Marx Lane
An Inventory of Marx Playset Figures and Accessories
Manufactured from 1951 to 1979

 
Addendum L-2 - Boy Scouts
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Marx sold its Boy's Camp Set set in the 1950s, a representation of a Boy Scout troop.  It is featured in Plastic Figure and Playset Collector (PFPC) Issue 1, but the article provides limited information on the set other than a listing of the contents and photographs of most items in the set.  Based on the availability of the set in today's market, production was more limited than most of the company's playsets.  I believe much more information is known about the set and its contents today than when the article was published in 1989, probably written by PFPC editor Tom Terry.  For example, the article was unable to identify the type of animal that some of the set's animals represent.  However, other than this article, I have seen no coverage of the set.

The Boy's Camp Set includes many figures and some accessories that are not found in any other playset, but also has some that are found in many other sets.  The A-shaped tree, tents, split-log fence, canoe, and woodland animals were included in other sets, and the animals were also sold separately as figure sets.  On the other hand, the human figures and most of the other accessories are unique to the Boy's Camp set and they are hard to find today.  I believe that the scout figures were also sold as figure sets in header bags and/or boxes.

While the camp itself is not named, the set's cabin has a map of a Camp Rightwood on an interior wall (see photos of cabin below), and some collectors have come to refer to it as Camp Rightwood.
 

Boy Scouts and leaders

The Boy Scout figures were made in sky blue and medium brown soft plastic.  The soft plastic suggests that the set was produced in the late 1950s.  Figures are nicely detailed and imaginative, but not among Marx' finest figures.

Re-issues exist.  Due to photo quality, not all photos are figures to the same scale.

1.  Scoutmaster with map and compass
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78
2.  Scoutmaster or older scout with walking stick and flashlight
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78
3.  With rope, tying knots
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78

4.  Saluting
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78
5.  Sitting cross-legged with hands on ground
Photo courtesy of Russian collector Denis
6.  Sitting cross-legged, hands on legs
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78

7.  Holding basketball overhead
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78
8.  Playing basketball (no ball)
Photo courtesy of Russian collector Denis Rylev
9.  Playing bugle
Photo courtesy of Russian collector Denis Rylev
 
 10.  With first aid book and stretcher
Photo courtesy of Russian collector Denis Rylev
11.  Holding axe
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78
12.  Holding signal flags
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78
 
13.  Kneeling, starting fire
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78
14.  Holding canoe paddle
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78
15.  Shooting bow and arrow
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78

16.  Kneeling on ground, reading map
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78
Recent Price Lines I have noticed
Unopened bag of 14 figures $295 February 2012 Ebay
Full set of 16 $158 May 2013 Ebay one figure has molding error

     Woodland Animals

These Woodland Animals were sold in at least two playsets -- Boy's Camp and Yogi Bear at Jellystone National Park -- but probably more often were sold individually or in figure sets, including in the standard Marx red polka dot box.  Geppert's Guide classifies them as 54mm scale; they are generally in a scale that is too large for the scout figures and that is not always consistent with others in the group.  PFPC Issue 1 reports that they came in cream and medium brown soft plastic in the Boy's Camp playset, but they can be found in other colors also.
1.  Bobcat 2.  Racoon
3.  Doe (or fawn?) 4.  Bear Cub
5.  Weasel 6.  Skunk
7.  Muskrat 8.  Otter
9.  Groundhog
10.  Rabbit 11.  Squirrel


     Small Accessories

The tin litho camp cabin uses the same stamping as the horseshoe cabin shown on the Wild West page on Forts, Structures, and Terrain pieces.  If so,
the cabin itself is 10-1/2 inches wide, 5 inches deep, and about 6 inches tall to the top of the chimney.  It is 3-sided without a floor and has a long, thick wire holding the side walls into place at the bottom of the back of the structure.  

The lithography, of course, is changed to match the Boy Scout camp theme, with both the interior and exterior lithographed.  Obviously, due to its size, the cabin is shown below in a scale smaller than other items on this page.

Photo not available at this time.
Boy's Camp Cabin
Interior of cabin, left
Interior of cabin, right
All three photos above courtesy of collector Butch Parker


The hard plastic accessories below came in either light brown or yellow.  According to the PFPC article, two of the small canteens were included in each set, but only one each of other items.
Photo not available at this time.
1.  Podium with stairs and railing 2.  Pennant on pole with base
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78
Photo not available at this time. Photo not available at this time.
3.  Water pump with bucket on base 4.  Table with wash bowls
Photo not available at this time.
5.  Archery target 6.  Knot display board
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78

Photo not available at this time.
7.  Chicken cooking on spit with separate base 8.  Campfire
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78
Photo not available at this time. Photo not available at this time.
9.  4-legged stool 10.  Axe in split log
Photo not available at this time. Photo not available at this time.
11.  Foot locker 12.  Table with first aid supplies
13.  3-piece lean-to shelter
14.  Water container
Photo courtesy of Jonny, Ebay Shanilee78
15.  Bedroll
16.  Canteen

The hard plastic red canoe below was also included in at least one Fort Apache playset and the Yogi Bear at Jellystone National Park set.  The Marx canoe can be distinguished from other manufacturer's similar canoes by the stars in circles on both sides of the canoe.
5.  Canoe

A tree, flag, fencing, and tents were all pieces that already existed in other playsets.  Boy's Camp included five sections of the fence, three trees, and three pup tents.  

A-shaped tree                 48-star  flag with pole and base
Field tent Pup tent
Split-log fence 3-piece cot
(in olive green)




Contents of this web site may not be reproduced or duplicated for use on the Internet or for commercial purposes without permission by Eric Johns.