The following article was written by Sharon Verbeten, the Youth Services Manager at the Manitowoc Public Library.
Everyone may be familiar with evergreen toys like Slinky, Play-Doh and Monopoly. But, did you know that many of the world’s most famous and popular toys began as mistakes?
That’s one of the interesting things you’ll learn at The Greatest Toy Stories of All Time, taking place on Thursday, December 12, at 6 PM in the Balkansky Community Room at Manitowoc Public Library. Not only am I the Youth Services Manager at MPL—I’m also a longtime toy expert and author. I’ll be telling tales about the colorful, quirky, and often storied histories of more than a dozen vintage toys—from Barbie and G.I. Joe to Silly Putty, Twister, Etch-a-Sketch and Mr. Potato Head.
Think a Slinky is just a coiled piece of wire? Think again! Or that Barbie’s path to stardom was overnight? Not at all. Many inventors were just regular people looking for a better way to do something. In the process, a new toy was created!
Take, for example, the story of everyone’s favorite modeling clay—Play-Doh. The colorful compound we know so well today—both by texture and smell—started life as a white clay that was used to clean wallpaper. It wasn’t until a teacher realized that little hands would love to squish and mold it that it turned into a toy—and one of the world’s most nostalgic toys, at that!
Other toys were initially huge bombs when they came out, but later went on to great success. One of those was Charles Darrow’s Monopoly; when it was first introduced, it couldn’t find a manufacturer; later, when it finally did, it sold out its first year.
Some toys come and go, but there are plenty of evergreens that old and young may recognize today—Barbie and G.I. Joe being great examples.
Whether you have fond memories of the toys you played with as a child or are introducing your children or grandchildren to your favorites, come learn more—and get to play with!—some vintage favorites at this nostalgia-inducing event. Who knows—you might even want to put some of those toys closer to the top of this year’s Holiday Wish List!