Original Action Figure Blueprint - R2-D2: The blueprint you see here was part of an incredible find of pre-production material relating to the design of the first Kenner Star Wars figures. The were made by one of the original designers of the line, a man who had a hand in the creation of every Star Wars action figure made prior to the debut of Boba Fett in 1979. Following his departure from Kenner, this designer took all the bluprints he saved--16 in all--and bound them in a portfolio with an attractive Star Wars cover. I don't think I have to resort to a lot of fancy adjectives to drive home how significant this stuff is-- it's representative of the design process behind one of the most popular toy lines in history. 'Nuf said.

Here you see the R2-D2 blueprint. As you can see, it's not incredibly precise in terms of proportions and details. This is likely because these blueprints weren't used to set exact sculpting/prototyping specifications as were some other blueprints; rather, they probably allowed the designer to work out his ideas on paper and present his concepts to other members of the Kenner staff. The image is quite true to the eventual appearance of the production toy. Most of the details you see here were translated rather literally into the wood pattern used to create the production molds.

Here's a closeup. The text you see at certain points on the paper refers to the colors that were to be used when painting or molding various parts of the figure (the "head" dome, the torso, the legs, etc.). In the lower left is a small chart which specifies the exact color of each component. It refers to the Pantone system, a standardized color palette used in the design profession.

This is the cover of the porfolio in which all of these blueprints are stored.

Make no mistake, this is neat stuff. The fact that it comes from so early in the history of the Star Wars toy line only makes it sweeter.