Born in ‘73, my older brother and I had tons of these and loved them. We are in Canada. Aside from my Barbie’s, they were the toys I played with the most. I used to take them in the bath and our inground pool.
I work in East Aurora, NY where all of these figures originated. The people who built these are proud of their work. I will see if there are any hidden stashes around for you. I will PM you with my results.
I recently found my old deep sea diver, just like your one at the front missing his helmet. I was very pleased to see him! As a kid the curiosity to see his face overwhelmed me, and I ripped off his lovely bronze helmet and could never get it back on! He actually became my go to 3.3/4 inch hero figure, often joining the Star Wars crew, I think mainly because he could stand up so much easier than any of the Star Wars figures!
Fun fact: The original Kenner SW protos/designs were kitbashed Adventure People figures. Also, the Jawa's robe was made on the fly, from a designer's (dirty) sock, hehe. We currently live a short ride away from Cincinnati, would loved to have lived this close back in the 'glory days' when interesting/rare bits turned up on the regular throughout OH and KY....
We used to use Chewbacca as Sasquatch to harass them when camping. We also used them as civilians when GI Joe defended Earth from Star Wars Invaders from space.
I had a lot of these as a kid. That Scuba Diver being one of my favorites. I still remember going to a Fisher Price store, they wouldn't let kids in without their parents with em. I want to get these guys again myself. I'd also like to get the two bigger construction worker figures.
The green ranger you presented was from a set with a 6 wheel ATV, a yellow plane that connected to a pontoon boat. Also included a pilot and the red bearded guy that came in other sets. It also had a dog. The two females came with a safari set with a tan guy with boonie hat and the blue suited boy and half dozen animals. Both are really cool sets. There also at least on variation on the rangers head sculpt.
A Q-Tip and some rubbing alcohol should be able to get that marker off of that one card with the writing on it if you're interested in cleaning it off. I love the way these figures look.
I would guess that you've seen it but in the documentary "Plastic Galaxy" they show the prototype Star Wars figures were made from customizing Adventure People.
Very cool line of toys. Seems quite diverse in terms of professions, and they're non-heroic types (no exaggerated anatomy, no super strong guy, no super sexy girl, etc.). I'd expect them to have some backstory, or comics based on them or anything like that, but I'm surprised they don't. The card illustrations look pretty cool too.
+allluckyseven Good point about no exaggerated anatomy. I like that part, and it's a real retro thing nowadays. Most toys now are super-exaggerated and I'm not keen on that.
These were before my time, but I vaguely remember old ones kicking around.However, I love that vintage packaging though. The only one I've found was that spaceman, who's is rare apparently? Whoo-hoo! Good luck on completing the collection, can't wait to see that vid when u do.
I didn't believe you about the easy to find part, but after finding my first figure two weeks ago I found my first vehicle yesterday. Here's hoping the trend continues.
adv ppl are the original 3 3/4 inch figures. They predate star wars, in fact, Lucas used them as prototypes for his star wars figures line. Also, they got to this size due (in part), to the Arab oil embargo which drove up prices for petroleum based products in the 1970's.
For years I had a female diver figure she's in the 3rd row on the right side of your video, yellow sort of bellbottoms. It was one of my mother's old toys, and forever I had no idea what line she was from.
It's weird. It wasn't until I watched your videos that I realised I had quite a few of the Adventure People as a kid. It never occured to me, back then, that the dirt bike riders (who stood in as evil henchmen) were in the same line as the alpha interceptor. I'm thinking of getting some now.
Excellent review, they look great especially that triple pack. I never had any of these but recognise them so maybe seen them in some of my mates toys. I hope you manage to get the full collection soon.
Nice video on a brilliant line of figures. I have about 30 of them too, and you're right that some sellers on ebay mistakenly think they're worth £13 each! They're not. America has shedloads of these figures for sale, and on my next visit to the US maybe I'll buy a load on ebay directly over there. The US ones are far cheaper. Through bulk buying I do have some surplus items to sell like the space shuttle set and individual figures. Many figures on ebay are broken or missing helmets etc. These toys really bring back memories for me also, especially the trial bike set which I have just re-bought on ebay with box included. Hopefully we're not bidding against each other on ebay in future too much heh.
+alias foxfire Nice. If you have some spares, get in touch via Facebook or Twitter. Maybe we can sort somthing out. I am only buying the figures, but did see that set. Glad you got it. I had that as a kid. Great fun to be had with the bike.
+Toy Polloi When I have spare figures I'll let you know encase we can do a swap or something. Ditto on loving the bike set. It's the one FP toy that I remember most!
Love these and I just started collecting these to re capture my childhood favourite toy line. Let me know if you still have doubles you would part with I would pay what they are worth and the shipping mate. Thanks.
you have to love those 70's card. I never collected these but did you ever collect weeble wobbles? I loved those toys and have been looking for the submarine for years in a box.
I never noticed they had names under the bubble. I always made up my own names for them. I guess I was too accustomed to Star Wars figures where they put the figure's name in clear view "top center" of the card where you cannot miss it. I was especially pleased to see "Clawtron" and "Astro Knight" shown together, as I had those exact two figures myself (in addtion to a yellow/red version of "Astro Knight")... but, as I said ,I never knew their names so I ended up calling them "Metalman" and "Gliderman" respectively, lol, and I utilized them as "superheroes". I had a racecar driver figure whom I used as the "secret identity" figure for "Metalman". But since no other figure resembled the "Knight" figure I just used a random figure... may have been a pilot figure. Taht would make the most logical sense. I also have one of those green robot figure (the female), and in the same way, I made her a "superhero" figure and used one of the female figures (whose head matched the mold) as the "secret identity". These figures were pretty cool - they were generic enough that you could pretty much do anything with them, even integrate them with Star Wars figures rather seamlessly.
I know this is an older video, but did you ever finish your collection? Also, other than Clawtron, have you repaired many of these toys? As a child I had the daredevil with the parachute and the Alpha Probe set. All of which we basically played with till they died. A few years back I found a nice working Alpha Probe shuttle and capsule. But it needed the Astronauts and the tether cord. So in hunting to replace them, I got the two figures. But the female has a melt mark on her chest plate. I have an extra of the male and was considering trying to swap parts around to fix the female one. I still need the tether though. Anyway, I enjoy seeing some love for these old toys. I've even joined some FB groups for Adventure People collectors and Adventure People customs recently. Thank you for sharing and happy collecting.
Born in ‘73, my older brother and I had tons of these and loved them. We are in Canada. Aside from my Barbie’s, they were the toys I played with the most. I used to take them in the bath and our inground pool.
I work in East Aurora, NY where all of these figures originated. The people who built these are proud of their work. I will see if there are any hidden stashes around for you. I will PM you with my results.
+John Wild Thanks John.
I didn't know about Opticon. That's a weird one. Now I wonder if I've passed him over in misc boxes in the past.
+Toy Galaxy He sure is. I have never seen one loose in the wild. Overall I think the AP figures are much more common in the US.
Yeah! I’ve been hunting Opticon recently. Quite a chase!
Thanks for posting this video. The Adventure People were a big part of my childhood. I have started to collect these again.
I recently found my old deep sea diver, just like your one at the front missing his helmet. I was very pleased to see him! As a kid the curiosity to see his face overwhelmed me, and I ripped off his lovely bronze helmet and could never get it back on! He actually became my go to 3.3/4 inch hero figure, often joining the Star Wars crew, I think mainly because he could stand up so much easier than any of the Star Wars figures!
Looks like the cast of a Wes Anderson film. :)
Love this line. Was weaned on them. Reasonably available in the wild, as well. Favorites: X-Rays, Alien, & rubber octopus.
My first action figures. Loved them.ahhh memories..
I had the Alpha Probe...I loved that more than any other toy. Such a great, imaginative and playable toy line.
Fun fact: The original Kenner SW protos/designs were kitbashed Adventure People figures. Also, the Jawa's robe was made on the fly, from a designer's (dirty) sock, hehe.
We currently live a short ride away from Cincinnati, would loved to have lived this close back in the 'glory days' when interesting/rare bits turned up on the regular throughout OH and KY....
We used to use Chewbacca as Sasquatch to harass them when camping. We also used them as civilians when GI Joe defended Earth from Star Wars Invaders from space.
+Diabolik771 They would be perfect for that. They are great filler figures.
I had a lot of these as a kid. That Scuba Diver being one of my favorites. I still remember going to a Fisher Price store, they wouldn't let kids in without their parents with em. I want to get these guys again myself. I'd also like to get the two bigger construction worker figures.
One of my favorite toys as a kid.
The green ranger you presented was from a set with a 6 wheel ATV, a yellow plane that connected to a pontoon boat. Also included a pilot and the red bearded guy that came in other sets. It also had a dog. The two females came with a safari set with a tan guy with boonie hat and the blue suited boy and half dozen animals. Both are really cool sets. There also at least on variation on the rangers head sculpt.
A Q-Tip and some rubbing alcohol should be able to get that marker off of that one card with the writing on it if you're interested in cleaning it off. I love the way these figures look.
Love these figures. My favorite is the Sea Explorer set.
I would guess that you've seen it but in the documentary "Plastic Galaxy" they show the prototype Star Wars figures were made from customizing Adventure People.
Very cool line of toys. Seems quite diverse in terms of professions, and they're non-heroic types (no exaggerated anatomy, no super strong guy, no super sexy girl, etc.).
I'd expect them to have some backstory, or comics based on them or anything like that, but I'm surprised they don't.
The card illustrations look pretty cool too.
Yeah, it is. Much more about real life jobs. Apart from the space stuff!
+allluckyseven Good point about no exaggerated anatomy. I like that part, and it's a real retro thing nowadays. Most toys now are super-exaggerated and I'm not keen on that.
My favorite action figures from my 70s youth.
They are great figures!
So famous from those bent arms lol. Awesome collection. I got a few of them
These were before my time, but I vaguely remember old ones kicking around.However, I love that vintage packaging though. The only one I've found was that spaceman, who's is rare apparently? Whoo-hoo!
Good luck on completing the collection, can't wait to see that vid when u do.
I didn't believe you about the easy to find part, but after finding my first figure two weeks ago I found my first vehicle yesterday. Here's hoping the trend continues.
I had a few of these growing up, Xray woman springs to mind, you must complete,this lot one day, nice things.
+The Queen & toy collector I seem to have hit a wall with them. I have not seen any I don't already own ( at a sensible price) for ages.
adv ppl are the original 3 3/4 inch figures. They predate star wars, in fact, Lucas used them as prototypes for his star wars figures line. Also, they got to this size due (in part), to the Arab oil embargo which drove up prices for petroleum based products in the 1970's.
I had the Motorcycle & figure, I believe it also came in a Van set👍✌️
Nice video, I grew up with the Adventure people, they were my first action figures, I am working on replacing some of the ones I had had as a kid.
+JediDB They are a really great toy line.
I grew up and ate slept and breathed Fisher Price's rescue heroes, I still have a few
i'm 53 and still have the motorcycle man and bike along with the helecopter pilot.
Lovely video, I had many of these wonderful figures.
thnx for refreshing my memory. we had clawtron and opticon. just can't remember when and how we got them as kids.
Like most kids in the 70's, you just had them. I think my Nan got me the frogman.
Wow amazing. I had a couple dozen as a child my first action figures and who knows where they went I would love to start collecting theses
For years I had a female diver figure she's in the 3rd row on the right side of your video, yellow sort of bellbottoms. It was one of my mother's old toys, and forever I had no idea what line she was from.
It's weird. It wasn't until I watched your videos that I realised I had quite a few of the Adventure People as a kid. It never occured to me, back then, that the dirt bike riders (who stood in as evil henchmen) were in the same line as the alpha interceptor. I'm thinking of getting some now.
+LiamTheGreat It's a diverse range of figures. Most kids will have had at least one of them I reckon.
Important to note that they were the basis for the incredibly famous Star Wars action figures. All hail the 3.75!!
Excellent review, they look great especially that triple pack.
I never had any of these but recognise them so maybe seen them in some of my mates toys.
I hope you manage to get the full collection soon.
Nice video on a brilliant line of figures. I have about 30 of them too, and you're right that some sellers on ebay mistakenly think they're worth £13 each! They're not. America has shedloads of these figures for sale, and on my next visit to the US maybe I'll buy a load on ebay directly over there. The US ones are far cheaper.
Through bulk buying I do have some surplus items to sell like the space shuttle set and individual figures. Many figures on ebay are broken or missing helmets etc.
These toys really bring back memories for me also, especially the trial bike set which I have just re-bought on ebay with box included. Hopefully we're not bidding against each other on ebay in future too much heh.
+alias foxfire Nice. If you have some spares, get in touch via Facebook or Twitter. Maybe we can sort somthing out. I am only buying the figures, but did see that set. Glad you got it. I had that as a kid. Great fun to be had with the bike.
+Toy Polloi When I have spare figures I'll let you know encase we can do a swap or something. Ditto on loving the bike set. It's the one FP toy that I remember most!
Such a great line.
Love these and I just started collecting these to re capture my childhood favourite toy line. Let me know if you still have doubles you would part with I would pay what they are worth and the shipping mate. Thanks.
you have to love those 70's card. I never collected these but did you ever collect weeble wobbles? I loved those toys and have been looking for the submarine for years in a box.
The card art is just lovely. I remember weebles. Was tempted to buy a couple a while back.
I had some Adventure People. Including the Motorcycle Racing Team with the sidecar.
I had that set as well. Loved it.
I never noticed they had names under the bubble. I always made up my own names for them. I guess I was too accustomed to Star Wars figures where they put the figure's name in clear view "top center" of the card where you cannot miss it.
I was especially pleased to see "Clawtron" and "Astro Knight" shown together, as I had those exact two figures myself (in addtion to a yellow/red version of "Astro Knight")... but, as I said ,I never knew their names so I ended up calling them "Metalman" and "Gliderman" respectively, lol, and I utilized them as "superheroes". I had a racecar driver figure whom I used as the "secret identity" figure for "Metalman". But since no other figure resembled the "Knight" figure I just used a random figure... may have been a pilot figure. Taht would make the most logical sense. I also have one of those green robot figure (the female), and in the same way, I made her a "superhero" figure and used one of the female figures (whose head matched the mold) as the "secret identity".
These figures were pretty cool - they were generic enough that you could pretty much do anything with them, even integrate them with Star Wars figures rather seamlessly.
I may do this collection with Lego Minifigure!
i feel like they could bring these back today as they were never attached to any movie or tv show - they still have the "Little People", don't they?
I wish they would. They are great figures. Not sure they would make them to the same high quality.
Those have individual names. Listed on some packs.🎃👍
tonka had a similar set of people.
Great video! I really enjoyed this video.
Talk about searching for them on ebay, someone is selling the white haired guy (front row far left) as Ben Kenobi!
Well he does have a certain look about him. And the very first star wars prototypes were based on these figures.
I meant far right dooh.
Awesome! I dig it, man!
I know this is an older video, but did you ever finish your collection? Also, other than Clawtron, have you repaired many of these toys? As a child I had the daredevil with the parachute and the Alpha Probe set. All of which we basically played with till they died. A few years back I found a nice working Alpha Probe shuttle and capsule. But it needed the Astronauts and the tether cord. So in hunting to replace them, I got the two figures. But the female has a melt mark on her chest plate. I have an extra of the male and was considering trying to swap parts around to fix the female one. I still need the tether though. Anyway, I enjoy seeing some love for these old toys. I've even joined some FB groups for Adventure People collectors and Adventure People customs recently. Thank you for sharing and happy collecting.
I still need about 30 of the figures. Slowly getting there. Adding a few each year. A great line to collect.
interesting series
i used the adv. ppl as civilians with my gi joes.
That Frogman doesn't even have any equipment!
He's a free diver :D
Toy Polloi
I don't know... when I was kid, if a Frogman didn't come with flippers and a snorkel I would have felt cheated!
Have you done any Fisher Price vehicle restorations?
I haven't. I only collect the figures. No space to have all the ships and vehicles as well.
Was it hard to stand those up?
+gasdorfy munchy Yes. Very!
The one figure in the front row, all the way to the right , in the red suit and with white hair, looks like George Lucas.
Construx Fisher Price have a pilot figure looks alike ?!
I came here in my search for an Opticon. lol
Adventure People of George Lucas, I never knew
3:26 well, then you had to go and make this video! Lol
I don't get it why the frog man called a frogman is it British name for diver
Helpful list of all Fisher-Price Adventure Series sets: thisoldtoy.com/L_FP_Set/department-7/d-Adventure-Series.html
check your website email. i have some to add to your collection.