Mastering the Universe
Encyclopedia
Mastering the Universe: He-Man and the Rise and Fall of a Billion-Dollar Idea is a 2005 book by Roger Sweet
and David Wecker
that recounts Sweet's reminiscences behind the scenes of the corporate culture of the 1980s American toy industry. Sweet (with his co-author and nephew David Wecker) details the creation of the Masters of the Universe
toy line, its rise to immense popularity and then dizzying crash in which profits fell from a peak of making $400 million in US sales alone in 1986 to a mere $7 million in 1987. The book is primarily a view of the corporate workplace side of MOTU' s creation, and actually details very little of the conceptual process behind inventing the individual MOTU characters and products.
Sweet's book is also noteworthy for containing many errors. The text contains a higher than average number of spelling mistakes and obvious inaccuracies in its constant citations of sales figures. Of specific note are a number of glaring factual errors regarding specific toys/events that any casual to moderate MOTU fan would immediately spot, including:
-p. 120 "Tri-Klops was a good guy". The original toy's subtitle, carried on all packaging and advertisements, was "Evil & sees everything". It was rumored that the character was originally supposed to be a hero, but if this was the case, Mattel scrapped the idea before the figure went into production. Tri-Klops was a well-known villain in the MOTU line, and was one of Skeletor
's chief henchmen.
-p. 132 & p. 207 describe Webstor's pulley mechanism as a thread which "ran through him, through his head and out his hintermost parts." The toy did not have the thread device pass through his actual body, but rather quite clearly fed through a detachable backpack.
-p.143 claims that the Masters of the Universe 1987 live-action film starred "a young Courteney Cox
in the role of Teela
." Teela was in fact played by actress Chelsea Field. Although Cox did feature in the movie, it was in the role of Earth girl Julie.
Roger Sweet
Roger Sweet is an American designer. He grew up in Akron, Ohio and graduated from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio and the Institute of Design in Chicago, Illinois. He served as a lead designer at Mattel throughout much of the 1970s and 1980s and worked extensively on the Masters of the...
and David Wecker
David Wecker
David Wecker is a writer His experience includes nearly 25 years as a newspaper columnist for The Cincinnati Post, The Kentucky Post and the Scripps Howard News Service. His Post editors said he wrote about ordinary people in a way that made them memorable.Said Rich Boehne, CEO, E.W....
that recounts Sweet's reminiscences behind the scenes of the corporate culture of the 1980s American toy industry. Sweet (with his co-author and nephew David Wecker) details the creation of the Masters of the Universe
Masters of the Universe
Masters of the Universe is a media franchise created by Mattel....
toy line, its rise to immense popularity and then dizzying crash in which profits fell from a peak of making $400 million in US sales alone in 1986 to a mere $7 million in 1987. The book is primarily a view of the corporate workplace side of MOTU
Sweet's book is also noteworthy for containing many errors. The text contains a higher than average number of spelling mistakes and obvious inaccuracies in its constant citations of sales figures. Of specific note are a number of glaring factual errors regarding specific toys/events that any casual to moderate MOTU fan would immediately spot, including:
-p. 120 "Tri-Klops was a good guy". The original toy's subtitle, carried on all packaging and advertisements, was "Evil & sees everything". It was rumored that the character was originally supposed to be a hero, but if this was the case, Mattel scrapped the idea before the figure went into production. Tri-Klops was a well-known villain in the MOTU line, and was one of Skeletor
Skeletor
Skeletor is a featured villain in the Masters of the Universe franchise and the arch-enemy and main antagonist of He-Man. Depicted as a muscular blue humanoid with a purple hood over his yellowing bare-bone skull, Skeletor seeks to conquer Castle Grayskull so he can learn its ancient secrets,...
's chief henchmen.
-p. 132 & p. 207 describe Webstor's pulley mechanism as a thread which "ran through him, through his head and out his hintermost parts." The toy did not have the thread device pass through his actual body, but rather quite clearly fed through a detachable backpack.
-p.143 claims that the Masters of the Universe 1987 live-action film starred "a young Courteney Cox
Courteney Cox
Courteney Bass Cox is an American actress, she is best known for her roles as Monica Geller on the NBC sitcom Friends, Gale Weathers in the horror series Scream and as Jules Cobb in the ABC sitcom Cougar Town, for which she earned her first Golden Globe nomination....
in the role of Teela
Teela
Teela "Warrior Goddess!" is a fictional character from the Masters of the Universe franchise. She is the Captain of the Royal Guard at the palace of Eternos and thus responsible for training and protecting Prince Adam of Eternia. While Adam is He-Man, Teela often assists him in his battles, but...
." Teela was in fact played by actress Chelsea Field. Although Cox did feature in the movie, it was in the role of Earth girl Julie.