The GI Joe cartoon series was a timeless classic for those who grew up watching it in the 80’s.

The cartoon’s popularity rose to a wide following and has spawned a vast array of toys, comic books, video games, clothing apparel and miniature action figures throughout 1980’s and up to the 1990’s.

Safe to say, most middle aged (30 something) individuals know a thing or two about the battles between the Cobra Commander and the Allies.

But did you know that the toy action figures actually came before the cartoon series?

In 1963, toy creator and licensing agent Stan Weston first came up with the plan of a toy soldier/action figure based on the hit TV series "The Lieutenant".

He then brought it up to Don Levine of the toy manufacturer Hasbro Co. At that time, only Mattell’s Barbie doll was dominating the market and it was targeted only for girls.

Since there were no particular dolls made for boys, Levine and Hasbro saw the potential in the idea of a doll for boys and if there ever was a time to offer a new brand of toy line, it was the perfect opportunity to do so.

The development of the GI Joe line of plastic figurines led to the coining of the term "action figure” to make it more appealing to their intended market- the young boys who don’t like to play with Barbie dolls.

Thus in 1964, Hasbro launched the GI Joe line of military-themed, 12" articulated action figures which featured changeable clothes with various uniforms to suit different purposes.

The initial products featured dolls which represent the four branches of the United States Armed Forces such as the following: Action Soldier, Action Sailor, Action Pilot and Action Marine. With this, the GI Joe name no longer refers to a specific character but to a brand of toy line instead.

The toy’s features made it more appealing because the soldier could be bent into various poses and it also came equipped with different accessories and outfits which were based on real-life military equipment.

Its popularity rose overnight in the U.S. much to the chagrin of their rival Mattell which only had Ken to counter with.

In order to create global popularity for the toy figures, Hasbro licensed the product line to other marketing companies and it was met with wild success.

In the years that followed, additional characters were added to the product line to satisfy the customers’ interest. Timing was indeed everything.

But in 1983, a federal regulation which prohibits the creation of children's programming based on toys was lifted and this incidence opened up a new era in the action figures competition.

Already facing stiff rivalry with the Kenner Company which got the license to manufacture the Star Wars action figures, Hasbro fell into the backseat of the action figure market.

All sorts of action figure lines based on cartoon series suddenly flooded the toy industry and it became one of the largest marketing tools for toy companies.

Some of the most popular back then were He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, GI Joe, Thundercats, Transformers and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, to name a few.

By mid-1990’s, a new action figure line from Todd McFarlane's “Spawn” was introduced to the toy stores which caught the attention of the market.

These new figures were made with a high degree of attention to details compared to any of the previous toys.

McFarlane’s influence and direct involvement with the design of the action figures based on his comic book has resulted in the high quality details of toy figures today.

As of present, plastic figurines are produced regardless of whether or not it appeared in movies or cartoons. Characters in video games, graphic novels, comic book firms and even performers in adult movies are now being manufactured.

These though are aimed towards a market of older consumers and on an ever increasing interest in collector’s items, which only proves that action figures are not just for kids anymore.

And this toy boom owes it all to the original American toy icon. GO JOE!

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