Marx also marketed two bagatelles (hand-held pinball
Pinball
Pinball is a type of arcade game, usually coin-operated, where a player attempts to score points by manipulating one or more metal balls on a playfield inside a glass-covered case called a pinball machine. The primary objective of the game is to score as many points as possible...
games) and a plastic machine pistol with the Johnny Apollo name. Marx also offered a miniature playset similar to their Cape Canaveral Playset for kids (most often found in a tin "suitcase" that doubled as a playset).