LJN's Wrestling Superstars action figures are generally considered the first series of wrestling toys to be marketed to the mainstream internationally. And I'm lucky to have collected them all back in the 1980s! Each month, I'll look at one classic figure and explain what made them so special.
JIMMY HART
In the cartoonish world of 1980s LJN wrestling figures, Jimmy Hart fit in like few others. And as such, it's time for the iconic manager to take his rightful place in receiving this website's most prestigious action figure-based honor.
Released in 1986, Hart was part of the third line of LJN's Wrestling Superstars collection. Even if you didn't know the very first thing about professional wrestling, you'd know by looking at him that Jimmy Hart is a character. His musical note suit jacket is uniquely The Mouth Of The South, and the red shirt and pink tie is a hard look to pull off -- even by 1980s standards. Top that off with black suit pants, white sneakers, tinted red sunglasses and a mullet, and you know you're not exactly dealing with the upper crust of society.
Beyond that, Hart is considerably smaller than pretty much any other figure in the LJN line. But this works! You want to see him cowering behind Greg The Hammer Valentine and other clients, because it fits the look of something who's a sniveling little weasel.
Strangely enough, the most compelling aspect of this LJN figure isn't Hart's attire but rather the red megaphone that is permanently attached to his right hand.
That's right - you can't remove it like you could, say, Terry Funk's branding iron or Koko B. Ware's bird. And while Hart never claimed to be a wrestler, per se, surely there were times in his life where he wanted to do something else besides hold that damn megaphone in his hand. You know?
Still, it's hard to argue against the effectiveness of that megaphone. Whether he's shouting instructions to one of his First Family members or whacking The Junkyard Dog over the back with it -- it's a weapon that got a TON of mileage.
Once you got past the inconvenience of the guy always having an electronic device in his hand (I never could), one realizes that Jimmy Hart is incredibly effective. Not only as a distraction at ringside, but also as a big-time promo guy.
In this scene displayed here, there's no doubt that The Honky Tonk Man can handle his own interview. But just in case The Greatest Intercontinental Champion Of All Time suddenly becomes camera shy, Hart is there to pick up the slack, always with a quick story to tell, and always with the most attitude you've ever seen amongst any of the other LJN Wrestling Figures. Seriously - how many other guys are beaming with pride like that?
Quite an impressive family portrait, no?
One of the coolest things about Jimmy Hart is how many big-name clients he managed during his WWF run (note to self: future Top 50 list?). Look at the above picture: all of these guys -- every last one of them -- was a Jimmy Hart client right around the time these action figures were released. Not that they were all part of his family at the same time, but hey.... pretty impressive nonetheless.
In fact, among all of the LJN Wrestling Superstars, the following were managed by The Mouth at one point in their careers, WWF or otherwise:
-
Hulk Hogan
-
The Iron Sheik
-
Greg The Hammer Valentine
-
King Kong Bundy
-
Jesse The Body Ventura
-
Macho Man Randy Savage
-
Terry Funk
-
Adorable Adrian Adonis
-
Bret Hitman Hart
-
Jim The Anvil Neidhart
-
Kamala
-
Cowboy Bob Orton
-
The Honky Tonk Man
-
Big Boss Man (as Big Bubba Rogers)
-
Ravishing Rick Rude
Not a bad legacy. And adding to that legacy now -- entry into the prestigious Canadian Bulldog's World LJN Wrestling Figure Hall of Fame!
Stick that one where the megaphone don't shine.
