Stuart Wells - Warmans Star Wars Field Guide: Values And Identification

Warman's

Star Wars

FIELD GUIDE

Stuart W. Wells III

Values and Identification

2005 by Stuart W. Wells III

Published by

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Product names, logos and images used herein are depicted for the sole purpose of identification and are the intellectual property of their respective manufacturers.

Library of Congress Catalog Number: 2004115464
ISBN: 0-89689-134-8
eISBN: 978-1-44022-622-9

Designed by: Wendy Wendt
Edited by: Dan Brownell

Printed in U.S.A.

Contents

INTRODUCTION

The Star Wars phenomenon started in 1977, and after a little slump in the late 1980s, it is still going strong. Collectibles from the classic movie were available beginning in late 1976first a poster and a book, then the comics in early 1977 and, finally, after the movie opened, a few games and puzzles. The real flood didnt start until 1978, when the action figures arrived.

This book covers Star Wars collectibles distributed in the United States from the beginning through the third quarter of 2004. It is both updated and condensed from my book A Universe of Star WarsCollectibles, Identification and Price Guide, 2nd Edition, Krause Publications 2002, ISBN 0-87349-415-6.

The first Star Wars collectible available to the general public was the original paperback book, which appeared a full seven months before the movie opened. Star Wars collectible #2 is the first issue of the comic book series from Marvel. It came out before the movie opened, and its worth a lot more than the paperback book. Nevertheless, neither the paperback nor the comic are as valuable as any of the early action figures (the 35 cent test issue of this comic is another matter).

In Star Wars collecting, Kenner (now Hasbro) is king. Almost anything made by Kenner/Hasbro, and a lot of things it never actually made, is collected more intensely than anything, however attractive, made by any other company.

The amount of coverage given to any category depends on its popularity. Action figures are the most popular Star Wars collectible, so they are given the most coverage, with additional sections on the vehicles, accessories and 12-inch dolls. Less popular items have been given less coverage or eliminated in this field guide.

Condition

Most Star Wars items are graded on a 10-point scale from C-10 (the best) down to C-1. Prices in this book are for items in their original packaging in near mint condition, which corresponds to about C-9 or C-9.5. The occasional extraordinary item that is actually mint (i.e. C-10) commands a slightly higher price. How much higher depends on how much better than an ordinary near-mint copy it actually is. The criteria for mint always remains the same, regardless of the age or type of product. Mint is not the same as new. Most new products are not truly mint, as they have suffered from handling by store employees and by all the customers who handled the items, but did not buy them.

Pricing

A single price is given for each listed item. This represents the full retail price or asking price. Prices vary from one dealer to another and from one location to another, so prices actually fall into a range. But even though no single price can cover all situations, a price range of $40 to $100, for example, is no more meaningful than a single price, and is even less satisfying. The single price given in this book should be used as a guideline or baseline. If you can find the item that you want to buy for 10 percent to 25 percent less than this price, you are getting a good deal. If you are paying more, but you really want the item, thats okay, too. Just shop around a little first to see if you can do better. This book is based on the authors research. The author is not a dealer in Star Wars collectibles and is not associated with any dealer or manufacturer, nor with Lucasfilms or its licensees.

STAR WARS:
CLASSIC FIGURES (1978-1995)

STAR WARS
Kenner (19771986)

The very first Star Wars action figures arrived in the mail in 1978. Of course, they only did so if you bought the famous Early Bird Package. The figures came in a white plastic tray in a white mailer box. There were four figures, along with a bag of plastic pegs for the display stand. Already there were variations. In the very earliest packages, Chewbacca had a dark green plastic rifle instead of the later black plastic, and Luke had a telescoping lightsaber. Some people call it a double telescoping lightsaber, as it not only extends out of his arm, it also telescopes out of the middle of the blade and almost reaches the floor. This version lightsaber can occasionally be found on carded Luke Skywalker and sometimes even on Darth Vader and Ben (Obi-Wan) Kenobi figures. It adds about $1,000 to the value of the Luke Skywalker figure and $2,000 to the value of the other two! It also increases the value of the loose figure, but it can be faked, even on a carded figure. For that kind of money, anything can be faked.

Early Bird Figures (Early 1978)

Early Bird figures R2-D2, Luke Skywalker (telescoping lightsaber), Princess Leia and Chewbacca (green blaster rifle), in tray and box... $450.00

See for listing ofthe Early Bird Package.

Packaging Variations Header Cards

Star Wars action figures are heavily collected, and every tiny variation in the figure or the packaging makes a difference in the price. The chief variation is the repackaging of the figures with new movie logos, first to The Empire Strikes Back and then to Return ofthe Jedi as each of those movies premiered. After the movies, figures were issued on Power of the Force header cards with a collectible coin as a premium.

In addition, most of the figures were available in the United States on foreign Tri-Logo header cards, which had Return of theJedi movie logos in three languages. There are variations among Tri-Logo header cards as well, but all are lumped together for pricing purposes.