My Aurora Universal Monster Models

A look at the 1999 Polar Lights reissue of the Aurora Universal Monster Models. These were painted with acrylics and I saved the long boxes.

[@John-k5o7z]

The wonderful special feelings you got when u opened one (or two)of these back in the 60's under yor Xmas tree 🌲 will always be in our hearts !

[@danieldean2642]

Love the artwork on the boxes

[@wtibbs21]

Nice work Nel, thank you so much for the inspiration ... I bought these kits in 69' for $3.50 a kit at my local hobby shop... I've been re building them again as an adult... God Bless You 👊😎✝

[@lamontprospect9974]

I know this video is 6 years old. I'm still fascinated by the fact that these models had such an impact on some of us. I think a lot of kids took them for granted but just like you, I was fascinated by the artwork and putting these things together. It was an amazing time. At times I think maybe there's something wrong with me for wanting to go back to those days but those kits were SO special. You did a FANTASTIC job painting them. Even the one your daughter did looks really great. 🙏🙋💛

[@John-k5o7z]

The ideas, the art work, the models were really works of art !

[@John-k5o7z]

Classic treasures.. that those of us who had them wiL so fondly remmbr forever .

[@williamburke1731]

I still have 'em all! Dracula, Frankenstein, The Bride Of Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, The Mummy, The Hunchback, The Phantom Of The Opera, The Creature From The Black Lagoon, The Old Witch (my FAVORITE!), King Kong and Godzilla! In fact, I just finished repairing & rebuilding The Witch, Kong & Godzilla, after they were smashed in an unfortunate accident. It was so great to grow up in the 60's & 70's, collecting these classic kits, and reading "Famous Monsters Of Filmland" magazine!

[@magistrumartium]

Lucky!! I had two little brothers--real monsters--so my models didn't survive. : )

[@jeffreyyeater1780]

👌

[@Jeff-cv4qn]

@@magistrumartium LOL

[@cephalotus59]

Don’t forget the “forgotten prisoner” - chained up skeleton

[@phil7556]

I had the complete set . about 12 in all. My 12 year old paint jobs were terrible. I gave them to my little brother when I got older then they slowly vanished. Wish i still had them. Id repaint them. I was obsessed with mowing lawns to purchase them. Great childhood memory

[@jimmccord487]

I commend you and your daughter on the excellent assembly and paint job on the monster kits.Great presentation by you, sir.I purchased every one of these models in the 1960s at my local 5 & 10 store for $1.00 per kit.The paint cost $,15 a bottle.I don't recall the price for the paint brush.My older brother was a good painter,I wasn't.Still it was an enjoyable hobby for me,Thanks for the trip down memory lane.I appreciate you posting this interesting clip!

[@slapjohnson2808]

Used to listen to my Monkee albums, fire up some Creepy Crawlers, watch Jonny Quest on TV, and build my Monster models back in 66-67.......the best of times!

[@oscarrobles2369]

Video brought back so many wonderful memories of putting these models together with my father.

[@LATVERIAN1]

Hey; this is so cool. When I was a kid I managed to collect them all, but the "glow in the dark" versions. The first one I got was bought for me by my grandfather, in an old hobby shop. I remember wanting it so bad. And although I didn't come straight out and ask, grandpa somehow got the gist of it. I was only 6 years old at the time, but I never forgot that moment. This has been, and always will be, a certain magic to these Aurora monster models. Not everyone will understand that, but I still do. "AWESOME" collection. Thanks for the memories.

[@bluewolf7572]

Cool models. I had these as a kid in the 1960’s!

[@scumboggle1]

Great work Mel, the 60 s can never return but monster models still give me a great feeling to build

[@Victor-fg9gu]

They were cool right? Great job!!!! I have all the reissues including King Ghidorah, Rodan, and Bigfoot. I also collected all six monster car kits...great fun and memories..good job!!!

[@lamontprospect9974]

Those boxes are fantastic.

[@presto709]

Great job on the models. I built them as a kid and then again as a young adult when the reissues became available.

[@Merylstreep1949]

Wow, if only we could have built them this good as kids....nice job.

[@richardbartolo2890]

It's incredible how many monster kids built these models as kids, Decades later when they were reissued those of us who had a soft spot for them rebuilt them all over again, Maybe it was even better the second time around ?

[@raymondvaughan6262]

Great collection wish still have all mine also had the first edition of the munsters House hours of fun making them kids of today dont reliese what there missing great kits 😀

[@TheChuck624]

Great job. Thanks for sharing your work with us.

[@kg6qzx]

Those Universal Monster model kids are so classic. I dig the giant Frankenstein kit they made in the 60s.

[@clouddog2393]

ln the '60's l collected these kits and look back with fondness at the enjoyment l got from assembling and painting them . ln recent years have been buying the Polar lights reissues which brings back happy memories of my youth now that l.m in my late '60's .

[@rickytoddbotelho9555]

Beautiful collection ❤

[@Phil-r6k]

I had them all as a kid in the 70s, and I’ve built/painted most of the reissues since. I bought my first Aurora monster kits (Godzilla and King Kong) at a K&B Drugstore here in New Orleans back in 1971. Then, there were the Monster Scenes series and the Prehistoric Scenes series, which were also fun! I wrote an article for Scary Monsters magazine called BE A MODEL CITIZEN, basically a tutorial about building and painting monster models.

[@tomlappin9657]

Great builds...had these when I was a kid , great collection lined up

[@lamontprospect9974]

Man, those kids are beautifully painted.

[@jackiebachman2256]

My first one was the Wolfman, as a kid in the 70's. Thanks for sharing.

[@richardbustamante8795]

Great video.I love building and painting monster kits.I think it's great you got your kid involved.Keep up the good work.

[@booomms]

Love the addition of the cloth piece on the Phantoms mask, he's always been my favorite universal monster character.

[@spectrumlocalb191]

Freddy Leprechaun The adding of the cloth on the mask piece was a great addition and most kids should have did the same but never thought to do so.

[@DevilMaskMedia]

Nice job. I had almost all of the original models as a kid in the early 70s (except for the witch - which I couldn't find). I did have the FORGOTTEN PRISONER though (one of my favorites). I wish I still had those originals models.

[@ianbargh5010]

Great collection well made.I remember these models arriving in the UK perhaps the first American kits we had chance t buy,, no internet in those days. The Aurora monsters were a dream come true for us limies as all we had was Airfix,,Frog etc cars and planes.Im affraid to say that all mine became airgun targets eventually but such fun when they crossed the pond. Wish I had them now 😢

[@lawrencedavis5459]

loved these as a kid. the box art was amazing

[@vitus33]

Great job! Love the collection. Brings back great memories of being a kid in the 70s.

[@tommyhagnevik637]

Great video! Me and my brother build some of these when we were young, loved the lightning series back then! Greetings from Sweden.

[@chrislackey775]

Love the creature! liked and subbed thank you!

[@marcusreed3841]

Thank you for sharing. Nice job by the way. I too, like you, built them as a kid and am now collecting and rebuilding these classic kits. Lots of fun and what a time the sixties were.

[@jaredfekete8651]

I enjoyed this video very much. Nice paint job on all the models!

[@AEROSYDROM]

Very Cool, I saw my brother`s making them back in the 60`s , now I have them all....:)

[@stringfly1]

Thanks Mel. Very nice to see all your models. I just today completed my collection of the kits.....may not build all but love them all as a kid and now I have them again. Thanks again and good video.

[@libraryquiet]

Growing up, I used to have these monster model kits. I remember they cost $.98 each, which was a lot for me back in those days. I really loved the art work on the boxes..., awesome. My favorite model was The Phantom of the Opera.

[@AndresGarcia-lz9gg]

Thay all are a work of art. So nice so awesome. You did a fantastic job it's so nice to see that you even have the boxes. Omg I have the hunchback and the phantom is amazing. What a beautiful collection. I have in my collection the hunchback and the crecher from the black lagoon and the bates mansion psycho. I've been collecting since I was ten years old my collection started when my father got my me my first adventure team g I joe and from there my collecting world started i collect from model race car to comic books to all kinds of action figures to star trek star wars six million dollar man an so on i have so many things that I can just bore you. I always talk to so many collectors. I went to Orlando's comic con and every year is so invincible you can find almost anything. It was so nice to your awesome videos . Thank you so much I'll see you next time. From Andres j Garcia lieutenant u.s marines and paramedic for miami dade fire rescue in florida. May God always protect you and bless you and your amazing collection 🙏 my God bless all Americans forever 🙏

[@magistrumartium]

Nice paint jobs. I remember those little glass jars of Testor's paint. (Don't leave paint on the brush when you go to bed or it'll be hard as rock in the morning!)

[@marcusreed3841]

Nice models Mel. I share you thrill in the late nineties when the Polar Lights releases came out. I got some for Christmas too. Built all of them back in sixties and still don't know what I did with them all. Oh well...thanks.

[@ToyzNWheelz]

Some fine work on these models! Thanks for showing.

[@pandemonium274]

Hi There! Thank you for sharing! I think you did a great job assembling and painting your models, I also think it is a great idea on your part to keep the Bama box art next to your completed models. Cheers!!!

[@ozneroll2132]

Wow do these bring back memories! I remember having Dracula, Wolfman and the Phantom of the Opera back in the mid 60's. Very nice paint job....back then we all used the Testers paint and they just didn't look as good. But you did an excellent job on yours!

[@peepingeyes5005]

Positive Memories, I have to remember that one. Thank you.

[@modelermark172]

Very nicely done!!! I have all of them, too. It was nice to get a "second chance" to build these kits with better paint, filler putty, and techniques like dry-brushing and washes/glazes to really pick out the fantastic detail. As an interesting note, in the recent movie, "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark," (set in the autumn of 1968,) the main character - a girl named Stella - has the Creature from the Black Lagoon assembled and on her shelf among her other horror movie memorabilia. Thanks for posting this!

[@freedomisntfree2089]

Great paint.they look really good. I've recently gotten interested in these . Fun and interesting especially in times like this.

[@BanthaPooDoo64]

Awesome video thanks 4 share, great choice alterations on some 👍

[@enyawd1977]

Love your collection, and your build-ups are great! I'm working on a set right now. These are so much fun to build and paint.

[@voronOsphere]

Excellent builds and paint!

[@markburnstein5546]

Loved watching, bud! I also had Godzilla and Kong.Same Company .Early 70' s

[@meziens15]

Very nice, amazing job sir.

[@luismariofloresalcaraz8804]

Loved all of them,to Bad i lost each one within time and moving so much but had a wonderfull time building them 😊

[@kidtexaus1]

Thanks for the post. Some trivia you might share with your subscribers and fans- The long boxes were painted by James Bama, famous for his Doc Savage novel covers for Bantam Books. He based his Frankenstein on the Lon Chaney Jr. version. He also used Chaney Jr. for his Wolfman face, however he used Oliver Reed’s costume from “Curse of the Werewolf” for the body. And he based his Hunchback on the Anthony Quinn version of the story.

[@lamontprospect9974]

I've still got at least a dozen of those original Aurora monster kits. I have an original Frightening Lightning Strikes Frankenstein still in its cellophane. I have a factory built and painted Guillotine that was created for display in stores. That was such a great era. I've got an original Bride In The box unbuilt.

[@Smartin11972]

Awesome stuff, I loop this video and relax.

[@danielfegley2735]

I'm so jealous you done a great job of taking care of your collection great painting too I prefer the glow in the dark parts

[@baronsorgi1]

Great job on Those kits. I still have all my original ones and there are boxes I have a real fanatical collector and have got them all again in the original boxes and original unmade kits my favourite horror horror Model the Addams family haunted house complete with moving ghosts and 2 mibs. I was hooked on them back in 1961 when I first saw Frankenstein I'm still hooked on today I am a real monster kid and I have a whole room full of monster toys models you name it to prove it lol hey let's not forget the guillotine another one of my favourites head still rolls ha ha Ha thanks for posting this video I love strolling down memory lane like this

[@ajivins1]

Even a man who is pure in heart and says his prayers by night, may become a wolf when the wolf-bane blooms and the Moon is full and bright...

[@donaldbuckley971]

Made some of these in the 60sHappy Times/MemoriesWELL DONE

[@fastecp1]

Good job, I had them all as a kid, and I would like to again, they are asking to much for them on ebay, some people are asking 200 and up, but I will keep looking, Monster Kid for life!

[@spectrumlocalb191]

REAL NICE JOB CONGRATS.

[@manko8852]

Well done, the custom touches really set them apart.

[@Jeff-cv4qn]

Great memories , I`m building them again!

[@ronaldsylvia7736]

that is an awesome collection i had the glow in the dark early 70s dracula frankenstein and the mummy always wanted the creature but then went on to build the aurora prehistoric scenes

[@johnkernan3450]

I can remember building all of them

[@ohare100]

Brilliant!!!!!!

[@bushypenny121]

Your models painted great!! also-had all of'em as a kid; I'm not thrilled w/Polar L. and red-o's... I have ORIG> 60's;; Bride F. now..Plus Forgotten P. plus Creature and Mummy; exhuming/my airbrush to paint a new addition; Lost In SPace Cyclops! Love'm! thanks.. L

[@ohare100]

I know This video is old ! But you have Took me back in time , I had all these models when I was a kid , Wish I still had them all Only model I have purchased A couple of years ago was the Munsters Which I still in the loft lol I also remember going into my modelling shop and seeing a JFK model The box a picture of him sat at his desk I bet that’s with some money if you have one ! On another note your paintings on your models Outstanding Keep up the good work Thanks for sharing your video mate !!

[@Dinosaurprince]

Looks like the creature might have been a return.

[@alaska3333]

Great job on the painting!

[@anthonysergi6851]

thank you for sharing! Great Job!

[@that_thing_I_do]

Good work daughter!

[@modar]

cool models. I had the creature model when I was a young man and I got rid of the box too. 8-(

[@jameslacey5474]

I'm sure just like the Phantom and the Hunchback, wasn't Dr. Jekyll and Mr.Hyde another one of the off set model kits? Great work by the way, I love how you added your own additions to the preexisting model. Keep up. the great work. When I was young I came home from seeing Ray Harryhausen's work in"The Golden Voyage of Sinbad", and I had this idea to do some of the creatures in little dioramas from some of the scenes in the movie and have them in a glass rectangular case each separated by one another and dramatically lit within the case. Well, needless to say I never got around to actually doing it, but you know who this would be a great idea for.... I'm just sayin.

[@gracemanock2471]

My favourite was forgotten prisoner of Castle mare.

[@dannyorozco4]

Hello, great video. I have all 13 sealed and built up all original in my collection. Along with glows from 69 and 72. looking for sealed frightening lighting kits. I have them open but not sealed. Looking both version u.s. and Canada version. Have some Canadian version as well. Superhero also sealed. It was the best time to grow up. If any one out there has sealed kits please hit me up if you want to sell them.

[@davidmacphee3549]

EXCELLENT!

[@DaleStreble]

I built these when Monogram put these out in the early 1980's. It seems odd that Monogram put these out as they are identical to these, except I don't think the Creature from the Black Lagoon was a part of the collection, unless my hobby store just never got that one.

[@davidviton1065]

When I was a kid I had every one of the Aurora Universal monster models if I've only known how much they were going to be worth today I would have never opened the boxes or throwing them away when I moved

[@John-k5o7z]

Where r the artists that created these today ! ??

[@lamontprospect9974]

It would be wonderful to have you build up and paint a Guillotine.

[@ianbargh5010]

Oh and forgot to mention,,,who were the first shop to stock these kits,,yes,,the great Redgates toy shops.

[@spectrumlocalb191]

Ian Bargh WT GRANT HAD EVERY ONE OF THESE KITS GROWING UP

[@davidviton1065]

Unfortunately if I tried to build those today in my hands are just not as steady as they were when I was a kid

[@amberlopez7477]

Where's the prisoner chained to the wall?

[@bhodili-3396]

And the Old Witch.

[@ksman9087]

It is not Frankenstein, it is the Frankenstein Monster. Too many people get this wrong.

[@christophercouch7116]

Cool

[@skull330]

where can I buy these?

[@bhodili-3396]

No King Kong or Godzilla ?

[@jeffreyyeater1780]

Are these still available ? Not thru aurora but someone else ?