Vintage Toys & Games

Released in 1971, Ideal’s Shaker Maker allowed children to create their own toy figures using a special powder called “Magic Mix.”

Our annual Holiday Gift Guide offers gift ideas for the play enthusiasts in your life. Whether it’s a rousing board game or quiet time spent with a puzzle, we share some of our favourite finds from the past year. And, hey, there’s nothing wrong with buying something for yourself. This year has not been easy; you deserve a treat. Permission granted!

Released in 1972 by Mattel, the Barbie Beauty Center combined two childhood favourites: Barbie and dress-up play.

Barnstormer players compete to build a flight tower one block at a time in the unpredictable flight path of a circling biplane.

The Bowl-A-Tron 300 Automatic Bowling Game from Hasbro brought the fun of bowling into homes. Released in 1962, the sizeable tabletop game was touted for its “in-home bowling realism.”

The Wooly Willy Magnetic Drawing set proves the wisdom of the adage, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”, with more than 75 million sold since 1955.

The 2020 inductees to the National Toy Hall of Fame at The Strong Museum in Rochester, NY were announced on November 5. Baby Nancy, Sidewalk Chalk, and Jenga receive the honour.

Released in 1972 by Kenner, the Blythe dolls were a line of fashion dolls and accessories created by Allison Katzman, a toy designer at Marvin Glass and Associates.

Released in 1968 from Ideal, the Zeroids were a set of three motorized robots from the planet Zero: Zerak, Zobor, Zintar. Later, a fourth robot named Zogg was added to the line.

Released in 1971 by Milton Bradley, The Partridge Family Game offers a glimpse of what life on the road was like for one of TV’s favorite fictional pop bands.

Keep treasured board games in tip-top condition with expert advice from Nicolas Ricketts of The Strong.

In the final segment of his four-part series titled ‘Cardboard Common Sense: Caring for a Game Collection’, Nicolas Ricketts of The Strong reviews the finer points of board game storage.

In part three of his four-part series titled ‘Cardboard Common Sense: Caring for a Game Collection’, Nicolas Ricketts of The Strong details what not to do when trying to keep your board game collection in tip-top condition.

In part two of his four-part series titled ‘Cardboard Common Sense: Caring for a Game Collection’, Nicolas Ricketts of The Strong explains the environmental factors at play when preserving board games.

In this introduction to his four-part series titled ‘Cardboard Common Sense: Caring for a Game Collection’, Nicolas Ricketts of The Strong introduces the key elements to preserving board games.

In the 1972 board game, Séance, from Milton Bradley, players have the chance to add to the fortune left them by their late Uncle Everett.

Parker Brothers’ Construct-o-Straws combined multi-coloured drinking straws with red plastic connectors to create an easy-to-use construction set for children of all ages.

Buoyed by the success of its View-Master, GAF released an audio-enabled variant of the 3D stereoscopic picture viewer in 1969-70.