Slashdot Mirror
Popular Toys Throughout the Ages
Ant writes "MSNBC has a story on the 'must-have' items from decades past. From the article: 'With so many new toys and games hitting store shelves every year, it may be a little surprising that many of the most popular playthings are actually quite old. But people have been playing for a very long time. In 4000 B.C., Babylonians played a board game that was probably the ancestor of chess and checkers. Stone yo-yos were first used in ancient Greece around 1000 B.C. Kites appeared in China around the same time, though historians speculate that they have probably been flown since before recorded history.'"
almost all those toys survived through the entire century. I'm surprised barbie or hula hoops arn't on that list. Beanie babies and razors were definate fads though. Rubix cubes will live forever because it's especially educational for young ones but fun for people of all ages. Really though, iPod should be the most recent one.
It's pretty well accepted that the ancestor of modern chess, chaturanga, originated in India. A small minority disputes this, claiming that it originated in China, which is plausible if not as likely. But I've never heard of any evidence that chess originated in any form in the Middle East.
English is easier said than done.
I remember when we had pong on TV. We watched the ball go back and forth. And we were grateful.
Take the cheese to sickbay, the doctor should see it as soon as possible - B'Elanna Torres, "Learning Curve"
Dildo sex toys were discovered to be used around 4000 years ago
So it's still being used for training the U.S. military?
Was a nice game of Global Thermonuclear War.
... But isn't it cool that 10,000 years ago, when angels pushed the planets around the earth, the sun was a glowing ball of rock a few hundred yards wide, and diseases were what you got if you pissed off the local god of leaf-hunting or whatever, people still needed something to challenge their minds when they had spare time. I think this is the greatest thing about the human race - we don't just live in the here and now, we need rules, structure, challenges, mystery, luck to entice us. Perhaps that is what really seperated us from the animal herd, is that we SEEKED out things to challenge us, whereas most animals (and let's get real, most humans, probably including me) would just be happy with lots of food and a nice warm sunny day.
I think games are the highest sign that there is intellegent life here after all.
The article claims that $4 million in 1952 is equivalent to $30 billion 2005???? I think someone made an order of magnitude error. Forbes seems to be really good with their money.
Alaskan Volcano Getting Stinky
What's with the kids in that era? How can you like a potato over LEGO?!?! Lego is the ultimate toy, hands down.
You know, I like articles from Forbes, but those slideshow things they like to use have got to go. Did some editor actually think that they make the articles better?
Your design to a real part online: Big Blue Saw
Announcer: "Hey, kids of America, it's hand painted wooden ball-in-a-cup, Mexico's favorite toy for over 340 years. Who needs constant video game stimulation when theres ball-in-a-cup? You just toss the ball, catch it in the cup, dump it out of the cup, toss it, and catch it in the cup again. The ball is on a string and attached to the cup, so there's no worry if you dont catch the ball in the cup. And cleanup is as easy as catching a ball in a cup. So why spend another day not catching a ball in a cup when you can be catching a ball-in-a-cup?"
Jingle:" Ball in a cup, Ball in a cup, it's a ball in a cup!"
Kid: "Ball in a cup!"
Jingle: "Ball in a cup!"
xkcd.com - a webcomic of mathematics, love, and language.
I think soap bubbles fall into the yoyo category... that's got to be a huge moneymaker (as was mentioned I guess in the color bubble article), and they've been around for AGES.
Lots of great free toys that aren't on this list though.
is Hopkin Green Frog. If I looking for frog. Him name is Hopkin Green Frog.
I contend that the stick is probably the oldest "toy" ever used (although it could be debated that it was only a tool). When humans first started using tools, they were in the form of sticks, rocks, etc. Children probably learned the use of these objects through play, so it is sensable to assume that ancient kids played with sticks. I know that when I was a child, a stick was one of my favorite toys (it could be used like a sword, drum stick, or almost anything)
We raise our slide-rules high.
Rubik's Cube may have been invented in the 70s, but it wasn't mass-manufactured until 1980. Seriously, it wasn't even called the Rubik's Cube until 1980. (It was originally called the Magic Cube.)
This is a classis here on Slashdot: http://www.realdoll.com/
Welcome to the land of the free...pay toll ahead...no photography...please open your bag...
I've scored mega points with my young nieces with the following simple toys;
- a tent ($15 at Walmart)
- Socker Boppers
- pretend picnic stuff
- pretend tools (hammer, screwdriver, etc.)
(Your favorite toys in your pre-Slashdot formative years)-(Forbes' most popular toys for your generation) = Essential toys for the advancement of civilization
'many of the most popular playthings...'
...still walk the streets.
Oh, you mean kids' popular toys :(
Modern day kids hold the stick like a sword and make light sabre noises.
WWI and II era kids would sight along the length of the stick and say "bang".
Kids from the middle ages would hold the stick vertically by the middle and say "twang"
Pre-historic kids would hold the stick by the end, and say "club".
"I'm not impatient. I just hate waiting." - My Dad
One of the very few "interactive" toys of the time (the 1970s), it gave true geeks to be the inside view of life as a cyborg, between being able to physically change the cybernetic parts of Steve Austin, you could also have a view through the "eye" of the 6 Million Dollar Man, and even, via his "exercise station" view his exploits using a Fisher Price style 8mm film strip viewer. There were some cool electronic toys as well, but unless your parents were deep in cash, you didn't have it.
Sure, there was Micronauts, and even Battlestar Galactica toys at the time, but you could build stories and adventures around the Bionic Man. The others were primarily reenactments of the shows/commercials (even Micronauts didn't really have a story to speak of, until the Marvel Comics series that came out a few years later).
And of course there was the huge response to the Atari 2600 in the late 70s, in fact, it singlehandedly spawned an entire industry. Ignoring that little bit of history is like ignoring the discovery of electricity or fire, for that matter.
Just because you can mod me down, doesn't mean you're right. Shoes for industry!
How can this poll possibly be correct when not a single game console made it? You'd think that one of the the Atari 2600, Nintendo Entertainment System, the Playstation or the Game Boy would have managed to at least earn an honorable mention. I read that the total video game industry is about the size of the movie industry, and growing faster!
The moral of the story is that kids will make toys out of anything, and there is essentially no need for Toys for Tots.
Boy, someone's a Grinch.
Sure, Toys For Tots is a superfluous charity, but I really can't see any reason for such bile. I would imagine it's nice for a disadvantaged kid to get a brand new toy or two at Christmas. Might even make him or her actually forget they're disadvantaged.
If do don't agree, cool, put your money elsewhere. But AFAIK the charity's on the up-and-up and does some good. Lashing out at a couple of marines and volunteers like you claim you did does nothing but make you look like an a misanthrope.
Uhm, ok, maybe a few years ago the Razor was hot shit, but I think more kids this year are whining for a 360.
Most of our history has been devoid of cure for cancer. Coming to think of it, most of our history has been devoid of computers, and we've done just fine - so I guess you're just a hypocrite, saying that others should do without modern toys while using one yourself.
You got that right. Merry christmas, and I hope that you get no presents since you're obviously doing so well without that stuff anyway, asshole.
Forget magic. Any technology distinguishable from divine power is insufficiently advanced.
toys for tots is more about making sure every kid gets toys on christmas rather than them needing toys, to me at least. And I can get behind that a little bit, but I hate christmas gifts now in my adult life.
I only beleive in giving legos to kids, so my nephews only get legos and other similar products (mostly bricks, not these crappy harry potter sets). Anything where their mind is the toy.
Sleep is for the weak.
Forget anything before or since, he's the pinnacle. A truck that tranforms into a fucking robot? Greatest. Toy. Ever.
Check out Sam's Toy Box at:
http://www.samstoybox.com/
He even has a Mattel Powershop!
The more you regulate a company, the worse its products become.
I can't believe it wasn't even mentioned.
Hard to imagine something that complex played in prehistory.
Someone gave us a little box of "Olde Tyme" Wooden Toys and in addition to the cork "pop gun", there was...Ball In A Cup!
The boys will actually fight over it.
The "winner" sits there for a half hour or so tallying up how many consecutive "catches" he makes, then when he is "done", he passes it on, saying "Beat THAT SCORE!" to his brother.
and of course I will sit there (with a beer) and watch them play "Ball In A Cup".
I like microcars
Flashlights
Every year I give new ones (cheap ones) because the ones I gave them last year are:
Lost
or
Broken
I like microcars
Ball in a Cup!
When they mention Mr. Potato Head's roll-out in 1952, there is some sensational math: grossed more than $4 million in its first year (that's $30 billion in 2005 dollars)
That's an increase of 7,500 times. IOW, the average salary in 1952 should have been around $5 per year! If you want a more tech-centric look at a few hundred classic gadgets, drop by my site -- http://www.retrothing.com/.
Awwesome! Thanks!
Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
"Many local big-box stores say they haven't gotten any new consoles since the product's Nov. 22 launch, and some have gotten just one or two. The Target in Germantown got four units Monday night and sold them almost immediately. As of yesterday afternoon, Web stores Amazon.com, ToysRUs.com, EBGames.com, CircuitCity.com and WalMart.com were all sold out, with no indication of when the new game console would be available again.
Microsoft won't pin the shortage on any one part or manufacturer, so game fans and Wall Street analysts don't really know if this is planned hype or a major screw-up or what. This is what is known: The company shipped 300,000 to 400,000 units Nov. 22 -- and after that, very few. The company says more are coming, but nobody knows for sure."
From Washington Post (login reqd)
One thing is sure if it continues like this, the XBox 360 won't be among the history's popular games.
Some potatoes are quite different from other potatoes.
When I was a kid we made our own toys. http://www.spookshows.com/toys/vacuform/vacuform.h tm http://www.timewarptoys.com/vacf1.jpg http://www.timewarptoys.com/vacf2.jpg
hmmm should I include uphill and stuff about snow?
Having to work for a living is the root of all evil.
"And there's serious money to be had. Mr. Potato Head, made in 1952 by Hasbro's Playskool unit, was the first toy advertised on television, and it grossed more than $4 million in its first year (that's $30 billion in 2005 dollars)"
Uh, I don't think so. If my math is right (or at least, better than their editing), that would mean 1 1952 dollar is 7500 2005 dollars. Does that sound right to anyone? It would also (again, if the math is right) mean the US had 120% inflation for the last fifty years.
How many classics came out of that era? Just a few I can remember: barbie, hola-hoop, silly putty, legos, G.I. Joe, slinky, frisbee, play-doh, easy-bake oven.
Don't know why, but it seems like era stands out in toy history.
Forbes article was way off.
At no point in time did any toy (in the past 30 years) sweep a decade at a time. Especially in the past 10 years we have had a notable, unmistakable 'must-have' toy of the year.
Razors were a MINOR fad.
Whereas I remember Tickle-me-Elmos causing toy store brawls and going for hundreds of dollars on eBay. No one paid $500 for a razor on eBay. They did for Elmos (which more of these were made than razors) and that tells me where the demand was.
MicroRC cars were also really popular from small kids to adults a couple of years ago.
The Forbes article was a pain to navigate through and really lacked any viable research. Maybe even just getting some figures from Toys R Us on what their top sellers would have been a better gauge over the past 20 years.
My personal favorite toys are the DEAD BODIES of the WEB DEVELOPERS responsible for godawful ad-infested ugly-ass "slide shows" with shitty controls and no real content within.
Well, that, and dreidels.
they shipped 300k of them (US) to go out this morning. Bestbuy (mesa, AZ) was packed with campers waiting until the morning.