Toy Whimsy

Mr. Potato Head - Flashback Friday

Once when I was around eight, my mother and I were visiting my grandfather in the town where she grew up.  The town of Grandview, IN was no more than 500 people, and there wasn't, as you can imagine, much to do.  (As a side note, when we would come visit, it would appear in the country paper that we were in town- weird huh?)  So to keep me entertained, my mom decided to go into the attic and get her old toys down.  Among the Madame Alexander dolls, and other small toys, there was a box that said Mr. Potato Head.  I opened the box to find lots of eyes, ears, and silly hats, but no body.  Imagine my shock when my mom told me you had to use an actual potato for the body.  For some reason, to me, this was horrifying.  I quickly put the box away.  Here's a classic commercial from the 60's.  I think you'll understand my horror after you watch it.

Well, Mr. Potato, you have come a long way, spud!
Now we have potato/movie tie-ins, a whole line of Star Wars Spuds, and even an Easter Potato.
Here are just a few of the many "heads" you can play with:

In Sports we have the New York Yankees Spud and the Dallas Cowboys Spud just to name a few:

 
In Star Wars some of the stand outs are Darth Tater, Darth Mash-Maul and Artoo-Potatoo:

I also love the Transformers tie-in, Opti-Mash Prime:

And who could forget the holidays?  We have Santa and Easter boy and girl potatoes too:

And just in case you need to keep it real with your potato fun, here's the classic Mr. Potato Head in all his glory:

Also, for fun on a Friday, check out this great article about an Octopus who is very protective of his Potato Head toy.

Have a great weekend!

--Laura McMullan

Playmobil Inventor Hans Beck (1939 - 2009)

With all the commotion around Toy Fair this month, somehow we missed that Hans Beck, inventor of Playmobil toys, passed away late last month.  For millions of kids (and a few adults in my office) Playmobil toys were -- and continue to be -- a favorite.  

The toys were created in 1974 when Mr. Beck (who actually trained as a furniture carpenter) was asked to invent a collectible toy.  (Interestingly, the company assumed he was going to present a line of toy cars.)  He worked as a designer with the Geobra Brandstaetter company (the parent company of Playmobil) until 1998.  There have been over 2.2 billion of the dolls sold in 70 countries, with Mr. Beck's motto about Playmobil being, "No horror, no superficial violence, not short-lived trends."  You can click here to learn more about the inventor and his creations. -- E. Christian Moore

Toy Tips with Marianne Szymanski - Toy Fair Roundup

I have attended the American International Toy Fair since 1991 and each year, I comb through aisles and showrooms in search of creative playthings for the whole child. Manufacturers are eager to showcase their newest gizmo to retailers in hopes it makes it to a hot toy list that magazines (most of which accept toy advertisers) hype to parents near holiday shopping time. But, after all this hoopla, parents just want to know the best toys for the best price that will make for the best play experience and their kids really happy.  While the toy industry seems to be tightening purse strings due to the economy, there are 3 trends that I think will be the focus of 2009.
----Better prices, Better quality and Better creative play value---
TTT (as toy tips is known-Toy tips: Tested and Trusted) will be focusing on the BBB all year long!
This is the year to focus on toy safety, value, cost and product durability. New toy safety laws will be put into place, retailers demanded lower prices so manufacturers are creating less expensive toys for the consumer and the trend toward green and organic toys is rising.
In a bad economy, basic toys always seem to rise to the top of popularity lists. LEGO has some new sets this year including licensed brands such as Star Wars and Toy Story and even a cell phone (a real one)! There is a new Disney Princess, Tiana, Dora the Explorer has become a middle school-er and and there are more child-themed movies so expect to see tons of licensed toys...in every toy category.
I have seen an increase of toys made with natural and organic materials, more collectables than ever before (My Little Pony, Batman, Star Wars, Bakugan, Transformers) and now the new Gogo's Crazy Bones.
There are lots of birthdays and anniversaries (Barbie turns 50, Candy Land is 60, Fisher Price Little People are 50 and PJ Sparkles is back for her 20th Anniversary).
Here is a sneak peek of some of the newest wares from the show.

Follow me on twitter.com/toytips for daily toy tips reviews.
-- Marianne

Siftables - The Future of Toys?

What if there was a toy that would be with you from birth until death?  What if it would grow with you, teaching you everything from cause and effect, to words, to reading, to math.  And then later in life, what if it helped you at your job, helped you organize information, and create new ideas? In your elder years, what if it helped you to organize your pictures from your vacation, and helped to exercise your brain to stop memory loss? Wouldn't that be cool????

Check out this video from MIT grad student David Merrill giving a TED lecture and tell me this isn't the coolest "toy" you have ever seen.

My favorite part of the whole talk is that "the youngest beta tester" used the siftables as traditional blocks, and that they can honestly be used for just this application at their most basic nature.  You can learn more about siftables here, including when they might be available for purchase.

So what do you think, is this the future of toys?  And when?  Will your children play with Siftables?  Your grandchildren? Who will be the early adopters, adults or children?  Tell us what you think!

(This cool video was pointed out to me by K.O. who has her own cool site over at Lillipip Studios- thanks!)

Toy Wrap Up: Guest Blogger Wendy Smolen

This was my fifteenth Toy Fair.  I’ve been around the blocks quite a few times.  But, like the circus, no matter how many times I see the show each one is filled with oohs and awe. From the rush to get through the opening gates to the possibility that, just maybe, this time I’ll score the “it” toy of the year, Toy Fair 2009 was one more great adventure. 

While the most obvious “theme” this year was the economy, price-cutting didn’t necessarily limit innovation. Sometimes keeping price points low actually resulted in some pretty creative and open-ended playthings.  University Games’ water-friendly Splattermat, Crayola’s Giant 3-D Sidewalk Chalk, Bandai’s 5-Second Station stopwatch, Wild Planet’s finger-printing Evidence Kit and Technosources’ Printies, (which makes stuffed characters using a color printer) were right on target with price and play value.

On the opposite end of the price spectrum, Mattel’s Mindflex and Uncle Milton’s Force Trainer were two high-end, high-tech toys that involve moving a ball through hoops using your brain waves. (Trust me, they really work!) Mattel’s Digital Nail Printer tops a manicure with decals. Hasbro’s latest version of Clue, called "Secrets and Spies," uses a cell phone to text message clues. And JAKKS' Eye Clops Mini-Projector turns any screen--- from a TV to an iPhone--- into a 70” wall projector. 

Lots of companies followed the lead set last year by Green Toys, Idbids, & Sprig in promoting green toys and packaging. Hape’s gorgeous bamboo doll house even had a solar panel. Plan Toy’s Rocking Elephant is made with organic rubberwood and water-based dye.

Collectibles abound. They’re cheap and cheerful. Gear up for Basic Fun’s Bakugan keychain, Sara Bella’s new miniatures, Spin Master’s Tech Deck, Ugli Dolls’action figures, Kooky’s Star Wars Klickers, and of course, action figures from Batman, Star Wars, Star Trek, Ben 10, and Pokemon.

I saw a lot of shining “Stars.”  Star Wars and Star Trek are just two of the big name movies coming out with toys to match from Playmates, JAKKS Pacific, Mattel, Hasbro, Fundex, LEGO, and others. Hasbro has a full array of toys from the GI Joe, Transformers, and Wolverine movies. And it’s the year of the princesses with two new Disney titles: The Princess and the Frog, and the re-release of Snow White. Mega Blocks also has the Halo products.

Building never goes off-trend. This year, Fisher-Priceintroduces Trio for the 3 year-old. Hasbro has Blocksters for babies. The Looping Lightning Coaster from K’Nex is for big kids. And LEGO introduces two new adventure series: Power Miners and Space Police, each with an on-line component.

As more families stay at home, games and puzzles continue to grow in popularity. I probably saw more board games than anything else (and personally, can’t wait to test a bunch of them).  iToys had a handheld KenKen, the new uber Sudoku.  I Can Do It! Games’ Discovery Beach made simple memory games into a 3-D adventure. Think Fun’s 36 Cube was a mindgame of a different color. For the younger genius, they had Clever Castle. There were lots of variations on Rubik’s Cube, including a high-tech version fromTechnosource,  a round Rubico from Hasbro, and an instructional DVD with the Rubik’s solution called You Can Do It! from Winning Moves Games. In the puzzle world, I loved Insect Lore’s Parts of a Bug Puzzle, University Games’ amazing elephant Junglewalker Puzzle, Fundex’s artistic Impossible Puzzles (that they swear aren’t impossible),  and a new perspective on puzzles from Ravensberger called WASGIJ (read it backwards).

What’s always fun is seeing how the classics change with the times. This year, Barbieis turning 50 with a gala ball gown and an updated Dream House.  Fisher-Price’s Little People are also turning 50, with a commemorative farm just like the one I used to have. Dora is becoming a 'tween with her new Explorer Girls posse.  Etch-A-Sketch is adding a stylus & eraser to its classic and creating a new design called Free Style (with a joystick-style controller.) Monopoly can now be played on a city grid (as well as on the Wii, handhelds, or even your cell phone) with Hasbro’s Monopoly City  . Hasbro’s classic Scrabble has an addictive, quick-playing card  version called Scrabble Slam. (Electronic Arts adapted it to the Nintendo DS, and you can even play it on the iphone with all your friends on Facebook! )

And those are just SOME of the oohs and awes of Toy Fair 2009! -- Wendy Smolen, Toy Wishes Magazine

Real Flying Fairies - Toy Fair 2009

it is impossible to go to Toy Fair and not think about what my children would like, and how they could react to seeing certain toys. The following toy by the William Mark Corp. would have made my four year old daughter squeal with delight.  Why?  Well, it's a flying fairy, and I kid you not, it took me a few minutes to realize how it was flying.  Check it out:

Pretty cool huh? I really love the fluttering wings and the little noise they make when they move.  And in case you are still wondering, "Unseen Fairy Silk" is the key.

--Laura McMullan

Q-Ba-Maze - Toy Fair 2009

So the coolest building toy I saw at toy fair this year was Q-Ba-Maze.  You build big structures and then put in the marbles and watch them run down.  Not new I know, but I still loved the product for how colorful it was and the pleasing noise the marbles made, and the sheer size of the structures.  Check out the demonstration below:

I will say, they look like a total profanity-inducing toy to step on when you have bare feet, but still, a very cool building toy. Tune in tomorrow for more video from toy fair and Marianne Szymanski's take on Toy Fair 2009.

--Laura McMullan

Subscribe to Toy Whimsy and Win Cool Toys!

So right over there to your right is a nice little graphic that shows you an Elmo Live, LeapFrog Tag, and a LeapFrog Leapster2.  (If you are reading this on the Amazon Daily blog, you'll have to click on this full post to get over to Toy Whimsy and sign up).  When you click on that nice little graphic and subscribe to Toy Whimsy's daily email, you'll be entered to win all three of these toys!  Super cool right??? So enter to win and as a bonus, get emails from Toy Whimsy with all the latest toy news and reviews!

--Laura McMullan

Duck Hunter by Interactive Toy Concepts - Toy Fair 2009

By far my favorite toy at toy fair, the Duck Hunter toy does something in reverse, instead of taking a great game and making it digital, they took a great computer game and made it live action.  Check out the video:

You can see that people were very interested in the toy, and after the buzz it got at CES I wasn't surprised to see lots of people visit their booth. Really great guys at the booth too were more than happy to show me how the toy worked...I can't wait to get one of these out to the Tiny Toy Testers (I think it will be the not so Tiny Toy Testers that I share an office with!). This toy has what it takes to be a big winner this year, it is a low price point, it is interactive, and adults like it just as much as kids. I predict a good year for Interactive Toy Concepts.

Tune in tomorrow, and all this week for more video from toy fair 2009.

 --Laura McMullan

Reel Roasters - Coolest Non-Toy at Toy Fair

Something that make me laugh at toy fair was the sheer amount of non-toys.  Everything from shoes, to books, to videos, to...well all kinds of weird and wonderful things.  On the last day of the show, out of sheer frustration with so many non-toys I was at a booth with shoes and found myself saying, "But THESE are NOT toys!".  I hope they let me in next year.  Anyway, some of the non-toys were cooler than others.  My favorite was the Reel Roaster from Hog Wild in Portland, OR (PNW Shout Out! Wootwoot!).  Check out the video below...

Cute huh?  And I love how they were happy to promote their product.  You would not believe the amount of people who were "Oh I am not good on camera, let me get someone else to talk to you...".  You gotta be ready to sell your product! Am I right?
Stay tuned for more video in the next couple of days...we got some awesome products on camera that I think you'll like seeing.

--Laura McMullan