Gary Keller began collecting while he was still a child. It began with comics, and though it waned during his teen years, during the ’90s he began collecting again, acquiring original art, toys, lunchboxes, and plenty more. His collection covers everything from G.I. Joe and Captain Action to the Beatles, Bewitched, and Batman.

In Auction #216, Hake’s Americana & Collectibles is offering a variety of pieces from Keller’s comprehensive pop culture collection. One of the key pieces in the auction is lot 1573 Underdog metal lunchbox with thermos with scenes of Underdog fighting Simon Bar Sinister and Riff Raff. The 1974 Universal lunchbox is one of the rarest and most sought after by collectors.

Lot 1985 Tales of Wells Fargo factory sealed Marx playset has a cardboard box featuring Western scene of a stagecoach under attack, based on the 1957 TV series. The set contains the Wells Fargo Office, western town building, stagecoach, horses, cowboys, Indians, and accessories.

The Dark Knight saves the day with lot 2140 Ideal Official Batman play set. It comes with hand painted figures of Batman, Robin, Wonder Woman, and Superman, one of two configurations of Thunderbolt, Keltor, and Mouseman (a variant configuration consisted of Brainstorm, Joker, and Keyman), robot, solar ray weapon, Bat Plane, and Batmobile. This piece is often considered among the top Batman collectibles from the 1960s. Another piece for the Caped Crusader is lot 2145 Official Batman Scope boxed store display, the deep illustrated store display box for 12 (note, this set contains 10) hard plastic Bat Scope periscope toys that full extend to 21”. The toys were issued as premiums by Kellogg’s and offered for sale in stores.

Lots 2221-2227 are Captain Action items, including the first issue boxed figure unused, anti-gravitational power pack boxed accessory set, Steve Canyon uniform and equipment boxed set, Tonto uniform and equipment boxed set with ring, Captain America uniform and equipment boxed set, the Phantom uniform and equipment boxed set, and Aquaman uniform and equipment boxed set.

Superheroines save the day with lots 2228 and 2229 two Super Queens action figures factory sealed and boxed. Offered here are the Super Queens figures of Mera and Wonder Woman, which were originally part of a set of four with Batgirl and Supergirl. Mera comes with trident and crown in addition to her comics-accurate outfit and Wonder Woman comes with the Captain Action Captain America shield, which was repurposed for this toy.

Green Hornet and Kato fans will love lot 2235 official Green Hornet Working Black Beauty dashboard set. The boxed Remco set has a hard plastic battery operated dashboard with cardboard back and printed instructions.

G.I. Joe accessories, figures, and sets can be found in lots 2243-2249, comprising Action Marine G.I. bunk bed accessory pack, Action Marine demolition boxed set, Action Sailor Annapolis cadet factory sealed boxed set, Action Sailor deep freeze factory sealed boxed set, Action Soldier West Point cadet factory sealed boxed set, The Adventures of G.I. Joe Firefighter – The Mysterious Explosion factory sealed boxed set, and The Adventures of G.I. Joe Jungle Explorer – The Mouth of Doom factory sealed boxed set.

Collecting gets spooky with 1960s TV pieces. Lot 2502 The Munsters Koach toy is a stunningly detailed 12” long hard plastic replica by AMT Corporation from 1964. The free-wheeling production piece comes with the deep, illustrated cardboard box with die-cut display lid. Getting creepy and kooky is lot 2506 The Addams Family Uncle Fester boxed hand puppet, made in 1964 by Ideal and copyright by Filmways TV Productions Inc. The 10-1/2” tall puppet has a pink fabric body and vinyl head and the box is beautifully decorated with photo image of Uncle Fester and photo portrait of The Addams Family. Doll fans will want to check out lot 2510 Bewitched Samantha boxed Ideal doll, standing 12-1/2” tall. The 1965 doll wears an elaborate red felt dress with sparkle accents and matching witch’s hat and red heels. It comes with the cardboard open display box with thin cellophane band on front.

Gadgetry is on display with lot 2529 James Bond 007 Bond’s B.A.R.K. attaché set. The Bond’s Assault Raider Kit comes with an open display box with bottom open area under blister. The kit includes long spring-loaded pistol that fires one of two missiles, small 3” cap-firing Palm Gun that fits inside the grip of a larger pistol, and 12” rocket launcher with two rockets.

The Fab Four are also represented. First with lot 2598 Beatles Flicker-Picture rings full store display with 24 flicker/flasher rings on silver luster plastic bases from 1964. The cardboard counter display with die-cut slots features images of each Beatle along with their names. Each ring has a portrait alternating with text. There are six rings for each band member. Then lot 2600 is a Paint Your Own Beatle – Paul McCartney factory sealed boxed paint set. This comes from a set of four, for each member of the Beatles. The McCartney set includes paint by number portrait board, eight containers of oil paint, two paintbrushes, brush cleaner liquid, instructions and print of the finished portrait on textured paper with his biography on the reverse side.

There are many more pieces in the Gary Keller Pop Culture Collection. Go to hakes.com to bid on these and many other pieces.