Hasbro’s G.I. Joe toys were first introduced in 1964 with a line of 12” tall figures representing soldiers from different branches of the armed forces. The action figures were quite popular with young boys who would engage in heroic battles to protect their country. A few years after the line was introduced, a new figure was created that couldn’t quite meet the success of the other toys.

The G.I. Nurse Action Girl is a 12” doll that was designed to be part of the G.I. Joe line. The figure is in a traditional nurse’s white outfit – down to the cap. She came with a medical bag, arm band with the red cross, crutches, bandages, splints, a stethoscope, and a plasma bottle. The expectation was that the G.I. Nurse would join the battles by tending to the wounded soldiers.

Unfortunately, the figure ran into a few problems. First, toy stores had a tough time deciding where to put her on shelves – should she be with the G.I. Joe toys in the boys section or should she be with Barbies and other dolls in the girls section. The second problem was that she was a female figure made for a line of boys toys at a time when children rarely played with toys outside of traditional gender roles. So, boys didn’t want the G.I. Nurse (even if she could heal their injured soldiers). Conversely, girls weren’t crazy about her because she wasn’t as desirable as Barbie and her more glamorous outfits and accessories.

Since the figure wasn’t very successful, it did not stay on store shelves for long. While it wasn’t popular back then, it has become very desirable in the secondary collecting market. Two loose examples recently sold in the range of $950 to $1,300 on eBay, and in 2024, a boxed example sold for $8,750 at Heritage.