THE TOYHEM! FINALE: A tale of the one that (almost) got away…
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Welcome to the TOYHEM! finale! For the holiday season, we’ve brought you a series of features and columns celebrating the toys of our youth, which often made for the best memories this time of year. You heard from comics creators, regular 13th Dimension contributors and more. Click here to check out the complete index of stories — and have a Merry Christmas, a Happy Chanukah and Happy Holidays! — Dan
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Every year, I tell the story of how I got the Mego Batcave for Chanukah. It’s become something of a tradition here at 13th Dimension and you can click here to check it out, if you like.
Now, the Batcave has always been — and will forever be — my favorite toy. The sheer amount of enjoyment I got out of it, the countless hours spent on the floor concocting adventures for Batman and his coterie of allies and adversaries (not to mention a fleet that included the Batmobile, Batcycle and Batcopter) make it easily the greatest of all time.
I will brook no dissent.
Thing is, though, at some point I learned that Mego had put out another headquarters for the Caped Crusader: Batman’s Wayne Foundation, which, since its 1977 debut, has become the granddaddy of all Mego playsets.
I can’t say exactly when I found out that it even existed. It was most likely through an old Heroes World catalog (click here for a trip through those), but in any event by the time I became aware, it was too late — its time had passed.
Because when it was new, I was quite in the dark. I never saw a commercial for it — though there was one — and it wasn’t like I could just drive myself to the toy store to see what the latest Cool New Thing was.
And I’m not even sure I would have been able to convince my Mom to get it for me to begin with. Money was tight and she knew I had the Batcave. To her, this probably would have seemed duplicative and wasteful. Besides, by the time I was 10, she was trying to steer me away from such things. (Foolish Mom.)
But, see, the Wayne Foundation wasn’t a repeat of the Batcave at all. It was four stories, with a working elevator powered by a simple pulley system. There was a plastic Batcomputer and conference table with view screen, as well as other furniture (a rather rudimentary sliding bookcase and even more simplistic “trophy case”).
Not only that, each floor had its own colorful background — art by Neal Adams and perhaps some of his Continuity studiomates — that harkened to the classic Batcave tropes, mixing comics and TV lore: an atomic pile, a trophy room with giant penny and dinosaur, a hangar, and, in what was ostensibly supposed be the penthouse, a laboratory.
Beyond all the finery though, was what the Wayne Foundation stood for: modernity. At the end of 1969, Dick Grayson went off to Hudson University and Bruce Wayne moved into his Gotham City penthouse.
Later, he built a new Batcave under the tower in the underbelly of the city – as wonderfully improbable as that was.
In fact, when playing with my Batcave, sometimes I pretended it was under Wayne Manor, sometimes under the Wayne Foundation. It wasn’t until the ’80s that Bruce moved back to his ancestral home.
Decades later, I was reminded of the Wayne Foundation playset. I can’t say exactly when but I was an adult. Certainly in the last, oh, maybe 15 years or so. I initially didn’t feel a hankering to track one down because I never had it as a kid.
Yet something shifted over time. I began thinking of it more frequently, just as I had the Jokermobile (another Mego Bat-item I never received as a kid — and a story for another TOYHEM!).
Eventually, I began looking out for one but the cost was just too high. I couldn’t bring myself to buy it. And it was difficult to find one in good shape, with everything intact.
But I kept looking. And looking. More a fantasy than any real belief I would ever get one.
Then, this fall, one popped up on eBay that looked relatively affordable. So, I took a shot at it – naively thinking I could fend off the snipers who, as it turned out, were much more willing to spend a lot more than I was.
My initial reaction, was, “Screw it. I’ll just have to live with the idea that I’ll never have one.”
And that was quickly replaced with, “No, screw it. You only live once. I WILL have one. Someday. Just maybe not right now. I’ll put the money away and one of these days, the Bat-stars will align.”
A couple weeks later, another one was posted on eBay, one even nicer than the one I’d lost out on.
Now, mind you, I’m not some hedge-fund dude who has cash spilling from his pockets. If I was going to do this, it was going to hurt. I would have to make sacrifices. Not “I won’t be able to feed my family” sacrifices, but you know what I mean. This was not an easy move.
But with my wife and son’s encouragement, I went in a second time, this time with an absolute cut-off number in my head and a rough idea of how I would be able make it work financially. I timed my bid, strategizing until the final moments.
And dammit, I won! The Holy Grail of Mego collectibles was headed my way!
Over the weekend, I built it and it’s HUGE, living up to its 42-year-old billing. I even have a special spot for it picked out, not far from where I keep my Batcave on display.
Because while the Batcave may still be the greatest of all Mego toys – greatest toy, period — the Wayne Foundation is definitely the biggest.
And it was worth every penny.
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MORE
— The Complete TOYHEM! Index of Features and Columns. Click here.
— TOYHEM! Memories: THE MEGO BATCAVE AND ME: A Holiday Story. Click here.
December 25, 2019
So glad you finally own one! I received one as a Christmas present from my parents when I was a child, and by far it was my favorite Christmas present. So thankful for Mego as they were a foundation of my toy collection.
All the best during the holidays and may your 2020 be the best year yet!
December 25, 2019
I’m so very glad it came home to you Dan. It’s been on my list for years, but I’ve just never felt I had that much spare cash for one item to pull the trigger on. Maybe when my kids are grown…maybe.
Happy Holidays!
Chris
December 25, 2019
This is such a wonderful toy. ^_^
December 26, 2019
Man, I had one of these when I was a kid and loved it!
February 13, 2020
I sold mine right before Christmas last month (for way too little), but it was is rough shape and was always missing a piece or two. I hope it found a good home. I still kept the front and back of the box though. It was quickly replaced as a favorite Christmas toy the following year when I got the Kenner Star Wars Death Star.
July 28, 2020
I’m so incredibly envious of you with this Wayne Foundation, Each picture you posted I wanted to cry lol
January 4, 2021
I would like to buy this for my 11 year old son. Plwase get back in touch with me regarding this matter.
January 4, 2021
It is not for sale. Thanks, though!
April 17, 2022
I totally have one in amazing condition. I don’t recall mine coming with a helicopter though. Anyways, I’m considering selling it. Local dealers won’t even give me an offer because its way too much for them. But I can’t imagine what the shipping on something this size and weight would cost.
August 17, 2022
Still have mine. It doesn’t come with any of the vehicles, Thomas Hannes.
November 6, 2024
I have been collecting Mego Marvel/DC and ‘Star Trek’ action figures for well over fifty years now, and even I had no idea this joker ( npi ) even existed! I cannot deny the idea of a ‘Wayne Foundation’ playset was a natural, as, by the time it went on sale in 1978, Batman and Alfred had been living and operating in the Wayne Foundation Building in the various ‘Batman’ comics for nine years- so this playset was necessary. My only problems with it are A) The “chintzy-ness” of it- it’s chintzy! As Mr. Greenburg pointed out above, the production value of it is bottom of the barrel. Details are very important, especially to hard-core comics fans-somebody please inform the Mego Corporation that Robin’s utility belt is black, not yellow, and the Bat-shield on the doors of the Batmobile are identical to the crest-insignia of Batman’s shirt, not giant labels which read “Batman”! B) In 1969, following the abrupt death of the Adam West series, DC found themselves in scramble/survival-mode with Batman. The settled-on solution was to return Batman to his dark, noir roots of 1939, and the early 1940’s. To this end, the Batman writership decided to restore Batman to a two-fisted vigilante loner, with no sidekicks, ( have a great time at college, Robin ) and no Bat-vehicles!! How does a guy with no super-powers, or supernormal means of transport get around without conventional vehicles-??? Simple- simply move him and his trusty manservant out of the wealthy suburbs, and into the downtown area where all the street-crime actually occurs, have them live in a very high-in-the-sky penthouse where they are safe from street-level criminals, but descending upon them is simply a matter of whipping out the ol’ Bat-rope, and swinging down on them, and kicking the crap out them! This method eliminates the need for mechanized transport, giving Batman the illusion that he is actually some kind of supernatural creature who flies around Gotham City every night, like the bat of prey he is supposed to be! I have always felt this development was specious, at best, because I don’t care how athletic you are, this business of using a rope/cable/whatever as a means of transport is going to eventually result in your arms being wrenched out of your shoulder-sockets!!! Ask any doctor!!! I was so happy when Batman and Robin returned to Wayne Manor in 1982, in ‘Batman’#348, I believe, which gave us Bat-fans two wonderful things: The end of the asinine “Batrope-as-method-of-travel” nonsense, and the return of the awesome Batmobile, ( it’s fourteen miles from Wayne Manor to Gotham City, remember, with no rooftops to swing off of!! ) and the rest of the formidable Bat-Fleet, which, for an extremely healthy number of Bat-Fans, is a MASSIVE amount of the enjoyment of the concept!! I remember when DC first instituted all of this “no Bat-vehicles” edict in 1969 and 1970, a healthy amount of the comics-reading segment of my community were screaming bloody murder over it!! And rightly so! No Batmobile-??? Shiiiiiiiiitttt!!!! No Bat-Jet, or Batcopter-???? Seriously-???? C) As the early Seventies wore on, I could, grudgingly, understand why Batman would require some kind of convenient, quick, go-to rudimentary crime-laboratory on site at his home at the Wayne Foundation Building. What I could NOT understand, and STILL cannot understand, either the necessity, or the practicality of, was hauling all of the past-case trophies out from under the suburban Batcave, like the T-Rex, and the giant penny, and relocating them to the new, urban Batcave!! That has always seemed to me like a hell of a lot of unnecessary trouble, and quite possibly compromising, for a man whose secrecy is crucial to not only his effectiveness as a crimefighter, but to his very survival!! What if some wayfaring Gothamite were to accidentally witness Bruce and Alfred hauling all that massive junk into and out of the urban Batcave-??? Just not worth the risk, I’d say!! And, finally, D) Mr. Greenburg makes the point that, even had he been aware of the existence of this item back during it’s day, his mother would probably veto procuring him one, on the grounds of his already owning a rather large Batcave set-up. I would have to agree with Mom’s hypothetical attitude on the matter: This is simply a textbook example of too much of a good thing not being good!! I assume this toy was expensive even by late Seventies standards, and if Mr. Greenburg’s Mom- or anybody’s Mom- decided to pass on the purchase of this very expensive toy, especially on the grounds of “Look- you’ve already got a Batcave- how much more of this Bat-crap do you need-??” I could fully understand, especially considering how chintzy the product actually is!! American Moms from coast-to-coast- from Gotham City to Coast City- would undoubtedly reason, faced with the prospect of buying an expensive ‘Wayne Manor Playset”, or buying food and clothes for the kids, that another expensive “Batman” diorama toy just might be an unnecessary and extravagant frivolity! However, as chintzy as the item is, I have to confess that it does have a feature or two that are pretty cool, such as the Neal Adams graphics, ( that’s who I’D hire!!! ) and the variety of characters featured on those graphics, such as Lex Luthor, Green Arrow, Superman, and that dude from the Metal Men! ( perhaps what would be necessary here on those viewscreen monitors would be those little 3-D panels which alternated images as the toy is tilted from one angle to another, which were so popular in the Sixties and Seventies – I am sure the Mego Corporation could afford them ) So- there it is- my official review of the Mego “Batman/Wayne Foundation Playset”. A very cool dust-collector, but did the world really need it-??