My Odds & Ends: AMENDMENT #2!!!

[BrandonDaCollector]

Yep, this topic is called My Odds & Ends because I have a lot of stuff that is not actually action figure related thus I came up with this doozy of an I will update this from time to time just like My other topics So here we go with My first entry which was undoubtedly the one that I wanted to showcase first more than any other



My INSANE KEYCHAIN! Wow, oh boy-o-boy, I have been wanting to show this off for a long time and so here it is. This is one of My most unusual collections yet one of My most cherished ones. This huge keychain assortment is custom made/OOAK by Me and I have put together an arsenal of so many items from all kinds of genres that has accumulated over the past 3 & a half decades so most of these things are almost as old as I am I am still continuing to add more and more to it which it amazes Me that I can still find room on it as it is pretty close to the nitty-gritty not to mention it weighs several pounds



So with that pic being seen, I will provide several more to show some of My faves within it in more detail

Here is My classic WWF Tote bag & Dog tag when I was a part of the WWF Fan Club in 1990-1991 Those were good days and times when wrestling was great too They ended the fan club in the earlier part of the 90s unfortunately These are two of My most prized WWF items of ever, of all-time



Next up is My little Skeleton I got from the old & original Schaefer's Hobby Shop! Wow I loved that store, I got some really cool stuff there...more on that at a later date. This Skeleton with diamond eyes has always been a bud for Me, I got him when I was very young in the 80s



This here is My crown & jewel of My entire assemble. This Buffalo Nickle was My late great Grandpa's After he sadly left I adopted his vintage encased coin that was dear to him that he had for decades Also is My really cool rubber St. Louis Cardinals emblem. I got this at Schnucks in the 2000s when Baseball was still good and when they were winners.



Here My Hush Puppy Set that I found rather recently in a box down the basement!



Here is My Grandpa's Sears Craftsman keychain when he worked there. Also, I got a couple car keychains of Cadillac & Ford at AutoZone in the 80s. I was never a car person but I sure liked those however



Here is My Brontosaurus from the St. Louis Science Center, I believe I got that in either 1987 or 1988...gosh I remember that time like it was last week! Also here is My special Anheuser-Busch Coin in the late 80s. I got this directly from them! They are in Down Town St. Louis which is only minutes from My location. I loved it down in that area back then but of course things had to change Also, here is My Elicia's Pizza keychain that I got from them when they had it for a special offer in the late 2000s. They have the most unique St. Louis style tasting pizza you'll ever taste!



Here is My really rad Shark keychain!



Here is My great prize that I got from ShowBiz Pizza Place which is none other than a Pencil Sharpener keychain! If you are unfamiliar with this this, I just posted the whole story in My Vintage Action Figure topic so please go there for all the details!



Here is My Bear Claw and yes, it's REAL Also, here is My Eisenhower Silver Dollar! My Grandma got this special for Me and it's one of My fave treasures!



Oh boy, here is My entire collection of My vintage Micro Machines License Plates that I got for collecting them in the late 80s/early 90s by Galoob My Grandma made sure I got all 50 states Look for a special Micro Machines showcase in the near future in My Vintage Action Figure topic!



Ah man, this is also quite special to Me. This is My Prairie du Rocher Village in Illinois! One day in the early 90s, I believe it was 93, possibly 92 that My Grandpa got Me this. One day during that year he wanted to ride his Suzuki and I always wanted to ride with him. He wanted to go somewhere special so we went there, looked around and stuff and he got Me that souvenir, I have never forgotten that special day



Here is couple cute, sweet & hot Betty Boop keychains! I was with My Grandma at Schnucks in the later part of the 2000s, possible early 2010s and I saw them in the jewelry vending machine and I wanted them...bad so I gave her some money since she is excellent at getting stuff out of there real quick...and she got them!



Here is another cool one. When Me and My Grandpa were at a new golf driving range at Hoffmeister road I got this really awesome Mr. Potato Head in one one of those light sequence vending machines and that moment was so serendipitous and to this day I still cannot believe it He actually disasembles and opens up in the back like a regular one...I love him! It was in the year 2000 and it was about 20 ya before Hasbro woke Also there is a cool miniature of Larami's Super Soaker and a really cool Gumby in a car as well!



Here is My small collection of St. Louis cardinals Keys! One day I was at My local Arnold True Value hardware store and needed to make some keys. I saw that had some collector keys and I'm like wow, those look mighty fine but I wanted them as keepsakes, not My actual keys so I asked if I could just buy them and they said sure and it was a done deal! Yep, St. Louis Rams and others too



and last but certainly not least is a very nice keychain of My Lord Savior Jesus Christ. I got him at an old resale shop in the very early 90s down the street from My old K-Mart!



Well, that's it for now. I hope you were surprised and enjoyed this new topic of My and My Insane Keychain If I find any other keychains I will be sure to put it on this and possibly show it off in the future There is plenty more I have in store for this young topic, until the next update I'll see you around

[BrandonDaCollector]

So here is a second showcase of My Odds & Ends topic and this will deal with certain items that I have in My collection that is all part on 1 thing: Anniversaries! If you have noticed, I have a thing for years & times and have been mentioning about anniversaries off and on all year this year within My topics. Many people may not think much of it but for a long time things like this mean much to Me. Some of this stuff I planned on posting elsewhere but things had changed a bit so I thought just post them here for briefly for the time being and I will most likely continue to show some of them off in their entirety in time. So with that being said here is some stuff that I have been thinkin' about that I wanted to showcase before the year is out

1991: 30 years ago this year!

TMNT 2: The Secret of the Ooze novel and The Rocketeer Movie Magazine: Was never crazy about novels as I just wanted this for the pics and the sheer collectibles they are and would be become. TMNT 2 is My fave Turtles movie and IMO one of the best sequels ever made. The Topps Rocketeer movie book was My kinda book as it had pics & tons of info of the movie. In fact the movie was a great one, the last of it's kind and unfortunately has become a forgotten gem



The Rocketeer & The Addams Family novels: See above. I loved both movies especially this Addams Family. One of My favorite films and My fave version of the franchise. I remember seeing both of these at the show way back in 91



Suburban Commando: As you know I love wrestling and I have said before, I loved this movie. My Grandparents took Me to the show in the summer time of 91. This was huge for Me back then as it was the first film of Hulk Hogan's I got to see at the theater. My Grandma got Me the VHS not to long after it became available



Oh man, here the ones I have been wanting to showoff for a long period time and it is My special movie magazines of Starlog's The 25tth Anniversary of Star Trek + Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country + DC Comic Movie Adaptation! I was already a big Trekkie but never had any memorabilia of it till I saw these available. My Grandma got all 3 of them, the movie books at a 7-Eleven and the comic at Paramount Drugs. This was a time when 7-11 sold great books and I always wanted comics at Paramount when we had to wait to get medicine filled and oh, they were next door to a cool Woolworth's when they were still in business that I have mentioned several times previously. These times were still good and I love these books, they are so classic and still My some of My fave this very moment!



Terminator 2: Judgment Day movie magazine & Entertainment Weekly T2 Edition: The T2 movie book is by Starlog just like the above seen Star Trek books and My Grandma got it around the same time. It is an excellent book. Now the EW book of T2 is ok as these types of mags I only wanted for the main attraction. My Mom's boyfriend at the time got this delivered to his location at the time and wasn't interested in it but knew I would be so he gave it to Me :bounce:



1996: 25 years ago this year!

So here is My Independence Day/ ID-4 movie scrapbook that I briefly showed in My ginormous Halloween topic as a background. The book is average, it has a lot of pics but no character bios, stories or anything like that, I always thought it was kinda bittersweet I can't believe it was over 25 years ago when I saw the movie at the show actually on the 4th of July, I mean it's like it was just last week



2001: 20 years ago this year

Ah this was one heck of a year for Me, some of My most favorite movies of ever, of all-time came out and I got a lot of special items of them that took a lot of time, research & moolah to get them. The three movies were Jurassic Park ///, Planet of the Apes and The Mummy Returns! I was so crazed about them back then. Here is My 3 movie Trading Card collections. Now these are ONLY SAMPLES, I have the ENTIRE collection including the CHASE cards! Oh it was special time back then and I knew these were gonna be special so I wanted ALL OF THEM!

Jurassic Park ///



Planet of the Apes!



The Mummy Returns!



Now My intention of this topic was NOT to show off action figures but I will make an exception as at the moment I am not ready to show off My whole collections just yet so this is just gonna be a preview of sorts of a crossover of My WowWee/Hasbro's JP /// Spinosaurus & Hasbro's POTA! It was so cool getting these figures back then and can't wait to showcase them in their entirety in time!



EW Mummy Returns edition. Got just because of that!



The MUMMY Returns stand up! I got this from Hollywood Video! This is about a foot tall and is one of My most prized movie items of all! I loved Ancient Egypt already but I got so hooked on the first Mummy in 99 and knew the sequel was coming soon and when it was time it became My most anticipated movie ever...I mean there was a count down on the official web page and for months I watched the countdown counter day after day and didn't miss a day..it was a special time that was never duplicated and seen again



and here is My superb Mummy Returns Scrapbook and My Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring movie book! Oh this Mummy Returns book is great with great pics & info. Now I'm finishing this section with the LOTR! I am also a big fan of that awesome franchise as well. Unfortunately I do not have not have any of the Mummy figures by Jakks but I do have a lot of ToyBiz's LOTR figures which I may showcase in the future in My Modern action figure topic! The book is great and one of the coolest LOTR books ever published!



So that is all for now, don't forget to see My INSANE KEYCHAIN! at the beginning. Next up will be a short but very special update in My new Odds & Ends topic, until then I'll see you around

[AcidDragon]

You've got some of the most obscure things I've ever seen. A total treasure trove. Thanks for sharing, Brandon.

[BrandonDaCollector]

Thanks very much Acid, you ain't seen nothin' yet

[BrandonDaCollector]

So here is the ORIGINAL Koosh Balls & Koosh KINS! I got these guys at the great defunct Sports Authority 30 years ago back in 1991! I fell in love with these guys as kids and even adults at the time did. I loved their rubber filaments (strands) feeling and I took good care of them and they still feel real good! Now, these type of balls are still being made but like I said these are the originals and like most of everything...NOTHING beats the originals in My book!





BONUS!

Earth Stress Ball: I wanted and got this in around the same time at Sports Authority if I recall correctly. I always placed it with the Koosh Balls. I do not recall the company that made it as it could have been made by a number of novelty companies so take your pick. The Globe is still in decent shape, the paint apps has always been like that with bleeding but really it kinda looks like shores and maybe that was their intention As a matter of fact I squeeze it off and on and it still returns to it's original shape! I've always loved the appearance of our Planet Mother Earth especially this time when I was only about 10 years old.



Size Comparison!

Now, the size of these of these guys vary from tennis ball to soft ball size. Here is a pic of My Koosh Ball collection with My previously seen Addams Family Novel Book as it is a fairly small piece.



SPECIAL STORE BONUS!

Here is a special commentary of Mine of SPORTS AUTHORITY! I don't know if anybody is familiar with this great defunct store and if you are then hopefully this will bring back your memories as well. My local SA was in Crestwood which is now basically a ghost town thanks to a whole bunch of unnecessary crap over the past two decades of financial debacles & among other situations I loved going there because they had K-B & K&K Toys and an AMC theater all in the same plaza throughout the 80s & 90s plus an awesome drive-in theater that was pathetically replaced by a Best Buy. It was great times then. Anyway, I really wasn't a sports kid, I wasn't a huge fan of Baseball till 98 and never really dug the rest of the sports. I loved boxing and especially wrestling but those were times when them sports weren't getting the attention they should have when it was GREAT then when it goes downhill years later when things turned to dreggism then it got their attention, shame it had to be that way, I tried to tell people way back when and then...when things were awesome but as always they didn't listen Anyway, I got My own bowling bowls and equipment over at SA. I liked it all but it just wasn't for Me at the time even though I really wanted it to be (I talk about about that in My great Video Game topic recently so be sure to check out that can't miss update!). Oh they had other stuff over there that I liked. I like hockey but not the skates. My Mom's boyfriend whom I spoke about earlier on within the topic (his name is Jasper by the way - see T2) got Me a hockey stick and a puck from there. I was a great striker and I hit hard where I wanted it to go and I always felt I would have been one of the best but the skates wasn't My friends. Another thing I loved was looking at the guns. I loved guns then but not for weapons but for display and beauty. They had this gorgeous silver pump shotgun they had for years and nobody bought it but it was to expensive for Me to get or for My family to get Me. I was actually good at shotguns however as we went to outside turkey shoots where you were at a fire range at paper targets and win cold store bought turkey & hams for Thanksgiving...at 10 years old in 91 I won several of the big Turkeys & Hams and My Grandparents were astounded that I was that good and that lasted for days! It was an awesome but very chilly time to say the least Anyway with that trivia about Me outta the way, Sports Authority was a great store that I actually liked going to other than toy stores, comic shops and video rental outlets. Take a gander at the vid I have provided. It'll show how cool it was then and it's history


Well, that'll it do it for now, I hope you enjoyed this. We shall see what's next to showcase with the topic. Until then I'll see you around

[packerbacker180]

We didn't have a Sports Authority here, but I've been to one that used to be in Erie, PA a few times. I remember Koosh balls, but not ones with faces. Different.

[BrandonDaCollector]

OK good PB, thanks

[BrandonDaCollector]

Oh here we go with My next update and its gonna be a very special one. Its extremely special to Me because this showcase is of My two first comic books I ever got My Mom got them for Me when I was a very little youngster in around 1983/1984/1985. It was way before I was in kindergarten. I knew how to read a little bit already and I was already gamer player her classic Commodore 64 because she taught Me but comics was kinda of a new interest for Me. She and My Grandparents got Me things like Dinosaur books, MOTU & Star Wars figures and the like so I was already accustomed to monsters like Godzilla on TV and action, sci-fi & horror movies as well because I just loved that sort of stuff. So I'm not sure where she got them but My Mom got Me two Whitman (of Western Publishing) comics They are a very old company, even older than DC (founded in 1934) as Whitman began at the turn of the 20th century in 1900 so they predate them by decades They are an insanely underrated company IMO. These 2 comics are Brothers of the Spear and Tragg and the Sky Gods It didn't take Me long to get into them because they looked very familiar as to what I have previously seen in old fashion media. These had a great looks to them with excellent illustrations, characters, creatures & monsters. The animals was stuff I loved the most really because it was dinosaurs and stuff that looked like it was in He-Man and other great cartoons back then in the 80s! Another factor is there is some nice looking female characters in them as well, in fact, seeing these women was a precursor for Me to know that I like women. Characters like Teela & She-Ra in MOTU was the green-light for Me!

So these books are still in great condition, thank goodness I was wise enough and put them in My big bookshelf. These were indeed the forerunner of media of this type of the future to My liking of what grandeur would be ahead!

Here is the covers of Brothers of the Spear and Tragg and the Sky Gods and a brief look within them



Here is the inside of Brothers of the Spear. Note the funny Looney Tunes (I loved them then and I still do!) and how the comic begins.




Brothers of the Spear also had a bonus story in it...ELEPHANTS: Giants of the Jungle and it starred the Leopard Girl! So this was actually a double issue



The end of the comic with some other good famous characters!



Tragg and the Sky Gods begins and it is so cool. It was action packed from beginning to end!








Both comics had the same back cover however.



Here is the Copyrights! Notice the years...I love Copyrights!





Well, that's all for this one. It's really a shame that these have been nearly forgotten or disregarded by most I will present more comics within this topic in the near future, next will be a huge and extraordinary showcase of a completely different manner, until then I'll see you around

[packerbacker180]

Wow, cool. I couldn't tell you what my first comics were, but I know that's how I learned to read. Can't say I'm familiar with those two, but it's neat you still have them. I can't imagine whatever my first books were fared well condition wise, lol.

[BrandonDaCollector]

Thanks a lot PB, glad you were surprised a bit