The U.S. National Toy Hall of Fame has inducted the Kite, the Atari 2600, and the Raggedy Andy doll into its hallowed halls. I had no idea such an institution existed. Apparently, its pretty new with only 39 inductees, with various toys like the Barbie, Play-Doh, and Lego. Seems like a good idea, so I'll help them out a bit. Here are my personal recommendations for the Hall, based on my own personal toy collection when I was a wee lad:
(1) Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots : According to photographic record, this was a Christmas gift.
I was pretty young at the time, so I don't recall ever receiving it. But the evidence of this toy's impact on my me is unmistakable. Photos from this Christmas depict me battling my first opponent, my Grandfather, in Rock 'em Sock 'em. No winner is evident, but since I seemingly could only barely press down those buttons, I suspect I was handily defeated. And, yes, my Grandfather and I are still on speaking terms. 
(2) Big Jim : This particular toy has my earliest recollection. I do recall playing with it and granting it "favourite toy" status for a period of time. That's about it. But it must have been a pretty impressive toy. I probably had Big Jim beating the crap out of all my other toys, good ol' Jim.
(3) Commodore 64 : this "toy" became an obsession. I remember spending hours on this
thing. I remember engaging in verbal battle with my family in order to commandeer the TV, so I could hook 'er up. We were a one TV home at the time, but soon became a two TV home. I recall the emotional scarring of never having received the highly coveted C64 accessories: the cutting edge "dot-matrix" printer, and the "modem" you actually rest your phone handset on.
(4) Walkie Talkie : When I got this toy, I lived near a wooded patch in Esquimalt, a kind of suburb of Victoria. I remember spending hours with my buddies with these walkie talkies in the woods. Esquimalt had a large military presence, so the other army kids would always want to portray some sort of mission, as I remember. I wonder how many of the ol' gang are currently incarcerated?
(3) Commodore 64 : this "toy" became an obsession. I remember spending hours on this
thing. I remember engaging in verbal battle with my family in order to commandeer the TV, so I could hook 'er up. We were a one TV home at the time, but soon became a two TV home. I recall the emotional scarring of never having received the highly coveted C64 accessories: the cutting edge "dot-matrix" printer, and the "modem" you actually rest your phone handset on. 
(4) Walkie Talkie : When I got this toy, I lived near a wooded patch in Esquimalt, a kind of suburb of Victoria. I remember spending hours with my buddies with these walkie talkies in the woods. Esquimalt had a large military presence, so the other army kids would always want to portray some sort of mission, as I remember. I wonder how many of the ol' gang are currently incarcerated?
(5) Cap Gun : Easily the most politically incorrect toy I ever played with. What made this thing cool was the loud bang, that was the selling point. As I recall, none of us "pulled up on the five-oh pull out a glock and bus' a cap in his ass". None of that at all. It was just plain ol' shooting a gun. The target was inconsequential.
I would pursue a position on the selection committee of the Toy Hall of Fame, but I'll be too busy with boys in hockey.
6 comments:
what about that 'real doll' you were raving about a while ago? Wasn't that your favourite toy ever?
My favourite toy for awhile, but then we grew apart. We decided to see other people.
She called me the other day. This is a little awkward but—we hooked up. I hope this doesn't affect our friendship. We cool?
Nah! You're made for each other, both full of hot air. No actual spine. Perfect match! Sincere congrats for you!
Gary wanted her phone number, I gave him her model number and told him to 'shove off'. The nerve of that guy...
I tell you, she gets around more than Horrick's mama!
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