Robots of the 1970s: A Gallery

Last year at around this time (or a month earlier, perhaps), I posted galleries of cinematic and TV spaceships from the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s. This time around, I'm going to remember robots of different eras, beginning with my favorite age: the 1970s.

These are the robots I grew up with, you might say. They also hail from TV and film, and run the gamut from humanoid to astromech. Obviously, Star Wars (1977) is a huge influence on the robot designs in this gallery (post-77).

Next time, I'll remember the 'bots of the eighties.

Identified by SGB: The Gunslinger; Westworld.

Identified by SGB: Silent Running.

Identified by SGB: Tau Zeta, The Starlost

Identified by SGB: MechaGodzilla; The Terror of MechaGodzilla.

Identified by SGB: Kolchak: The Night Stalker.

Identified by SGB: Brian the Brain, Space:1999.

Identified by SGB: Box, Logan's Run.

Not Identified: Star Maidens.

Identified by SGB: Andy, Quark.

Identified by SGB: The Six Million Dollar Man.

Identified by SGB: Peepo, Space Academy.

Identified by SGB: C3PO, R2D2, Star Wars.

Identified by SGB: The Mudworm, Man from Atlantis

Identified by SGB: Mystery Island.

Not Identified: Starship Invasions.

Identified by SGB: Friend, Logan's Run: "The Innocent."

Identified by SGB: Cylons, Battletar Galactica.

Identified by SGB: Battle of the Planets.

Identified by SGB: K9, Doctor Who.

Identified by SGB: Twiki, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century.

Identified by SGB: Maximillian, The Black Hole.

Identified by SGB Sparks, The Shape of Things to Come.

Identified by SGB: W.I.K.I. Jason of Star Command.

Identified by: Dngillika: H.E.R.B.I.E.; The Fantastic Four.

Identified by SGB: Ash, Alien.

Identified by SGB: Star Blazers.

Identified by SGB: V'Ger, V'Ger Probe, Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

At Flashbak: Robot Empire -- Topper's Ding-a-Ling Robots of the 1970s

At Flashbak this week, I also posted about some vintage toy robots of the 1970s: Topper's Ding-A-Ling line.  I discovered these at yard and garage sales of the disco decade, and have loved them ever since.

Here's a snippet and the url: (http://flashbak.com/robot-empire-remembering-toppers-ding-ling-robots-1970s-35161/ )

"In the late 1960s, a toy company named Topper master-minded a toy robot takeover of the universe. In 1970, Topper introduced the Ding-A-Lings: six-inch tall robots with distinct personalities that -- thanks to removable battery operated back-packs -- could walk and move under their own power.

Topper’s robots were designed according to their positions or vocations in a robot world.  There was Claw, who could grab things with giant pincers.  And there was Fireman, who could squirt water from a hose. 

And then there was Policeman, Chef, a boxer named Rocky, and the super-intelligent Answer-Man. 

These tiny robots were colorful and individual in appearance, and they inhabited a fully imagined universe.  For example, Topper manufactured several track sets like the “Super Return Space Skyway” by which the robots could traverse their prospective metropolis. The robots could hook on to the tracks of their space highways, and ride them right-side-up, or upside-down."

(Continued at Flashbak...)