Colorforms Outer Space Men

I love the Colorforms Outer Space Men. Orbitron graced the masthead of BugEyedMonster.com for over a decade and is still the official mascot. Check the favicon. I only ever had second hand, busted wire versions of these toys, but my Orbitron literally sent me off on flights of fancy as to what might be out in the universe. Whenever I read Jack Vance or other vintage Sci Fi, Orbitron was always the Bug Eyed Monster of my mind.

I have to be honest, there is no page I can create that will do justice to the Outer Space Men, because the encyclopedic version of it has already been done by Mel Birnkrant at his official web site. It has AMAZING photos of the figures on the cards, as well as the ultra-rare second series (that never made it to store shelves.) Mr. Birnkrant’s site is a treasure trove of toy making stories and some really thoughtful essays and worth reading. But if you’re just casually interested in seeing some of the Spacers, here’s a gallery of the bendy aliens.

If, by some remote chance, you’re not familiar with the Outer Space Men, they were a line of 8 inch action figures released by Colorforms in the late sixties. The bodies were made of flexible plastic with wires running through their bodies. It gave them a huge range of poses, but made them prone to breakage as well. Because of this, a Colorform Outer Space Man in good condition goes for a premium on ebay. Carded ones are ridiculously priced. Each figure had its own unique story, enhancing the magic (at least for me.)

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Classic toys and ephemera from the 70s