With the G.I. Joe brand currently slated to return next year in the form of a Snake Eyes (previously G.I. Joe: Ever Vigilant) movie from Paramount Pictures, we’re continuing to look back at the toys that inspired a wealth of memorable entertainment and hopefully will continue to for many more years.
One of the coolest behind-the-scenes look at G.I. Joe toys comes from historian and collector Dan Klingensmith Jr. He’s spent years developing and publishing the 3.75″ Joe: Creating G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero book series, with more volumes in the works.
If you think you spotted Dan on Netflix’s The Toys That Made Us G.I. Joe episode then you’d be correct.
In short, Dan designed these books to take an in-depth look at the process of bringing G.I. toys from concept to a finished product. He also continues to look individually at each figure and vehicle including concepts that never made it off the drawing board.
The latest edition, Volume 6, has just gone live on Kickstarter and is already more than halfway to its goal at the time of this article being published.
Given the abundant interest in the series, Dan has added a pledge level that allows newcomers to purchase Volume 6 and all previous volumes — thanks in part to a new printing of previously sold out Volume 2. The cost to secure the entire series to-date is $286.
Be sure to check out the Kickstarter and dive in with a pledge if G.I. Joes played a role in your life.
