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Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Happy Birthday To Me: Super Heroes Checker Set!

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Ok, so this is me, on my 7th birthday, exactly thirty years ago today. It was quite the birthday haul, so much so that it left me plum exhausted and passed out on the floor of our cabin in the Poconos--a Shogun Warrior (Mazinga), some Star Wars items not pictured, and a DC Superheroes Checker Set. And therein lay the tragedy.

Over the years, I have been able--if I ever wanted to--repurchase all the wonderful toys I had as a kid, except,
for some strange reason, this DC Superheroes Checker Set. I have never seen it on eBay once, or at a convention, ever. The only evidence I have of its existence outside the above photo is this shot of it from a catalog:
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...as you can see, its way cool. Its got little pieces featuring the usual suspects like Superman, Batman, Robin, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman, but also The Cheetah, Gorilla Grodd, Dr. Light, Hawkman, and Black Canary!

Over the years, my desire to own this thing again has grown in direct proportion to my inability to find it. If I saw it on eBay all the time, I'm not sure I would even want it all that bad. Its because
I can't find the damn thing that its become one of the Holy Grails of Aquaman Collecting.

So, basically, what I'm saying is, if one of you out there ever finds one of these, can you please let me know? You'd make the seven year-old me--and the + thirty years older version--very happy.


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That was me, on this blog, August 16, 2008. I am now happy--nay, thrilled--to report that I have finally acquired the SuperHeroes Checker Set!!
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A couple of months ago, F.O.A.M.er Delmar Osborne tipped me to an eBay auction for the set which was ending a few days hence. I kept my sights on it like a hawk, worried someone else would discover it and I'd get locked into a bidding war, which would lead to Mutually Assured Destruction.

Luckily, I guess no one else was interested; I placed a bid a few hours before the auction ended, and it was the only one. So just like that, the #1 one Aqua-Item I've been searching for for years was mine!

The checker set features Aquaman of course, but manufacturer Hasbro had to dip into DC's bench a bit to have enough characters to fill all the pieces. So in addition to Superman, Batman, et al, you've got Gorilla Grodd, The Shark, Dr. Light, The Cheetah, Green Arrow, Black Canary, and Metamorpho as part of the game.

I could ask hey, why no Black Manta?, but I'm in no mood to be critical, I'm just thrilled this baby is finally mine!


Special thanks to Delmar for the tip, and to Shrine Mascat Frankie for being as fascinated with the game as I am:
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14 comments:

Joseph Brian Scott said...

How awesome for you, rob! Really happy you were able to finally get this. I feel the same way about finding (an affordable) specimen of the first "Dark Shadows" board game. Of all the art shown on the game pieces, I have to say that Black Canary pose is the one I haven't seen before. Was it done just for the game?

Orin's dad said...

Happy birthday rob! Hope it's a great day!
Glad you found one of your grail items. That's way cool.

Delmar Osborne (Titansfan) said...

Happy Birthday Rob. Really glad you found this piece of your childhood. I knew as soon as I saw it I had to contact you. Looks like it's in really good shape too.

Joe Slab said...

Happy Birthday boss!!!

Joe Slab

Michael Jones said...

Nice swag snag. Who'll be your first opponent?

Brent said...

Happy Birthday Rob! May your day be filled with cheer and checkers!

r duncan said...

Aquaman on the lid. Cool. How do you king someone?

Sphinx Magoo said...

I think you've stumbled onto the precursor for Heroclix! I think at that young age I would have use them as substitute action (or "inaction") figure. Happy birthday!

rob! said...

Dennis--Thanks!

JBS--Yeah, that Canary shot looks new to the game, or merchandising at least, I've never seen it before or since.

OD--Thanks!

Delmar--Couldn't have done it without you!

Joe--Thanks!!

Michael--Dunno, I do need to play it soon!

Brent--Thanks!

Rick--Yeah, Aquaman on the box, double sweet! I have no idea how the game can be played as regular checkers, since this didn't come with instructions. The little pieces are stackable, so I guess you remove the card and then just put your piece on top...?

Aaron said...

Happy Birthday rob!!!

Would you be willing to send me a scan of the Green Arrow piece??

Russell said...

Happy Birthday, Rob! So glad you were finally able to re-acquire this!

Jakethy said...

That is so cool - such a great story! The Shark, huh? - wow. We're about the same age but I've never seen or heard of the game before. Consider me jealous of your swag-snagging ability :)

The Irredeemable Shag said...

Happy Birthday rob! May you live to be an old salty dog!

That checkers set looks awesome! Sorry to say this, but I think the cat can take you. I'm just sayin'...

The Irredeemable Shag
http://firestormfan.com

Wings1295 said...

Sorry I missed the day! Hope you had a very happy birthday and a big kudos on landing such a rare item!