Army men facts for kids

Bucket of army men

Army men, or plastic soldiers, are simple toy soldiers molded from green or other colored plastic. Unlike the toy soldiers, which cost more, army men are sold at low prices in discount stores, supermarkets, and dollar stores. Also unlike many toy soldiers, army men are sold unpainted and almost always dressed in modern military uniforms and armed with 20th Century weapons.

Description

Army men are sold in plastic bags or buckets, and often include different colors such as green, tan, or gray, to represent different sides. They have a lot of different kinds of weapons, from World War II to the current era. These include rifles, machine guns, submachine guns, sniper rifles, pistols, grenades, flame throwers, and bazookas. They may also have radio men, minesweepers, and men armed with bayonets. Army men are sometimes packaged with additional accessories including tanks, jeeps, helicopters, half tracks, artillery, helicopters, jets, and buildings. Their vehicles are usually manufactured in the same size, to save money.

History and varieties

The first American plastic toy soldiers were made by Bergen Toy & Novelty Co. (Beton for short) in 1938.

Images for kids

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  Green army man from Toy Story at Disney's Hollywood Studios

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  Army men candy

See also

In Spanish: Soldado de plástico para niños