ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia outmuscled little green army men for a spot in the National Toy Hall of Fame. Star Wars action figures join centuries-old dominoes in the class of 2012 just announced by the Rochester hall.
A national selection committee chose them from among 12 finalists, plucking the most ancient and modern toys from the list. Star Wars action figures went on the market in 1978, following the 1977 release of the 20th Century Fox movie. The 3 3/4-inch figures of Han Solo, Chewbacca, R2-D2 and company were sold until 1985 and again from the mid-1990s to today.
Museum officials say their phenomenal popularity inspired other toy makers to tie their products to movies and television series and they note the toys’ appeal extends to adults who continue to collect them.
More than 20 lines of Star Wars figures have launched, propelling the film series’ merchandise sales to $20 billion over the past 35 years. The action figures were first made by Kenner, which was bought by Tonka and later Hasbro.
Dominoes originated in China in the 1300s and appeared later in Europe in a slightly different form. A standard set of 28 tiles represents all possible results when rolling a pair of six-sided dice, with the addition of two blank sides. Although there’s a variety of ways to play with them, the cascading toppling of lined-up tiles put the “domino effect” into the American lexicon.
The toys beat out plastic green army men, the board game Clue, the Fisher-Price Corn Popper, Lite-Brite, the Magic 8 Ball, the pogo stick, sidewalk chalk, the electronic game Simon, the tea set and Twister.
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