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| Where were you in '77? Images: ABRAMS BOOKS. |
STAR WARS: THE
ORIGINAL TOPPS TRADING CARDS SERIES (VOLUME ONE)
Written by Gary
Gerani
With Robert V.
Conte
Published by
ABRAMS BOOKS
Reviewed by Scott
Weller
When I think of
STAR WARS’ impact on my eight year old childhood of 1978 (the movie didn’t come
out beyond London’s West End and into the suburbs until January that year), two
things immediately spring to mind- running about at primary school pretending
to be Luke Skywalker wanting to rescue potential Princess Leia’s in my
playground field of vision, and the desperate search for anybody, and I do mean
anybody, who had a spare number 4 (“Space
Pirate Han Solo”) to the original blue stars TOPPS card series of which I’d valiantly
consumed so much bubble gum to complete my set!
Yes, that’s how
important to me those TOPPS cards were (blue and red- we only had those two
batches in the UK), and to all the zillion other kids who loved STAR WARS
across the world (in a pre-VHS tape era), in representing its spell-binding
ingredients- the classic imagery of characters, weaponry, spaceship and planets
that was now starting to enrich our lives then and forever more- a unique
cinematic freshness and feeling that would prove so empowering on our
imaginations that we just couldn’t get enough of it.
The idea of
someone producing a tribute book to those cards of yesterday was genuinely
deserving of merit, and now its finally materialized, via the talents of author
and TOPPS card employee since its halcyon days, Gary Gerani, in conjunction
with those admirable people of finesse at ABRAMS BOOKS, presenting the first in
their Classic Trilogy retrospective and celebration of the entire run of this
enduringly successful series.
Giving us an
affectionate and important lowdown on how the TOPPS card series of the STAR
WARS universe came to be, Gerani, a key early supporter of the film, despite
early looks at publicity pictures that left him unsure of its potential appeal,
and especially after a prior classic STAR TREK card set had failed so dismally
in sales for the company, reveals the publishing gamble that soon emerged from
early rejection to pay-rich dividends whilst also generating a continued aura
for a pop culture legend, not just for TOPPS but also the small and dedicated
team assisting Gerani with all his photos and info needs at Lucasfilm, plus the
eager to make even more profit 20th Century Fox over the course of
three years.
With humour and
nostalgia, as well as looks at some rare specially commissioned key art used
for both the cards and publicity, alongside scans of the original wrappers, Gerani’s
affectionate commentary is a huge part of this opening book’s appeal: the
innocence of the early days before the STAR WARS marketing machine became so
entrenched- the design ideas (some better than others), the early mistakes (yep, the infamous Threepio 'extension' card is included, as well as a couple of errors that the author still hasn't spotted even now! Blue card 36, anyone?!), and the overwhelming sense of fun and creative enthusiasm from
the TOPPS team that went into making these early products such pop culture icons.
And for anyone
who’s never had the complete set of cards, the individual front and back
reproductions seen here are of fine quality- the now legendary blue borders set
with the first amazing assemblage of classic STAR WARS (including some
occasional rarities) launches things in grand style, followed by a red set with
some truly garish one-off retouching (green walls of the Blockade Runner-yeeww!),
then a third (yellow) and fourth (green), both rushed to fulfil demand by reusing
and cropping past images yet also managing to find some intriguing new rarities-many
of which have still not been republished
to this day, and a final compilation (orange) incorporating great behind the scenes
imagery from the filming and some finally released images of the ever-popular Cantina
bar aliens created by the now legendary Rick Baker.
And for
completism, the reproduced back card production info proves a further hoot to
read (much of it supplied by the film’s then key publicist Charles Lippincott),
what with their of-its-time movie facts and behind the scenes cast and crew
personal quotes, alongside character stickers that American kids surely pasted
on every conceivable shape and sized wall or bedroom in their celebration of
all things STAR WARS!
The end of the
book is complimented by memorabilia expert Robert V. Conte’s brief but fascinating
photo essay of the equally best-selling, one-off, US-only Wonderbread card set of 1978, which became a key component in
helping promote STAR WARS cinematic return engagement within its home
territories, as it propelled itself towards a then incredible $200 million take
at the domestic box office. This book, for the first time, presents these important
images, and their back card info, along with some other key artistry linked to
their original release. For UK and international readers, it’s a curious and
enjoyable addition.
AFICIONADO RATING:
Like Ray Bradbury’s Dandelion Wine, I
can smell and taste that era of bubble gum STAR WARS all over again. An
essential right-size purchase for the original 1977 era fan, whose four reproduction
cards are the final icing on the cake. 4 out of 5.
