Toy soldier figures, Plastic Army Women, BMC Toys, Scranton, Pennsylvania, 2020

Set of 36 toy soldier figures, all modelled after women in various combat and non-combat poses.

Given by BMC Toys

Toy soldiers made from wood, clay, tin, lead, composition or plastic have been a common children’s toy for centuries. Clay artifacts resembling toy soldiers have been discovered at several archaeological sites, which may suggest they have a very ancient history as a toy for play, or as tools for boys’ military education during antiquity. However, toy soldiers were not widely affordable until the 19th century when they began to be mass-produced in tin and lead by manufacturers in Germany, and later in the UK. Toy soldiers have been consistently popular and remain one of the most recognisable toys used in small world play,

After the Second World War, manufacturing with new, inexpensive plastics proved to be very economical for many toy companies, and cheaper for consumers. The iconic green plastic ‘Army Men’ figures were produced and sold in bulk bags and buckets by several manufacturers from the middle of the 20th century, most notably by Louis Marx and Company, Tim-Mee Toys and Multiple Plastics Corporation (MPC). They remain popular even after the decline of US-based toy manufacturing, and often appear anachronistic in style, modelled with US Army uniforms resembling those from the Second World War and Vietnam War. Historical accuracy is not usually considered a priority in the sculpt of figures of this type and emphasis is given to their use in small world play. A set of Army Men memorably appeared in Pixar’s Toy Story motion pictures (1995-2019), and in 2011 Time Magazine named green plastic ‘Army Men’ as one of the 100 most popular toys of all time.

BMC Toys was founded in 1991 by Bill McMaster. The company specialises in the manufacture of ‘classic’ toy soldiers in a range of standard and unorthodox colours, including red and pink, using vintage tools acquired from Marx and MPC. They have apparently operated as a subsidiary of VictoryBuy Inc. since McMaster’s death in 2014.

In 2018, BMC initiated a project to produce sets of Army Women following requests from, among others, a six-year-old girl in Arkansas named Vivian. A Kickstarter campaign to support the development of the toys raised in excess of $55,000, enabling them to create a greater range of designs. The company produced a monthly newsletter and blog series charting the development of the figures, from idea to production, drawing on feedback from members of the public and consultation with female service personnel. Throughout the campaign and development, the project attracted considerable press attention in the United States, largely stemming from the company's positive and rapid response to a request directly from a young child. The figures were confirmed for production in November 2019 and were first sold in late-2020. They are significant as they seem to be the first mass-produced military figures to represent women in combat roles, rather than in support roles such as nurses.

B.8:1 to 37-2022