Top 10 Toy Tales Articles of 2017

2018 is right around the corner – the perfect time for a top-10 list of the most popular articles on Toy Tales in 2017. The list was curated based on Google Analytics and engagement through various social media channels. If you missed them the first time, this is your chance to see what you missed. If you read them before, it’s worth taking another look! Enjoy:

The Star Wars Toys Every Child of the 70s and 80s Coveted

Tom Berges, founder of igrewupstarwars.com, shares his top vintage Star Wars merchandise picks for the upcoming holiday season.

Sea-Monkeys

May 16th is National Sea-Monkey Day, a perfect time to check-in on one of our favorite oceanic “instant pets.”

Magic 8-Ball from Alabe Crafts (1946)

With over one million units being sold every year since 2012, the Magic 8-Ball is fairly ubiquitous and continues to be a popular resource for instant “answers” to life’s pressing questions.

Then & Now: The 35-year Evolution of Strawberry Shortcake

Over the course of 35 years, Strawberry Shortcake has undergone a “fruit-forward makeover” and swapped her bloomers for more fashion-forward couture.

Vincent Price’s Shrunken Head Apple Sculpture Kit from Whiting (1975)

Vincent Price, the actor with the distinctive “horror movie” voice, would have been 104 years old this week. This makes it a perfect time shine a spotlight on one of the toys he endorsed in the mid-1970s: the Vincent Price Shrunken Head Apple Sculpture Kit.

Tinkertoys

What do you get when you combine design based on the geometric principles of the Pythagorean theorem, distinctive mailing tube packaging, and a 100+ year track record? Tinkertoys!

Little People from Fisher-Price (1959)

Over its 55-year history, Fisher-Price’s Little People toy line has provided hours of entertainment, met with controversy, and undergone numerous transformations.

Dial Typewriter from Marx (1950s)

The Dial Typewriter from Louis Marx and Company is a classic example of the type of tin lithograph toy that helped propel the company to global success in the toy industry.

Space: 1999 Eagle 1 Spaceship from Mattel (1976)

The recent news of Russia’s plan to build a permanent settlement on the moon by the 2030s caused me to revisit one of my favorite science-fiction television series, Space: 1999 and one of the sought-after toys that Mattel produced as a tie-in to the show: The Eagle 1 Spaceship.

Spirograph from Kenner (1965)

A mashup of educational toy, creative design tool, mathematics lesson, arts & crafts project – Spirograph is all of these things and fun to boot. With a shelf-life approaching 50 years, Spirograph’s longevity can be traced to its simplicity and the fact that it taps into a child’s desire to draw and doodle.

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