PROTOTYPES
I own two rare prototype/early test sample 8" figures from the 1974 Planet of the Apes toy line: Soldier Ape and Cornelius!
Pictured Above: Prototype Cornelius (Left) and Prototype Soldier Ape (Right)
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Prototype/Test Sample Soldier Ape
In 2017, I purchased this rare 1974 prototype/early test sample soldier ape action figure made by Mego for the 8” Planet of the Apes line.
Pictured Above: Prototype Soldier Ape 8" action figure
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Pictured Above: Prototype Soldier Ape (Left) and Production Soldier Ape (Right)
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The prototype head is cast in a light tan-colored vinyl instead of brown. The vinyl is also much softer than the production head. Additionally, the eyes, eyebrows, and hair are hand-painted brown instead of black.
Pictured Above: Prototype head (left) next to production head (right)
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The prototype bandolier is made of navy fabric with maroon pouches. The bandolier is too long to have been made from another tunic, indicating it was cut from a bolt of fabric.
Pictured Above: Prototype cloth bandolier (top) and production plastic bandolier (top)
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The figure was found in Wake Forest, North Carolina. It was listed on eBay by the original owner in a generic lot of figures in 2017. The seller had no idea what it was and said he purchased it back in the 1970's “as a kid at a flea market in Raleigh.”
Pictured Above: Original auction photos
Recognizing its significance, the buyer of the auction relisted it on eBay with better photos and an appropriate description. I was the lucky winner of the second auction.
Pictured Above: Relisted auction photos
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The figure is on a regular T1 Mego body instead of a brown ape body, and the tunic has an original paper Mego tag sewn inside.
Pictured Above: Original and relisted auction photos
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The figure (or identical prototype/test sample) is pictured on the Mego Planet of the Apes Treehouse box, on the Village playset box, in the 1974 Toy Fair dealer catalog, and in the 1974 mini insert catalog.
Pictured Above: Planet of the Apes Treehouse Box
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Pictured Above: Mego Planet of the Apes Treehouse Playset Box Side Panel
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Pictured Above: Planet of the Apes Village Box
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Pictured Above: Mego Planet of the Apes Village Playset Box Side Panel
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Pictured Above: 1974 Mego Toy Fair Dealer Catalog (Page 17)
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Pictured Above: 1974 Mego Mini Insert Catalog
Pictured Above: 1974 Mego Mini Insert Catalog
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Only four prototype Mego soldier ape figures have been found, and only two of them (including mine) have the light tan face. The other tan face prototype soldier ape (which I do not own) was allegedly obtained from a former Mego executive. It is identical to mine except it has a maroon tunic/bandolier with navy pouches instead of a navy tunic/bandolier with maroon pouches.
Pictured Above: The Other Tan Face Prototype Soldier Ape
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Prototype/Test Sample Cornelius
At the end of 2025, I purchased this rare 1974 prototype/early test sample Cornelius action figure made by Mego for the 8” Planet of the Apes line.
Pictured Above: Prototype Cornelius 8" action figure
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Pictured Above: Prototype Cornelius (Left) and Production Cornelius (Right)
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I purchased the figure from a collector in the U.K. who got it on eBay many years ago.
Pictured Above: Original auction photos
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The prototype head is different from a production head in several ways. First, it's cast in a tan-colored vinyl that is lighter in color and much softer/squishier than a production head. Second, the eyes, eyebrows, and hair are hand-painted. The eye paint is different too. There is no eyelash line above the eye and no brown iris (just a black pupil). Finally, the lips are unpainted.
Pictured Above: Prototype head (left) next to production head (right)
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Pictured Above: Prototype eye paint (left) and production eye paint (right)
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The prototype Cornelius head is cast in the same vinyl as the prototype Soldier Ape head. Also, the paint job is very similar in terms of color and application. In hand, they look and feel identical.
Pictured Above: Prototype Cornelius head (left) next to prototype Soldier Ape head (right)
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Pictured Above: Prototype Cornelius head (left) next to prototype Soldier Ape head (right)
The production head has painted ears, but the prototype head does not. Although production heads are cast in a tan-colored vinyl, everything except the face was painted brown (including the hair, ears, and neck plug), and then the ears were painted over to match the face. Because the prototype head is hand-painted, the painter was able to paint the hair around the ears, using the natural color of the vinyl for the ears.
In addition to the differences with the head, the prototype outfit has two major differences from the production outfit. The first difference is the chest plate. The hieroglyph stamp on the chest plate is larger, the image is reversed, and there are no lines around the neck.
Pictured Above: Prototype Cornelius chest plate (left) next to a brown production chest plate (middle) and a purple production chest plate (right)
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The chest plate stamp is identical to the prototype pictured in the 1974 Toy Fair dealer catalog, in the 1974 mini insert catalog, and on the sides of the Mego Planet of the Apes Treehouse and Village playset boxes.
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Pictured Above: 1974 Mego Toy Fair Dealer Catalog (Left) next to Prototype Cornelius (Right)
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Pictured Above: 1974 Mego Toy Fair Dealer Catalog (Page 17)
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Pictured Above: 1974 Mego Mini Insert Catalog
Pictured Above: Mego Planet of the Apes Treehouse Playset Box Side Panel
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Pictured Above: Mego Planet of the Apes Village Playset Box Side Panel
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The second difference is the fur cuffs. The prototype figure has course reddish-brown fur on the outside and long, thick black fur on the inside.
Pictured Above: Prototype Cornelius fur cuff (left) next to a production fur cuff (right)
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Pictured Above: Inside of prototype Cornelius fur cuff (left) next to a production fur cuff (right)
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The prototype figure pictured in 1974 Mego Toy Fair dealer catalog appears to have similar fur cuffs with course reddish-brown fur on the outside and long, thick black fur on the inside.
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Pictured Above: 1974 Mego Toy Fair Dealer Catalog (Left) and prototype Cornelius figure (right)
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Pictured Above: 1974 Mego Toy Fair Dealer Catalog (Left) and prototype Cornelius figure (right)
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I'm aware of only one other prototype Cornelius tunic (which I do not own). According to the owner, it was purchased in the 1990s from a store called Dr. Tongues. The tunic is identical to mine except the chest plate and arm bands are made from blue leather instead of brown and the arm bands are not sewn down.
Pictured Above: The Other Prototype Cornelius Tunic
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Pictured Above: Prototype Cornelius action figure (left) and production Cornelius action figure (right)
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