Comments on: Darren’s Toys

By: Sordes

Sordes — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 20:45:33 +0000

I have still several chests full of toy animals, but during the last years I bought only two new ones, a belemnite and a Mastodonsaurus, both from Bullyland. About one and a half year ago, I began to sculpt my own animal models, especially of animals from which untill now no other models exist. Most of them are extinct animals, but I made also some unusual living animals like Blainville´s beaked whale and also some crypto-stuff like tatzelworms (with which I won a hoax-contest), a tsuchinoko and a tasmanian globster. Some of them can be seen at my blog: http://bestiarium.kryptozoologie.net/artikel/category/skulpturen/
I am trying at the moment to make casts of some models, and perhaps I´ll once be able to offer a crypto-collection.

By: DARHOP

DARHOP — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 22:20:47 +0000

Very kool. I too am a collector of many thing’s. From HotWheel’s to Fossil’s.
Speaking of collecting. Does anybody know if PEZ ever made a BigFoot PEZ dispenser ?

By: Loren Coleman

Loren Coleman — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 18:12:54 +0000

The camel-like mammal with the long snout is the macraucheniid litoptern.

By: Saint Vitus

Saint Vitus — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 17:52:53 +0000

What is that strange critter with the long snout?

By: mystery_man

mystery_man — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 16:17:12 +0000

Mnynames- I’m with you on the kid thing. I have a daughter who is a little over a year old and she is fascinated with animals (like her dad!). I’m hoping it will turn into a healthy excuse for me to go out and buy cool toys like this when she gets a little older. I’m in the same boat with the wife too, she might see through the whole “It’s, uh, for our daughter” thing! I also agree that the toys out nowadays are much cooler than when I was a kid. Sure can’t wait to get my hands on some of them, er, for my daughter of course. 　

By: Mnynames

Mnynames — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 15:39:44 +0000

As for crypto-specimens, I have a small Jersey Devil from a Japanese company that produced a good deal of paranormal/crypto-related beings. He sits proudly next to figurines of Jim Morrison from The Doors and Max Schreck’s Count Orlok from the 1922 Nosferatu.

By: Mnynames

Mnynames — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 15:33:51 +0000

I think most of us here are just kids at heart, so it would not surprise me if most of us have at least one or 2 plastic “specimens.” I have most of my childhood collection, and have a few dozen from the Monterey Bay company (It helps that I worked for an aquarium for 8 years) and a few others as well. It has been a pleasure to have a 2-year-old daughter obsessed with dinosaurs to share them with, and to serve as an excuse to buy more. Some of the ones out there now look fabulous, far better than the pre-Robert Bakker-era slouching reptiles I had as a kid. As a fan of ceratopsians, however, I’ve found relatively few that look that impressive, but I guess I’m biased. Some company just put out a large T-Rex skeleton that I’m thinking of getting (Perhaps for my daughter, though I suspect my wife will see through that ruse) that looks quite good.
Not sure what the prize of my collection would be, though I’m quite fond of a Liopleurodon and a Green Crab the size of a dinner plate (A parting gift from my aquarium’s gift shop buyer).

By: YarriWarrior

YarriWarrior — Sun, 04 Nov 2007 22:22:22 +0000

A man after my own heart! I collect animal and prehistoric animal figures, model kits, toys, ect. And it is such a passion I now work as a paleo/model sculptor full time. Not to mention the cryptozoology resin models I produced myself. I have over 100 godzilla models and toys, 150 zoids(tomy), and over 500 yowies. That isn’t all, every thing I have related to animals/prehistorics/monsters/ total well over 2000 pieces. I have the british museum stuff, and all the safari dinos(and most animals)with the store display made in the shape of a cliff! And then I had to start collecting mega-fauna skull reconstructions. Darren, it is only going to get worse! Craig Woolheater can testify about how choked my office/den is with all the insanity, and there is more than that in storage. I hope your wife is understanding. Jeff

By: DavidFredSneakers

DavidFredSneakers — Sun, 04 Nov 2007 21:18:03 +0000

I’m a huge fan of tetrapod zoology, it’s great to see this interview.

When I was younger I collected toy animals, arthropods mainly, which were great to scare my sister with (though my favorites I kept safe).

I have recently fallen in love with these little puzzle animals by a company called “Fate Master” (or something) which are quite realistic, so far I have a Vespula and Mantis, which are still arthropods, and a Smiliodon.

By: forsakenfuture

forsakenfuture — Sun, 04 Nov 2007 04:56:30 +0000

Im 24 years old and i love collecting detailed dino toys.