#toy history

[decadesfinds]

Contrary to popular belief, stuffed toys were not invented by or for Teddy Roosevelt in the 1900s. They existed before this, in different forms, for almost all of human history. However, well, toys get loved to death and are often buried with their people if they died young, or even in old age - or are so well-worn that the only surviving bits are the wooden or bone framing.

The above dolls have stuffed and padded elements to their bodies, and survive from the middle ages, apparently. There's no dates attached, but they are absolutely beautiful examples.

We cannot forget ragdolls, which were obviously popular, and definitely betray my example a bit too well, into the "this is a bit scary" realm. But these were toys, and they were loved dearly by their owners. We have to remain respectful of that.

The first commercial stuffed toy was apparently a stuffed elephant in 1880 intended as a pincushion, but often purchased as a toy for children. They also made others, such as the lion below:

The next was a cat that is still a popular pattern today for toys - the Ithaca Kitty. Here are some replicas:

I've definitely seen a ton of these used as pillows to this day.

So, if you are writing or depicting history, don't be afraid of giving your kids a stuffed friend to love. They did exist before you think, and were much more popular than you would believe. They just often were not commercial, and were handmade by loved ones, or sold in small quantities, individually crafted by one talented artist.

[vintagegeekculture]

Beloved by toy collectors and perverts alike, the Takara Cy Girls line were GI Joe-like 1/6 scale action girl figures, the high point of which was the highly detailed Aurora Space Cop. 

Intriguingly, the Cy Girls line is mainly remembered because they were able to make figures of licensed characters, including the only action figure (for the time) of superspy Joanna Dark from the beloved Nintendo 64 first party title, Perfect Dark, as well as Beka Valentine from Gene Roddenberry’s Andromeda (which dates this line to a very specific year). 

[nickysfacts]

The Mii are a unique interpretation of the “toys to life” concept!😄

[basementofthebizarre]

Exploring the Creepy Charm of Boglins: A Detailed Look at the Iconic Toy Line

Boglins, those delightful creatures that once lurked in the hands of kids during the late 1980s and early 1990s, have left an indelible mark on toy enthusiasts and collectors alike. Created by Tim Clarke and Maureen Trotto, Boglins are a fascinating blend of puppetry and action figures that captured the imaginations of a generation. Let’s delve into the history, design, and legacy of these unique…

[schibborasso]

atomic energy lab

[packratshiloh]

This weird cutie just went to her new home but I wanted to talk about her a bit 🤣

Shes "Collie Parton" from the Very Outrageous Pets (VOP) line by American Bear in the mid/late 80s. The line included her, Donkey Hotey, Mick Jaguar, & Cleocatra.

Each have outfits fitting their character, sadly mine was missing her outrageous pink dress with big breasts 🤣. (Screenshot from chelsea-collies.com)

I found very little info online about this line, but im so curious about why they were made and if they were popular? Mine had a fashion lane tag for like $44 in 1985. I've only seen the Donkey Hotey one aside from this one too.

[taliquest]

So, I was doing that thing I do in which I look up vintage Ronin Warriors toys on eBay and despair at the thought of ever owning a complete 1995 Cye and Kento, and came across a listing for Lightning Rider Ryo.

For those who have never followed my chronicling of Playmates, Re:Play, and the US Ronin Warriors toyline, there's a long and interesting story there, the gist of which is: Re:Play was a subsidiary/ offshoot of Playmates Toys, who were responsible for the manufacture and distribution of the 1995 and 1999 runs of Ronin Warriors action figures (there is also a very long and interesting story behind those spanning three continents, but that's for another day). Re-Play's entire schtick was reproducing basically whatever Playmates happened to have lying around circa 2001, from Exo-Squad and Earthworm Jim to, you guessed it, Ronin Warriors.

The problem is that a lot of these figures usually suffered from completely inaccurate color schemes and kitbashed accessories, particularly in the case of RW. Case in point, "Rowen", who was really just Ryo with a combination of Sage of Halo and Ryo of Wildfire armor.

(image source: Figurerealm)

(I remember reading a fic about this guy way back when wherein he was Ryo's cousing playing impostor...)

And of course the Way-Off-Base recolors:

(I grabbed these off of my old twitter thread and I can't remember the image sources)

And of course, the aforementioned Lightning Rider Ryo, who was Ryo's head and Wildfire helmet with Cye's Torrent armor and weapons, and its brother "deluxe figure", Dark Rider Talpa, which was Talpa but in his second boss phase because he turned red. Also they both came with a horse, hence the "Rider" part.

(image source: ebay)

(Image source: Figurerealm)

The horse has, for the longest time, been the biggest piece of the puzzle for me, because where the hell did it come from. Nothing from Re-Play was original, after all.

Which brings me back to my previously alluded-to self-flagellation. I stumbled across a listing for LRR that, in a bit of a rarity, included the horse.

Fantastic, I thought as I clicked on the listing just to window-shop.

And then I found they were gracious enough to include a pic of the copyright stamp.

(image source: ebay)

And friends, with that I am happy to say that the mystery that has plagued me for the last 20 years of my life is solved.

The horses included with Lightning Rider Ryo and Dark Rider Talpa was previously from none other than the 1997 Zorro line, which is a thing I'd completely forgotten existed if I ever knew that it did. I was preoccupied by Power Rangers and Beetleborgs at the time...

(Image source: Carousell)

And that, friends, is your toy history lesson for the evening.

[weirdgirl92]

Okay, so I was going through some Barbie movie reviews from some of my favorite YouTubers, one of whom is Alteori, who had more mixed feelings towards the movie, but I didn’t mind because she always shares her opinions in a very intelligent and respectful manner. Another one, who goes by the name mjtanner, had some much more interesting thing to say about Barbie, and Mattel as a company…

Now, I’m not trying to use this video to say that people who enjoy Barbie dolls are “bad”, but I will say that it’s extremely fucked up how Ruth Handler and Mattel pretty much plagiarized another company’s doll and got away with it (not to mention erasing the histories of other hardworking women in the doll industry, pre-1959).

[that-theaven]

Watch "How Mattel rewrote toy history to put Barbie on top." on YouTube

[dollulus]

Mail & History! Featuring Skipper, Barbie's little sister doll

This video! I’m so happy to finally release it. I’ve been working on this video for 3 weeks (along with my regular vids!) Unfortunately I didn’t post last Friday. This video was planned for then but it just wasn’t ready! I’d rather delay a video by a few days than put out something I’m not satisficed with.

I really hope you give it a watch!

[yeoldenews]

Absolutely magnificent creature.

(source: Sears catalog, Fall/Winter 1918.)

[nickysfacts]

People today be like: “we are living in such a polarizing time!”

🇫🇷🇫🇷🇫🇷

Kids in 1794 Paris: “I can’t wait to cut off the heads of my doll for being royalist!”

😂

[blueiskewl]

Medieval Toy Unearthed in Poland

A 800-year-old horse figurine was found during an excavation conducted as part of the construction of a new fire station in Toruń, a medieval town on the Vistula River in north-central Poland. The small clay horse was glazed and has a hole in its underside. Researchers think a stick may have fit into the hole so that playing children could pretend to make the horse gallop or use it as a puppet.

[egophiliac]

I've always wanted a plush of the cat from Ghost Trick! so when the Switch port was announced, I decided to go ahead and make one for myself! ...and then didn't think to post it until now, for some reason! I modified BeeZee Art's sitting kitty pattern to get the right shapes; he was made with many mistakes, but also much love. 🐈‍⬛

(everybody go play Ghost Trick, it is my favorite video game of all time! if you like unique puzzles and a really fun mystery, then you will probably also enjoy it! and as you can see, it has a cat!)

(it was very hard to get a picture with Niko that didn't look like this:)

[shaneplays]

Rolling on to the scene from Milton Bradley in 1979, the Big Trak was a programmable sci-fi tank that held up to 16 commands and had an optional transport attachment it could be programmed to dump. The US version was gray and the UK version was white. It still looks cool all these years later… on Toy Tuesday!!