Collecting Diary 2004-12-16

Children's Safety ... and Children's Medical Care

According to the box, this Star Wars Safety Helmet which "includes flashing rear light" doesn't officially come with batteries. The kind eBay seller in the U.K. had installed a set of three AAA batteries to photograph the flashing light for the auction, and left them installed as an extra incentive to buyers.

I wouldn't trust the three blinking red LEDs on the back of the helmet to save my life by alerting drivers at night (they really aren't that bright) but they are really cool as an idea, and a novelty that may have originally helped the helmet sell in 1997.
This year the D.C. Star Wars Collector's Club produced a licensed batch of 500 Yoda pins, with 100% of the profits going to the Children's National Medical Center. The pins sold out almost immediately, and I was fortunate to be quick enough to get one. The 'lightsaber' Yoda is holding is actually the Washington monument! Hehe... Great design!