The Best of the West was the generic series name used by toy manufacturer, Louis Marx and Company, from the mid-1960s to the early 1970s to market a line of articulated 12-inch action figures featuring a western play theme. The focal character in the series was the iconic cowboy action figure named Johnny West.
History
Background In 1964, toy manufacturer, Louis Marx and Company, sought the means to compete against Hasbro's newly introduced G.I. Joe action figure line. Marx was able to employ their state-of-the-art plastic injection technology to produce a 12" articulated action figure. Originally, this military figure, packaged under the name Stony Smith, did not have articulated knee joints. In 1965, bendable legs were added. The Stony Smith action figure came with molded-on plastic clothing and a full arsenal of equipment accessories. In 1966, realizing that their figure was not doing well against Hasbro's aggressive marketing campaigns, Marx produced a fully articulated figure with removable clothing. Originally marketed under the Stony Smith brand name, Marx later repackaged this figure under the names All American Fighter and Buddy Charlie (including a Canadian model). With the popularity of the mid 60's spy craze Marx also released a "Mike Hazard Double Agent" action figure. Despite Marx's efforts, none of the military figures did well in the action figure marketplace.The Encyclopedia of Marx Action Figures: A Price and Identification Guide, Tom Heaton, 192pp. , Krause Publications, January 1999
During this time, Marx realized they would need to take a different approach if they were going to become truly competitive in the action figure marketplace. In 1965, Marx focused on producing a 12" cowboy action figure named Johnny West. Also in 1965, along with Johnny, an Indian named Chief Cherokee and a horse named Thunderbolt with full tack were introduced.
In 1966, Marx introduced cowgirl Jane West, her range horse, Flame, and a junior version of Thunderbolt, named Thundercolt. Additional new series items offered that year included a wild mustang, a teepee, a corral and a jeep and trailer set.
"Best of the West" series Commencing in 1967, Marx made a bold move to greatly expand its western action figure line-up. At the same time, the Best of the West began to appear for the first time in television ads as the official name of the toy line-up.
Other figures added to the line-up in 1967 included more horses, other animals, and the West children. The family members included two girls, Josie and Janice, as well as two boys, Jay and Jamie. They had a chestnut or palomino "Pancho" pony, a wild buffalo, and two dogs Flick, a German Shepherd and Flack, an English Setter.
The West family collection also included other accessories, such as a buckboard, covered or surrey wagon with horses that were fully rigged as well as a homestead for the West family. The homestead, made of cardboard, was known as "Circle X Ranch", named for the trademark logo of Marx Toys. Horses in the collection included palomino, black, bay, and chestnut color variations of Thunderbolt. Other horses included Buckskin and Comanche. Buckskin (despite its name) was available in brown or palomino, each with fixed legs and a neck and head complete with full articulation.
Fort Apache Fighters The years 1967-68 introduced many other new figures to the "Best of the West" collection as well. The Fort Apache Fighters Series was developed as an offshoot of the collection. New action figures in 1967 included Captain Maddox, Zeb Zachary, Bill Buck and two additional Indians, named Geronimo and Fighting Eagle. In 1968, a General Custer figure was added. Two color variations (palomino and brown) of the fully articulated Comanche horse and a full-scale cardboard Fort Apache were added to the series during those years, too.
"Best of the West" in the 1970s During the 1970s, additional action figures were added to the series, the first being western badman and gambler Sam Cobra. Following the release of Sam Cobra, Marx later added a town sheriff figure named Sheriff Garrett, after the famous historical lawman Pat Garrett of "Billy the Kid" fame. Around this same time, additional action figures were also released in Canada to expand the collection yet further. These included lawman Sheriff Thomas Goode, outlaw Dangerous Dan, and cowpoke Jimmy West. A pinto version of Thunderbolt, marketed under the name, Storm Cloud, was made available as the official Indian horse, a role that Thunderbolt had assumed in the early production years. And finally, Marx produced a Native American woman, called Princess Wildflower.
Johnny West Adventure Series In 1975, after 10 years of continuous Johnny West production, Marx devised a new and final series name for their western/cavalry themed action figures, the Johnny West Adventure Series. The Johnny West Adventure series included new box designs, along with figures and accessories in much brighter color schemes. Marx released "Quick Draw" versions of Johnny West and Sam Cobra in which a lever in the back would allow figures to draw their pistols. In addition, Marx introduced Jed Gibson, a black cavalry scout, that was only produced in the Johnny West Adventure Series.Marx Toys: Robots, Space, Comic, Disney & TV Characters With Values, Maxine A. Pinsky, Schiffer Pub Ltd, April 1996 Tomart's Price Guide to Action Figure Collectibles, pages 34, 35 & 36, Markowski, Carol and Sikora, William, Tomart Publications, January 1991,
Series figures Character Name Role Release year Johnny West Male Cowboy1965 Sam Cobra Male Villain 1972 Chief Cherokee Male Indian Chief 1965 Thunderbolt Johnny's Horse1965 Storm Cloud Chief Cherokee's Horse1972 Jane West Johnny's Wife 1966 Jamie West Johnny's Son 1967 Jay West Johnny's Son 1967 Janice West Johnny's Daughter 1967 Josie West Johnny's Daughter 1967 Flame Jane's Horse 1965 Pancho West Children's Pony 1967 BuckskinArticulated Head Horse 1967 Buffalo American bison 1967 Flick German Shepherd 1967 Flack English Setter 1967 Circle X Ranch Western Homestead 1967 Indian Tepee Tepee 1966 Camping Set Jeep w/Tent 1968 Geronimo Male Indian 1967 Fighting Eagle Male Indian 1967 Sheriff Garrett Male Sheriff 1973 General Custer Male Cavalry General 1968 Captain Maddox Male Cavalry Captain 1967 Zeb Zachary Young Cavalry Soldier 1967 Bill Buck Male Fort Apache Fighter 1967 Thundercolt Young Horse 1966 Fort Apache Cavalry Fort 1967 Comanche Fully Articulated Horse 1967 Princess Wild Flower Female Indian 1974 Buckboard and Thunderbolt Wagon w/Wheeled Horse 1967 Covered Wagon and Horse Wagon w/Wheeled Horse 1967 Jed Gibson Male Cavalry Scout 1975 Johnny West with Quick Draw Action Male Cowboy 1975 Sam Cobra with Quick Draw Action Male Villain 1975
References
External links Checklist at figurerealm.com Best of the West TV commercial "Best of the West" equipment manuals Marx Toy Museum (archived) Stewart's "Best of the West" Johnny West Antique Collector's Net