50 Years of Toy History

de bene esse: literally, of well-being, morally acceptable but subject to future validation or exception



What happened to the cool toys of our youth?

What began as a hobby for 39-year old Somchay Nitimongkolchai has morphed into an epic display of toys, figurines, costumes, masks, collectibles and life-sized maquettes covering two floors.

Somchay has been picking up figurines from pop culture films such as "Predator," "Star Wars" and "Toy Story" for years, but didn’t start collecting seriously until about eight years ago.

Thailand's largest toy figurine collection

Somchay’s interest in collecting soon turned into a full-blown hobby. Once he bought all the widely available toys, he broadened his search, moving into vintage toys, figurines from the other Batman movies, the vehicles, limited editions and collections from as far back as the 1960s.

As of now, it numbers about 50,000 pieces; by far the largest toy figurine collection in Thailand and one of the biggest in the world.

'Anyone can be Batman if you have a mask and cape'

The first display room is filled with thousands of figurines of all shapes and sizes.

Lifelike (and expensive-looking) statues from Marvel and DC pose majestically behind glass.

Long shelves are lined with a who’s who of children’s toys past and present –- GI Joe figurines from the 1970s, Doraemon, Predator, The Simpsons, Iron Man, Pixar, Where the Wild Things Are, Shrek, Looney Tunes, Disney, Dukes of Hazzard, Alien, PEZ dispensers.

The figurines come in all shapes, sizes, themes, and colors -– a full-size T-800 Terminator endoskeleton glares at you; a giant Predator bust opens its four-hinged maw in a silent scream; and this writer's favorite –- a 3D rendering of the classic VHS cover illustration from "A Nightmare on Elm Street."

And that’s just the first room.

“In 2011, when my collection got to be very large, I decided to open the museum,” says Somchay.
“It took six months to plan and build, and we opened in July 2012. I wanted Batcat to entertain, but also to inspire children to follow their passion, as well as act as the unofficial center of toy collecting in Thailand.”

He’s off to a good start. Every time you round a corner or pass into a new room you can’t help but say, “Oh man, look at this!”

Somchay's goal is to get the collection up to 100,000 pieces by 2032 and then ... auction it all off.

Indeed, the fact that anyone can be a collector is the reason Somchay loves Batman so much in the first place.  “Anyone can be Batman if you have a mask and cape,” he smiles.

Batcat Museum & Toy (Thailand), 7032 Srinakarin Road. Huamark, Bangkapi; +66 (0)2 375 9006. Open Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-7 p.m., Saturday-Sunday, 9 a.m.-8 p.m.
Thai adults/children: 100/60 baht (US$3.25/US$1.95). Foreign adults/children: 250/150 baht (Expats can get the Thai price with a local ID.) www.facebook.com/batcat.museum