Saturday, March 26, 2011

Renegade Sam Cobra and Chief Cherokee - "Best of the West"!

Another Saturday, another dive into "Unca Jeffy's Toy Box" and checking out the rest of Marx Toys "Best of the West"!

Every hero needs a villain and Johnny West was no exception. In Marx's "...West" world, that spot was filled by "'Renegade' Sam Cobra"!


You can tell he's the bad guy because, not only does he wear all black, but he also sports a nefarious goatee! You see, back in the 1960's before every fat white guy hipster sported those chin whiskers to supposedly hide their double-chin (wow...I'm ragging on myself now!), only the very evil had them. Jack Cassidy was of course the exception that proved the rule.


Sam Cobra also comes with a mighty impressive collection of artillery. Rifle, sawed-off shotgun, six-shooter with a holster which also houses a sheath for a dagger, shoulder holster with pistol and even a belt buckle with concealed derringer. This boy was loaded for bear, but it weren't no bear he was shootin' for!


He also came with a safe for breaking into, bomb, a few sticks of dynamite and his own pair of handcuffs. Either for his hostages or to be used on him if the good guys caught him I presume. Unless he had a bondage fetish, which would go right along with that goatee!


He also came with a velice, a neck-tie, spurs, sporty black hat (standard issue for all bad guys, dontchaknow) annnnnnnnnnnnd some kinda strap. Leads me back to the hand-cuff issue.


I'm proud to say they've all been in "Unca Jeffy's Toy Box" loe these many decades....however, there was a final tradgedy...

Chief Cherokee suffered the same joint damage that Johnny West himself did, but to an even greater extent...


Poor, poor Chief. These are the things that break my heart. I thought I had been being his caretaker and it all fell apart under my nose.

His many accoutraments did survive though. His chief headdress with atttachable extension and extra feathers, his scout headband and feathers, medicine man hat and mask, necklace, vest...


...rifle, spear, bow and quiver full of arrows, hatchet, sheild, belt and knife, pouch,...


...drum and mallet, peace-pipe and something that looks like a maraca, though I'm sure there is an indian name for it and what looks like a branding iron.


That sews up my delving into my "Best of the West" collection. Some real joys and real heart-aches.

There's a visceral pleasure in the touch and smell of these toys from childhood though. I'm really glad I've hung onto them and it was really worth the effort.

Another shining ray of happy, I found the third sack of gold from the chest of Johnny West...


...it was tucked in with Sam Cobra's belongings. Damn renegade!

Talk to you soon.

4 comments:

KW said...

Gol Dernit! That thievin' skunk, Sam Cobra stealing the gold!

Runs.with.Ferals said...

Poor Chief Cherokee looks like Osiris after Set chopped him to bits ! MEDIC !

KW said...

Can you twist little eye-screws into that plastic and run elastic cords through there to reconnect Chief Cherokee?

On the photo with the safe and dynamite there's a black ball. Does that open up to reveal a gun in 2 halves?

Unca Jeffy said...

Lysdexicuss: Chief Cherokee suffered some serious damage, but knowing what a valiant and noble warrior he was, I can be sure he was protecting the others from some turrible evil.

KW: I can only hold onto the hope that there is some way to repair them. Elastic would do, but the original connector is a hefty steel spring...I'll retro-fit it somehow though. And about the bomb, I had read about that but I obviously got ripped off! It's just a plastic ball, doesn't split open or anything. Harrumph!

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