Star Wars Prototype Rocket-Firing Boba Fett L-Slot / Hand-Painted AFA 60 (Kenner, 1979)....

Description

Star Wars Prototype Rocket-Firing Boba Fett L-Slot / Hand-Painted AFA 60 (Kenner, 1979). The Rocket Firing Boba Fett has been called the "Crown Jewel of Unproduced Toys" It's become legendary as an iconic Star Wars "Mandela Effect," (far better termed "Rocket Fett Syndrome.") The figure everyone thought they had, but didn't. Offered as a mail-away premium, the Rocket Firing Boba Fett was highly promoted by Kenner, lodging it in everyone's imaginations. For four proof-of-purchase seals cut from any Star Wars 3 ¾" action figure card back it could be yours. It seemed a cruel trick, when the Boba Fett figures that shipped, arrived with their plastic missiles sonically welded in place. It was a clear letdown. Helping along this disappointment was a small polite letter explaining Kenner's safety concerns over the toy necessitating the change. It offered in substitution any Star Wars 3 ¾" action figure of choice if the consumer wasn't satisfied with the redesign. Looking back, the removal of the rocket launching mechanism should have been no surprise. Almost immediately anything to do with it was being mysteriously obscured by stickers ignoring the feature. Kenner's legal department already had concerns over the toy's safety, but the company's outgoing President Bernie Loomis was highly in favor of the project. As Kenner engineer's struggled to make the toy safe, another ominous event was happening in the toy world. Rival toy company Mattel was experiencing their own problems with their popular Battlestar Galactica toy spaceships, which fired a similar sized projectile. If accidentally shot into the mouth, the choking potential for children was becoming clear. Already, there were several aspiration induced injuries, and one child's death. The culmination of these two events ultimately doomed the Rocket Firing Boba Fett. Painfully most would agree Kenner made the right decision, erroring on the side of safety. It's uncertain exactly how many Rocket Firing Boba Fetts were created before Kenner abandoned the concept for a safer non-firing figure. What survives today in the hobby generally comes from ex-Kenner employees who took examples home. All others are believed destroyed with none (despite urban legends) ever getting distributed to the public. Surviving populations featuring the original reverse "L-slot" latch configuration number about seventy. Mostly injection molded in blue-gray, these "first-shot" figures are generally unpainted and were created to test the mold cavity functions before general production. As such these unpainted "first-shots" lack all copyright and point of origin stamps to the back of the legs. Of the seventy examples believed in collector's hands today, only five have been found hand painted - two in production paint scheme as this example, and three in unique alternate paint schemes. One of only two examples known to exist, this hand-painted Rocket Firing Boba Fett is still partially unique in its class: Whereas both surviving production paint scheme examples share similar traits, this lone specimen has its appendages and head distinctly painted gray - a treatment not replicated on the other known example. The lack of licensing and country of origin stamps to the back of the legs, confirms that this figure is a hand painted first shot. The origins of this prototype figure and missile can be traced directly back to former Kenner Employees. It has subsequently been part of the legendary Kern's Collection, which once boasted no less than nine different Rocket Firing Boba Fetts, many of which remain unique to the hobby! Though long ago dispersed through sale, pictures of that collection featuring this figure still circulate online; affectionately known to collectors as "The Nine Holy Grails in a Row." Some may think grading such a unique figure superfluous, but for the sake of preservation it has been expertly enshrined in an acrylic case by AFA. It has been awarded the grade of AFA 60 EX Serial # 11274146. A letter from CIB'S Tom Derby accompanies it. A separate letter from Rachfal Enterprises' Brian Rachfal documenting the figure's unique provenance is also included, along with a facsimile of the original Chris Georgoulias document.

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