Major Matt Mason hit the market in 1966 and delivered a toy line that allowed kids to play out their own adventures of space exploration.
What Is It?
Major Matt Mason is the central figure of a line of space-themed action figures produced by Mattel in the late 1960s. Inspired by the space race, which had captured the attention of the world and become a source of national pride in the United States at that time, the toy line featured a variety of astronaut characters as well as several aliens and it also offered a variety of related accessories. Focused mostly at boys–there were no women in the action figure lineup–the toys allowed children to play out their own adventures of space exploration.
Created By: Mattel
Original Release: 1966
Legacy:
This toyline captured the imagination of children at the time that the space race was very popular across the country and it is still well-remembered by those who spent hours traveling through the cosmos with the characters.
Primary Lineup:
Astronauts:
Major Matt Mason: The face of the toy line and “Mattel’s Man in Space”, Major Matt Mason was portrayed as a brave and adventurous astronaut. He wore a white and black space suit with a plastic helmet that had a clear visor.
Sgt. Storm: Another astronaut character, Sgt. Storm had a red and black space suit and was described as Major Matt Mason’s “space buddy”. He was characterized as a loyal and strong member of the team.
Doug Davis: This civilian astronaut was described as a jack-of-all-trades and is characterized as a vital member of the astronaut team because of his intelligence and problem-solving skills. He wore a yellow and black space suit.
Jeff Long: The only African American member of the team, Jeff Long was second-in-command and he wore a blue and black space suit.
Aliens:
Captain Lazer: This alien character was a giant, futuristic-looking figure with advanced space armor and he possessed “superhuman lazer powers”. He was depicted with various space-age weapons and capabilities and he was not made of the same bendable material as the other characters.
Callisto: The friendly alien Callisto came from Jupiter and was portrayed as working together with Major Matt Mason and his team. He had a bulbous green head and carried a “space sensor” and was described as “the mysterious alien with advanced mental powers.”
Scorpio: The insect-like Scorpio was another friendly alien character described as a “mysterious ally from the stars”. He had electric eyes and a vest projector that would send out “search globes”.
A Closer Look:
In the 1960s, the space race dominated the headlines and many young astronaut hopefuls imagined the adventures that they could have if they traveled into outer space. The G.I. Joe toyline came out in 1964 and it introduced an astronaut suit and space capsule in 1966, but most of its accessories were military-themed at that point. Coming out as a competitor to that line, Major Matt Mason offered a whole team of astronauts along with aliens and a wide variety of space exploration accessories.
The toys were known for their detailed design and the imaginative play they encouraged, allowing kids to create space missions and adventures. The accessories available included a space station, a lunar base, space sleds, jet propulsion packs, space capsules, and more. The actual astronauts that went into space and on to the moon would have probably loved to have some of the cool stuff that Matt Mason and his crew used! Each accessory was designed to be compatible with the Major Matt Mason figures, allowing for a high degree of interactivity and imaginative play.
Unlike G.I. Joe, conflict was not emphasized with these toys as the alien characters were mostly considered friendly and the main goal for the team was space exploration. But then boys will be boys, so you can be sure that plenty of space battles did occur (they certainly did with mine). The toys were quite versatile and somewhat durable, so they held up to hours of play. And many of us who owned part or all of the lineup have still have fond memories the hours of fun they delivered in a time when kids still played with toys.
Why Were They Discontinued?
While it may seem like the Major Matt Mason line was on the market for a long time, it actually had a relatively short life on the shelves. Introduced in 1966, the line was discontinued by 1972. Interest in the space program had started to wane at that point, and the action figure market was also in decline as electronic toys started to hit the market (G.I. Joe was also headed for a sales slump). The Matt Mason toys remained on the shelves for a while until the back stock was sold, but then they disappeared from the toy shops.
What About the Matt Mason Movie?
In 2011, a big-budget CGI film was announced focusing on Major Matt Mason with Tom Hanks voicing the central character and also co-writing the script. Robert Zemeckis was approached to direct the film, but an agreement was never reached. In 2019, the property moved over to Paramount with Hanks still attached Akiva Goldsman onboard as executive producer and Michael Chabon writing the script. Progress has been slow on the film, but the success of Barbie has re-ignited interest in toy-based properties and an update as recent as July 2023 suggests that Matt Mason is still on track to hit the big screen.
Interesting Facts:
A reissue of the Major Matt Mason figure came out in 2022 along with Mattel’s classic characters Pulsar and Big Jim and these were under the “Back in Action” banner. They were introduced at San Diego Comic Con that year and had a limited release. These were modernized and not made with the same material as their original releases. They had a limited release and are hard to track down now.
The original Major Matt Mason figures were made with a rubber-like material called “Plastizol” which was molded over a wire armature (with the exception of Captain Lazer) and this allowed them to be posed in many different ways. And while this proved durable and could stand up to many hours of play, the Plastizol and wire frame have not stood up well to the test of time. The former tends to degrade and the latter tends to break making it hard to find the action figures in good condition these days, and that has driven up their value on the collectibles market.
