G.I. Joe: Hall of Fame

The G.I. Joe Hall of Fame era began in 1991, when G.I. Joe released Duke, the first 12" (30 cm) action figure produced in the G.I. Joe line since 1978.

James DeSimone

During the fourteen years that G.I. Joe had not existed as a 12" action figure, James DeSimone had been touring toy shows all over the United States buying and selling G.I. Joe action figures. In the mid-1980s, DeSimone created the G.I. Joe Collectors Club, which was a throw-back to the original G.I. Joe Collectors Clubs that had existed during the vintage era of the 12" figures (1964-1978). The DeSimone version of the club existed as a newsletter to which thousands of nostalgic collectors subscribed. As a result of DeSimone's efforts to organize the G.I. Joe collectors, Hasbro licensed DeSimone's G.I. Joe Collectors Club. Hasbro also licensed DeSimone to promote official G.I. Joe Conventions during the early 1990s.

After Hasbro began collaborating with DeSimone, Hasbro executives realized that there was an untapped market of nostalgic collectors who had grown up on the original G.I. Joe and who wanted more. During the 1980s, the prices of vintage toys and especially G.I. Joe had increased astronomically because the demand for vintage toys like G.I. Joe and Captain Action far outstripped the supply. Thus began Hasbro's plan to revive the 12" G.I. Joe action figure with the Hall of Fame line. Hasbro honored DeSimone's contributions by acknowledging his assistance on the back cover of every Hall of Fame G.I. Joe's box. The back covers of each box also included a file card for each figure (just as the 3.75" line did) and a photo of the new figure along with the photo of a similar figure from DeSimone's collection of the vintage era of G.I. Joe (1964-1978).

Target Exclusive Duke

The first 12" Duke was a Target Stores exclusive. The popularity of the figure convinced Hasbro to unleash a new series of 12" G.I. Joe action figures, known as the Hall of Fame series. These new 12" figures were based on the A Real American Hero series of 3.75" action figure characters that had represented the spirit of G.I. Joe since they were introduced in 1982.

The Real American Hero series had spawned comic books and cartoons, and Hasbro hoped that the Hall of Fame line would have crossover appeal to the collectors of the 3.75" figures, and also the nostalgia appeal to the earlier generations that had grown up on the original G.I. Joe and the G.I. Joe Adventure Team. To accentuate that this figure would have a high collectible value, Hasbro introduced a gold seal over the end flaps of the boxes. Each figure was also individually numbered by computer scanning at the time it was made. For a

The Target Exclusive Duke had a headsculpt that was never used again for any other G.I. Joe figure. The Target Duke was dressed for Desert Storm combat, and he included a backpack, commemorative stand, a light-up weapon with sound effects, grenades, and a Beretta handgun and holster.

First wave

In 1992, Hasbro released the first wave of the new 12" G.I. Joe Hall of Fame action figures. These four figures were Stalker, Cobra Commander, Snake Eyes, and a new version of Duke. The new version of Duke (2nd Edition) had a different headsculpt from the Target Exclusive Duke (1st Edition). The first wave of the Hall of Fame figures also had a different body from the Target Exclusive Duke. The Target Duke had a body similar to a Mattel Ken doll, except the arms and legs were thicker and made of rubber covering a bendable plastic frame. The new bodies were changed to look more muscular and defined than the Target Duke. The Target Duke also had open hands which did not grip the enclosed weapons and gear very well. The first wave of Hall of Fame figures corrected this defect by giving the figures gripping hands that were similar to the 1970s Kung-Fu Grip that G.I. Joe and Action Man figures shared.

Second wave

About six months later, Hasbro issued two new figures, Grunt and Heavy Duty. These were basic figures that were only equipped with a plastic M-16, a t-shirt, pants, and boots. These basic figures lead the way for the second wave of deluxe figures which featured Ace, Storm Shadow, Destro, and Gung-Ho.

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