This lot will be auctioned on Tuesday, November 9th. The auction will begin at 3:00pm GMT and lots are sold sequentially via live auctioneer; tune in to the live streaming broadcast on auction day to follow the pace. Note other lots in the auction may close on November 10th or November 11th.
A C-3PO "5,000,000th" action figure from the promotion of Irvin Kershner's Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. This figure comes from the estate of a journalist who attended various film-related and merchandising junkets, events and premieres. In 1982, a celebration Palitoy photoshoot took place at Heathrow Airport, where an actor dressed as Darth Vader received the shipment containing this figure.
Housed in its original packaging, the Palitoy figure includes a black backpack, while the droid has removable arms and legs. The toy is sealed in its original bubble on an unpunched card back displaying a rare gold-coloured sticker identifying it as the "5,000,000th Star Wars Figure in Britain". This is the first ever example of this figure with this sticker being seen and offered at auction. There are signs of light edge wear and creasing to the card back, and the bubble has lifted slightly in the bottom right corner. Dimensions: 23 cm x 15 cm x 3 cm (9" x 6" x 1¼")
Literature
The following text about the Palitoy celebration photoshoot can be found within The Star Wars Phenomenon in Britain: The Blockbuster Impact and the Galaxy of Merchandise, 1977-1983, published by McFarland & Co Inc:
"I cover the 1982 Palitoy celebration of the five million milestone figure in by book. The plan was to have Darth Vader receiving the figure at Heathrow Airport and I'm willing to believe that this the actual one”
The then Palitoy Brand Manager Geoff Maisey said. “We tried to set up a shoot at Heathrow for Darth Vader to meet the plane bringing in the next big shipment to Palitoy, including the 5 millionth Star Wars figure to arrive in Britain, but we were refused permission on security grounds. Our promotions company was extremely adept at getting the most out of a situation, especially overcoming any obstacles and she somehow managed to get us in the cargo apron area along with Darth Vader!” According to the promotions team; “Geoff Maisey, the brand manager was there and one of our ‘actors’ was in the Darth Vader costume. We had massive, whole pallets of Star Wars products in the background with DV holding a carton of figures. The photos were taken as close as we could get to one of the huge, secure, main commercial loading bays at Heathrow."
Estimate: £2,000 - 3,000 M