The Robot Bulldozer, A Flare Product by United Pioneer Company

By Rob Wolfe

 

In the early 1960s people around the world were fascinated with imagining the future that technology could bring. There were many real and Hollywood-created reasons for this. Early in the decade, The Jetsons, the space age cartoon with patriarch George Jetson going to work in a spaceship, premiered in 1962. Of course, the decade would end with the moon landing in 1969 when astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first person to land on the moon in the Apollo 11 lunar module.

Between the Space Race of the Cold War Era between the United States and The Soviet Union, trends in pop culture such as the shows Star Trek and Lost in Space had adults and children alike given plenty of reason to be fascinated with the new era of technology. Toy manufacturers were ready to answer that call.

Flare Products, a United Pioneer company, created a variety of space and robot-themed toys that were hugely popular in the mid-20th century. They produced toy rockets, spacecraft models, and robot figures, often made with colorful designs, imaginative features, and moveable parts with which children could realistically act out different scenarios.

Flare’s Bulldozer Robot (pictured) was designed to resemble a bulldozer with robotic features. Its bright colors appealed to children and its movable parts mimicked the functions of a real bulldozer. It encouraged imaginative play like other construction-themed toys of the era while also capturing the fascination with both machinery and robotics.

This line of products was typically manufactured in the United States, although a few Flare products were manufactured in Japan. These toys are rare finds today and highly sought after by collectors. Many of these toys were produced in limited quantities and have become nostalgic collectibles, making them valuable in the vintage toy market. I found this one at an estate sale and estimate its value to be anywhere from $400 – $900.

My Robby the Robot is another coveted collectible from a similar era, also found at an estate sale. Robby was a character in the 1950s science-fiction film, Forbidden Planet. This toy has moveable legs and pistons in place of a face, that also moved. The character of Robby was one of the first, if not the first, film robot that was more than just a tin can with legs. Robby had a personality and played a significant role in the film. The original poster for this movie (pictured) shows Robby carrying a damsel in distress across a sci-fi landscape of other planetary mountains and spaceships. It was the first sci-fi film to feature humans traveling from Earth to other planets in a spaceship, something we would accomplish in the next decade. It was also the first to depict humans traveling in a man-made faster-than-light starship. I estimate this Robby the Robot to be similarly valued to the bulldozer between $400-$900.

If you’re in the market for vintage toys, estate sales are fantastic places to hunt. Many of these toys have been sitting in attics, unused for decades so they are in great condition.

Finally, the Planet Explorer was produced by Alps Toys. This was made in Japan in the 1960s and is another rare find. These toys as originally produced have complex features, and run on batteries. The explorer could move around making a driving sound, and as it drove, the lights under the dome swiveled around. The mounted guns move in and out mimicking a shooting action. The original toy featured a rotating sonar screen that was attached to the antenna, although that is missing from this toy. Again, similar to the other space-inspired toys of the era, the explorer features highlight colors of red and yellow, making it fun and playful, on a background of silver, made of tin, giving it that authentic space feel. At just 11 1/2 inches long, it’s a small but powerfully fun toy.

More than sixty years later, neither adults nor children have lost their fascination with space. These three toys stand the test of time for both their relevance and their design and features.

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Best known for his co-hosting role on The History Channel’s long-running hit, American Pickers, Rob Wolfe is also a seasoned antique dealer. From vintage signs to antique cars and motorcycles, and everything in between, Rob has an extensive knowledge of, and passion for, all things antique. He’s been collecting unique items and learning about their history since early childhood and today that passion can be seen at his showroom in Bettendorf, Iowa where this summer he’ll host the annual Bettendorf Americana Car show and Antique Auction.