Perigee

Perigee (Mild Girl) is one half of the Mild Robo duo. Along with Apogee (Mild Boy), these characters started life as mascots for Suntory, promoting their whiskey in 1984. While these mascots were not aimed at kids, the characters became so popular that many toys were made for them from 1984-1985. The were imported to the US as “Love-Bo-Gi-Bots”.

This is one of the larger toys, an AM radio alarm clock. Being an AM radio makes it mostly useless these days, but in the 80s, Japanese radio was mostly AM, as the FM band was much narrower than it is here in the US. Japanese TV actually used some of the FM band for its broadcasts, limiting the spectrum for radio.

The box is amazing in its. 80s-ness. The slogan reads:

“Her song came on the radio. I emptied my glass and dreamed of the earth.”

Here’s a translation of the box front:

Note that the toy does not come with the microphone, and requires 1 9V battery for the radio, and 1 AA battery for the clock.

Translation of the back…

Inside the toy is wedged between two large styrofoam blocks.

Instructions

The toy stands 6 inches tall but feels larger due to it’s mass. The body is all plastic, and the arms are fully articulated with opening and closing claws.

With the batteries in, turn the volume switch on, and then rotate the head to change the stations. 40 years later, it still works, although there isn’t much to pick up on the AM band these days.

The buttons below are for setting the clock and alarm.

The battery cover is on the bottom.

Overall it’s a super-fun toy that is evocative of a simpler time. This style of robot design was heavily knocked-off after the popularity of these characters, but you can’t beat the originals!