Pteranodon (Marx)

Today’s review marks a small milestone for the DTB as it’s the last review for a Marx toy in the Medium Mold Group, Pl-750. This mold group was released in 1955 and was the second wave of dinosaur figures produced by Marx. All in all, 17 out of 23 Marx toys have been covered thus far.

The Marx Pteranodon is a peculiar little fellow, interestingly presented in a resting posture. Resting pterosaur figures are becoming more common these days but it wasn’t too long ago that they were relatively rare, most toy companies preferring a flying or bipedal pose. This makes sense, as any kid with a toy pterosaur would rather be able to fly it around the room instead of having it just sit there. As a collector interested in display, I’ve always appreciated resting pterosaurs, so I also appreciate that the first ever pterosaur toy was posed like this.

Marx toys are based directly on the popular paleo-art of their time with Rudolph Zallinger’s Age of Reptiles mural being the main source of inspiration for most of them. A few others are clearly inspired by Charles R. Knight and Zdeněk Burian. This pterosaur however, in its resting posture, appears to be based on the work of Neave Parker and his famous Pteranodon piece that depicts one Pteranodon in flight and another resting on a cliff and looking towards the left.

It seems to me that it would have been far easier for Marx to have produced a flying Pteranodon than a resting one. So, I must wonder what Marx’s motivation was for this piece. Whatever the reason the decision to position it like this adds a lot of its appeal and helps it stand out among the other small, monochrome pterosaurs of its time. That said, it is kind of awkward and goofy looking too, as if the designer wasn’t quite sure how to pull of the posture.

The head is looking towards the left, like Parker’s Pteranodon, and has a somewhat dim look to it with its bulging eyes and little smirk at the ends of its mouth. The head is positioned atop a ramrod straight neck which adds to the awkwardness of the piece. On my copy the lower mandible is longer than the upper, but this appears to be a production error on mine. I could trim it off but I’m not sure that I want to.

Detail work is minimal with the figure mostly being smooth with some faint cross hatching. Some skin folds are sculpted around the neck and face, nostrils are present on the beak, and some faint etching is apparent on the crest.

The Pteranodon is positioned on all fours, bat-like, with the wings folded up behind the back. This is how we now know pterosaurs rested and walked but for a time it was debated, with some paleontologists suggesting pterosaurs were bipedal, like birds. There were also those that suggested pterosaurs dragged themselves across the ground on their bellies and this idea is best illustrated by the Invicta and Carnegie Pteranodon. Taking its age into context the Marx Pteranodon is strikingly accurate with regards to posture.

The forelimbs are complete with 4 digits, the 4^th being elongated to support the wing membrane. This is accurate, but the hindlimbs aren’t. Four toes are present, and they’re clearly inspired by perching birds with three facing forward and one backwards. But with a 66-year-old toy we can’t scrutinize the accuracy too much.

Although goofy looking in much the same way as it’s contemporaries, like the Allosaurus and Stegosaurus, the Marx Pteranodon is surprisingly progressive for its age and has a lot of personal character. For pterosaur collectors this is an absolute must have piece. On eBay it sells for about $10-20 but it’ll be cheaper in lots. For those wanting an authentic Marx beware of the similar MPC toys.