Archives

PodStallions Episode 10: Glows in the Dark (Monster Toys)

Our second October episode, Jason and Brain try to cram in as many monster toys as they can into an hour and a half.  Aurora model kits, Marvel comics, action figures by Tomland, Remco and Lincoln International get discussed as does Cracked magazine, Power Records, the number of times we rented “LifeForce” on VHS (I’ve […]

Mattel Creepy Feature Promotion

I recently came across this promotional folder from Mattel full of different concepts for stores to boost sales of (duh) Mattel Toys. The one that most interested me was the Halloween specific teaming of Suckerman, Gre-Gory and Krusher into an end cap called the “Creepy Feature”. While I’m 100% sure this never made it to […]

1978 Mattel Flying Aces Catalog

Mattel’s Flying Aces were an elaborate take on the paper airplane, the planes were made of soft foam and the flight deck served as a launcher. Those who had it or the Battlestar Galactica version have mentioned that the planes had a short life but were fun nonetheless. In 1978, the line was three years […]

Mattel Ringling Brothers Circus

As a child, I won ticked to the Ringling Brother circus, it was a strange mix of awe and fear for me. Mostly due to me being leery of clowns, still carry that to this day. This toy from Mattel kind of surprises me, mostly because it seems like the kind of thing Marx would […]

Big Jim speaks!

How I loved my talking Big Jim when I was four and if I can find it kicking around here, I remember that back pack still worked at the last pull. A lot of stuff gets said about Jim these days but he rocked my world as a kid.

Release the birthday Kraken!

Christopher Elam of the great blog OWARI submitted this great bit of 1981, this being his ninth birthday he has received the Mattel Kraken. Being of a similiar age, I wax fondly at those blockbusters that diverted our attention from Star Wars, albeit briefly…

Osmond Mania!

I’m finally coming to grips with the actual amount of time I probably spent watching the Donny and Marie show, sure the choice to watch it was made by my older sister, who at five years my senior could totally take me.  However, I will attest to kind of enjoying the experience. I watched a lot of […]

Vintage Toy Store Pictures: Part 13

It’s time once again to be whisked back to a simplier time, one that was dominated by “Mom and Pop” toy chains and the wonderful, almost chaotic way toys were distributed.  Vintage Toy Store Shots thirteen features images from a former Mattel employee, who seemed to in charge of taking shots of retail displays and […]

Italian Shogun Warriors

Mattel marketed their successful “Shogun Warriors” toy line not only in North America but to Europe as well. What’s fun about all international toy lines in the 1970s were the things that were different or at times, additional. And the Italian Shogun Warriors line does not disappoint, while Godzilla is strangely absent, Goldrake a popular […]

1975 Mattel Hot Wheels Catalog

Mattel launched the HotWheels brand in 1968 and the free wheeling 1:64 scale muscle cars became a household world by the early 1970s. By 1975, the brand was doing what it does best, creating great looking cars and complicated racing playsets, a formula they still use today. 1975 Hot Wheels Catalog