I Hate Snakes.com | Indiana Jones Collecting News and Reviews

January - March 2007

Collection Update; Indiana Jones in the Lost Kingdom Game
Message posted March 31, 2007

I remember seeing Indiana Jones in the Lost Kingdom in stores shortly after the release of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. It was the first original Indiana Jones game to be released.

Growing up I had an Atari 1200 XL computer and this particular Indiana Jones game was only available for the Commodore 64. I've never played it and have never seen anyone else play it. I've only seen the screen shots here so I don't have a personal opinion on how good of a game this is. Judging by the score on that Web site, it's not very good. I may have to find a working, used Commodore 64 on eBay and buy it so I can play this game.

Collection Update; Indiana Jones DVD Promo Standee
Message posted March 22, 2007

I saw this standee at Laser's Edge, a local DVD store near where I live, when the Indiana Jones DVDs were released back in 2003. I inquired about obtaining it then but the store said it needed to be on display for a certain time and that the owner would want it afterward.

Unfortunately, Laser's Edge shifted its business plan from a retail and Internet location to just an Internet location. I drove past it recently and several standees are displayed for sale in the store window. This Indiana Jones one was one of them. I immediately called the phone number displayed in the window and luckily no one had claimed this standee. I was just in the right place at the right time.

Book Review; James Bond & Indiana Jones Action Figures
Message posted March 15, 2007

To my knowledge Indiana Jones has never been the star, or in this case, a co-star, of his own collectibles book. He has always been buried within many price guides and books relating to collecting toys and action figures.

James Bond & Indiana Jones Action Figures was released to coincide with the theatrical release of Casino Royale last November. The characters share a history and the book highlights how the two cross paths. For example, there is a list of actors and actresses in the book that have appeared in James Bond films and have also appeared in the Indiana Jones movies or TV series. That's just one of many fun little facts and pieces of trivia sprinkled thoughout the book. The book is about what the title says, action figures.

The book chronicles with rich pictures and detailed information of the many action figures, dolls, PVCs and accessories that have been produced for both franchises beginning with Dr. No. The book moves in chronological order, focusing on each action figure that was produced with the films of each actor who played James Bond (up until Pierce Brosnan) and then delves into Indiana Jones for the second half of the book.

As the old saying goes, pictures are worth a thousand words. The book is full of rich pictures of the collectibles and some rare, unproduced items are depicted to make any collector salivate.

Collector's Flashback; Indiana Jones - The Pinball Adventure Promo Video
Message posted March 5, 2007

Last year I counted down what I thought were the Holy Grails of Indiana Jones collecting. Indiana Jones - The Pinball Adventure came in at number five.

When the game was released in 1993, Williams Electronics produced a nearly 10-minute promotional video to highlight the innovative gameplay and breakthrough sound system. It's definitely a good sales tool. If you didn't want the pinball machine before you'll want one now.

Collector's Flashback is a regular feature at I Hate Snakes. If you have images of Indiana Jones toy or product advertisements from older catalogs, magazines or newspapers please send them to me along with your name and as much information about the publication as possible, such as name of publication, date, etc., I will credit you with the photo submission and information. Old ads of games, toys and collectibles are always interesting to revisit.

A Toast to Harrison Ford
Message posted Feb. 25, 2007

Harrison Ford has his own drink, more specifically, a martini.

When I started this Web site I wanted to focus on collecting but I can't resist this. This piece of news is a stretch but I guess it could fall under collecting if you collect recipes.

This past New Year' Eve I went to dinner at Club Soda of Ft. Wayne in Indiana and saw a drink called "The Harrison Ford" on the menu. So, of course, I had to try one. It's a traditional martini made with a certain type of vodka. If James Bond can have one, so can Indiana Jones.

Collection Update; Star Wars Insider
Message posted Feb. 18, 2007

Another magazine featuring Indiana Jones on the cover has finally hit bookstores. It's Star Wars Insider #92 and it's more of the same.

Indiana Jones is featured as an alternate cover tauting the big Indy 4 news. I've added it to the Further Adventures page. Inside the magazine the news is a few paragraphs in a small box with a giant two-page photo of Indiana Jones reacting to the cobra in Raiders of the Lost Ark. The news isn't anything different about the fourth film than what was said a few weeks ago. It's all dated information and recycled photos.

I made the criticism of using commissioned art for the covers when I posted the issues of Empire that came out a few months ago. It's always the poster images or common stills of Indiana Jones used for stories like this. If it's a new movie you're promoting and there aren't any new production stills or poster art yet have someone create special art to use so the magazine is at least somewhat original. The picture of Indiana Jones on the cover of Star Wars Insider has been used for a lot of different things over the years.

Collector's Flashback; 1982 JC Penney Figure 4-Pack
Message posted Feb. 7, 2007

This Web site shows images of Indiana Jones figures in the 1982 JC Penney Christmas catalog.

It was just $10 to buy Indiana Jones, Marion, Toht and the Cairo Swordsman all together, mint-on-card. You wouldn't pay that price for those four figures, loose and incomplete today. It's also great to see other toys from that era featured prominently in the catalog.

Wish List; Fast Food Restaurant Collector Glasses
Message posted Jan. 28, 2007

Remember how almost every fast food restaurant would have a series of collector glasses? Many different franchises, including Indiana Jones, have had collector glasses available at one time or another.

Glasses of this type were popular in the 1970s and 1980s and are a collecting category in their own right. Indiana Jones was feature in a four-glasses series based on The Temple of Doom with film scenes that were issued for Brown's chicken restaurants and 7-Up soft drinks in 1984. Glasses could be obtained for 59 cents with the purchase of a soft drink.

I also recently posted that my top Holy Grail in collecting is the prototype glass series based on Raiders of the Lost Ark that was never released.

With Indiana Jones IV getting closer to reality, a new collector glass series based on the Indiana Jones franchise as a whole would be a great collectible.

If a fast food restaurant could make the bid for a glass series then here's my idea: The series would be five glasses with four of the glasses depicting a scene from all four movies and the fifth glass representing The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles TV series.

Then with the glasses have a cool display for them like the display for The Temple of Doom glasses series. I just missed this auction. This is a great example of what a fast food restaurant could do today. I have the mechanical Indiana Jones portion of the display and the glasses but not the surrounding display. I'd love to have the entire thing. Hopefully another one will pop up.

Collection Update; Indiana Jones and His Life of Adventure
Message posted Jan. 19, 2007

I found this game booklet titled Indiana Jones and His Life of Adventure on eBay. It was specially designed for use with the Challenger Electronic Wand, a unique microchip pen.

Woven into the exciting story in the book is a series of games for you to play with the pen. The book was published in 1989 in the United Kingdom by Price Stern Sloan. The book is chock full of artwork diary-type entries that reads in the first person of Indiana Jones. Once you read the little entry you're given directions on the game for that page.

Directions for one of the games reads, "Indy is being forced under the moving truck. His only chance is to work his way along its underside to the rear and there, hopefully, climb into the back where the Ark is secured. However, so many of the mechanical parts that could serve as hand-holds are red hot! Set Challenger to Mode 6A and track the (relatively) safe route from the front of the truck to the rear avoiding anything that looks too hot to handle."

The games in the book feature puzzles, mazes and trivia. I tried to find the Challenger Electronic Wand on eBay, Wikipedia and Google and wasn't able to come up with anything. It sounds like a fairly simple toy that required different books to accompany it in order to play different, yet simple, games. Since the book was published in the U.K. I'm assuming the Challenger Magic Wand wasn't available in the U.S. at the time. If anyone has any additional information about the Wand please let me know. I'm curious if it was a popular toy, if it's still produced, where I can get one, other books that go along with it, etc.

I Hate Snakes Celebrates One Year
Message posted Jan. 8, 2007

It was one year ago today that I made my first post. I would like to take this time to thank the site visitors for checking the page and my collection out. It's nice to know that people are actually reading it.

This year sounds like it will be a great year with the recent announcement of Indiana Jones IV beginning production in June. Hopefully there will be announcements of collectibles as well. I will keep you posted on any new collecting news. We may also see announcements for a Young Indiana Jones DVD set and news regarding the upcoming video game that was introduced last year.

When the announcement of the "Revenge of the Sith" title was made during the San Diego Comic Con in 2004 there was merchandise to go along with it, such as posters and T-shirts. Hopefully the Indiana Jones IV title will be announced during Star Wars Celebration IV in May or during the Comic Con in July.

I will also continue to add to my collection with old and new items. My collection is far from complete. The features I have been doing will continue as well. Below is a reminder of the features at I Hate Snakes that site visitors are welcome to submit content.

Collector's Wish List - You are welcome to submit ideas that you think would make great Indiana Jones collectibles and merchandise. Feel free to send me a description of an Indiana Jones collectible, along with your first and last name, city and state (if you are outside the U.S. city and country will do).
Collector's Museum - You are welcome to submit photos of your Indiana Jones collection. The photos must be of your collection on display (not individual items like I have) and must include your name and where you are from. You may submit up to three photos for the museum.
Collector's Flashback - If you have images of Indiana Jones toy or product advertisements from older catalogs, magazines or newspapers you are welcome to submit them. I will credit you with the photo submission and information. Old ads of games, toys and collectibles are always interesting to revisit.

The I Hate Snakes Store also has shirts, stickers and magnets featuring the release date of Raiders of the Lost Ark. I hope to add more items to the store this year, such as merchandise featuring the I Hate Snakes logo.

The I Hate Snakes Gift Shop features Indiana Jones products and other items, such as DVDs, video games and books, which would appeal to the Indiana Jones fan. If new collectibles are made available through Amazon.com I will add them to this shop.

Happy 2007!