Rapaport Bros. Cast Metal Buck Rogers Figure: Killer Kane 70mm

Yet another series of photos taken years ago that have languished on my computer hard drive. 

I made a half-hearted attempt to collect these some years back and simply lost interest in them. Why? They're flats and I'm not a big fan of flats. As a background, Rapaport Bros. made their Junior Caster casting set as early as 1934 taking advantage of the latest in sci-fi entertainment: Buck Rogers. Buck was big back then and he went from comic strip to the big screen - in the form serials - in no time. This was a time when parents weren't afraid to let their children learn how to actually do things! The kids were expected to melt pot metal or lead and then pour the molten metal into molds to form all kinds of toys. The Buck Rogers line had at least the nineteen separate toys you see here as seen from the Angelo Pedron collection. Back then, this stuff was the cat's meow! I am not aware if Rapaport sold the figures already cast but I believe not. That brings us to at least one minor concern: how do you know if a casting was made back in the day, or if someone owns one of these Junior Caster sets and is selling modern castings. Patina would be one way to tell if the casting was vintage, but it's not full-proof. Of course, if a modern day seller was honest and up front about it, they would say whether the castings were newly made.

For me that wasn't a problem. For me it was the fact that these were flats, and as I said before, I'm not a fan of flats. I ended up with four figures and one spaceship and quit! Sooo, what the heck, I'll post what I have and then move on to the next subject. Enjoy! Opa Fritz

Rapaport Bros. 1934 Ad for Junior Caster Lead Toys Mold

Popular Science Dec 1935

Buck Rogers figures beautifully painted by Angelo Pedron!

My one-&-only spaceship blogged in 2016

Killer Kane - the bad guy in the Buck Rogers story line

I believe all of my figures are vintage castings - at least going back to the '50s.

All four of my figures setup with the Wyandotte spaceship from the 1930s