Entertainment

How you can go from childhood play days to a grown-up payday

Jordan Hembrough is on the hunt for booty — and he might find it in an old box in your garage. He’s not searching for neglected antiques, but for something fun: toys!

Hembrough, the star of the Travel Channel’s popular show “Toy Hunter,” hits basements, private collections and comics conventions to find the hidden gems he can turn around and sell for a profit (such as one rare Boba Fett, the “Star Wars” bounty hunter, he sold last season for a whopping $17,000).

Hembrough, 43, has been seeking toy treasures since fifth grade — when he traded Yodas for milk money — and has been professionally “toy diving” for more than 20 years. “I love the look on people’s faces when they get back a toy, and it sparks a memory that they had when they were children,” the Ridgewood, NJ, resident says. To mark tonight’s second-season premiere, Hembrough took The Post on a tour of Manhattan’s best toy shops to show how a bit of digging and persistence can kick-start your own toy empire.

Monster High, 10-inch MATTEL dolls, first released in 2010

Found at: Midtown Comics, 200 W. 40th St., Toy Tokyo, Forbidden Planet

Retail price: $29.99

Estimated value (over time): $100

These brand-new entries into the market are already causing collectors to scream with delight. “People always ask me what’s going to be hot in the future,” Hembrough says. “This stuff is going to be going like crazy in the next few years. It’s a gold mine. Kids are asking for it, adults are asking for it. It’s just a cool-looking toy. And it combines monsters. Kids love monsters. Some not even a year old are going for over $100. It’s already starting. People are getting into it, and they want to go back and collect the rest of the series. It has the longevity.”

Batman, 1977 World’s

Greatest Super-Heroes! by Mego

Found at: Toy Tokyo, 91 Second Ave.

Retail price: $700

Estimated value: $500

Holy nostalgia, Batman! This collectible capitalized on the popularity of the 1970s animated “Batman” TV show, and although its oven-mitt-style gloves are a hit with collectors, they’re not worth the retail price. Hembrough has seen these sell for $200 less than the cost here. Although it’s a “special piece,” it’s not the holy grail the price would have you believe — or have you buy.

Jurassic Park electronic T-Rex

Found at: St. Mark’s Comics, 11 St. Marks Place.

Retail price: $150

Estimated value: $300 (in good condition)

This early ’90s dino is no fossil. In toy terms, it’s considered pretty new — and a surprise hit with collectors. The value may increase with next summer’s “Jurassic Park 4.” Hembrough calls it “one of those sleeper lines,” adding, “It’s the last big heyday of [toymaker] Kenner — before they became part of Hasbro. And they’re dinosaurs, so they’re really cool.”

Predator, by Hot Toys

Found at: Forbidden Planet, 832 Broadway

Retail price: $219.99

Estimated value: $1,000

This beast doesn’t even have any movies in the works, but that doesn’t stop him from tearing up the scene. Hong Kong-based Hot Toys makes this and other high-end collectibles. “Hot Toys, they’re really making a name for themselves,” Hembrough says. “Within the past two years, they’ve really become highly collectible. You pick the right ones, they’ll go up. It’s the quality, the craftsmanship, the likeness to the actors and the characters. It’s hard to tell which are the right ones, but that’s the crapshoot. The Predators are selling for close to $1,000 on the secondary market. It’s tough to find a dealer that’s constantly carrying it.”

Do you hold the key to a toy treasure trove?

These common items from your childhood may be worth way more than milk money (if they’re in the right condition) — and some may be worth way less.

* Cabbage Patch Dolls: “They don’t go for that much,” says Hembrough. “There was a market that kind of went up and went down really quick.”

* Beanie Babies: Like Cabbage Patch Dolls, so many were produced, they’re the opposite of rare. You’re better off donating them to a Children’s Hospital, suggests Hembrough.

* Darth Vader from the 1977 “Star Wars” line: Can go for as much as $600 in the original packaging.

* Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, from the original 1980s line: You might nab $150 each.

* 1960s lunchboxes, from shows such as “Batman” and “Hogan’s Heroes”: In good condition with the Thermos, they can sell for between $120 to $500.

* Rainbow Brite dolls: upwards of $200.

* Original She-Ra: $60 to $100.

* The 1960s “Lost in Space” roto jet gun: In packaging, can go for $2,000 to $3,000.

Batman’s utility belt from 1967: At its peak, it sold for $14,000.