Zombos' Closet

Comic Book Back Covers: MPC's Zingers!

There's some cool stuff to be found on comic book back covers...Our Fighting Forces, Vol. 21, No. 149, 1974...

Comic Book Back Covers: Revell's Endangered Animals

There's some cool stuff to be found on comic book back covers...Our Fighting Forces, Vol. 21, No. 152, 1974...

Big Frankie is Back and Moebius Has Him!

Glue-sniffers rejoice! He's coming! Moebius Model Kits revives the kit that made monsterkids scream with delight and parents just scream. Cult TV Man has him for pre-order. Don't miss this one!

I remember ordering him from the pages of Famous Monsters of Filmland Magazine, and sending cash in the envelope, including coins (taped together, of course). After a few months I gave up hope, thinking someone stole the money. But then he finally arrived. The big box was beat-up and had been tied with string to hold it together. The post office hadn't treated him well. But I still had him. It was love at first sight.

Now you can rekindle the romance, too!

Unavailable since 1964, It is the "Grail" for many toy, kit, and monster collectors (plus, it's just plain cool!).

Moebius has received a license from Universal Studios to produce this highly sought after model kit! Look for "Big Frankie" in a store near you, summer 2008!

As with all Moebius reproduction kits, Gigantic Frankenstein will come in the same, classic style, paper-wrapped box as he did 44 years ago!

Monarch Models: Nosferatu

There is nothing like the smell of styrene in the morning. Monarch Model Company's Nosferatu hits the shelves in time for the monsterkid gift-giving season--hint, hint. So stop drooling and buy one already. And don't forget to mail in the club membership. Click each image to get the big picture.

The New Aurora and the Old LAPCO

My interview with Gennaro (Jerry) Giammarino III of the new Aurora Plastics Corporation sparked quite a bit of commentary and controversy from modelers and fans who remember LAPCO (Lost Aurora Plastics Company), Jerry's first attempt at reviving the Aurora brand of modeling. You can see some of their prototypes from the Chiller 2000 Convention at CultTVman.

I approached Jerry with these concerns and here's his response:

Let me put it like this. I am not going to pull any punches with anyone, so here it goes. The 2 partners I had toward the end of LAPCO's demise were Brian Theriault and Bill Giordano. They were and still are the best 2 people anyone can ever wish to have as partners. They are fantastic and they deserved to have been rewarded for the efforts they made and helped us with. LAPCO's demise was not caused by them. What happened was plain and simple.

Legendary Aurora To Return?

ZC Note: As of 05/30/2011, the new Aurora hasn't materialized. Instead, Monarch and Moebius have dominated the model kit scene.

The famed Aurora Plastics Corporation may be back in business, and more classic monsters than you can shake a flaming torch at are on the operating table, ready to be born again to delight old-time fans and make new ones. But it's not Dr. Frankenstein plotting to take over the modeling world this time, it's Gennaro (Jerry) Giammarino III, heir to the family that made Aurora a legendary model kit maker beloved by fans and copied by imitators years after it closed it's doors.

But bringing back the monsters is only part of his plans. Many of the original kits are being re-released with the current generation of budding model kit builders in mind. The time has come for a new generation of fans to experience the magic of Aurora. Jerry answers the following questions about the new Aurora Plastics Corporation. 

What led you to restart the legendary Aurora Plastics Corporation brand of model kits?

While doing a search on the Internet and also checking for any Aurora items on eBay, my Father and I were quite amazed as to the popularity for the old Aurora kits. Considering this, we decided that since we had molds in storage as well as being able to lease molds from another company that has some of the Aurora molds, we would try bringing part of the Aurora Line back for old time customers as well as bringing new items to the line. We own many Aurora Prototypes that were not done, and since we have them we might as well try to do them. We also want to try to bring modeling back for kids of this generation and we know it is a gamble, but we can try. We are in this for modelers and for fun, since we both love the model industry.

What challenges are you facing as you restart the company?

There are many challenges to any company. Our main challenge is that people want everything all at once and it can't be done. We want to establish the new Aurora first, with a line of 15 model kits, see how it goes and then take it from there. Again, money is not a problem, but I am not going to throw away my money by having it flop. If we see that the kits take off and that we can keep the company going by doing the old and adding new, then we will do our best to serve the public.

Another challenge is that there are a few people out there who have already started to try to intimidate us by telling us we have no right to do this item, or that the Box Art is not ours, and other legal challenges, etc. We will not be deterred by them and will do what we feel is right.

I can tell you that we overcame one big Challenge and that was securing a contract with Universal Studios to do some kits. I thought we would be challenged, but it seems that they are very much interested in working with us and we are in negotiations with them, and by next week we will have some better idea where we stand. It seems they are very eager to work with us, as we are eager to work with them, and we are going to do the best we can to please them as well as the modelers of today.

CreatureScape: The 21st Century Monster Model Zine

Are you into making monsters?

Just about every horrorhead has at one time or another assembled his or her own garage-kit Frankenstein, or ghoul, or zombie, or creature from some lost lagoon or godforsaken planet in resin, styrene or vinyl. I can't say for sure that it started with Aurora's monster kits, but it's the ghost of Aurora that remains deeply impaled in many a kit-building horrorhead's beating heart.

But today's kits are more sophisticated, and today's modelers more passionate about their art; both demand more expertise with the tools that will turn those unassembled and unpainted pieces of a dream kit into that bashed diorama of fiendish delight.

Lucky for us there's CreatureScape, the online magazine for monster model lovers everywhere to help.

Classic Plastic: A Monarch Comes to the Rescue

A new monster model kit maker is prowling the block!

Picking up the legendary Aurora styrene kit-making torch, Monarch Models plans on bringing horror nostalgia and classic monsters back to rampage among the boring shelves of snap-together car, plane, and Star Wars vehicle kits.

Monsterkids rejoice!

Their first offering will be Nosferatu, a one-eight scale kit, packaged in the beautiful box-art and wrapping that Aurora fans know so well. I can smell that glue now!

Scott Mckillop of London, Ontario, the founding father of Monarch Models, dropped by for a brief chat.

What is Monarch's mission?

To give modelers like myself a choice beyond the ordinary cars and armour.

What makes you want to rekindle the legendary Aurora model kit mystique?

Aurora made modeling fun for me as a kid, and I miss that in the hobby today. Polar Lights did a great thing when they were here but with their disappearance, we are back to square one.

The design of your website is very retro. Who came up with the concept?

That's all me.

Your logo follows the original striking image of Aurora, but how did the Monarch butterfly image come about?

Ahh, sort of by serendipity. It was a nice tie in to the Monarch name (Monarch Butterfly) and to lend a continuity to the Playing Mantis praying mantis mascot. Mostly I liked the whole innocent presentation of the icon for a toy industry. I plain ol' like the look.

Who are the creative people behind Monarch?

Me, Gary Makatura, Jeff Yagher.

That Nosferatu box cover art has old Aurora fans drooling. It's very reminiscent of James Bama's work. What other model kits are you planning? Come on, spill the beans!

Well the next couple of kits are public domain. And that's fine with me because for one, it's free, and two, my favorite kits were always the public domain stuff like the Forgotten Prisoner, Dinosaurs, the Witch.

But we are in the process of creating the next two kits and until the tooling is ready to go, I have to play it close to the vest. I will say this; the next kit is monster related to fit in nicely with the original aurora monsters. And the third kit is for the Sci-Fi figure guys.

Both releases will occur simultaneously and in the next 8 months. These will be all new original kits, never seen in styrene before and likely never again because like all things we do at Monarch, these are limited runs. Licensed properties are next but probably not until 2008. Maybe sooner, it's hard to know with these things.

Where can we find Monarch model kits? And when will you launch the first one, Nosferatu?

So far Stevens International has stepped up to the plate as the largest world wide distributor, and they reach pretty much everyone. But no dealer will go away empty handed. But they still need to contact me; the crystal ball cracked a few years ago. I am planning on world wide distribution through the help of Stevens International beginning in June.

What's the Monarch Fan Club all about?

Free stuff! Well...for the nominal fee of two sawbucks! But believe me, this is a non profit club. It's just my way of rewarding the loyal model builders with cool gratis promo booty. Clubs were always the fun part of models and toys in the 60's and 70's. Think of the GI Joe club from way back when. Great stuff!

Thanks Scott. For more information on Monarch Models, go to their website.