He-Man

In 1976, Mattel's CEO Ray Wagner declined a deal to produce a toyline of action figures based on the characters from the George Lucas film Star Wars, due to the $750,000 license required up front.[4][5] Following the commercial success of the original Star Wars trilogy and its related merchandise during the next few years, Mattel launched several successful competing toylines which captured the public's imagination and significantly influenced the toy market.[4]

Toy designer Mark Taylor explained that the original design of He-Man in a series of sketches while working for Mattel was inspired by Cro-Magnon men and Vikings. Furthermore, his original design of Beast Man was rejected by Mattel for looking too much like Chewbacca.[6]

In the race to design the next popular action figure, Roger Sweet (a lead designer working for Mattel's Preliminary Design Department during much of the 1970s and 1980s) realized that simplicity was the key to success.[4][5] According to his 2005 book Mastering the Universe: He-Man and the Rise and Fall of a Billion-Dollar Idea, Sweet knew that if he gave the marketing department something it could sell, he had won 90 percent of the battle.[4][7]

According to Roger Sweet:

The only way I was going to have a chance to sell this [to Wagner] was to make three 3D models - big ones. I glued a Big Jim figure [from another Mattel toy line] into a battle action pose and I added a lot of clay to his body. I then had plaster casts made. These three prototypes, which I presented in late 1980, brought He-Man into existence. I simply explained that this was a powerful figure that could be taken anywhere and dropped into any context because he had a generic name: He-Man!"[4][5]

During the 1980s, rumors claimed that Conan the Barbarian was a source of inspiration for the He-Man character.[8] According to this rumor, Mattel had a licensing agreement to make action figures associated with the 1982 film of the same name starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Apparently, such an idea had to be modified in order to avoid objections from parents concerned that a toyline for children was promoting a film containing nudity and brutal, graphic violence.

Sweet refuted the rumor, saying that he conceptualized and developed the He-Man/Masters of the Universe franchise in late 1980 (two years before the release of the Universal Pictures film). The toyline existed prior to the film, beginning production in 1981 and marketing in 1982. At that time, Mattel did not have a license with Universal to make toys for the film, which resulted in Conan Properties International suing Mattel over copyright infringement, due to He-Man's similarities to Conan.[9]

From the lawsuit of CPI vs. Mattel:

In 1980, CPI, through its agent, Conan Licensing Company ("CLC"), began negotiations with Mattel regarding the possible licensing to Mattel of certain toy rights in CONAN. During this time, Mattel received a substantial quantity of material on the CONAN character. On July 31, 1981, CPI and Mattel executed a License Agreement whereby Mattel was granted "the right to make and sell certain plastic action figures of CONAN and ancillary characters as depicted in the CONAN movie." Amended Complaint, para. 12. The Agreement provided, however, "that nothing in the License should be construed as an assignment or grant to Mattel of any right, title or interest in or to CONAN, and that all rights relating thereto were reserved by CPI (except only for the licensee to use the property as specifically agreed to)." Amended Complaint, para. 14. It was also agreed that, after the termination of the License Agreement, Mattel would not make or sell any CONAN toys.

In January 1982, Mattel requested that the License Agreement be terminated. On April 14, 1982, CPI and Mattel entered into a termination agreement which provided that "all materials created and or developed by Mattel for use in connection with products under the CONAN License" would be delivered to CPI's agent, CPC, which would have "the exclusive right to use such material." Amended Complaint, para. 17.

In February 1983, Mattel introduced "He-Man,"a fantasy character as part of its new "Masters of the Universe" toy line of action figures. Since that time, Mattel has also featured He-Man and the other Masters of the Universe characters in, inter alia, a television series, comic books, and video tapes. Thereafter, CPI commenced this action asserting that these figures are copies of CONAN, were created under the License, and are CPI's property. Amended Complaint, paras. 20, 21.

Mattel won the lawsuit against Conan Properties, retaining the rights over He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.[9]

Originally, He-Man was presented to Mattel executives not as drawings and wax models, but in the form of the He-Man Trio: three figures of three-dimensional prototype models depicting He-Man as a barbarian, a soldier and a spaceman. Out of the three concepts, the barbarian version was chosen to be the basis for the toyline. Considering that the Conan character was created almost 50 years before the development of the He-Man franchise, it is possible that the Masters of the Universe borrowed many aspects from Conan; however, it was not intended to be a toyline for the film after legal agreements were dissolved.[9] Additionally, Roger Sweet has also claimed that he was "really impressed" by the paintings of fantasy artist Frank Frazetta when creating He-Man.[5] Expanding further on the barbarian theme, Mattel hired comic-book writers and artists such as Donald F. Glut and even Earl Norem and Alfredo Alcala (who were both still working on the Savage Sword of Conan comics since the mid-1970s) to create additional characters (along with their back stories), posters, package inlays, box art and mini-comics for distribution with the action figures. According to Roger Sweet:

Of the three original He-Man Trio prototype models, the barbarian themed He-Man was black haired with a deeply tanned Eastern European or Middle Eastern appearance. His helmet had no horns. Later, at the direction of Tom Kalinske, then in Mattel's upper management, He-Man was made more clean-cut and changed to a blond... Plus, He-Man's skin was lightened, though definitely still tanned.[4][5]

In the Filmation series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe as well as in She-Ra: Princess of Power, He-Man and Prince Adam were voiced by John Erwin. Erwin alternated between two distinct deliveries, though in the show's intro he spoke with his He-Man voice as both characters. According to executive producer Lou Scheimer, Erwin did not think his own voice was heroic enough which is why a reverb was added to it in sound-editing. After retiring from professional voice-work, Erwin has not done official publicity appearances due to his shy nature.

He-Man also appeared in a Streets commercial advertising branded ice cream of the franchise in Australia with Australian actor Paul Johnstone (best known for his role in Mad Max) voicing him.

In the 1987 live-action feature film, He-Man was played by Dolph Lundgren. Lundgren was forced to do all his own stunt-work due to not having a stunt double of equal build. He never transforms into Prince Adam but does deliver the franchise catchphrase "I have the power" late in the film. Cannon Films producers originally wanted to dub over his dialogue. After Lundgren redubbed his own lines multiple times, director Gary Goddard was able to retain his voice performance. At the time, Lundgren was dismissive of the part (in stark contrast to his co-star Frank Langella) but he has since appeared in promotional material relating to the film.

Garry Chalk provided the voice of He-Man for the 1990 series The New Adventures of He-Man while Prince Adam was voiced by Doug Parker. Chalk voiced Man-at-Arms in the 2002 series.

In the 2002 series, both characters were voiced by Cam Clarke.

He-Man will appear in the upcoming live action film.[30] Mike O'Hearn was rumoured to portray He-Man in the film after he posted it on Instagram,[31] however, he denied the rumour saying that he only wanted to do the part and was not officially cast.[32]

Noah Centineo confirmed on April 29, 2019 that he will be playing He-Man in the upcoming 2020 Masters of the Universe live action reboot film.

He-Man was characterized as possessing super speed, indestructible skin, and superhuman strength. The extent of his strength was unknown, but on one occasion he was able to hoist Castle Grayskull and throw it through a dimensional doorway. He-Man also demonstrated his strength by lifting mountains and icebergs and hurling them toward a desired target. On one occasion, he welded a broken metal chain together simply by pushing the links together. In the episode "She-Demon of Phantos", he was shown to be the only person to break Photanium (claimed by Man-At-Arms to be the strongest metal in the universe). In the comics, he was shown as being able to go one-on-one with pre-Crisis Superman. On the original action figure's packaging and in the introductory sequence of the 1980s cartoon series, He-Man is claimed to be "the most powerful man in the universe". His strength was derived from magical powers within Castle Grayskull. In the Episode of the original series "Eternal Darkness",[33] He-Man was shown pushing a moon of Eternia into a specific orbit, and then later returning it to its original position by hand.[34]

He can remain as He-Man for as long as he wants but if he takes too much damage or uses too much raw force, he will revert to his original form of Adam. In the 2002 series, He-Man is shown enduring the brunt of at least two large explosions, which he survives, but reverts to Adam in the process, suggesting that even He-Man has a limit as to how much abuse he can endure before his superhuman strength and stamina are exhausted. For He-Man to change back to Prince Adam he holds out his power sword, says "Let the power return!", and then He-Man and Battle Cat would change back into Prince Adam and Cringer. In the 2002 series, He-Man was shown enduring the brunt of the Ram Stone of Zalasia (a gem whose mystic force could pierce any barrier or topple any obstruction). He survived, but reverted to Adam in the process. In combat against the snake-god Serpos, He-Man was struck by the giant snake's tail and sent crashing into a mountain. When he fell to the ground, he was again in Adam's form; this suggested that there was a limit to He-Man's strength and stamina.

He-Man's prowess is not limited to strength; he is also depicted as being extremely quick and acrobatic. His speed has been demonstrated by running fast enough to escape massive explosions and moving his arms fast enough to counteract the winds of a tornado. He-Man is also shown leaping great heights, usually flipping through the air several times before landing safely on his feet.

It is also suggested that He-Man possesses some form of telepathic powers as well. There were several instances in the original TV series where He-Man was able to communicate and sense the presence of the Sorceress by telepathy. It was also shown that he has the ability to communicate with his sister She-Ra across great distances.

He-Man as a character is largely non-violent, only resorting to combat as a last resort.[1] He used his genius-level intellect more often, preferring to outsmart his adversaries; most violent actions typically consisted of body-throws. In accordance with broadcast standards of the period, in the Filmation cartoon, He-Man could not use his sword as an offensive weapon or punch or kick anyone. He was only allowed to destroy robotic enemies. The 1987 film and 2002 series, however, showed him fighting more aggressively. He-Man was depicted as a leader – most noticeably in the film adaptation, where he is referred to as the "leader" of the resistance. Skeletor intended to force him into submission, rather than killing him – fearing that doing the latter would turn He-Man into a martyr who would inspire others to fight.

He-Man's primary weapon was his sword, but he also used other weapons (such as a laser-gun in the film and the mini-comics, a battle axe, a shield, and other equipment - including vehicles) while battling his foes. His sword, apparently indestructible, could deflect bolts of energy. His sister Adora's Sword of Protection was not entirely indestructible; the stone in the hilt was once damaged, preventing her from transforming. In addition, the sword gave him the ability to transform from Prince Adam into He-Man (and back) by utilizing the powers of Castle Grayskull. He also uses his sword to transform Cringer into Battle Cat. In the earliest versions of the story (for example, the first four minicomics) He-Man's primary weapon was an axe, because the sword was intended to serve as a plot device that would only be used in order to gain entry into Castle Grayskull. The breastplate on his power harness was made of an Eternian mineral (corodite) which helped add to his physical strength. The origin of the power harness was explained in the episode "Evil-Lyn's Plot" (written by Paul Dini).

According to a book by Michael G. Cornelius, He-Man is considered a narrow definition of masculinity. Cornelius cited He-Man as the literal "strongest man in the universe" and says that his chief adversary Skeletor's primary weapon is his intellect.[35] However, this is disproven in episode after episode of the He-Man cartoon. Skeletor is outsmarted and his plots are ruined by He-Man and his team out-strategizing him. He-Man also leaves his viewers with bits of wisdom at the end of each episode to live better lives.[36][37]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to He-Man.

• He-Man and the Masters of the Universe on IMDb (1983–1985 series)
• Masters of the Universe on IMDb (1987 live action film)
• The New Adventures of He-Man on IMDb (1990–1991 series)
• He-Man and the Masters of the Universe on IMDb (2002 series)