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Lord of the Rings – (Knickerbocker) 1979

Years before Peter Jackson brought his epic Lord of the Rings trilogy to cinemas in 2001, there was the Lord of the Rings animated movie from November of 1978. Released by United Artists, the movie was directed by Ralph Bakshi and covered the first two books in the LOTR trilogy, Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers. This toy line was based on that 1978 Ralph Bakshi movie and had no connection to the Return of the King animated movie produced by Rankin-Bass the following year. The line was a small one with only six characters and two horses. This line did not sell very well at the time, but has gained a bit of a cult following over the years.

For more information about Knickerbocker’s Lord of the Rings Toy line, see bottom of the page for a complete summary.

Lord of the Rings (1979): Basic Figures

The first (and only) wave of Lord of the Rings action figures by Knickerbocker consisted of only six characters from the animated movie, with Aragorn, Frodo, Gandalf the Grey, Gollum, Ringwraith (Black Rider) and Samwise. Each figure was released on a rather bland looking yellow card and all had the same exact card back.

Aragorn

Market Value:
Carded $900 – $1,100
Loose $300 – $400

Aragorn
Accessories: Sword, Scabbard
Released: 1979
Notes: The Aragorn from the Peter Jackson trilogy was WAY different than this animated movie version. For starters, the mini-skirt/super hero underwear outfit was pretty awful, and it wouldn’t have killed Knickerbocker to give him just a little bit of muscle and a cloak. Aragorn comes with his Sword and Scabbard.

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Frodo

Market Value:
Carded $450 – $600
Loose $100 – $140

Frodo
Accessories: Sword, Scabbard
Released: 1979
Notes: Voiced by Christopher Guard in the animated movie, Frodo actually looks pretty close to the animated version, complete with hairy feet, oversized head and all. Frodo also comes with his detachable Scabbard and Sword.

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Gandalf The Grey

Market Value:
Carded $800 – $1,000
Loose $200 – $300

Gandalf The Grey
Accessories: Wizard’s Hat, Staff
Released: 1979
Notes: Of all the figures in this line, Knickerbocker really nailed the likeness for Gandalf the Grey from the animated movie. This is actually one of the my favorite figures from this toy line. Gandalf comes with his removable Wizard’s Hat and Staff.

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Gollum

Market Value:
Carded $500 – $700
Loose $100 – $140

Gollum
Accessories: None
Released: 1979
Note: I can certainly understand that Gollum is not an attractive or elaborately detailed character, but Knickerbocker’s version of Gollum looks the least like his animated movie version. Gollum comes with no accessories.

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Ringwraith the Black Rider

Market Value:
Carded $1,350 – $1,850
Loose $300 – $450

Ringwraith the Black Rider
Accessories: Sword, Scabbard, Battle Axe
Released: 1979
Notes: The Ringwraith’s from the Lord of the Rings animated movie were pretty plain looking with their black cloaks and non-distinguishable faces, so this is one time where the toy company actually IMPROVED upon the source material. Knickerbocker used some creativity to make the Ringwraith imposing and actually pretty cool looking.

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Samwise

Market Value:
Carded $450 – $600
Loose $100 – $140

Samwise
Accessories: Sword, Scabbard
Released: 1979
Notes: Like his buddy Frodo, Samwise looks pretty close to his animated movie version, complete with hairy feet, oversized head and all. It would’ve been pretty awesome to have an Elven Cloak with the figure, but you can’t have everything. Samwise comes with his Scabbard and Sword.

Lord of the Rings (1979): Horses & Creatures

In addition to the six action figures, Knickerbocker also released two different horses from the Animated Movie. There was the black colored Charger of the Ringwraith Horse and the white colored Frodo’s Horse. Both horses came with saddle and reins, while the Ringwraith’s Charger also included a battle shield.

Lord of the Rings (1979): Accessories

Knickerbocker did not release any other related accessories for their Lord of the Rings line.

Years before Peter Jackson brought his epic Lord of the Rings trilogy to cinemas in 2001, there was the Lord of the Rings animated movie from November of 1978. Released by United Artists, the movie was directed by Ralph Bakshi and covered the first two books in the LOTR trilogy, Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers. This toy line was based on that 1978 Ralph Bakshi movie and had no connection to the Return of the King animated movie produced by Rankin-Bass the following year. The line was a small one with only six characters and two horses. This line did not sell very well at the time, but has gained a bit of a cult following over the years.

Knickerbocker’s Lord of the Rings series consisted of only six characters and was based on the Animated Movie that debuted in November of 1978. It hit toy aisles by Christmas in a limited release and then everywhere else early in 1979. The six featured characters were Aragorn, Frodo Gandalf the Grey, Gollum, Ringwraith (Black Rider) and Samwise. In addition to the six figures, Knickerbocker also released two different horses from the Animated Movie. There was the black colored Charger of the Ringwraith Horse and the white colored Frodo’s Horse. Both came with saddle and reins, while the Ringwraith’s Charger also included a battle shield. Since the animated movie only covered Fellowship of the Ring and Two Towers, it was originally supposed to be labelled Part 1, with Part 2 being the finale that included Return of the King. The animated movie was profitable ($38 million gross on a $4-$6 million budget), but was not particularly popular with fans or critics, so the studio did not think a sequel would be successful.
Fun Fact: Legolas in the LOTR Animated Movie was voiced by none other than Star Wars legend, Anthony Daniels (C-3PO).

The packaging for Knickerbocker’s Lord of the Rings action figure line was definitely one of the more boring and droll looking themes of that era. It was a yellow card with the Lord of the Rings logo at the top left. Each figure was to the left of the card, while a portrait of the animated movie character was to the right. Knickerbocker utilized the same exact card back for each of the six figures. The two horses had similar packaging with the size being adjusted for the horse. These figures did not sell very well and were quickly relegated to store bargain bins. I have a specific memory of seeing a large bin of these figures in a Lionel Play World toy store back in the day and thinking they just looked boring. Nowadays, these figures have gained a cult following, especially with Lord of the Rings fans and collectors. They can still be found on the secondary market, but they won’t come cheap.