Rocketeer: It is SO on!
OK, so I've been semi-obsessed with The Rocketeer since '91, when the movie came out. The design was just, so... keen.
My old comics store in Saginaw tried to get me interested in the title years earlier, but I wasn't biting. Seeing the whole package on the big screen, though - I WANTED that rocket! AND the jacket! AND the Helmet. (And possibly Jennifer Connelly, in that order...)
And since I saw it with my future wife (and master costumer) wiliqueen, we started talking costuming possibilities on the way home from the theater.
She had never worked with leather before, and building the jacket from scratch wouldn't be easy, so we brainstormed on ways to modify my tan leather coat to approximate the look. I had no idea how I might do the helmet or rocketpack, other than by taking my time and scouting out odds and ends at hardwares, army surplus stores, even junk yards. I was still a physics grad student then, and had been known to look lovingly on some of the scrap that found its way to the back rooms of the department machine shop from time to time.
I never got anywhere with the plan, however. Oh, sure, I saved up some scraps of appropriate colored leather, that I might one day cut up into a hand-control piece. But we never did up the front panel for my jacket. I did seriously look at some parachute harnesses at the surplus store, but it wasn't a good fit for what was needed. Besides, better to know the size and weight of the package before figuring out how to carry it, I thought. So I passed.
I met some folks at various conventions who introduced the idea of medium-to-large scale vacuforming to me. That sounded promising, and I tried a small scale experiment, but that didn't turn out too well, as I hadn't done enough homework, and tried to cut too many corners.
Eventually the Rocketeer idea dropped by the wayside, taking back seat to other daydreams and fannish ambitions. Such as the Brainiac 5 outfit wiliqueen made for me one summer for Comicon. Spandex, she can do. Even if I shouldn't be wearing it! :-)
Of course, things could set off the old spark easy enough. At that same Comicon we ran into a Rocketeer sporting the comic-style single-engine rocket (I eventually collected all of the old comics - not surprised, you say? I'll try harder in the future. :-) A LOT of work went into that. A DAUNTING amount.
And while on an evening outing during a trade show at Disney in Florida, I came off of the latest roller coaster ride to discover, of all things, one of the Hero Helmets from the movie on display in the giftshop 'exit'. Oh, it was night, and the lighting was bad, but I had one of my co-workers take a snapshot of me and the helmet-behind-glass!
And yes, I'd seen the occasional prop show up for auction on eBay over the years. But the prices? If I spent that much for something, I'd be afraid to take it OUT of the glass case I'd be forced to buy to display it in!
So the idea has languished. Until now. While searching for unrelated fannish items (alright, Green Lantern Rings, if you must know), I checked out one of my old saved searches on eBay for Rocketeer memorabilia. I saw authentic harness buckles going for outrages sums of money, like 10 years ago. Check! And I saw both fan-made and replica helmets. Check! But wait, it seems I missed out on a run of Master Replicas made Rocketeer helmet replicas in the mid-2000s. They'd already liquidated their stock, it seems (LAST YEAR! Darn it!) but that meant there were vendors selling it on eBay for MUCH less than the original $400 price. Promising. Must keep an eye on that to see if it dips to something... 'affordable'.
In the meantime that old spark resurfaced, and I started looking around for other options, and found the last few years had been kind to the Rocketeer-fanatic.
For example, four separate vendors that I've found that do replica jackets (with varying costs and varying degrees of authenticity, but all but the MOST authentic being what I would consider reasonable for a good leather jacket). And besides the MR helmet, there are at least two competing kits of the helmet out there. One I've seen a few times on eBay for around $100, made out of molded plastic, and the other a $200 resin kit that most references give solid marks to. The resin model folks even have a $1000 rocketpack kit! Not that I can see spending $1000 quite yet. But it's nice to know the option is out there! There ARE options.
That's the thing - I've found at least TWO detailed descriptions of how people have assembled their costumes, and a few partials. I have material and resources to draw inspiration from! There is even a boot replica maker! (Though they are a bit expensive, in my eyes. Still, less than some custom made boot shops, so I guess it depends on what you're expecting. And the fact that there is a new commercial boot called a Rocketeer - so disappointingly misleading! If only!)
With the 20th (!?) anniversary of the movie coming up in just about 2 years, I think it's time to set myself a goal. Recently ivan23 posted about his joining in on the "101 Goals in a 1001 days" meme.
I liked that idea.
I've been needing some goal-setting in my life, lately, as it seems as if my whole life has kind of been on hold, professionally and creatively since I moved to Chicago. Sure, I did some freelance writing since moving here, but I decided after the last round that I really needed to stop writing for someone and write for myself! Using my ideas, my characters and world and FOR me! Sounds great, but since then, nada.
Hence, goals. Need 'em. But I didn't just want to join in on the meme without putting my own twist to it. Sure, I love the idea of setting specific goals and actually giving yourself the TIME to either succeed or fail at them. That's key, I think. Long-term viewing is what I need to do to kick start this life of mine back up.
But I needed to do it my way, so while I will probably steal a lot of the tricks the "Day Zero" folks are using, I'm calling this my Fifth World Initiative. 121 goals in 1221 days, ending on or around 12/21/2012. Get my goals out of the way by the start of the Fifth World, and then start fresh with a new set then. Or at least get them all finished before the world ends, if you go in for that.
Anyway, this is now my first goal (it's actually #21 on the list, but the first I'm stating publicly - only 100 more to set before August!): Get a Rocketeer costume ready for the 20th anniversary in June, 2011.
And why am I stating this one now? Because I took the plunge and got one of the MR helmets off of eBay, for a 'smidge' more than the resin kit (on deep discount!) and it arrived today.
It's GORGEOUS! And even comfortable to wear (relatively speaking - it has a quilted cloth liner and chin strap, and weighs just under 5 lbs. I was under the impression it was much heavier, and spent a hour or so with a salad bowl and some weights on my head last week to judge if I could stand wearing the thing. Don't laugh! Well, laugh, but get it over with quickly please!)
Here's how it looks with that same tan leather jacket I wore to see the movie in the first place!
OK, just had to crow a bit about that! And I will try to keep a running commentary as the pieces fall together, to pay back the folks who have left similar crumb trails for me to follow.
My old comics store in Saginaw tried to get me interested in the title years earlier, but I wasn't biting. Seeing the whole package on the big screen, though - I WANTED that rocket! AND the jacket! AND the Helmet. (And possibly Jennifer Connelly, in that order...)
And since I saw it with my future wife (and master costumer) wiliqueen, we started talking costuming possibilities on the way home from the theater.
She had never worked with leather before, and building the jacket from scratch wouldn't be easy, so we brainstormed on ways to modify my tan leather coat to approximate the look. I had no idea how I might do the helmet or rocketpack, other than by taking my time and scouting out odds and ends at hardwares, army surplus stores, even junk yards. I was still a physics grad student then, and had been known to look lovingly on some of the scrap that found its way to the back rooms of the department machine shop from time to time.
I never got anywhere with the plan, however. Oh, sure, I saved up some scraps of appropriate colored leather, that I might one day cut up into a hand-control piece. But we never did up the front panel for my jacket. I did seriously look at some parachute harnesses at the surplus store, but it wasn't a good fit for what was needed. Besides, better to know the size and weight of the package before figuring out how to carry it, I thought. So I passed.
I met some folks at various conventions who introduced the idea of medium-to-large scale vacuforming to me. That sounded promising, and I tried a small scale experiment, but that didn't turn out too well, as I hadn't done enough homework, and tried to cut too many corners.
Eventually the Rocketeer idea dropped by the wayside, taking back seat to other daydreams and fannish ambitions. Such as the Brainiac 5 outfit wiliqueen made for me one summer for Comicon. Spandex, she can do. Even if I shouldn't be wearing it! :-)
Of course, things could set off the old spark easy enough. At that same Comicon we ran into a Rocketeer sporting the comic-style single-engine rocket (I eventually collected all of the old comics - not surprised, you say? I'll try harder in the future. :-) A LOT of work went into that. A DAUNTING amount.
And while on an evening outing during a trade show at Disney in Florida, I came off of the latest roller coaster ride to discover, of all things, one of the Hero Helmets from the movie on display in the giftshop 'exit'. Oh, it was night, and the lighting was bad, but I had one of my co-workers take a snapshot of me and the helmet-behind-glass!
And yes, I'd seen the occasional prop show up for auction on eBay over the years. But the prices? If I spent that much for something, I'd be afraid to take it OUT of the glass case I'd be forced to buy to display it in!
So the idea has languished. Until now. While searching for unrelated fannish items (alright, Green Lantern Rings, if you must know), I checked out one of my old saved searches on eBay for Rocketeer memorabilia. I saw authentic harness buckles going for outrages sums of money, like 10 years ago. Check! And I saw both fan-made and replica helmets. Check! But wait, it seems I missed out on a run of Master Replicas made Rocketeer helmet replicas in the mid-2000s. They'd already liquidated their stock, it seems (LAST YEAR! Darn it!) but that meant there were vendors selling it on eBay for MUCH less than the original $400 price. Promising. Must keep an eye on that to see if it dips to something... 'affordable'.
In the meantime that old spark resurfaced, and I started looking around for other options, and found the last few years had been kind to the Rocketeer-fanatic.
For example, four separate vendors that I've found that do replica jackets (with varying costs and varying degrees of authenticity, but all but the MOST authentic being what I would consider reasonable for a good leather jacket). And besides the MR helmet, there are at least two competing kits of the helmet out there. One I've seen a few times on eBay for around $100, made out of molded plastic, and the other a $200 resin kit that most references give solid marks to. The resin model folks even have a $1000 rocketpack kit! Not that I can see spending $1000 quite yet. But it's nice to know the option is out there! There ARE options.
That's the thing - I've found at least TWO detailed descriptions of how people have assembled their costumes, and a few partials. I have material and resources to draw inspiration from! There is even a boot replica maker! (Though they are a bit expensive, in my eyes. Still, less than some custom made boot shops, so I guess it depends on what you're expecting. And the fact that there is a new commercial boot called a Rocketeer - so disappointingly misleading! If only!)
With the 20th (!?) anniversary of the movie coming up in just about 2 years, I think it's time to set myself a goal. Recently ivan23 posted about his joining in on the "101 Goals in a 1001 days" meme.
I liked that idea.
I've been needing some goal-setting in my life, lately, as it seems as if my whole life has kind of been on hold, professionally and creatively since I moved to Chicago. Sure, I did some freelance writing since moving here, but I decided after the last round that I really needed to stop writing for someone and write for myself! Using my ideas, my characters and world and FOR me! Sounds great, but since then, nada.
Hence, goals. Need 'em. But I didn't just want to join in on the meme without putting my own twist to it. Sure, I love the idea of setting specific goals and actually giving yourself the TIME to either succeed or fail at them. That's key, I think. Long-term viewing is what I need to do to kick start this life of mine back up.
But I needed to do it my way, so while I will probably steal a lot of the tricks the "Day Zero" folks are using, I'm calling this my Fifth World Initiative. 121 goals in 1221 days, ending on or around 12/21/2012. Get my goals out of the way by the start of the Fifth World, and then start fresh with a new set then. Or at least get them all finished before the world ends, if you go in for that.
Anyway, this is now my first goal (it's actually #21 on the list, but the first I'm stating publicly - only 100 more to set before August!): Get a Rocketeer costume ready for the 20th anniversary in June, 2011.
And why am I stating this one now? Because I took the plunge and got one of the MR helmets off of eBay, for a 'smidge' more than the resin kit (on deep discount!) and it arrived today.
It's GORGEOUS! And even comfortable to wear (relatively speaking - it has a quilted cloth liner and chin strap, and weighs just under 5 lbs. I was under the impression it was much heavier, and spent a hour or so with a salad bowl and some weights on my head last week to judge if I could stand wearing the thing. Don't laugh! Well, laugh, but get it over with quickly please!)
Here's how it looks with that same tan leather jacket I wore to see the movie in the first place!
OK, just had to crow a bit about that! And I will try to keep a running commentary as the pieces fall together, to pay back the folks who have left similar crumb trails for me to follow.