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| DALEKS copyright BBC TV and the Estate of TERRY NATION |
Okay, Criv-ites, here's a question for you all. In the above photo of two 4 inch friction-drive DALEKS, one is an original '60s MARX toy (procured recently on eBay for an extremely reasonable price), and the other is a late '80s/early '90s DAPOL reissue, produced from the original Marx moulds. Can you tell which is which? Go on, hazard a guess - but remember, things might not be quite as they appear. (And yes - that's the back page Dalek strip from TV CENTURY 21 #1 that they're posing against.)
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I obtained my first Marx Dalek in 1967. Eventually, I had two silver ones, a black one, and a red one. By the time I started secondary school in late 1970, I don't think I had any of them, meaning my ownership was relatively brief. However, in memory, it seems like I had them for years and years, far longer than their replacements purchased from '88/'89 onwards. (Must have around 30 of them, if not more.) That means I've now owned them for around 30 years, yet that period feels far shorter than the three-odd years I had the originals. Funny that, eh?
I think it's the one on the left, because its arms and eye stalk are all black and not colour matched to the casing.
ReplyDeleteIf I were to tell you that the black appendages are painted Dapol ones, PW, would you revise your opinion?
ReplyDeleteHmmmmm. Some time around 1966, my sister and I each got a Dalek for Christmas; one black, one grey. In my memory, the eye-stalks and arms of each were black, suggesting the makers had manufactured a bunch of appendages in bulk. The only other thing I can remember about them was that some of the domes on the skirt were elongated, which even in 1966 I could tell was clearly wrong. Ok, I'm starting to waffle now. Back to you.
ReplyDeletePhotos I've seen of early silver Marx Daleks had black appendages (and black Daleks had silver ones), PW, but the two (might even have been three now that I think about it) silver ones I owned in the '60s all had silver (or grey if you prefer) appendages. I suspect (as you suggest) that at some stage they switched to one colour as a cost-cutting exercise, as it was probably cheaper to do them all in the one colour.
ReplyDeleteHaving said that, in my case it was silver and in your case it was black, so maybe the assemblers at the factory just used whatever colour was within reach.
Anyway, you were right - it's the one on the left that's the original Marx one, but I got it without the arm, gun and eye pieces. Luckily, I had some spare Dapol reissue appendages which are indistinguishable from the originals (at least they were at first - Dapol later revised the eyepiece). Years ago - probably around 20-25 - I painted a set black to see if I could do it without them looking painted. I had to empty a sideboard, but I eventually found them and hey, presto - the Dalek was complete once more.