Where Did It All Start?

**Kidhuman** · 02-23-2005

Okay.....<start Waynes World dream sequence>

WHen I was about 4, my Mom worked at Mays, a department store in NYC at the time. I remember it being at night and me and my brother were in the living room ripping open Ben Kenobi, Greedo,Luke X-wing and another figure. It began there. I remember getting all the vintage figures up until POTF came out. I was about 12 years old and my parents would not buy them for me, saying I was too old for them. Little did they know what was to come....

<fast foward>

1995...

I am working for Caldors doing L.P. work. My job was to walk around the store catching shoplifters. I wonder over to the toiy dept and to my shagrin, there are SW figures on the pegs. I was like no f'in way. I grabbed one of each and took them to our office. I sat there staring at them debating on whether to nbuyt or not. I came up with the notion that they would be a limited riun and I bought them. More and more came out. I bought whatever I found. I would scour the stocktrooms and grab them before they hit the floor. I had first crack at whatever I wanted. It was great. Around 1998 I stopped collecting for aboout 6 months and nissed alot of the cooler POTF2 figures. Here I am 10 years later, still collecting thislimited run line of figures. I cant believe it has been ten years already.

**Bobby Fett** · 02-23-2005

It all started innocently enough in about 1996. I had never been in a Family Dollar store before, so I thought I'd check it out. The store had POTF2 sand/snow/stormtroopers, Vader and Fett for $.99. Oh yeah, they had a lot of other characters too. Later that night, as I was arranging my troops in the home office, I decided I should go back and get duplicates to display carded. I thought this was a rather novel idea - I didn't know SW collectors existed!

Over the years I've stayed pretty true to my original theme of carded Imperial troops and Vaders. I have since started adding the various war droids, clone troops, and Darth Maul. I have 120 out of 304 card variations (by my count), so I'm still actively on the hunt.

Of course, half of the SW room is occupied by gifts and items that have caught my eye, but I don't consider them as part of my collection - just eye candy.

A word of advice, if I may - don't get frazzled if you can't find an item at retail. Wait two or three years and you can get most things on eBay at less than original retail (plus shipping). This works fine unless you're addicted to instant gratification.

**Jayspawn** · 02-23-2005

I remember going to Kay Bee Toys (remember when those existed?) to look for new X-MEN figures when I overheard the cashier talking about Kenner's 'new' Star Wars toys. Ooooohh... I thought and snuck over to the counter to take a peak. WOW!

Some months later (in '95) I went with my family to visit my Grandparents and we stopped at a Wal-Mart on the way. And in stopping by the asile I spotted a Han Solo action figure! And behind him, Darth Vader! And a Stormtrooper! I knew that was it. I was hooked on site! I only had $10 bucks on me so I bought Han and Vader. I sat in the car the whole night staring at these new beauties!

**Major Karr** · 02-24-2005

OK, this makes me feel real old, but it was Christmas 1977 when both my brother and I got the best present ever...the Early Bird Package. I think I had almost every figure (and I opened them!) put out after that up through ROTJ. Then I was in college and and then in the real world and kinda forgot about it, thinking end of movies, end of toys. Fast forward to winter 1999 and it turns out that both of my assistants at work were into SW like I was. When TPM stuff came out, all three of us hit TRU and went nuts with the new stuff. The beginning of my completeist sickness had begun, although I have eased back somewhat. Now I slowly am filling in with some of the stuff I missed.

**X13VADER** · 02-24-2005

Boy I Feel Old. I Recieved My First Toys On Christmas Of 78.
Ben Kenobi,luke,chewie,darth Veder Tie Fighter And The Death Star.
I Was 10 Years Old And Have Been Collecting Since.

**InsaneJediGirl** · 02-24-2005

Got mine...in 1996-97?Close enough,at a Target with my Grandma.I had just seen the SE verisons and thought it was some of the coolest movies I had ever seen in my life.So Grandma takes my brothers and I to Target and my first ever action figure was X-Wing Luke,followed by Darth Vader.Then...it was all downhill from there

**CaptainSolo1138** · 02-24-2005

My first SW figure was in the mid-80's. It was Kez-Iban (sp?) from the Droids line. I've always been a Star Wars fan, but never really got too much new stuff when I was a kid since my older brother had it all already (spoiled jerk....). What got me officially started on my own was the POTF2 Lando and Boba Fett. I got them at Toys 'R' Us and loved them so much that I bought more. And more. And more. I was never a completist. I just bought what I liked (which happened to be most of them.). I continue that trend to this day. I now have a lovely collection of LOOSE

figures. They're in a huge Rubbermaid bin, but lovely nonetheless! Stupid small apartment.......

**Slicker** · 02-24-2005

These are some great stories folks. It would almost appear that the number of original collectors (when the movies were first released) and the SE collectors, myself included, are nearly equal. Quite a spread of age groups going on here. Very nice.

**General_Grievous** · 02-24-2005

Well, I started this long journey back in early February 1997 when I first saw "Star Wars: A New Hope" the Special Edition. I was hooked when I saw the Tantive IV fly overhead with the Star Destroyer in hot pursuit, bolts of green and red zooming past at both ships. I was instantly in love.

Soon after that, I was in a KB Toys (long since closed now

) and I spotted a whole Star Wars display that they had set up there. I asked my mom if I could buy some, she said ok. I walked out of that store with a Luke, a Chewie, a Threepio, and R2-D2.

A few weeks later, just before I saw the ESB Special Edition, I was in TRU and I was amazed at how many Star Wars figures they had displayed for the Special Edition. I was ecstatic. I remember buying Han, Leia, Vader, Boba Fett, a Stormtrooper, Yoda, Lando, Obi-Wan, Stormtrooper Luke, Greedo, X-Wing Luke, Momaw Nadon, R5-D4, Han in Carbonite, and countless others over that year. By April 1999, I had all of the POTF2 figures, except for the EU figures (didn't care much for those).

Over that period, I also got my hands on some loose vintage figures from SW, ESB, and ROTJ. My first vintage figures were Boba Fett and Han Solo, which I got for $8 each at a flea market.

Then came the Episode 1 figures. After school on May 3, 1999, I went into the same KB Toys that I got my first Star Wars toys at to pick up my TPM figures. I was able to get all of them, even Darth Maul, who I didn't realize was going to be a rare figure. As that line progressed, though, I had a tougher time finding figures and had to resort to ordering online. To this day, I still have a complete loose collection of Episode 1 basic figures. I was even lucky enough to find Sio Bibble at a K-Mart for $4.99

Then Power of the Jedi came out, IMO, the best of the Star Wars lines, and I got all of those pretty easily.

Then came the Saga figures and the OTC and VOTC figures, which were all in all great figures.

And I'm anxiously awaiting the release of the ROTS toys, as I'm sure all of you are.

MTFBWY

**Rocketboy** · 02-24-2005

Originally Posted by Slicker

These are some great stories folks. It would almost appear that the number of original collectors (when the movies were first released) and the SE collectors, myself included, are nearly equal. Quite a spread of age groups going on here. Very nice.

I don't know why, but it seems weird to me that there are so many relative Star Wars newbies out there. I can't remember a time when Star Wars wasn't in my life in one way or another.
It's cool to see and +25-year-old movie is still producing fans!