|
Please visit
our sponsor: If you'd like to
advertise here, |
CIGCC Member Roster R.T. and
Aaliyah Rob and
John Menagh Robert
F. Bob Rodden
II Jeff Sherer Don Hanke Bob Seiser Blain Fabin
RT and granddaughter Aaliyah are our newest members. RT first attended a meeting in August, 2010. As an Illinois State Trooper, RT promises to keep us on the straight and narrow--or else! It turns out he's known fellow CIGCC member David Thompson for over 10 years, and had even been his college roommate for a while. RT's promised to send us a short bio and we'll post it all here as soon as it's ready. Stay tuned for more on RT and Aaliyah!
Of course, the long traveling distance limits the number of CIGCC club meetings they can attend, but whenever they do show up (about once or twice a year) we always have a wonderful time with these guys. Here's Rob's story in his own words: I've been with GIjOE since the beginning... When I was a kid, my first GIjOE was with me for about 4 to 5 years--until he became M.I.A. in "the bush." That left me with only my Stony Smith squad (they were more in line with the family budget and needed a leader too). Eventually, I acquired a new GIjOE Green Beret set that kept me going until the Adventure team arrived in the early 1970s. Then I acquired a Black Adventurer and some extra equipment sets which helped my passion to continue to grow. Around the early 1980's, the remains of my original GIjOE were miraculously returned to me. (That was quite a moment.) And in the 1990s, when my children saw my Joes and wanted to play with them, I got back into the hobby once again. Nowadays, my original GIjOEs are the only ones that are actually "collected" (sorry kids, DO NOT TOUCH!). Everything else gets its intended use...PLAY! I also build my own 1:6th scale furniture, barbed wire and other diorama items for use in table-top displays and in outdoor photo setups. ---Rob Menagh To check out Rob's amazing 1/6th scale handiwork and collection, visit his webpage on the GIjOE Collections website by jumping there NOW.
"I'm Bob Rodden II and I've been married for 17 years now to the most wonderful woman, Julie. I have two very bright, very creative children. I've been a professional writer for almost twenty years now; I'm a technical writer by trade, and I write and have professionally published short fiction over the past two decades, mostly horror and science-fiction. I'm also an avid exercise junkie, and I love movies, including everything from silent cinema, to classic horror and sci-fi, to action films and Westerns, to dramas and foreign films. I sold my absolute last Land Adventurer at a garage sale for 50 cents when I was about nine, because I thought it would be neat to make the coin, and I regretted it immediately. I didn't get back into collecting gi joes until about fourteen years ago, when a friend I worked with confessed he collected and sold them. My biggest desire is to own everything Adventure Team, every bit, every piece. And though I don't really care about boxes in general (because I like to display and move about my collection), I wish I could recover the boxed Land Adventurer, Air Adventurer, and Sea Adventurer that I had to sell when I was laid off for six months several years back. I'm a member of the national
gijoeclub.com, which I've really enjoyed; I
only wish I'd become a member when they were selling reproductions
of the Land Adventurer and Air Adventurer. ---Bob Rodden II
"I acquired my first GIjOE at the age of 6. By the time I had reached 10, my collection had grown to 10 figures. I felt GIjOE rich! Even still, I can remember going to sleep at night dreaming that I hoped to one day have one of the BIGGEST collections in the world! I have incredible fond memories of playing with those Joes for untold hours. combat scenario after scenario. Shortly thereafter, my mother convinced me that it was time...that I was too old to have "dolls." Regretfully, I gave them ALL away to a neighbor friend whose name I cannot even recall. It's amazing how childhood fantasies can one day become adult reality. At the age of 39, my 3 sons and I were shopping at our local Wal-Mart and I saw one of the just-released Pearl Harbor Joes. I immediately fell in love all over again. Although my first wife did not approve, I had to have that Wheeler Field Pilot. Since then, he has been customized with many different accessories and currently resides in the middle of what I consider a childhood fantasy come true. When I began dating my current wife, I asked her over for dinner. And before she came over, I warned her that I was a "bit of a fanatic." She had a sudden look of panic, but I finished my story and told her that I collected GIjOE action figures and my collection was rather big. Ha ha (understatement)! At the time I called my apartment "my museum." When she first walked in she exclaimed, "Oh my gosh! I love it!" These are beautiful! I collect Barbies!" After that, each time we saw each other she would bring over more of her collection. Soon, she began to display her collectible Barbies with my Joes, and the rest is history! My first Christmas present from my wife (now of nearly 5 years) was a 1970s "Peace and Love" Barbie to go with my Viet Nam GIjOEs. I have an incredible wife who I love dearly. I am so grateful for second chances in this life and for finding a partner who supports me and enjoys my collection almost as much as I do." ---JJ JJ's collection is covered in detail on the GIjOE Collections website. Check it out now!
"I was born in 1964, the same year as GIjOE, and was lucky to catch the tail-end of the original military series when my mom received a hand-me-down Hasbro footlocker full of Joe treasures from a co-worker whose son allegedly had outgrown the stuff. Chances are that poor kid has regretted it ever since! I never made that mistake and have tenaciously hung onto nearly every piece of a considerable collection from the A.T. era, although it all eventually went into boxes in a dusty garage (c. 1976). Fast-forward to 2003, by which time my continued interest in all things military had led to a Ph.D. in history and a great job teaching at Illinois Central College in East Peoria. While out Christmas shopping for my son Geoffrey, I discovered the new line of Joes and bought him one. Although he has yet to develop any great enthusiasm for 1/6 adventure, he played along with good humor when dad began buying new Joes for himself in summer 2004, mostly on eBay, as well as retrieving the original collection from Grandma's garage, where it would not have survived much longer otherwise. <Phew, that was close!--Mark> Our collection now includes many dozens of figures and several vehicles with the main emphasis being on the period between 1898-1945, especially U.S. Marines, British, and Japanese. Not only my family, but also students in my history courses have learned to smile and nod patiently during quirky 1/6 show-and-tell sessions. Silly? Sure. But by Jingo, they're more likely to remember Theodore Roosevelt and Douglas MacArthur after playing with them in my class!" ---Dave Thompson You gotta admire a guy who's got the cajones to use the expression "By Jingo" in public. HA! For more information on our highly educated (and articulate) colleague, contact Dave directly at dthompson@icc.edu or visit his website at: http://gijoe1964.spaces.live.com.
Tony's one of the nicest guys you'll ever
meet. Here's his story in his own words: I returned to GIjOE during my high school years and kept them displayed on a shelf until I moved out on my own. Sadly, my box full of Joes was somehow lost during the move. I never knew what happened to them! Years later (2001 to be exact), I was web-surfing and discovered Cotwold's "Elite Brigade" website. Memories rushed back and I was hooked all over again! And I'm the type of GIjOE collector that opens up the boxes and blister packs. I don't want to have my stuff all boxed up and just sitting on a shelf. I like to PLAY with my toys. That's just the way I feel about it. I also enjoy creating "digital cartoons" with my GIjOEs and other 1/6th scale action figures. I make most of the 1/6th scaled sets and backgrounds myself; the rest are from customized Barbie playsets and what not. (My wife picks up things all the time and surprises me!) I currently have about
300 action figures, most of which are GIjOEs from years past.
But I also own many Dragon, BBI, Cotswold, SOTW, etc. Of all
my figures, the vast majority are WWII American soldiers. I don't
collect Germans or other soldiers from that era--only Americans. I also play guitar (surprise!). I toured nationally with a band called WRAITH for about 6 years. We signed on with an independent label and put out a few CDs. Nowadays, I teach guitar and work at West Music here in Moline doing sales, guitar repair and modification." ---Tony Carducci For more information, contact Tony at tcarducci@westmusic.com
Robert's an amazing guy. He's a huge GIjOE fan and collector and his love of action photography has been profiled extensively on the new GIjOE Collections website. If you'd like to see some amazing photos of Robert's collection in action, jump to HERE now to directly access his photo page). Robert sez... "Hey guys, I started picking up Joes when my boys were 5 and 6. I wanted them to enjoy them as much as I did when I was a kid. After a while, however, I realized that they weren't playing with them as much as I was! I finally admitted I was hooked and that I truly enjoy building and photographing scenes and collecting GIjOEs." ---Robert Mitchell For more information, contact Robert via email at rmitchell1832@hotmail.com
Jeff's got a MASSIVE GIjOE collection. Here's his story in his own words: "I live in Paris, IL. It's about 50 minutes south-east of Chambana. I went to school at the U of I so I'm pretty familiar with the area up there. I'm a Civil Engineer at IDOT and we do a lot of work in the Champaign County area. I have approximately 350 12" figures (GI JOE, Dragon, BBI, misc). I have several vehicles (doubles of some) both vintage and new, all different brands (see Jeff's collection HERE). When I was little, my brother Bart had about every freakin Adventure Team thing that was cool. He wouldn't let me play with any of it, and I was demoted to playing with Fisher-Price Adventure People! I watched him destroy every single piece of his GI JOE collection as he got older. It killed me. So when the line went away for awhile I had to settle for Mego Super Heroes. However in 1982 everything changed and GI JOE came back. After building a substantial 3-3/4" collection, I was at a flea market when I found a 12" talking commander, and I bought him up for $5. He is in mint condition (no cracks). After that I became obsessed with the Adventure Team. Later, the Hall of Fame line came out, and I bought everything they made (some doubles...and even TRIPLES). Then, the Classic Collection came out and "BAM" I was into all of that too. As the years passed, I bought more and more stuff, and branched out to different brands like Dragon, and BBI. I have a lot of their figures now, as well as a lot of loose gear. I got into kit-bashing pretty heavy in the early 2000's and I even bought some custom Ghost Recon patches off of Mark at Patches of Pride a few years back. I made a custom Ghost Team! When HASBRO reintroduced the Adventure Team I was super excited, and then became super disappointed at their lame attempt to recreate the (in my opinion) the best Joe's ever. Then the 12" stuff seemed to disappear, and now I am devoting myself to collecting vintage Adventure team stuff. I love GI JOE, he is my favorite topic, and collectible. Hell, I have around 6900 comics, but GIJOE is the number 1 thing I treasure. Since I've been married, my stuff has been packed away while I figure out where to display my massive collection. One last thing, my brother Joel is a heavy duty WW II re-enactor. So if any of you guys are WE II buffs, He's the man!" ---Jeff Sherer For more information, contact Jeff via email at: jsherer74@yahoo.com
Don's an amazing guy. Here's his story in his own words: "I'm Don and I collect GI jOES! They say the first step is to admit you have a problem. Beyond that I admit nothing else. I love this hobby and have owned, at one time or another, every thing Hasbro ever made. Though I've reduced my inventory quite a bit over the past seven years I still own a very large collection, including many original items and still add to that, from time to time. I've attended nearly all the shows which have come to the mid-west and Texas. I have been collecting even before Cotswold's was started and was one of their very first customers. I had a few things when I was a boy and will never forget the Christmas of 1964 when my twin and I received our first Joes. My dearly departed sister Debby, would get us going by calling them dolls. To which we always replied that "They're are NOT dolls!! They are GI jOES!!" Well my sister has passed on, God Bless her, but my passion for this wonderful toy is still as strong as ever. In my early days of collecting, I started in 1993, I was so desperate to find items I was a regular at all the local auction barns in south central Illinois. Many of which knew me by my first name. I also made many of my own custom uniforms (after seeing Auggie's customs @ Cotswold's) and still have all the patterns. I made them from studying original Joe uniforms, looking through James DeSimones book, researching catalogs and military books, and through trial and error. I've done camouflage patterns printed onto fabric with silk screening and on my inkjet printer. I learned how to make rubber molds and have molded all my own pouches, pistols, rifles, knives, and scabbards. I still have molds for helmets, caps, and canteens. It's a great hobby for anyone who likes model making and miniatures. Even if you never had one as a child I would highly recommend it to everyone. Today I have a two car garage devoted to GI jOE and a 4' X 8" table with large bombed out buildings. I'll be adding another 4' X 8' table this spring for doing foxholes and machine gun emplacements. I make many of my own diorama pieces and I'm always looking for small scale items which will fit into WW II dioramas. My doors are always open to fellow enthusiasts who like making dioramas. I'm planning one large USAF post WW II flight line diorama. I'll be needing help with that one." ---Don H. For more information, contact Don via email at: ohyan2912@gmail.com
Here's his story in his own words: Then one special flea market changed my way of collecting forever. I found an original AND complete GI Joe Deep Sea Diver. My wife had cash. After that first Joe, you just need to keep on collecting and hunt down MORE and MORE sets. I only had ONE GIJoe when I was younger---way back when Christmas was still special. Recently, my mom saw my collection and asked why I had never asked for more GI Joes when I was a kid. I said I didn't know how she would get them because "Only Santa Claus brought presents." ---Robert Robert wishes to keep his last name and e-mail address confidential, so if you'd like to contact him, write us here at the CIGCC and we'll pass your message along. Thanks!
Here's his story in his own words: Nowadays, I still enjoy buying, outfitting, displaying and working with 1/6th scale action figures. I started Patches of Pride and GIjOE Collections as ways to mix my commercial art business with my growing Joe hobby. Now the two blend together nicely. Lately, I've been creating unique custom boxes and working on large GIjOE and toy display areas in my basement. It's become a HUGE ongoing project that I can only work on a few hours a day. So it will take forever to finish it all." ---Mark Otnes Pay Mark's website a visit online at Patches of Pride or drop him an email at mark@patchesofpride.com. He'd love to hear from you!
Scott's first GI Joe was a Kung-Fu Grip Sea Adventurer that he got for Christmas in 1974. His Joe interests include kitbashing the Timeless Collection figures and collecting Vintage painted head and Adventure Team GIJoes. Scott is in discussion to be more involved with the Official GI Joe Collector's Club in the near future. Scott is the Creative Director for Shooting Star Comics. He's also a comic book writer and an artist who has written and drawn for various comic book publishers such as Shooting Star Comics, West End Games, DC Comics and IDW Publishing. He's also the Creative Design Director and has taught art courses for several years at Springfield College in Illinois. He has exhibited his personal studio work in galleries across the country and also works as a freelance illustrator. Here's his story in his own words: I got back into Joe collecting while in college, and for the past 15 years, I've been actively collecting 12" GI Joes and other 1:6th scale figures. Now, my five year old son, Mitchell, is starting to play with Joe also." ---Scott McCullar Visit Scott's website at www.scottmccullar.com to learn more and contact him. |
RT and Aaliyah
Rob and John Menagh
Bob
Rodden II
JJ. and May
Dave
Thompson
Tony Carducci
Robert
Mitchell
Jeff Sherer
Don H.
Robert 
Mark Otnes
Scott McCullar