Bowen Designs Bronze Rocketeer Statue

**TrueFaith** · October 13th, 2011, 10:16:13 PM

Pics lifted off eBay. Only 50 of these were made, although the original COA said 500.

**Smashdaddy** · October 13th, 2011, 11:01:29 PM

That is BEAUTIFUL......!!!

REL · November 5th, 2011, 10:58:07 PM

Very Nice!

REL · August 23rd, 2012, 12:15:28 PM

Did Bowen Designs sell this? I see it says Bulldog studios and sculpt by Kent Melton.

**TrueFaith** · August 23rd, 2012, 09:02:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by REL

Did Bowen Designs sell this? I see it says Bulldog studios and sculpt by Kent Melton.

I have the resin version of this statue (#986 of 1000) and it is most definitely a Bowen Designs product.

sash501 · August 24th, 2012, 02:33:03 AM

COA says nothing of Bowen

**TrueFaith** · August 24th, 2012, 06:59:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sash501

COA says nothing of Bowen

The box the resin statue comes in has the Bowen Designs "B" on the side of the box and "Manufactured by Bowen Designs" in very small lettering on the back, along with thanks to Randy Bowen, Randy Lambert and others.
It' a fairly early piece by BD. I suppose it's possible BD only handled the production end of a finished piece brought to them by Stevens & Melton and wanted to stress their credits more than Bowen's.
It would be nice if someone who owns the bronze statue could confirm the Bowen connection, but with a run of only 50 the chances of one of the bronze owners being an SM member who sees this particular thread are probably pretty slim. I can only relate the info on the resin Rocketeer statue I got from the Vault last year.

**TrueFaith** · September 15th, 2012, 07:49:41 PM

Here's something interesting off eBay today. Seems it could be a very rare piece and it sheds a little more light on how this statue was eventually produced by Bowen Designs:

The ad copy is quite an interesting read. Of course Randy should feel free to correct any innaccuracies or assumptions by the seller.:

Available today is this lovely rendition of THE ROCKETEER. This statue is thought to be a prototype for the Rocketeer statue created by Kent Shelton after several people had looked at it and were unable to compare it equally to versions that they have seen, sold, or dealt with. I do not know if it is a cold cast resin or what process was used to create it. I will be happy to provide any and all answers you may have about the item. I have tried to do my homework on the piece but to no solid avail. The statue measures 14.5" high x 8.5" wide at the base x 5" deep from front of art deco base to back. It weighs between 4.5 and 5 pounds. I do not have a smaller scale to get a more accurate weight. I have not seen another statue of this style with this particular colored base. It has now been suggested by another collector and dealer that the piece, due to its TM and stamping, that it may very well be the salesman sample that was shopped around to look for someone to produce the statue.

On the back of the base is etched- as seen in the photos-
A Kent Shelton/Bulldog Studios Production
The Rocketeer@ TM 1990 Dave Stevens
There are no other markings on the piece. It appears to be an all resin structure that has been colored to appear like bronze. The base does not appear to ever have been covered or sealed with anything and it does not appear that there was ever a limited number plate or other identifying mark. There is damage to the helmet fin and to one of the blades of the rocket pack. I presume that they could somehow be manufactured to repair the piece. My nephew unfortunately did the damage before I acquired the piece and it appears someone tried to repair a part of the helmet fin. I will be happy to answer any questions you may have about the piece to the best of my ability. Good luck bidding.

So in my research to try and more accurately reflect just what it is that this statue represents I reached out, as a science teacher should using the scientific method, and received a very informative and helpful response that helped to clarify and confuse at the same time. I wanted to share all the information I receive on the piece to help you make an informed decision. The following is a response I received.
Damien,

You have my curiosity, on the Rocketeer statue that you contacted me about. Because even with the most serious collectors, most people only think there are two versions of the Rocketeer statue. There are actually three versions. To start with the name of the sculptor is Kent Melton. He is mostly known for his extensive career as Walt Disney's lead sculptor. Although he has sculpted many of the collectible statues for the Walt Disney Gallery, his primary role was to sculpt 3-D reference statues for the cartoon artists working on the feature films. Today these reference sculpts are called Maquettes. Kent also made the actual helmet used in the Rocketeer movie. Kent sculpted the Rocketeer statue for ,Dave Stevens and Bulldog Studios, to be marketed as a high end collectible and to be released along with the movie. From his original sculpt two versions were created. The Hot-Cast Bronze (which I just weighed is 8 pounds) and was originally to have an edition size of 500 pieces. The actual edition size was only 50 pieces. (White's Guide To Collection Figures printed that the edition was only 35 pieces, and I believe the additional 15 pieces were used as Artist Proofs.) The second version that Kent created was a Cold-Cast Porcelain statue. I learned this information from White's Guide To Collecting Figure's, and they state that only 10 pieces were produced. The third version was released 9 years later by Bowen Designs. I have known Randy Bowen for 10 years and I personally asked him how Bowen Designs released this statue? Randy and Kent have been friends for years. Kent hired Randy as a sculptor and mentored him when they worked for Lunar Model Kits back in the 1980's. Later on Randy started his own business and Kent went to work for Disney. Randy admired the Rocketeer statue so much that he bought the licensing rights and original MASTER SCULPT to produce this statue as a Cold-Cast Porcelain statue, limited to 1,000 pieces. I looked at your eBay add and it was difficult to see from your photos, but I believe it is one of three possibilities. You may have one of the original ten Cold-Cast Porcelain statues, or a production sample, or a recast of the original bronze. I am basing my opinion on the color and shape of the base and the weight of the statue and also the production date.The Hot-Cast Bronze version of the statue had a cultured marble base which was amber in color and hollow underneath. Since they were produce at the same time as the original 10 Cold-Cast Porcelain statues, I would not be surprised that they used the same base or mold for the base. The Bowen Designs version has a resin base which is painted Almond with tan shadowing and is flush on the bottom. Second is the weight of the statue. I weighed both my bronze and resin statues. The Hot-Cast Bronze statue is 8 pounds, and my Bowen Designs porcelain statue is only 3 pounds. I would expect the original 10 Cold-Cast Porcelain statues to be slightly heavier than the Bowen Designs version, but not as heavy as the Bronze. Third is the Production Date. The Hot-Cast Bronze states that it was produced in 1990. The original 10 were also produced at the same time. The Bowen Designs version states the production date as 1999. I saw in your eBay listing that you have a starting bid of $500, and a Buy It Now of $2500. The original 10 were marketed back in 1990 with a retail price of $1500 and the Hot-Cast Bronze with a retail price of $2000. The Bowen Designs version retailed for $150.00 Unfortunately, the fin on the helmet is broken off and we will never know the true value of this piece.

**randy bowen** · November 4th, 2012, 12:41:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TrueFaith

It would be nice if someone who owns the bronze statue could confirm the Bowen connection, but with a run of only 50 the chances of one of the bronze owners being an SM member who sees this particular thread are probably pretty slim. I can only relate the info on the resin Rocketeer statue I got from the Vault last year.

The piece was originally produced as a bronze, by Dave Steven and Kent Melton (sculptor), in conjunction with Graphitti Designs, and John Koutkitakis if I remember correctly.

They were going to cast 500 bronzes originally, but it became evident that 50 was more realistic due to the price point (I guess). I owned one of the bronzes, and contacted Dave and Kent to produce the resin version.

**randy bowen** · November 4th, 2012, 12:50:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TrueFaith

I have known Randy Bowen for 10 years and I personally asked him how Bowen Designs released this statue? Randy and Kent have been friends for years. Kent hired Randy as a sculptor and mentored him when they worked for Lunar Model Kits back in the 1980's.

RB: This is incorrect (somewhat) I have known and admired Kent for many years, but he never hired me, and he never did work for Lunar Models.

Later on Randy started his own business and Kent went to work for Disney. Randy admired the Rocketeer statue so much that he bought the licensing rights and original MASTER SCULPT to produce this statue as a Cold-Cast Porcelain statue, limited to 1,000 pieces. I looked at your eBay add and it was difficult to see from your photos, but I believe it is one of three possibilities. You may have one of the original ten Cold-Cast Porcelain statues, or a production sample, or a recast of the original bronze.

RB: This piece looks like a sample prototype that was produced by Stone Mt. Originals. Stone Mountain also produced prototypes for Graphitti and Bowen Designs. I believe this is one of those prototypes.

I am basing my opinion on the color and shape of the base and the weight of the statue and also the production date.The Hot-Cast Bronze version of the statue had a cultured marble base which was amber in color and hollow underneath.

RB: Cultured marble, meaning color-blend resin.

Since they were produce at the same time as the original 10 Cold-Cast Porcelain statues, I would not be surprised that they used the same base or mold for the base. The Bowen Designs version has a resin base which is painted Almond with tan shadowing and is flush on the bottom. Second is the weight of the statue. I weighed both my bronze and resin statues. The Hot-Cast Bronze statue is 8 pounds, and my Bowen Designs porcelain statue is only 3 pounds. I would expect the original 10 Cold-Cast Porcelain statues to be slightly heavier than the Bowen Designs version, but not as heavy as the Bronze. Third is the Production Date. The Hot-Cast Bronze states that it was produced in 1990. The original 10 were also produced at the same time. The Bowen Designs version states the production date as 1999. I saw in your eBay listing that you have a starting bid of $500, and a Buy It Now of $2500. The original 10 were marketed back in 1990 with a retail price of $1500 and the Hot-Cast Bronze with a retail price of $2000. The Bowen Designs version retailed for $150.00 Unfortunately, the fin on the helmet is broken off and we will never know the true value of this piece.[/COLOR]

RB: It's worth whatever someones willing to pay for it. The fin is an easy fix by the way...

artdecokc · December 9th, 2012, 06:19:20 PM

I have one,NIB.I've never removed it.I'd be interested in selling it.Phone is 913-708-3155.

**TrueFaith** · December 9th, 2012, 07:48:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by randy bowen

The piece was originally produced as a bronze, by Dave Steven and Kent Melton (sculptor), in conjunction with Graphitti Designs, and John Koutkitakis if I remember correctly.

They were going to cast 500 bronzes originally, but it became evident that 50 was more realistic due to the price point (I guess). I owned one of the bronzes, and contacted Dave and Kent to produce the resin version.

Been meaning to thank you for those interesting recollections, Randy.
Info on this piece is pretty sparse on the web.

Quote:

Originally Posted by artdecokc

I have one,NIB.I've never removed it.I'd be interested in selling it.Phone is 913-708-3155.

This isn't really the appropriate section, but you're welcome to post the sales info (and perhas a picture or two?

) in the buy/sell section here:

BUY & SELL COMIC STATUES & COMIC BOOKS - STATUE M A R V E L S

Please read the "how to" stickies & rules prior to posting. And welcome to SM.