by Brandon Engel
The Simpsons began its 26th season in September, making it the longest running sitcom and the longest running scripted prime time TV show in American history. Since the program’s 1989 debut on Fox–which came after three seasons of being a sketch in the The Tracey Ullman Show–the cartoon series has become ingrained in American culture and has greatly influenced the adult animated TV show genre, which includes such programs as Family Guy, American Dad!, Daria, Beavis and Butthead, Ren & Stimpy, and Archer, to name a few. The series is still so popular that FXX hosted a marathon of every single episode this past August and still airs hours upon hours of reruns every week (Fans should check their local listings for FXX availability).
The show has garnered a huge fan base during its 26 seasons on the air, and even the show’s merchandise has a large cult following among collectors. So, in honor of the show’s latest season, we’re taking a look at some of the rarest and most unique pieces of merchandise and memorabilia, including two toy figures.
The Save Blinky Bart Action Figure
Since the 90’s, Mattel has produced action figures of the citizens of Springfield, including many, many variations of the main cast. One of these incredibly rare figures, which was made in 1990, is of Bart in a “Save Blinky” T-shirt (Blinky being the fish mutated by radioactive waste in Lake Springfield in season 2, episode 4). There was no documented distribution or promotion of this figure aside from one mail-in coupon, making the figure extremely valuable since it was likely never sold in stores. There are supposedly only three in existence, and one of the figures was sold at auction on eBay for an astonishing $1,000.
Complete Case of Bart PVC Figures
Thanks to multiple licensing agreements between Fox and various manufacturers over the years, there are a few different lines of Simpsons memorabilia. One of the early 90’s manufacturers was Hamilton Gifts, which produced a series of PVC figures. The figures themselves are very rare, but even more so are the original packaging and display boxes that were sent to stores. That rarity would explain the current $1,495 price tag for a box of 24 of these figures complete with the retail case they came in, circa 1990.
Bart Production Cel Set-Up and Background
As previously mentioned, The Simpsons first started out as a segment on The Tracey Ullman Show. This makes any sketches or memorabilia from this period particularly coveted amongst collectors, due to their largely obscure nature. One incredibly rare find–which is available for purchase right now–is one of the original key master background drawings from The Tracey Ullman Show back in 1987. The master cel is currently on sale for $3,500 and would surely look great hung on the wall of a true Simpsons fanatic’s home.
While some of these asking prices may seem steep for a non-collector, to fans of the series, they’re worth every dime. It’s rare that a black sheep (which is what the show was when it first went on the air) comes out on top, which only serves to further endear the classic series to its fans. To put things in perspective, the U.S.S.R. was still in existence when The Simpsons enjoyed its broadcast debut, and if that doesn’t impress you, I’m not sure what would.
