Laurel & Hardy, the comedic geniuses of Hollywood’s Golden Age, produced 32 silent shorts, 40 talkies and 23 feature films. They have entertained millions of fans across generations through live performances on film, radio and stage. Their decades-long careers have inspired many Laurel & Hardy collectibles and merchandise, but never before have there been 1:12 scale Stan & Ollie articulated action figures! Wandering Planet Toys has launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund the first batch of officially licensed 6-inch Laurel & Hardy figures.
beat Opportunity to interview the founder of Wandering Planet Toys Chris “Doc” Wyatt and Gavin Haynett Celebrate the legendary comedy duo with their latest Kickstarter campaign via email.
Taimur Dar: Expect the unexpected is a phrase that describes the attributes of licensed toys from Wandering Planet Toys. I don’t think anyone could have foreseen that Laurel & Hardy figures would become your next licensed property. The obvious question is, how did you find the iconic comedy duo for your next Kickstarter campaign, and how did you get the permission?
Chris “Doc” Wyatt: when we do prisoner Numbers, everyone thought our next number would be some other show from British television and they were surprised when it was Nancy Drew. After “Nancy,” everyone thought it would be something else in literature, or another detective, but it’s Laurel and Hardy. We like the idea of being unpredictable and surprising.
Gavin Haynett: In the end we chose Laurel & Hardy because we are big fans. I’m a lifelong fan of the duo and I distinctly remember trying to track down all of their shorts on VHS compilations as a kid. All these years later, their work remains as interesting and clever to me as it did then, maybe even cleverer than I once realized. Wandering Planet toys are truly a way for us to pay homage to the movies, TV, books, artists and musicians we love. With every project we’ve approached so far, we’ve been a little bit confident that there are other fans out there who will enjoy these figures, as much as we imagine we’d like them to be part of our own series, and the early response seems to indicate this. I’m happy to say that there are plenty of Laurel and Hardy fans like us who are ready to celebrate Stan and Ollie in action figure form. We contacted Larry Harmon Pictures Corp, which maintains the Laurel & Hardy license, and proposed what we wanted to do. They have been great to work with on this endeavor, they are great, supportive partners and really help us take our product line to the next level.
Needless to say, you are all Laurel & Hardy fans. If so, what is your personal fan history with them? Favorite Laurel and Hardy movie or work?
Highlights: I could go on… I honestly don’t remember how I discovered this pairing, but as a teenager I was obsessed, and I had a friend who was equally obsessed. We looked around for movies, read books, and tried to buy items when we could find them. As for your favorite movie, below zero Blotto always comes to mind, it’s fantastic and contains one of the funniest sequences in the history of cinema. living ghost and owl, Make it bigger. I can keep going. please forgive us Probably my favorite longer “feature” length movie.
Wyatt: I can’t remember a time when I didn’t know who Laurel and Hardy were. I’ve known them since I was a kid. My dad was a fan and they played on the UHF station where I grew up. west exit is my favorite. and music boxbut that’s everyone’s favorite. County hospital certainly.
Dahl: Excuse me, is one of you Laurel and the other Hardy?
Highlights: We might be lucky enough to keep the Wandering Planet lights on, because I’m afraid you’re dealing with two Stan Laurels. We may need an Ollie to correct our mistakes.
Wyatt: I don’t know, I might be Ollie. Physically, I was; and I was always yelling about things and bossing around people.
Dahl: There’s a great creature movie, Stan and Olliestarring Steve Coogan and John C. Reilly, chronicled the duo’s final years together while touring Europe. Wondering if you’ve seen the movie or understood the ups and downs of their professional and personal relationship?
Wyatt: I haven’t read it, but there is a book called Another Mess: The Laurel and Hardy Story go through Raymond Valinotti This covers those years pretty well.
Highlights: I have to admit I’ve never seen this movie, although I’ve heard it’s great. From what I understand, they maintained an amazing friendship and partnership throughout their lives and careers. Love that.
Dahl: Is it safe to say that the Laurel & Hardy estate and family were involved in and/or approved of everything? Do they have any special considerations or requirements before or during the design process?
Highlights: Laurel & Hardy is officially licensed through Larry Harmon Pictures Corp. As fans, we created these characters out of our love for the duo, and we worked very hard to get the details right and pay homage to their legacy and work.
Dar: Looking ahead, are you already planning your next crowdfunding project? Don’t you think you can make a joke?
Highlights: We know exactly who/what will happen next! We can’t really laugh at it…but I will say it’s another exploration in 1/12 scale. For those of you who enjoy our 1/18 scale vintage pieces… don’t worry, more are on the way. Since we’re a small team, we really have to focus our efforts, so currently all of our bandwidth is focused on prisoner Wave No2 manufacturing and launch of Laurel & Hardy. But after that… once again, you’ll be surprised.
Wyatt: Expect to be surprised.
Laurel & Hardy collectible action figures 1:12 scale Kickstarter now available.
