Upon admitting to friends that you own a Mexican Captain America 1970′s action figure, you may have to wipe yourself down from the snorts of laughter. With MEGO’s early release of Captain America, the Lili Ledy release of Capitan America was inevitable, even in Mexico. Take a step back and try to put it in perspective.
In 1975, the approximate release of the first wave of Lili Ledy Superheroes, a typical American was a hysterical choice to import. With our bell bottom polyester trousers, jogging suits and gigantic collars, we should be thankful that the Captain offered the world something more heroic. Somewhere along the way, executives at Lili Ledy had to pick which action figures to manufacture in Mexico for Mexican kids to buy. Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman do have worldwide appeal, but Captain America seems a bit specific.
Much of Lili Ledy’s history from these years is unknown at the time of this writing, but we can only imagine the marketing meeting on that day. In their defense, Cap had been an Avenger for a while. No longer was he the World War II hero punching Hitler in the jaw. He also partnered with Falcon (Halcon), yet another action figure produced by Lili Ledy. Many of Capitan America’s villains in 1975 were some breed of conquistador space aliens, so maybe the kids desired the expatriate more than we know. It still doesn’t make it less funny that a Mexican Captain America exists, much to the delight of WorldMEGO collectors around the world.
Each Capitan head was molded in blue with sometimes crudely painted features. It’s quite common to find them with face paint missing and blue spots shining through from underneath the paint. The “A” and wings are quite prone to paint flaking also. The eyes are the windows to the soul. In Ledy Capitan’s case, he must be really really sad. He almost has the same eyes as Droopy Dog, but is super cool in many other ways.
From the “Duh” department, Ledy Capitan has GLOVES!! When MEGO released their own version of Captain America, he did NOT have any gloves. But why? The classic MEGO oven mitt glove was there from the beginning of the line’s manufacture. MEGO Spiderman was released with red hands, and they could have taken a pair for Cap. Parts sharing was very common with MEGO.
Leave it to Lili Ledy to complete the outfit with very smart red vinyl gloves. Of course, we wish you good luck in finding an original pair. Original Lili Ledy Super Heroes gloves are so rare that they may be traded as currency on some small Pacific islands. These are the standard Lili Ledy Super Hero gloves in red. Like his boots, Lili Ledy Capitan also shares his gloves with Ledy Robin.
Ya got a pair of these gloves lying around? For Cap or for Robin? Oh, how they are needed. Please review the WorldMEGO Accessory Check WMAC for examples. The gloves are nice, yes, but let’s talk about what Cap is all about….the Shield!!!
Close-Up view of an original Lili Ledy Capitan Shield
Lili Ledy Capitan America holds the distinction of being one of only two Ledy Super Heroes to have an accessory for a purpose other than wearing the correct clothing. The other is Ledy Green Arrow (Flecha Verde) with his brown bow. Cap could never be complete without his indestructible shield. The Lili Ledy Capitan Shield appears to be made in the same fashion as the MEGO Captain America shield. It’s a simple molded plastic design with an emblem sticker. If there’s any major differences between the two, it’s not really known at this time. Once again, originals are rare as hen’s teeth.
Normal Dark Blue Version of Type 1 Capitan America. The all-cotton bodysuits were quite quick to lose their colors. It's somewhat unusual to find any Type 1 bodysuit with its original color.
Rear of the Dark Blue Type 1 Capitan America. It's assumed the Type 1 sleeves were shorter to help accommodate the gloves. As seen, the Type 1 bodysuits use the standard "Ledy Loop" snap set.
Lili Ledy Capitan America was popular in Mexico. How do we know? It’s evidenced by his early and later suit variations. Cap was first produced in the very unique and wonderful Type 1 all-cotton suit, all of which have a bit more hand-crafted appeal, almost like folk art. The final bodysuit variations resembled MEGO in both material and cut.
From all of us here at WorldMEGO and our WorldMEGOheads, we say Thank you to all those 1970′s Mexican kiddies. Despite what your friends said, you were still going to play with Captain America. You knew that if you were teased, a shield to the face would explain everything.
Ledy Capitan America in Faded Type 1 Bodysuit. As mentioned, the Type 1 Ledy bodysuits are quite prone to fade. For some collectors, this increases the desirability and is sometimes treated as a unique variation.
Back of Light Blue Type 1 Capitan America and tight buns. As evidenced by the wrist rivets, each Type 1 bodysuit is on a Lili Ledy Standard Male body. These were designed to resemble the early Type 1 MEGO bodies.
Type 3 Polyester Bodysuit for Capitan America. Lili Ledy Cap is by no means easy to find, but usually this is the variation seen. The bodysuit was designed heavily around the MEGO Captain America bodysuit with some slight differences. As you can see, the red and white stripes in the midriff use a much looser weave than MEGO.
Rear of the Type 3 Bodysuit with the standard "Ledy Loop" designed enclosure. Each version of Capitan wears Red Lili Ledy Hero boots, which are shared with certain versions of Ledy Robin. The Type 3 bodysuits all have full length sleeves and are mostly polyester. As always the viewer can click any picture to Supersize it.
Front of Original Ledy Capitan Box. Courtesy of the great collection of Luis Felipe Lopez Portillo Guzman.
Rear View of Ledy Capitan Box. It warms the heart that Jack Kirby would have such a worldwide appeal.