The Action-Packed History of G.I. Joe - Google Arts & Culture (2024)

In 1964, a new toy conquered America. Hasbro's G.I. Joe was the world's first 'action figure'. With 21 moving parts, uniforms representing the four branches of the US Armed Forces, and miniature weapons and service manuals, this was marketed as a toy for boys.

G.I. Joe was developed by Stanley Weston, who licensed the toy to Hasbro for just $100,000. In the first year alone, Hasbro sold more than $16.9 million in G.I. Joe merchandise. In the second year of manufacture, sales topped $36 million.

It may seem remarkable today, but Hasbro had taken a big risk. In the rigidly-gendered culture of the 1960s, few toy companies believed that boys would want to play with dolls. To prevent any association of G.I. Joe with dolls, Hasbro invented the term 'action figure'.

The changing social attitudes of the era are reflected in G.I. Joe figures. In 1965, Hasbro introduced the first black G.I. Joe (the Action Soldier 7900), one of the first toys marketed specifically to African-American kids.

Major world events and developments are tracked by the hundreds of accessories and uniforms developed by Hasbro. In 1966, G.I. Joe joined the Space Race in a realistic Project Mercury space capsule and flight suit.

By the end of the 1960s, Joe fell victim to protests against the Vietnam War and parental concerns about children playing with toys of violence. Sales faltered, and Hasbro in turn took Joe out of the military and into the world of adventure and fantasy.

In the 1970s, Joe appeared as a secret agent, deep-sea diver, martial artist, and as seen here, 'adventure team commander'. Technological advances introduced new features, such as 'talking' action figures and the famous flocked hair and beard.

By the 1980s, G.I Joe faced new threats, in-particular, competition from miniature action figures of the popular Star Wars franchise. Hasbro responded by shrinking the size of G.I. Joe and further expanding the range of toys to include a new, non-military nemesis, Cobra.

The popular accessory packs were replaced by play sets, and the franchise was extended to include not only action figures, but jigsaws, cartoons, lunch boxes, and comic books.

Joe resumed active service in the 1990s, and Hasbro began to issue a series of collectible, limited editions. In 1998, Hasbro released a new G.I. Joe action figure representing a Japanese-American soldier of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.

In the 2000s, as the first generation of kids to be raised on G.I. Joe were raising their own, Hasbro re-released some of its most-famous toy sets, complete with era-appropriate packaging. The perfect gift for nostalgic parents seeking to recapture their youth.