Indiana Jones | Vintage Action Figures

Indiana Jones, the daring archaeologist and world adventurer of the movie Raiders of the Lost Ark!

Harrison Ford seems to have an incredible knack for being cast in cult classics – his portrayal of Rick Deckard in Blade Runner alone would have been enough to ensure him enduring cult status. Most recently, of course, the entire planet has been focussed on his reprisal of the role of Han Solo in JJ Abram’s billion-dollar-grossing sequel to the original Star Wars trilogy – Star Wars: The Force Awakens – an appearance which saw him reclaim his crown as Hollywood’s highest earning actor. Personally, I’ve got a soft spot for yet another much beloved embodiment of a different George Lucas creation – Indiana Jones – so when I spotted this vintage 1981 Kenner 12 inch Raiders of the Lost Ark action figure at a toy fair recently, I just had to add it to my collection!

Indiana Jones by Star Toys

Kenner’s legendary series of 3 ¾ inch action figures released as Adventures of Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark in 1982 are high at the top of must-have items in many a vintage action figure collection. Less lovable, perhaps, but equally sought-after, are the figures in the short-lived 6 inch action figure line by LJN released in 1984 as a tie-in to Raiders prequel Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. The action figures that time forgot, however, are surely the 1987 Indiana Jones action figures made by Spanish manufacturer Star Toys. These 6 ½ inch Indiana Jones figures are pretty hard to find nowadays, so I was thrilled to pick this one up at a reasonable price recently.

Raiders of the Lost Ark: Cairo Swordsman

Back in 1982 when Kenner launched its wonderful series of 3 ¾ inch action figures – Adventures of Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark – they provided Indy with pretty much all the main villains from the film, allowing kids in bedrooms all over the world to re-enact their favourite scenes. One of those bad guys in particular has acquired almost legendary status, which is remarkable considering he is only actually seen on screen for a matter of seconds! (I’ll assume at this point that anybody reading this post has seen Raiders of the Lost Ark – if you haven’t, stop reading this paragraph – big spoiler alert coming up!)

Raiders of the Lost Ark: Toht

One of the secrets of the success of many movie spin-off toy lines is surely not only the popularity of the hero, but also that of the nemesis. Kenner’s wonderful 1982 series of 3 ¾ inch action figures – Adventures of Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark – is a case in point, where Indiana Jones has several seriously bad guys to face down during the film as he struggles to block Nazi efforts to get their hands on the Ark of the Covenant. I’m assuming that anybody reading this post has seen Raiders of the Lost Ark – if you haven’t, then I should alert you that this post might contain a few spoilers! Arnold Ernst Toht, the Nazi Gestapo agent sent to recover the headpiece of the Staff of Ra and who meets a spectacular cinematic demise in the grand finale, is just one of Indy’s enemies to be immortalised as an action figure.

Raiders of the Lost Ark: Map Room Indy

This 1982 Kenner Indiana Jones action figure shows our hero not in his usual brown leather jacket and fedora hat, but in the desert disguise he wore in the map room in Raiders of the Lost Ark when Indy discovers the secret location of the Well of the Souls aka the final resting place of the Ark of the Covenant.

This figure was released exclusively with the Map Room Playset and originally came dressed in a removable robe. The provided accessories gave kids everything they needed to re-enact the scene – a grappling hook, tri-pod, pick, book, rope, satchel and pistol, not to mention the all important Staff of Ra complete with headpiece, which is the key to locating the covenant, as well as the scale model of the city of Tanis.