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'Playing
them false' by Bob Dixon
Excerpts
from: Chapter - 6 THE
FIGHTER
p115
Now, we're going to
separate the men from the boys - as overgrown boys, who are concerned
about this sort of thing, keep saying. As usual, language gives a good
guide to a society's gender roles. There are words for males who fall
short of the expected gender role of fighter, such as `softy' and,
mainly in the USA, `Milquetoast'. `Sissy' which also originated in the
USA and comes from the word sister', reminds us that males are
expected to distinguish their behaviour from that of females. If they
don't, they often actually get called by the names of girls which
makes the point clearly. 'Nelly' and `Nancy' or 'nancy-boy' are all
terms of abuse for males, which carry, in these cases, strong
overtones of homosexuality. ' Margery', however, a term from London
slang of the second half of the last century, seems only to have meant
effeminate. On the other hand, the expected masculine gender role here
can also be exceeded in ways not acceptable to society in general, so
we get words like `lout', `yob' and `thug'. Thugs in uniform are all
right, though, and then cease to be called thugs. Their behaviour
hasn't changed. It's just that their violence has been sanctioned.
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p117
.....With dangerous ideologies
in mind, and before leaving the historical background of this section
altogether, we should take account of the large output of Nazi figures
from the firm of Hausser between the mid and the late 1930s. These
were marketed under the trade name of Elastolin which referred to the
composition - basically sawdust and glue - they were made from. The SA
(Sturmabteilung - Storm Detachment) which can be seen as the
equivalent, in Nazi Germany, of the modem British SPG, were well
represented in this output as were the SS (Schutzstaffel - Defence
Squadron), all with Nazi insignia, giving fascist salutes and so on.
Kurt Hausser, in a recent disclaimer from the firm about its Nazi
period, has said, `We were a commercial company trying to do
business'. This is a particularly clear illustration of a point which
underlies this whole book: profits and principles seldom mix.
Although it does seem that toy
figures of the traditional, standard size are losing around to the
more recent, and larger figures, there are still a surprising number
around. A look at some of Britains' ranges in 1982 shows the variety.
There were series portraying historical adversaries, such as the
American Civil War series and the Knights and Turks series, with the
Knights in shining armour and the Turks clad mainly in black. British,
German and US troops, mainly from the second world war it seems, were
also featured, along with military vehicles and field guns with
plastic shells. In the fictional future, there was a range of space
models and figures in two groups, the Stargards and the Aliens, these
last in black with red helmets.
Promotion and packaging are, as
always, important. Britains send to children who
write to them a round, fabric badge with a Union Jack design and the
words 'Collectors' Award' on it, together with the company's name and
its symbol, a guardsman. Matchbox, in 1979-80, were producing toy
soldiers from the second world war in two sizes. The smaller ones,
about 25mm tall, were in a world armies' range and the boxes of these,
probably because of the size of the figures, showed groups of soldiers
in combat. The other figures, which were about twice as big, were also
in boxes showing battle scenes but this time the pictures on the boxes
emphasized individual soldiers, in close-up, their faces grimly
determined or twisted by snarls.
It's important to note the
connections between historical events and toys, and the way in which
they interrelate. Following their emergence into the light of
publicity in recent times, it isn't surprising to note that the SAS
have, by now, established a considerable bridge-head in the toy
market...........
p127/8
This hectic atmosphere, offensive in both senses of
the word, continued into 1984. `How did the S.A.S get behind the lines
in the Falklands?' the catalogue asks us again, and answers as before,
while another reference to the SAS describes them as `unsung heroes of
the Falklands war'. The Parachute Regiment is also mentioned in
connection with the Falklands/Malvinas campaign. It just shows, again,
that war is good for this sort of business. I believe that the reverse
is also true: this sort of business promotes war.
I've often heard it said, in tones of approval,
that Action Man is a doll boys can feel free to play with and the
speakers have usually gone on to mention the changing of outfits as
being important. I think this attitude shows a terrible
misunderstanding. Action Man, although more versatile, belongs in
every way to the tradition of toy soldiers. Also, the best and most
important feature about dolls (though not fashion dolls) is that they
encourage caring for others. This is totally absent from the Action
Man concept which is not about caring but all about killing.
Before leaving the Action Man juggernaut, I'll make a
few points about promotion. sales and manufacture.
The identity disc dodge has already been mentioned.
Another ruse, to keep the customers on the hook, was the poster which
came with certain of the Action Man wares. This shows, on one side, a
lot of the products in the range and there are little boxes to tick
when you've collected them. The other side shows a violent medley of
war machines and the usual heavily armed figures with grim or
contorted faces. 'Join my team in military exploits both at home and
abroad', Action man tells us. I wonder what exploits he has in mind at
home. One corner of the poster advertises the star scheme which had
been going since 1980, at least. The idea was to collect stars from
the packets of Action Man outfits and accessories. You then stuck
these m a card, answered certain questions to help Palitoy's
production planning and sent it off. enclosing postage, to
obtain a `gift'. Twenty-one stars would get you an Action Man basic
figure, for example. These gifts were, it says on the card, 'rewards
for distinguished conduct in the field with Action Man'. The
explanation of this scheme begins with the words, 'Good news, men' and
ends, Thanks men. You've done well'.
p129
In view of the change, in the USA, to the smaller
GI Joe figure, it's interesting to note the arrival of Palitoy's
Action Force in August 1982. These figures were called a`mini Action
Man range' in the catalogue of that year. They're articulated in
a different way from the present GI Joe figures but, at about 1 lcm
tall, they're of a similar size. To begin with, there were nine
military figures, three other figures - (two of them military) with
accessories, and two convertible military vehicles. Palitoy claim to
have sold nearly a million of these figures in less than six months.
For 1983, five new `teams' of figures, together with vehicles, were
introduced. We should note, in view of the link
with fiction which I've pointed to from time to time, that Palitoy
talk of a strong theme storyline' behind Action Force. We'll see this
emerging, as we go on. One of the five teams is called, simply, The
Enemy and is described as `a fiendish team of characters dedicated to
overthrowing the world by using brilliant and strange sciences'. (It
sounds like the present government of the USA.) Elsewhere in the 1983
catalogue, they're described as `the deadly and feared enemy
of the world' and we're told that `only Action Force [here, that means
the rest of Action Force] stands in the path of their aim of world
domination'. It's important to note that the
figures and vehicles in this Enemy group are largely redand that,
although they have the skull and crossbones as their emblem, they
carry several letters from the Cyrillic alphabet (the one used for
Russian) on their vehicles. In a world threatened with nuclear
devastation, this can only be seen as both dangerous and deliberate
irresponsibility on the part of Palitoy. Another team, S.A.S. Force,
includes several figures and vehicles, as follows: S.A.S. Boat Patrol,
which is an Assault Boat with a commando figure; S.A.S. Para Attack,
which is a parachutist with working parachute; the S.A.S. Panther,
which is an Attack Jeep, together with a figure;
and the S.A.S. Mobile Missile System. .................
p130
.......................The overall
impression is one of unending menace, from every quarter, which
can only be stopped by totally ruthless forces using the deadliest of
military technology, (And the market is swamped with toys which
present this view of the world, or universe. There's no room for fun,
or anything else.
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