3 Random Things

I thought I would try something a little bit different today.

Instead of taking one bigger item out of my collection and writing about it, I'm taking three smaller items and talking a little less than I normally would about them.

Think of it as my way of somehow justifying having so much Ghostbusters stuff.

Hey, the little shit needs love too, right?

Any who, here are 3 random items I pulled out of my collection to show you.

1: Ghostbusters Key Caps!

I really had no intention of ever putting these on an actual key when I bought them.

I do believe that the sole purpose of purchasing a set of Ghostbusters Key Cap was that they are GHOSTBUSTERS Key Caps. Aside from that, no real reason for needing to have them.

 It gets harder and harder to find anything Ghostbusters related anymore, so when I stumbled across these at the local mall, I couldn't pull out my wallet fast enough.

Though if I ever were to put these on actual keys, I'd for sure be the coolest kid on the block rocking a Stay Puft key.

2: Ghostbusters Energy Drink Can

For a short time I could pick these up at the mall in certain stores (you know, the kind ran by kids who have far too many piercings and like to listen to Phish records?) but all of the sudden they seemed to go away.

Lucky for me, there is a little shop here in town that specializes in weird candy and soda, so they always have them, although I'm not sure if they do anymore since it has been no less than two years since I've forced myself to go in there.

Regardless, I always seem to keep the cans after I drink them. There is just something about throwing a Ghostbusters thing in the garbage that doesn't work well for me at all.

3: Slimer Bike Horn

These may very well have been the best set of toys McDonald's ever offered us.

I can recall the day I found out that Mickey D's had these. The commercial came on TV and it was totally an, "Oh shit! We need to go there NOW, and I don't care if it's not 10:30 yet. Buy an Egg McMuffin but get me the Ghostbusters toy" moments.

I seriously own enough of these right now that I could set them all up and hire a seal to play me a wonderful tune with his nose.

No, I wouldn't buy a seal. My bathtub is too small and I don't like raw fish.

Fright Features Peter Venkman!

What's not to love about the Fright Features series? Kenner gave us a whole line of figures that prove that the "I ain't afraid of no ghost" line was all a bunch of crap. It seems a little counterproductive to release a set of Ghostbusters who aren't supposed to be afraid of ghosts, yet they are totally afraid.

The Fright Features series, however, was actually a big hit, and one of the most popular in the entire line of toys.

While I have wrote briefly about Egon already, I think today would be a good one to talk about Dr. Peter Venkman. Actually, when is there not a good day to talk about Venkman? I can't think of one.

Each figure, naturally, had their own "Fright Feature" hence the name. Venkman's feature was activated by pushing his left arm in towards his chest as though he were having a massive heart attack and begging you to call 911.

Once you heart attacked the left arm, his jaw would drop, his eyes would bug out, and his hair would lift about 14 inches off of his head, totally foreshadowing the fact that Bill Murray would be bald. 

Okay, really though,  it's a figure based on a cartoon character, so naturally there can be no realism attached to it. Of course his hair is going to fly up high in the air while his face screams, "I just made a boom boom and it's wet." 

Venkman came with the Gruesome Twosome ghost and the Hook Shot, his obvious weapon of choice.

I like to imagine that after Venkman was scared shitless by the Gruesome Twosome ghost, he promptly collected his thoughts (and wiped!) and hooked the little bastard.

Oh, yes, there is a small problem. Kenner didn't pack a ghost trap in with the figure. What do you do with a ghost that you have hooked but can't trap?

Well one option would be to wear it over your shoulders, making a bold fashion statement. Cruise on down to Time's Square and pick up some fine women, or a sailor, or a hooker, whatever tickles your fancy, I guess.

However, wearing ghosts around your neck as a fashion statement can only lead to bad things happening.

They may just latch onto your hands, rendering you totally unable to function or lead a normal life ever again. How can you possibly eat a hot dog with ghosts on your hands?

I guess the moral of this post, if there is one at this point, is to always carry a trap, and NEVER, I repeat NEVER wear a ghost as a fashion accessory, even if it will increase your chances of meeting the woman of your dreams.

See these bad boys in action in the video below!

Weekly Post! Ecto-Charger + GB/TMNT Crossover and Other Junk!

Well, it's that time again huh?

It's a few days later than I normally do this, which is fine because all of about 20 people even read these anyways, but here is a random edition of the weekly post.

I don't really have a set theme this week, or one specific thing to talk about, nor do I really have the energy to put a big thing together, so it is what it is I suppose.

I guess we should start with the big news coming out yesterday. IDW Publishing it setting forth with a four issue Ghostbusters and Teeneage Mutant Ninja Turtles crossover.

For children of the 80's, this is as big as it gets. The 2 biggest franchises of the late 80's and early 90's are finally meeting up. Having lived together in the same city for nearly 30 years, one wonders how they have just now discovered each other? Regardless of how long it took for the two teams to finally cross paths, this is indeed big. If anybody at IDW sees this and wants to hook me up with a copy, I'd gladly give you some pub for it. My local comic shop doesn't stock anything other than moldy old super hero crap.

Hey, I almost made a joke. Somebody big seeing this page, that's a good one.

I had a lot of fun putting together the bonus post from the other day which featured a few random Ghostbusters commercials. I'm debating putting up a videos section, but that's probably a long way off at this point,. I do plan on trying to update this page a little more often.

So let's do a toy review huh?

Last week we looked at Kenner's Proton Pack, so naturally it's only fitting that this week we look at the Ecto-Charger aka Kenner's version of the Slime Blower.

For knowing as much random, useless crap as I do about Ghostbusters, I still to this very day have no idea why this toy wasn't just called the Slime Blower. Apparently Kenner found it necessary to change the name. I guess "Slime Blower" sounded too much like a bad nickname for a dirty hooker named Sally that works downtown.

Anyways, the toy, much like the Proton Pack, is basically a big chunk of hollow plastic. Believe me, there is a major downgrade to this toy. The biggest of them being the straps.

The Proton Pack had straps that were already in place, whereas the Ecto-Charger has straps that hook over a little peg at the bottom, which would always find a way to come off right in the middle of sliming something.

There is one pretty decent upgrade though.

The gun itself is a nice upgrade to the neutrona wand on the Proton Pack.

The gun has a fold out handle and a button you push to make a giant bright pink dildo shoot out. It's almost as if this was made to be some kind of secret sex toy. Admit it, you're thinking about it now. Better call Sally the Slime Blower.

Nothing fancy to this toy, no major bells and whistles, but it was a decent toy to add to your Ghostbusting arsenal.

When I got my Ecto-Charger, I was on the verge of turning 5. I'm actually pretty sure that was my birthday present that year. I really have no idea. There may have even been a Simpsons cake involved.

How about something a little random?

I love VHS tapes. I mean, seriously, I own nearly 30 copies of Ghostbusters on VHS. No, I'm not kidding, even though I wish I was, but look at the ad. Way back in the late 80's, a copy of Ghostbusters on VHS would run you about $20. Freakin' nuts eh?

I have posted before about how I came to own my first copy of the movie. Maybe I'll tell the story again some day for those who don't scroll through this entire blog. Just maybe.

Let's end the post with a fun video.

Without a doubt, one of the most popular Real Ghostbusters episodes, "Citizen Ghost" 

Coming up next week? Ghostbusters Cereal boxes! Neat!

See you next time

Ghostbusters NES Playthrough

Yeah, one of the many bad games in the history of bad Ghostbusters games.

The game itself was kind of a pain in the ass because it seemed like Ecto would always run out of gas at the most inopportune time and slow the game play down even further.

Like the more recent versions for Playstation 2, Wii, and PSP, the game is also very tedious. Go here, catch a ghost, go there catch a ghost, run out of gas, push the car, go here catch a ghost, run out of gas.....you get the point.

Anyways, if you're in the mood for a boredom killer, watch a playthrough of Ghostbusters for the Nintendo Entertainment System.

Ghostbusters Gumball Dispenser

If yesterday's Puffy Stickers weren't enough proof that at the height of Ghostbusters popularity in the late 80's, our heroes were plastered on anything and everything imaginable, then I give you the official Ghostbusters Gumball Dispenser.

Originally packaged with gumballs, of which I am certain would be long expired, the dispenser was yet another way to make a quick buck off of the Ghostbusters franchise, although in this case, it isn't necessarily a bad thing since the dispenser itself is actually pretty neat.

The "globe" portion of the dispenser is nothing more than a simple rubber sculpt designed to look like the no-ghost logo. While it does it's job identifying what the product is supposed to be, it does weird me out just a little that they gave the ghost a little nose that sticks out. 

I could see this, I guess, being as most renditions of the logo are flat 2-dimensional drawings that don't give us a full range of what our friend trapped inside of the "no" symbol looks like. 

So I guess I'm just finding something to complain about.

The dispenser functions pretty flawlessly. Put a penny in the slot, slide it over, and get your gumball.

I guess, in a way, it's even cooler that it doubles as a bank, although you would have to chew a lot of gum to even receive 50 cents worth on pennies out of it.

                           

While there was supposed to be a key for it, which I'm sure was lost long ago by a child who doesn't appreciate owning the finer things in life, the bottom does twist off pretty easily so that one could collect their money and refill the machine (one freakin' gumball at a time!).

I think I picked this up about a year ago at a yard sale for under a dollar. I had actually been looking for one of these for quite a while at that point.

They really display nice, even though I don't use it to hold any gumballs, but either way, it's a cool item to have in your collection and on your shelf.

Be sure to do yourself a big favor, and go give a "LIKE" to the Mr. Ghostbuster Facebook page. I post all kinds of neat Ghostbusters related stuff on there that you won't see here on the blog.

30 Years of Ghostbusters Memories

MR. GHOSTBUSTER ON FACEBOOK

Wow, my all time favorite movie turns 30 today. Admittedly I was born in 1985 so I was already late to the party, but I didn't see the movie until around 1988-ish. Come on, cut me some slack. I at least had to be old enough to wipe my own ass, right?

I can remember VHS tapes being pretty expensive back in the day, so naturally the only way to get my fix was to force my parents to rent the tape over and over and over. I'm pretty sure that I also resorted to borrowing it from a kid that my mom babysat.

This went on for a little while, and then one of the most painful events in my life happened.

I was about 5 years old, I was at the daycare where my mom worked.

At that point in time, this would have been right around 1990 or so, everyday after lunch, they let the kids perform slave labor and had them volunteer to carry dishes downstairs to the kitchen to be washed.

As I dropped off my load of dishes that were covered in grade F slop, I ran back to the stairway. Before I could successfully reach it, I was swept off of my feet by a toy car. The next thing I knew, I was on the ground. A lady, I think her name was Joan or something, picked me up. I attempted to stand, and fell right back down. I was scared shitless. I'd never be able to walk again.

I was taken to the hospital where I was X-rayed and put into a cast for a broken leg. Real freakin' fun.

I was taken home and put on the couch, which would be my permanent place of being for the next several weeks. My Dad had called my Mom from work and said he was bringing something home for me. I pretty much couldn't have cared less at that point because I had had a very long day at that point, I was in pain, tired, and irritable.

My Dad arrived home that night with the "something" he had for me. I looked with my eyes half opened in my drug induced state of being and was handed my very first copy of Ghostbusters.

I've never been without a copy. I don't even want to know how many copies of the movie I own these days. My guess would be upwards of 30. Don't ask why.

I was always a fan of the cartoon. It's what started this whole obsession. While the details of how exactly I fell in love with Ghostbusters are pretty fuzzy, I've never known a world where I didn't place it at the highest of pedestals.

The REAL Ghostbusters cartoon was such a big thing for me growing up. It was what I got out of bed for every day. As long as I had my Ghostbusters, everything would be okay.

That is, until each episode ended. Each day, when the closing credits would roll, the tears would start. I really have no idea why I would cry when the show ended, but I did, and remember doing it.

The purchase of our first VCR in late 1980 something was a turning point for the waterworks that ensued each day. My Mom started recording the show every day, enough to fill up an entire video, to which I one day exclaimed "Now I don't have to cry when it's over!"

Yeah, Ghostbusters always struck a chord with me that nothing else has ever been able to strike.

The Summer of 1989 was fun. Ghostbusters 2 came out. I remember my Dad taking me to see it at the drive-in theater. The only one I've ever been to. Our local Hardees got a visit from Ecto 1-A. Yeah, it was a good time to love Ghostbusters.

My 4th Birthday arrived just a few short months later. I wanted a Proton Pack. So badly.

I recall the whole day. Almost. My parents got me a cake with the Ghostbusters logo on it, we had Ghostbusters plates and napkins, and just when I thought the party couldn't at all get any better, I got a Proton Pack. And then I had to pose for pictures for the next 79 minutes.......

The other day I wrote about getting my first Ghostbusters toy, even though I had been promised that Santa Claus was bringing me some. He did. I scored quite a few Ghostbusters toys that year. The next year, I hated the guy

Christmas of 1989. I'll never for get it. That was the year that I wanted a Ghostbusters Firehouse playset more than anything else in the entire world. The first time that I was ever made aware of it's existence was when we took a trip to the town I now live in, and visited Target. There, at the end of the toy aisle sat a whole shelf of them. I begged and begged and begged. I wanted it so bad. Sell my kidney for all I care, just get me the damn thing! What did I leave with? A Power Pack Heroes Louis figure......

I'll give you a moment to let my bitterness sink in and float all around you.

Well, Christmas rolled around. How could the fat guy let me down? I mean, it's Santa of all people. The big morning came. I opened everything. Legos, Mario pajamas, Ninja Turtles. No Ghostbusters Firehouse. I was lost. I was 4 years old, and totally lost. I just remember looking around and saying "Well, I guess no Ghostbusters Firehouse for me" to which my Dad replied, "Santa must have run out."

While I still cringe at the thought of a dude who makes toys all year long slighting me of the one thing I wanted more than my own internal organs, I did finally get one a short time later.

While never really getting much of a spotlight for having the largest collection of Ghostbusters anywhere, I have been able to do some pretty cool things like meeting Ernie Hudson in 2005, and getting to know people like Michael Gross, Robin Shelby, and Jennifer Runyon over the last year or so. I'm pretty lucky for that.

Sometimes, I wonder, what does it all mean? What's all of this for?

I can't answer that, nor do I really want to know, but whatever my love for Ghostbusters means, I've been enjoying the ride all of my life, and look forward to another 30 years of making more Ghostbusters memories. Whether it was crying because my show ended each day, or eating donuts and drinking Ecto-Cooler while watching, or getting in trouble for repeating every single bad word in the movie, it all means something.

I'm not sure that anybody involved with the movies will ever see this, no matter how big or small of a part they played in it, words cannot express how much they all mean to me, and how every single one of them has in some way or another made me who I am today.

And for Harold Ramis, who passed away a few months ago, I always wished I could have met you and let you know that Egon was always my favorite. Pretty sure there was even a 2 week period in my childhood where I refused to answer to anything bu Egon. Rest in peace, Harold.

Happy 30th Anniversary, Ghostbusters.

MR. GHOSTBUSTER ON FACEBOOK