AMC Cartoon Celebrities Series Overview
The Cartoon Celebrities Series was a line of officially licensed collectible medals produced by American Medallion Corporation (AMC) of Houston, Texas during the late 1980s, and issued and distributed by Robert E. Westfall Inc. of Los Angeles, California. The series featured popular comic book, comic strip, cartoon, and television characters licensed from multiple intellectual property owners, including DC Comics, Archie Comic Publications, King Features Syndicate, and Tribune Media Services.
Each issue shares a common reverse featuring the AMC corporate logo with the inscriptions “Cartoon Celebrities,” “One Troy Oz. .999 Fine Silver,” and “Made in USA by AMC.” Obverses depict individually licensed character artwork and include the appropriate copyright notices for the respective intellectual property owners.
The original retail packaging identifies the series as the Cartoon Celebrities Series, credits Robert E. Westfall Inc. as distributor, and provides a checklist of the characters available at the time of issue. Additional documented examples indicate the series was expanded beyond the original package listing.
AMC Cartoon Celebrities Series Designs
Known designs and licensing entities:
| Character / Design | Licensing Entity |
|---|---|
| Archie — Cartoon Celebrities Reverse | Archie Comic Publications |
| Archie — Merry Christmas Reverse | Archie Comic Publications |
| Aquaman | DC Comics |
| Batman | DC Comics |
| Batmobile — Cartoon Celebrities Reverse | DC Comics |
| Batmobile — Engraveable Reverse | DC Comics |
| Beetle Bailey and Sarge | King Features Syndicate |
| Betty (Archie Comics) | Archie Comic Publications |
| Betty Boop | King Features Syndicate |
| Blondie and Dagwood | King Features Syndicate |
| Brenda Starr | Tribune Media Services |
| Brutus | King Features Syndicate |
| Brutus and Popeye | King Features Syndicate |
| Captain America | Marvel |
| Dick Tracy | Tribune Media Services |
| Flash Gordon | King Features Syndicate |
| Gasoline Alley — Skeezix & Nina | Tribune Media Services |
| Gasoline Alley — Walt & Phyllis | Tribune Media Services |
| Green Arrow | DC Comics |
| Green Lantern | DC Comics |
| Howdy Doody | Unconfirmed* |
| Hulk | Marvel |
| Joker | DC Comics |
| Jughead | Archie Comic Publications |
| Junior and Honey Moon | King Features Syndicate |
| Killer | Tribune Media Services* |
| Lex Luthor | DC Comics |
| Little Beaver — Cartoon Celebrities Reverse | Red Ryder Enterprises, Inc. |
| Little Beaver — Merry Christmas Reverse | Red Ryder Enterprises, Inc. |
| Little Orphan Annie | Tribune Media Services |
| Little Orphan Annie and Sandy | Tribune Media Services |
| Lois Lane | DC Comics |
| Mr. and Mrs. Dithers | King Features Syndicate |
| Olive Oyl and Swee’ Pea | King Features Syndicate |
| Penguin | DC Comics |
| Plastic Man | DC Comics |
| Popeye | King Features Syndicate |
| Popeye and Son — Cartoon Celebrities Reverse | King Features Syndicate |
| Popeye and Son — Merry Christmas Reverse | King Features Syndicate |
| Red Ryder | Red Ryder Enterprises, Inc. |
| Red Tornado | DC Comics |
| Reggie | Archie Comic Publications |
| Robin | DC Comics |
| Shazam | DC Comics |
| Spiderman | Marvel |
| Supergirl | DC Comics |
| Superman | DC Comics |
| Superman Birthday | DC Comics |
| The Flash | DC Comics |
| The Phantom | King Features Syndicate |
| Veronica | Archie Comic Publications |
| Wimpy | King Features Syndicate |
| Wonder Woman | DC Comics |
| Zorro — Cartoon Celebrities Reverse | Zorro Productions, Inc. |
| Zorro — Merry Christmas Reverse | Zorro Productions, Inc. |
*Licensor not yet confirmed by a physically examined copyright line; attribution inferred from the character’s known publisher/syndicate.
AMC Cartoon Celebrities Series Specifications
| Attribute | Details |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | American Medallion Corporation (AMC) |
| Issuer / Distributor | Robert E. Westfall Inc. |
| Location | Houston, Texas |
| Years | c.1987 |
| Standard Format | One Troy Ounce |
| Silver Composition | .999 Fine Silver |
| Other Documented Compositions | Bronze; 24-Karat Gold-Plated Bronze |
| Edge | Reeded (silver issues) |
| Reverse | Two types documented: Cartoon Celebrities reverse with AMC logo (most issues) and an earlier AMC Eagle reverse (select issues). See Notes. |
AMC Cartoon Celebrities Series Attribution
The Cartoon Celebrities Series was manufactured by American Medallion Corporation (AMC) and issued and distributed by Robert E. Westfall Inc., produced under license from multiple intellectual property owners. Individual medals bear copyright notices identifying the applicable rights holders, including:
- DC Comics Inc.
- Archie Comic Publications
- King Features Syndicate, Inc.
- Tribune Media Services
The original retail packaging serves as the primary source identifying the series name, distributor, and the original checklist of available characters.
AMC Cartoon Celebrities Series Notes
- Silver issues are struck in one troy ounce of .999 fine silver.
- Documented examples also exist in bronze and 24-karat gold-plated bronze.
- Additional characters and compositions may exist.
- Multiple characters in the series are known to exist in more than one production variant. Confirmed so far: Dick Tracy was struck from at least two distinct obverse dies under a single catalog position (“Wrist Radio” and “Machine Gun”). Separately, ongoing research points to three independent variables worth checking on any example: the reverse design (AMC house eagle, standard Cartoon Celebrities with interlocking-rings device, or a third “Merry Christmas” reverse confirmed on Little Beaver and Archie), the obverse date/copyright clarity (absent, indistinctly struck, or clearly struck), and whether a holiday-themed reverse exists more broadly across the series. These variables do not appear to move together in a fixed sequence, so collectors should check each independently when identifying a specific example. This research is ongoing and will be expanded as more variants are documented.
- Serial number pattern (ongoing observation): Merry Christmas reverse examples are individually serial-numbered — one documented example (Zorro) is marked #068 of a stated 1,000-piece run. However, two examples in the Texas Stacker collection — Little Beaver and Archie, both Merry Christmas reverse — carry the identical serial number #0065. This raises the possibility that the Merry Christmas reverse series was numbered as a single unified release spanning multiple characters, rather than each character receiving its own independent 1,000-piece numbered run. Further matching or conflicting serial numbers across additional characters are needed to confirm which model is correct. This research is ongoing.
AMC Cartoon Celebrities Series References
- Original AMC Cartoon Celebrities retail packaging.
- The Texas Stacker Collection
Coins in this Collection (9)
