Collectively Speaking

Twelve years ago, a film changed Lee Dawson's life. It was an awakening, a Renaissance, if you will. Yes, there are others who have been “collectively,” affected by Tim Burton's 1993 claymation hit, A Nightmare Before Christmas. As for Dawson, he just has a simple love of the film—and any other items that look cool—as an incentive to collect.

When Dawson started working for Dark Horse Comics, the Milwaukie, Ore.-based comics and toys producer, his passion for collecting became reality. How could he not resist the Star Wars, Weta and, not to mention, a bevy of Nightmare and other collectible figures? The deal was done—he was a bonafide collector. Dawson says his favorite collectibles are Nightmare and Star Wars products—Dark Horse produces and distributes collectible, soft vinyl Star Wars model sets from Kotobukiya, Japan, as well as manga and other books based on the sequels.

“As an adult collector, my passion and desire to collect toys usually stems from an emotional attachment to the source material,” he says. “I can enjoy non-licensed toys, but I find myself drawn more to the ones based on film/television/music properties that I enjoy. I do, however, find myself drawn to toys from time to time that just simply look cool or fun. I really just tend to go for quality and that intangible 'feeling' over anything else.”

Dawson, who also collects Kiss, The Simpsons, Planet of the Apes, Universal [movie] monsters and assorted comic book characters, says that he has more of an emotional, than monetary, attachment to his collection. This emotional connection has even made him more knowledgeable about the detail and quality of other toys.

“I think the main thing that separates most of today's toys from those in the past is attention to detail,” he tells Playthings. “Today's collectors are very demanding when it comes to being accurate to the source material. If you look at the original Star Wars toys, there was only a vague attempt to capture the actor's likeness; a manufacturer could never get away with that today. Even if you go back to when the first Nightmare Before Christmas toys that came out in 1993, and compare those to the toys being put out right now, it is a striking difference in overall detail and quality.”

The past 10 years have been a revitalization in detailing. “There are so many companies now producing quality toys—it really is a collector's dream,” says Dawson. “Once upon a time, you'd only see toys produced based on major films or properties and only featuring the main characters from those licenses. Nowadays, you can find a wide range of companies producing an amazing range of products from even small cult films or properties.”

Independent toy companies are reaping the rewards of more collectors. Dawson says that these companies have the opportunity to make niche products that larger retailers would unlikely touch.

“It's no longer just the industry giants feeding the market, but many smaller niche companies filling in the cracks for toy hungry collectors,” he adds. “There has been a big change in availability, as well. It was only a few years ago that a collector was limited to hitting the large chain stores to find what they were looking for, but now you can find toys and collectibles in bookstores, record stores, gift shops, etc. Oh, and on something called the Internet,” he quips.

Yes, “it is indeed a great time to be a collector,” says Dawson. “The industry knows there is a new breed of collector s out there and caters to them with 'collector friendly' packaging and 'chase figures' and any variety of variants that feed the collecting machine,” he says.

The Simpsons and Star Wars will continue to have a cult following for years to come, according to Dawson. He has a soft spot for the Christmas toys from Memory Lane, based on the old Rankin and Bass stop motion films. The items will gain collectors when holiday nostalgia kicks in and the toys aren't readily available.

But what about Jack Skellington, Sally, Oogie Boogie, Dr. Finkelstein and the other characters of Christmas Town?

“And of course, my personal favorite Nightmare Before Christmas, I don't see going away anytime soon. There is a lot of great merchandise currently being produced from this modern classic, and I see future generations trying to vainly buy my collection from me!”

Are you an avid collector of toys and have a story to be told? Please e-mail Maria Weiskott at: mweiskott@reedbusiness.com.