Posted on January 28, 2012 by admin | in Nanny
Years ago, before political correctness, environmental awareness, and product safety were of rather less concern than they are today, kids’ toys were quite a bit different than what is available today. Many of the toys we grew up with wouldn’t make it past the suggestion stage these days – or would they?
Here’s a list of 10 old school toys they’d never make today – or so you would think:
- Golliwogs – The history of these toys goes back to a 19th century children’s book, and is a fairly racist rendition of an African-American. Never happen today, right? Well, um … Turns out they’re still being made, and the manufacturer says they actually promote racial tolerance.
- Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Lab – Check this out. These labs were a sort of space age science project -for kids – that actually included a Geiger counter, Alpha, Beta, and Gamma radiation particles and Uranium samples (!), all designed to help your young’uns make friends with atomic power. Now a highly prized collector’s item.
- Creepy Crawlers – Apart from the creepy factor of this Mattel toy, there was the mold itself, which plugged directly into a 110v AC outlet and got hot enough to fry an egg, for Pete’s sake. So it was eventually removed from the market. A newer incarnation was introduced later, however, which used battery power and a light bulb.
- Chop Suey Specs – Talk about racist caricatures. These toy glasses were about as non-PC as you can get. “Fool your friends!” says the package. Right, we would so blend in Hong Kong with these babies on our faces; which, by the way is where they are made. Yes, we said are made.
- Click Clacks (or Ker-Bangers) – This toy consisted of two plastic, sometimes glass, balls connected by a string which, when held, allowed you to jerk the string up and down and get the balls to “clack” together at high speed. That is, until they shattered into a bajillion deadly pieces, heading straight for your face and neck. So no more, right? Wrong. They’re still available, in a “safer” version.
- Shrinky Dinks – This craft-style toy was designed to create smaller, hard plate versions of patterns that were cut from a flexible sheet, after being baked in an oven, along with creating noxious fumes. So they’re gone now, no? Um, not exactly. In fact, it is still the basis for jewelry making, and even science research.
- Swing Wing – We’re not even sure what the purpose behind these things was, other than dizziness, headaches, and potential spine damage, but we’re pretty sure this one isn’t being made today. Our guess is that break-dancing rendered these obsolete.
- Johnny Rebel Cannon – Not much chance this one will ever be reproduced. Not only was it capable of launching those small cannon balls up to 35 feet, that Confederate flag wouldn’t fly very far at all with many folks today.
- Bat Masterson Derringer Belt Gun – A pistol that fires powder-burning caps, while attached to a child’s belt buckle. What could possibly go wrong?
- Water Wiggle – Hey kids, let’s all dance around this metal-headed serpent as it flails around uncontrollably under high water pressure. Good times!
← Why Can’t My Friend See? | 10 Ways to Condense Your Kids Clothing Needs →
