In the world of serious Toy Collecting there's a small niche of Collectors known as "Bootleggers". They are people who mainly collect knock-off bootleg toys. These toys usually come from China, Hong Kong, & other places, but Mexico is one of the most popular. Here are 2 examples of "Mexican Bootleg": The 1st one totally cracks me up. It's a vinyl figure of both Batman ( sort of a "Dark Knight movie" version ) and Homer Simpson from the Simpsons TV Show cartoon... hilarious! I mean, if you're ripping off one company's trademark then why not do two, ha! Then, there are these 2 Egg-Shaped Bendy Figures of Superman & Batman... crazy! I actually really like this Batman Toy, it looks cool. Now, I gotta ask, do YOU have any weird Bootleg Batman items in your collection? If so, then please send us some pics, thanks.
OK, I'm wondering if anyone knows if this BATMAN Coloring book is an actual licensed product or just bootleg? ( Either way it's pretty cool ). It was made in Argentina around 1989 & the shape of the book is die-cut, which is interesting. The artwork is kind of cheesy but that's normal for a coloring book. It looks like it was made by a company called "Sylvapen". Does anybody have any information on this?
Super Happy Fun Time! Here's an assortment of some wacky BATMAN BOOTLEG Comic books from Hong Kong. I say "bootleg" because I don't think they got publishing rights from DC Comics. The artwork is totally crazy & done in a very Manga-type style. I'm not sure what year they came out but I have to guess 1960's or at least 1970's. I say that because the monster on the 1st cover reminds me of Jack Kirby's art. Plus, is that Ultraman on one of the covers? Weird! I also like that they ripped-off Superman, ha ha! Either way I totally love the graphics!
Alright! It's "Wacky Wallpaper Wednesday" again here at the Bat-Blog & this week we have some really really weird stuff. Now most of you know our Batman Wallpapers are usually breathtaking, plus elegant & tasteful, ha ha! Well, they still are this time but they're also kinda strange. The 1st one is using Japanese graphics from a Vintage 1960's "Batman Toy Briefcase". It was a bootleg item from Japan & that explains the unusual coloring. But it's a great part of Bat-history so there you go! the next image is from a future DC Comics Batman comic book showing the "Return of Bruce Wayne". Well, sort of. You see, when "Bruce Wayne Batman" was killed by Darkseid awhile back he wasn't really killed but sent back in time. He awakes much later & his mind is confused plus he doesn't quite know where he is or what his name is ( something like that ) &, the kicker, he still becomes "Batman" anyway! Oh yeah, he becomes the Dark Knight in the "Caveman Days", ha ha! But don't laugh. I think this is gonna be an extremely cool storyline ( or at least let's hope so ). The artwork here is done by Andy Kubert & it's totally totally incredible. Now, don't forget, the large wallpapers are for your computer desktop & the small ones are formatted to fit the screen of an Apple iPod Touch or iPhone...enjoy!
I got a wonderful e-mail the other night from our good friend Lauren. She said the other night her Uncle gave her a gift of some "Batman Sunglasses" he found in some store in Austin, TX. She said that even thought they are not official ones ( bootleg ), they're still great! I have to agree. They are really cool! I also think they could be a nice accessory to a Catwoman Costume ( mod 1960's version ) too!
A few days ago we posted a video clip that was a scene from the Batman Bootleg-Film Spoof ( Filipino Parody ) titled ALYAS: BATMAN ES ROBIN & people went crazy for it! So today I thought I would post the movie trailer for this wacky piece of unauthorized Batman History! It's a completely wacky-crazy movie from the Philippines that all serious Bat-Fans totally love!
I knew I had to post this crazy Batman Video...it's totally wacky! This is the ending credits for a foreign-bootleg film Batman movie that features an unmasked Batman and Robin singing a parody of "At The Hop" with The Joker and The Penguin...and a dancing midget in a Spiderman suit ( I can't get the song out of my head!! ). I told you it was wacky! But seriously it's a lot of fun & a great piece of Bat-History, enjoy!
Awhile back, here at the Bat-Blog, one of our readers, named Tomas, shared some really nice photos of his amazing Batman Action Figure Toy Collection. The cool thing is that he's from Puerto Rico & I love to meet Bat-Fans from all over the globe, so that was pretty neat. Anyway, he submitted a lot of wonderful pics that many readers totally enjoyed ( his collection is awesome ). Now, when he sent those photos he took a special photo of one unique toy that I saved to post at another time...because it really stood out. It's a "Bootleg Batman Action Figure" from China & while looking at the photo I noticed a lot of English spelling mistakes that were kind of funny! Here they are: In the top right-hand corner of the packaging art it says, "Morgan Freeman". OK, right off the bat they're wrong because it's a figure of Christian Bale as Batman, ha ha! But, it continues to say, "most new series, design for the children fangle ( the word "Fragile", maybe? ) and in the high quality welcome you use our products completely new to come into the market"...yeah, totally crazy! Then, at the bottom of the front-side it says, "BATMAN BEGINS, Super Century Design, Unequal in Performance". Which is spelled a little better but is sort of totally wacky!! Anyways, I thought this stupid stuff was kinda funny...hope you enjoyed it as much as I did, ha ha! So, now go to the store & buy your Morgan Freeman figure!
Awhile back a good friend to the Bat-Blog, named Andreas, sent us a few photos of his "Bootleg Batman" Collection. I posted some back then but decided to wait a little bit before releasing more. You see, he collects both new & Vintage Batman Toys but one thing he likes to focus on are the wacky-crazy bootleg toys that get made all over the globe. The 1st toy is actually a pin-back button with candy attached. I think he got this in the UK where they don't say "pins" but call them badges. ( Or was it Mexico? Sorry, forgot ). It's a rip-off of the Bat-Signal Symbol. The 2nd photo is a "Super Heroes" Action Figure. The Blister Card features graphics with DC Comics, Marvel Comics, AND Power Rangers characters...strange. Also, if you make Batman RED & SILVER, then I guess it's not copyright infringement, ha ha! The next photo is also an action figure but this one is from Greece. They gave him a trident which is more of a weapon for Aquaman, ha ha. The 4th pic is sort of an action figure. Well, it's a "Marble Shooter". Which is kinda weird because kids don't really play with marbles much anymore. This bootlegger must have been in his 80's, "Kids love them marble games, aahhhh". The other weird thing is a Power Ranger makes an appearance on the card & isn't that small picture of a monster a villain on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles? The figure is kinda nice though, an "Animated Series" Batman. The last picture is the best. Yeah, I saved the best for last! This is a Batman Theme Song Tribute Vinyl Record with AWESOME Batman Graphics. If I remember right these were made in France, or maybe the UK, & they're extremely cool! Plus, these are great quality unlike most bootlegs. Now, the main reason for posting these, other than a good laugh, is to show the history of the Batman Toys. I love the bootleg stuff but don't go out of my way to hunt it down or pay for it. If I come across it at a flea market or garage sale really cheap I'll get it for a funny display piece. I wanna thank Andreas for taking the time to shoot these photos & for sharing, that's great, thanks!!
Just the other day I received some extremely cool photos from a Bat-Fan named Andreas. He likes to focus a part of his Batman Collection on the crazy bootleg toys that are made in other countries. His pictures show some really great examples! The 1st one looks like it's from China & it features imagery from the 1989 Batman movie. There's The Caped Crusader, Vicki Vale, The Joker, The Bat-Wing, & The Batmobile Car. But wait! Who's that villain-goon with the eye-patch? I don't remember him in the movie, ha ha! The second toy comes from Sweden & it's one of those "Water Maze" trinkets. I really love the "bat-shape" design, very cool! The 3rd piece, also from China, is a Set of Spiderman & Batman Action Figures It looks like they're ripping off TWO movies at the same time, ha ha! The last item is one of my favorites. I think so because it just has a great vintage look about it. It's a kite with an image of PINK Batman...pink! I wanna thank Andreas for sending these these in, they're all wonderful! Thank you. I also wanna invite any other readers to share any kind of Batman Photos, Information, Ideas, or whatever! Our e-mail button is always at the top right-hand side of this page.
OK, Hmmmm, this is kinda weird but here are 2 very strange Batman items from Russia. The 1st one is a famous "Bootleg Action Figure" of Batman, shown with original box! I have always thought the bootleg stuff was pretty funny but I don't really go out of my way to buy it. I've always thought every collector needs at least 1 item like this in their collection. Ya know, just for fun. There's some really great stuff made in Mexico that's very wacky! The 2nd photo is an original advertisement for the Canon IXUS 75 Digital Camera. It features a model who has more than one set of hands & he's making a Batman mask out of his fingers, yeah weird but it looks kinda cool. I can't read Russian but I think there's a silly caption up above his head, ha ha! Anyway, I thought some readers would enjoy this stuff because it's so obscure. For some reason you never see much Batman Memorabilia from the USSR...very cool!
Our friend Zdravko has found what could be the very 1st "Bootleg Batman Item" from the new movie. He lives in Bulgaria & found this while shopping for school supplies. He said it was "Made in China", that's funny! It actually looks like a real product, that's kinda scary!
Over at the ETHAN PERSOFF website he reprints an extremely RARE 1966 BATMAN Bootleg Comic Book made in Saigon during the Vietnam War. It's written entirely in Vietmanese & the artwork is kinda crude. But, as a special piece of Batman-History, it's amazing! Here's a few shots of some covers & even one panel as an example. Be sure to visit his site where you can read the entire comic book...that is if you understand Vietnamese, ha ha! Actually it's sort of neat to look at because the graphics are really cool & you can sort of understand the story if you go from panel to panel. Here's a link button, check it out!
Ever since finding the Exploitation "FIGHT BATMAN FIGHT" Movie Poster awhile back I have tried to research this classic Batman bootleg movie. It was filmed in the Philippines in 1973. It starred Victor Wood as Batman. The 1st set of pictures are graphics from the movie posters which have to be super-rare! The next photos are from some newspaper ads. This movie by Pacific Films is such a blatant rip-off of the Warner Brothers character that I'm sure they were sued or forced to not release this to DVD. I bet it didn't even last in the movie theaters that long, ha ha! The only available copies are probably owned by a few collectors. Judging by some of the artwork it looked like it had babes & robots, oh god! This would be so great to watch!!
One of the types of Batman Toys I personally like are the "Foreign Toys". They're usually very very wacky!! Plus, it's neat to see a foreign language on them (I think it's great that the character is loved all over the world ). Yeah, I'm kinda weird, ha ha! Anyway, here's some very cool examples: The 1st photo is a "Bootleg" Inflatable-Toy of Batman. He looks kinda pretty with that bold red lipstick, don'tcha think? The 2nd picture is an extremely RARE Slot Car Race Set made by Polistil. I think it's from Italy or Poland. Either way the graphics are awesome! The weird thing is the Batmobile looks like the one from the 1989 Tim Burton movie but the graphics on the box of Batman & the logo are retro 1970's! The next 2 items are from our friends in Argentina. The 1st example is a plastic ring toss game that I have never seen before ( Thanks Paulo for sending that pic, appreciate that! ). The 2nd item is a small packaged puzzle. I think it's a carnival prize or something. It has some really nice graphics that look like they were swiped from Dick Giordano artwork. Whew! We just went around the world. OK, if any readers in "foreign lands" have some photos they would like to share then please send them in today. Thanks!
The BAT-BLOG is ALL about the love of Vintage Batman Toys so when we noticed we had some cool Japanese toys to share, we were psyched! Here's a nice assortment of 1960's Batman Memorabilia from Japan. The 1st photo is a RARE Vintage 60's Tin Toy Car Batmobile. The graphics on this baby are sooo beautiful it almost makes you cry, ha ha. We love the "Radar" on the hood that shows Batman where the Joker & Penguin are hiding. This is one of those friction-driven vehicles....nice! The 2nd picture is of a set of 2 plastic Batman & Robin Lunch Boxes with the original cardboard box it came in. You know just by looking at them that they are Super-RARE! Again, the graphics are extremely cool. We love seeing the Batman Logo in Japanese lettering! The last photo is a cool piece of Bat-Nostalgia even if it is bootleg! This is a Store Display filled with packages of Japan 1966 Batman Sunglasses/Goggles. I would love to have just one package of those but a whole display full...OMG!
A friend to the BAT-BLOG sent in these 2 graphics from a 1970's Batman comic book that was published in Iran. He said he wasn't sure of it was a licensed product or just ripped off. We think it's probably bootlegged but the graphics are really cool. We love the Batman Logo!! Thanks Jordan for the cool pix! If any other readers have some contributions they would like to share then please send them in too!
One of the most unusual Batman items I like to find while on the hunt are unlicensed "Bootleg Toys". I mean, they are usually not done very well & are always extremely weird. Plus, they make nice "filler" for display. Here's a few examples: The 1st pic is a Vintage 1970's Batman & Robin Motorcycle Bat-Cycle Toy from Italy. I actually love the detailing of this item. It's alot nicer than most other cheesy bootlegs. The 2nd picture is from the 70's also & is a photo taken at some county fair of a Batman Carnaval Game. I guess you throw a bean bag or ball into his mouth to win a prize, looks like hours & hours of fun! The 3rd pic has got to be the weirdest one. It's a pull toy Bat-Phone & Batmobile combo. It reminds me alot of the Classic Fisher Price Pull Toy. This would be great for display just because it's so wacky!! The last photo is an unopened package of Batman Fireworks that I think were made in Hong Kong. I love the vintage style graphics & the face on Batman is kinda funny. I also like how the word "Batman" is written in a chinese-style font...cool!
