Editing He-Man (section)

==Development==
In 1976, [[Mattel]]'s CEO Ray Wagner declined a deal to produce a [[toyline|toy line]] of [[action figure]]s based on the characters from ''[[Star Wars (film)|Star Wars]]'', due to the $750,000 license ($4,008,703.87 in 2023 dollars) required up front.<ref name=popmatters>{{cite web|url=https://www.popmatters.com/mastering-the-universe-2496243511.html|title=Mastering the Universe: He-Man and the Rise and Fall of a Billion-Dollar Idea by Roger Sweet and David Wecker|date=September 25, 2005|access-date=October 15, 2020|work=[[Pop Matters]] |last=Levisohn |first=Benjamin}}</ref><ref name="sneeze">{{cite web|url=https://www.thesneeze.com/mt-archives/000500.php|title=The Birth of He-Man|date=April 18, 2006|access-date=October 15, 2020|work=[[The Sneeze (blog)]]}}</ref> Following the commercial success of the [[Star Wars original trilogy|original ''Star Wars'' trilogy]] and its related merchandise, Mattel launched "...failed line after failed line, none of which captured the public's imagination or made a significant dent in the toy market."<ref name=popmatters/> In the race to design the next popular action figure, Roger Sweet — lead designer for Mattel's Preliminary Design Department —realized that simplicity was the key to success.<ref name="popmatters"/><ref name="sneeze"/> According to his 2005 book ''[[Mastering the Universe|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.<ref name=popmatters/><ref>Sweet, Roger; David, Wecker ''Mastering the Universe : He-Man and the Rise and Fall of a Billion-Dollar Idea'', Emmis Books July 11, 2005, {{ISBN|1-57860-223-8}}</ref> Sweet stated that "to sell this [to Wagner]", he glued a [[Big Jim (toy line)|Big Jim]] figure—another Mattel toy line—into a battle action pose, added clay to its body, and had plaster casts made. These three prototypes would later go on to become He-Man. Furthermore, to sell this toy, Sweet stated that as a powerful figure, it could be applied to any context because the character had the generic name of He-Man.<ref name="popmatters"/><ref name="sneeze"/>