Roger Sweet, the creator of the He-Man action figure who created the popular 1980s comic book series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, passed away on Tuesday after battling dementia, TMZ reported. He was 91 years old.
Sweet was the lead designer for Mattel’s preliminary design department in the ’70s and ’80s. In 1976, Mattel declined a contract to make Star Wars toys, but the offer proved very lucrative for Cincinnati-based toy manufacturer Kenner Products after the release of A New Hope in 1977. After that, Mattel struggled to release popular action figures based on original IP. Pursuing a novel idea, Sweet experimented by gluing a Big Jim action figure into a fighting stance and adding clay to its body to bulk it up. This became the He-Man prototype, which he successfully pitched to then-CEO Ray Wagner. He-Man was officially introduced to the market in 1982.
A year later, in 1983, Mattel and Filmation launched a comic book called He-Man and the Masters of the Universe as a companion project to the hugely popular He-Man toy series. The show took place on the magical planet of Eternia and followed the young prince Adam. When wielding the Sword of Power, Adam utters the now-iconic line, “By the power of Grayskull! I have the power,” and he transforms into He-Man, the galaxy’s most feared warrior. The show ran for 130 episodes from 1983 to 1985.
Amazon, MGM and Mattel will soon reboot the He-Man franchise with the action movie Masters of the Universe, which is scheduled to be released in theaters on June 5th. Nicholas Galitzine stars as He-Man. Other cast members include Camila Mendes as Teela, Jared Leto as Skeletor, Alison Brie as Evil Lyn, Idris Elba and Man-at-Arms.
Sweet is survived by his wife, Marlene;
