Rare Star Wars Toys Bring in $500,000 at Auction

As the much-anticipated Star Wars: The Force Awakensprepares to roar into theaters on Friday, the franchises enduring legacy and multigenerational appeal was on full display at a Sothebys auction this weekend. A600-item block of Star Warstoys, collectibles and other ephemera sold for over $505,000 in an auction dubbed Return of the NIGO, a nod to Japanese clothes designer Tomoaki Nagao who sold off a fraction of his Star Wars collection to the highest bidders.

As avid Star Wars toy collector and Jessies Girl rocker Rick Springfield told Rolling Stone in our examination of his one-of-a-kind collection, there is an insatiable market for toys from the original trilogy, and not just for household name characters like Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Darth Vader. CNN reportsthat a figurine dedicated to the character Yak Face, who had a split-second appearance as one of Jabba the Hutts cronies in Return of the Jedi, sold at Sothebys for $7,250 due to the scarcity of the item (Yak-Face wasnt exactly a big seller when the toy was released in 1983.)

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Among the other standouts at Sothebys Star Wars auction was a pristine set of seven The Empire Strikes Back figurines released exclusively to Sears stores in Canada that went for over $32,000, three times its estimate. Even a 1977 Star Wars cardboard box touting an Early Bird Certificate Package went for $20,000 because it was only one of five in existence. An early version of a Like Skywalker toy that was recalled due to its faulty lightsaber also sold for $20,000.

NIGOs impressive Star Wars collection is on the level of Springfields, although the rocker says he wont sell his toys, which includes a rare 21-Back Boba Fett. I actually like the toys more than I like the movies, Springfield said, adding that he refuses to take the toys out of the packaging. Theyre cheesy figures! Theyre badly painted, badly made the only cool thing is the great artwork.