Also, today from the archives, let’s celebrate the Magic of Willow with this Tonka figure of High Aldwin (Heroic Wise Man)!
This figure represents just the second figure of a film character played by Hollywood legend Billy Barty, following his Masters of the Universe character Gwildor, who received a figure the year before.
Barty had a film and television career spanning over seven decades including such films as Soup to Nuts, Bride of Frankenstein, multiple television shows produced by Sid and Marty Krofft, 1978’s animated Lord of the Rings (as the rotoscope reference for Bilbo), Legend, the voice of Figment at EPCOT, and Masters of the Universe (my personal favorite) … quite an extensive list by the time Willow was being cast.
Following Willow, Barty later starred in UHF, Radioland Murders, and The Rescuers Down Under, among other films.
Bigger than just acting, Barty also founded the Little People of America organization to help people with dwarfism. The group is still going strong 65+ years later. By 1981, Barty had already received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions to the film industry.
The Willow film turns 37 years old next week. I figure there’ll be a new Willow item from my collection to share here for the rest of the month. Happy 37 years to the Magic of Willow!
Dale's Toys 