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Quoted from JohnnyPinball007:Then there was this all plastic set, no clue what it was called, but it had a base, i beams and other beams you placed first, then you had the flat pieces that snapped on that was the windows/outside look. (was not a Lego set). You made skyscrapers with this.
This was the set I had as a boy.
girder and panel (resized).jpgThe Game of Life and Monopoly were two of our favorites growing up.
I didn't realize it, but Milton Bradley (the Milton Bradley) invented the Game of Life in 1860 as the Checkered Game of Life. The modern version of the 1960s commercial OLDPINGUY published has been updated many times (for instance more $$ values in the 70's version I played, up to adding pets in the 2017 version).
game-of-life-checkers1 (resized).jpgLife (resized).jpgQuoted from joemagiera:I own Life and The Checkered Game Of Life. Those two games could not be more different. Checkered is an absolutely horribly bad game.
I agree - amazing how different "Life" was in 1860 - and Happy Old Age on the board was 50!
Quoted from Rezdog:Thought had them all until I image searched Mattel Electronic for this post. I had no idea this existed.
There was also Missile Attack in 1976, but it was withdrawn from distribution and rebranded as Battlestar Galactica in 1978 because the city at the bottom was New York and they didn't want kids thinking New York was getting bombed.
Mattel-MissileAttack (resized).jpgMattel-BattlestarGalactica (resized).jpgQuoted from zombywoof:As a little tyke, I really loved to color...
Planet of the Apes, had these action figures as a kid. Just the Ape ones though, not the astronauts. Also had the Star Trek ones ...
POTA (resized).jpegStarTrek (resized).jpgQuoted from mooch:I slept every night holding Morgan next to me.
Great story, I am glad you found one like you had as a child. I had a blue blanket I slept with Satin edging that I would run through my fingers. The end of the satin edging was frayed open and I could put my fingers inside. Once my Grandma though she would "repair" the blanket by sewing up the edge. I cried and cried until she ripped it back open. I think I stopped sleeping with it on when I had my first sleep over, didn't want my friend to know I had a blankie I guess. Still have it in storage somewhere ...
blue (resized).jpgQuoted from rosh:She still does not know there are actually two.
I wonder how many hamsters, gerbils and mice have been secretly replaced by parents over the years...
Quoted from OLDPINGUY:Restored after about 100 years, for the next generation!
Very nice job! Did the stroller handle and floorboard get restored too, or decided not to go with them?
Quoted from EdisonArcade:AKA "The Dime Store" by my grandmother. Now that's an obscure blast from the past that I'd forgotten about.
The Ben Franklin 5 and dime. Where we got our matchbox cars and other toys. Old thin plank wood floors in a downtown building. Like the picture below...
iaben.jpgQuoted from Mr68:Ha! Check out post number one in this thread where it all began 4 years ago.
Love that stingray bike! had one pretty similar with the banana seat, sissy bar and chopper handlebars. Rode it to school everyday. In 5th grade, took up the trombone and had to balance it on the seat and between the handlebars to get to school. After one year of that, I had enough of the trombone!
x (resized).jpgQuoted from mooch:4623A773-DBDB-43AE-82D5-7228A8B23E2B (resized).jpeg
Quoted from jorro:6Nu0.gif
I bought a Toshiba "walkman" after I completed basic training in 1983. I think it was a pretty big expense at the time, about $100 I think. The radio tuner was shaped as a cassette, you took that out to play cassettes.
Found a pic of one on ebay - $125. About 30 people watching...
s-l400 (resized).jpgQuoted from vec-tor:My dad drilled a hole in the middle of the concrete driveway for one of these.
Tetherball.
We had one too. You could play it hard to win or just bat it back and forth while chatting. I think my dad put it in because frankly it was cheaper than the basketball hoop and court he put in when we were older. We thought we hit the big time when that went in - we had something like below with a red white and blue net, mounted on a pole and a 1/4 court concrete slab poured in the back yard.
hoop (resized).jpgQuoted from xsvtoys:that whole boomer gen is now looking back and a lot of them want to get their hands on all that stuff they have fond childhood memories of.
Or memories of not being able to have it and now have the means to acquire it like the Evel Knievel Scramble Van only $200 on Ebay 
fun (resized).jpgQuoted from Indypin:To this day I still hold a tiny grudge against my brother for breaking it and I still tease him about it every time we gather for Christmas.
Practically a tragedy when your that age, but being able to tell this story at your brother's expensive every year at Christmas - Priceless!
Quoted from pinmister:Even the new Transformer re-issues are garbage. Where have all the good Toys gone?
The toy market is actually huge and continues to grow, but I agree, a lot of the toys are cheap/won't last (even the digital ones). When a lot of us were young, we got less toys than kids today. Birthday/Christmas for me, and numbered on one hand. They were more expensive, and therefore, less of them, and we played with them longer. It was that way with the rest of the world, you bought less and expected it to last.
The steady march of commercialism has shorten this cycle considerable. Kids get toys all the time now, in their happy meals, at the check out line, etc. Also, the action figure is only as good as the next movie, which comes out a lot faster these days between films. Cheaper/faster and obsolete sooner. And when something costs more that is meant to last longer (pinball anyone?) we complain.
Quoted from cottonm4:1) From the Ford people he got a little model car to bring home. It was different. It had no wheels. This was in 1958-59 when the jet age was upon use. Imagine George Jetson flying home to mama in his bubble top car with no wheels. This model had three "air pads" in the bottom and a small tube/pipe on the back. A 3 for flex tube plugged on to the pipe. And then you blow air in to the tube which caused the little car to float in the air.
I lost it years ago. I wish I still had it. It was never sold in retail stores. It was just some corporate stuff that Ford did. I have no idea how many were made, etc. AFAIK, mine could have been the only one made.
The auto dealers all had "promo" cars, scale models of their current car models that were used to help sell cars (give to kids after their parents took a test drive, etc.). They were very popular in the 50s, 60s and 70s. What you are describing sounds like something different, maybe a scale model of their concept car, the 1957 Ford Volante, that used 3 fans for lift (pictured below). The scale model you had would be unusual, rare and maybe one of a kind, since the Volante was only ever a 3/8 size concept car.
58ford_volante_1 (resized).jpgQuoted from cottonm4:The closest I can get you to it is that it looked somewhat like an AMC Pacer but without the wheels.
Yep, you got me stumped. Moulton Taylor produced 5 or 6 winged cars in the 1950s that flew, but they don't fit your description. There was a later winged car experiment with a Ford Pinto in the early 70s, the maiden flight did not end well for the inventors...
silverhawk-img-1-081518 (resized).jpgQuoted from cottonm4:It's not really a toy, but ...
Love em. Here is a great topic on Pinside about them:
Quoted from Rezdog:[quoted image][quoted image]
Watched Land of the Lost every Saturday Morning. Forgot how kickass the theme song and graphics were ...
Quoted from Rezdog:Nothing worse then running out of these.
First glance that looked like turkey bacon. Then I realized - track connectors!
Quoted from Rezdog:[quoted image]
This is the Phaser I had, from 1975. It had a flashlight bulb and made the phaser sound. You could put in different disks in the end to project the shape of the Enterprise or Klingon ship, etc.. Of course the bulb wasn't very bright.
hqdefault (resized).jpgQuoted from hAbO:This was pretty big deal for me growing up. Power Passers
Verrry Interesting who their Celebrity Racer is in that video.
Arte Johnson, died last year - age 90.
arte johnson (resized).jpgQuoted from onemoresean:Strobe light socker bopper fights were a lot of fun.
Had those as a kid too - got my youngest these for Christmas one year, they made crushing sounds when you hit something.
lex-play-035 (resized).jpgQuoted from cottonm4:The 1st place trophy is mine. But this car was not mine and did not win anything. This car is a memory holder.
Great story, really enjoyed reading it. Thanks for sharing.
Quoted from mooch:Ever mess around with a TV picture with magnets? My Dad didn’t like me doing this, thinking I would ruin our TV.
My eldest daughter did this when she was about six to a CRT computer monitor. It did indeed ruin it. That day was not fun for anyone. Lesson learned - don't give large magnets as gifts to kids.
Quoted from Atari_Daze:Had the predecessor to this set, I think it was like 36 pieces.
Me too, that plus these bricks, then latter the 1975 girder and panel skyscraper set.
Been in the planning/design/construction/facilities industry my entire life probably because of it 
bfd5e7e9b8a18e44f0ab134255e4735a.jpgc4ead6f81cbc6d6d4470ae72446df39d--s-toys-retro-toys.jpgQuoted from cottonm4:My 6th grade music teacher had one of those. She was a witch. But I know what a treble clef is
5th grade for me. She would sing our name for roll call, and we had to sing back "I am heeere". She would then sing back "your too hiigh" or "your off keey" etc. I wish once I would have just sang back "I don't caare".
Quoted from cottonm4:Ooooh. 4 upvotes. Did I draw out all of the teenage vandals here?
I can neither confirm nor deny ...
Quoted from Mr68:FYI. I've changed the thread title and the introduction post to expand things beyond just toys. Which is where we've already gone anyway.
My OCD thanks you
Quoted from OLDPINGUY:Those were great! I had to start with this one!
That looks like your detention shiv for self protection...
Quoted from OLDPINGUY:I started at the age of 9, delivering NY Daily News. Up at 6 AM, 1-1/2 hours a day. Snow and rain, then walked to school.
I made $3 to $4 a week. Christmas got me ,25 cent tips, and I reached $10.
Worked a whole year for a Trumpet.
Next 2 years was a pinball.
Baldwin Harbor.
Our local town paper came out only once a week on Monday. Got $3 to deliver. I was 12 I think, hated that job and held it only as long I had to before my parents said uncle as they got tired of goading me every week. Switch to lawn mowing did that by myself for a few years, then with a partner for several years and 30 lawns or so before getting a "real" job with the local pharmacy. That was the best job in town, I "handed" it down to my younger brother when I left for the Army. Managed stock, delivered drugs to the nursing homes, engraved items in the Hallmark store, just about anything that needed done.
Quoted from Mr68:Have any of you gone back to your childhood home and neighborhood?
My mother still lives in my childhood home in a small town less than a couple of hours away, so I get to see it now and again (probably not as often as I should since I should visit my mother more often 
). The house was a three bedroom, one bath house and my step-dad added a master bedroom/bath when we became a Brady bunch family with six kids. Don't have a pic handy but here is a google aerial - the big oak tree in the backyard that obscures half the house was a great climbing tree growing up, it is now HUGE and just a few feet away from that addition.
Screenshot 2021-03-08 050521 (resized).jpgQuoted from Lovef2k:I have $400 worth saved for my daughter who is now 22, had since she was 2 I think. No clue what they are worth, if anything.
Check their value here
https://www.treasurydirect.gov/BC/SBCPrice
You can cash most paper bonds at any savings institution
https://www.treasurydirect.gov/indiv/research/indepth/bond-redeem.htm
EE series bonds (one of the most popular) mature in 20 years (they will pay double the face value regardless of the interest earned) and expire in 30 years (no longer earn interest).
Quoted from Atari_Daze:Anyone else wear this as a yute?
Didn't wear that but my wife (girlfriend then) wore this - every time I smell something like that now it brings back some good memories ...
s-l1600 (resized).jpgQuoted from JohnnyPinball007:And as far as youthful memories, I remember my first beer. I was 6, and Dad and his buddies were having a big fish fry, and I had a Miller pony.
First sip of beer courtesy of my grandfather, was probably around the same age, 5 or 6. He died of lung cancer when I was 7, oldest memory of someone dying. What a guy though - for having him in my life such a short time, what great memories. Would have loved to grow up with him around.
grandpa (resized).jpgOK, something less morbid - also had one of these as a kid - not exactly the same. The one I had had craters of the moon on it, a real "Moon" ball. It glowed in the dark though. I bounced it real high one day and it went into the neighbors lawn. I almost could not find it. I was very upset and making all kinds of promises to God to be good if I found it ...
s-l300 (resized).jpgQuoted from pinwiztom:seem to remember Gleem.
OK, free scotch tape seems like a strange gift for toothpaste, but I am guessing that tube is from around 1961 (when transparent "magic tape" came out). Gleem was discontinued in 2014 but the formula is now marketed by Procter & Gamble as Crest Fresh and White.
crest (resized).jpegtape (resized).jpgQuoted from cottonm4:I had clip-ons when I was a kid.
The child hood staple. I still have one, a military tie, as a just in case I don't have time to tie one and for official photo (perfect knot)
T-101_W (resized).pngQuoted from pinwiztom:Just curious, how many of you old timers, lived in a town that still had a milk delivery man?
Quoted from pinwiztom:that had a little compartment (going into the kitchen, thru the wall accessible from outside)
Yes! we still had both in the small town I grew up in (Flora, IL) I was very young in the late 60s but remember the galvanized box and the pass-through compartment. I think it was the Flora Pure Milk Company, bought out or run out of business by Prairie Farms out of Carlinville, Illinois (yes that Prairie Farms).
flora-pure-milk-co-sphg-dairy-bottle-flora-illinois_ (resized).jpgQuoted from pinwiztom:The boot scraper and cleaner outside my front door
I have something similar, a wombat boot cleaner, sent to me by an Australian friend. Starting to loose his bristles up top.
20210501_061826 (resized).jpgQuoted from BMore-Pinball:anybody have one of these as a kid in the 70's?
Yes! Totally forgot about that! We use to look for the blimp during football games on TV. This thread is great for bringing back memories!
Quoted from zombywoof:I know I read and re-read A Night to Remember.
I remember that book - and that somehow reminded me of a book my brother had, Hiroshima. I remember the pictures of the damage and it talking about skin falling off. Didn't realize it was originally published in 1946 - he had it in the late 60s/early 70s.
book (resized).jpgQuoted from zr11990:Are you aware that the U.S. put out flyers in Japanese warning the people of Japan that they were going to bomb major cities if their gov didnt stop the war?
Yes, partially true, we did put out warnings for various cities, though Hiroshima and Nagasaki were not on the LeMay leaflets, as they were more about the firebombing that was going on in other major Japanese cities (including Tokyo) which were nearly as deadly. Nagasaki was leafleted after the bomb (ill-timed scheduling as Nagasaki was not the intended target, it was the secondary that became primary after Kakuri was ruled out due to weather conditions). Regardless, here is part of the message included in that release:
"A single one of our newly developed atomic bombs is actually the equivalent in explosive power to what 2000 of our giant B-29s could have carried on a single mission. Radio Tokyo has told you that with the first use of this weapon of total destruction, Hiroshima was virtually destroyed. Before we use this bomb again and again to destroy every resource of the military by which they are prolonging this useless war, petition the emperor now to end the war."
leaflet (resized).jpgQuoted from zombywoof:Around the same time I was also reading this:
The Bermuda Triangle reminded me of this TV Series from 1977 - The Fantastic Journey. It only lasted a single season. They were trapped in the Bermuda Triangle with people from other times/dimensions/planets etc. The kid is Ike Eisenmann who was also in Escape to Witch Mountain (1975) which was a must see Disney film as a kid.
Screenshot_2021-05-05 The Fantastic Journey (1977) (resized).pngposter (resized).jpgQuoted from OLDPINGUY:My dilemma? Whats the name of the Music in this video?
Its haunting me from Wonderama.....
Henry Mancini, Baby Elephant Walk
Quoted from LTG:When you were a kid did anyone give the arm signal to a semi or a train in hopes they'd blow their horn ?
You stopped doing it @ltg?
I still do it, well at least the Italian version
asdf (resized).jpgQuoted from cottonm4:At Texas State Fair a few years ago I got a stick with bacon on the stick and it was dipped in chocolate.
State Fair Food that is actually good:
Turkey Legs
Corn Dogs
Funnel Cake
corn dog (resized).jpgfunnel (resized).jpgturkey leg (resized).jpgQuoted from jeffspinballpalace:Also we had cb radios. Copy that, Smokey’s on the prowl for lead footers that was some ancient fun.
"Where are you, you sumbitch?"
smokey (resized).jpgQuoted from cottonm4:Which leads to: How many remember when there used to be gas wars as the stations fought it out?
Well, I don't remember that but I do remember the OPEC oil embargo in 1973. I also remember President Carter telling us to "put on a sweater" and lower our thermostats in the winter of 76-77 - Fireside chat.
carter (resized).jpgQuoted from cottonm4:es, Kate Jackson. While everyone else was drooling over Farah Fawcett, I had the hots for Kate Jackson.
Kate Jackson, girl next door - hot but no so much that you didn't think you had no chance. Bet you liked Mary Ann better than Ginger too
angels (resized).jpgmarya (2) (resized).jpgQuoted from cottonm4:I have a thing for redheads
don't we all cottonm4 , don't we all
Quoted from pinzrfun:mostly the haircuts.
This is a random 1983 yearbook senior photo I took off the net - but pretty much exactly like mine - haircuts, poses, outfits ...
1983-Yearbook-4 (resized).jpegQuoted from zr11990:go to a search engine that doesn’t sensor the available info to suit their agenda.
If you want to see how much censorship goes on web search engines, do a search on any controversial subject with Google, Bing, Duck Duck Go, Yippy, Dogpile, Yahoo. You may be surprised to see how much censorship goes on, either by completely omitting certain websites/pages, or by placing them many pages back (almost 95% of web searches never go beyond the first page.)
Quoted from DanQverymuch:Look into DuckDuckGo, their browser tries to block all traffic with Google servers.
Been using Duck Duck Go as my primary for years, and Firefox as my browser.
Quoted from cottonm4:Wow. Color pictures in a yearbook. All of mine were black and white
Only the senior photos in mine - rest were black and white.
Quoted from swampfire:Search engines are about one thing, and one thing only: making money. Please give me an example of a “controversial” subject where the results are “censored”.
Pick any controversial topic - pretty much any, but usually left wing vs right wing. Example, abortion
Duck Duck Go first returns: Wikipedia, Planned Parenthood, Pros and Cons, World Health Organization, Definition, Medical Facts
Google first returns: 3 ads on how to get an abortion, then planned parenthood, then how to get an abortion again, abortion is a right
On some searches, returns are omitted all-together - no links to websites of certain groups or stories. On others, more nuanced but a definite bias. And from Googles own page:
"Google and its subsidiary companies, such as YouTube, have removed or omitted information from its services in order to comply with company policies, legal demands, and government censorship laws. Numerous governments have asked Google to censor content."
Note, "company policies" is the catch-all for whatever we want.
Quoted from dirkdiggler:When I was a kid in the early 80s McDonald's came in Styrofoam containers. I remember always dumping my fries out in the lid side. Good times
They took a lot of crap for those foam polystyrene containers from environmentalists, even though they were more recyclable that the coated paperboard they were using prior to it. Kept your burger warmer longer. I wrote a paper against them in college (aahh, the innocence of youth). Burger clamshells were phase out by 1990 I think.
waste (resized).jpgQuoted from cottonm4:This is the first time I have heard of styrofoam being recyclable.
The question isn't whether it is recyclable (it is - https://www.intcorecycling.com/How-To-Recycle-Polystyrene.html ), but what the cost to do it is (even today much of what is considered recyclable and sent to recycling centers gets thrown away due to contamination - too costly to recycle.)
At the time, McDonald's was generating about 2% of the polystyrene packaging waste in the country and had a recycling program underway that went away when they stopped the clamshells.
And to steer this back to childhood memories, in 1980 it went to the National Scout Jamboree at Fort A.P. Hill in Virginia and on the way there and back by bus, we would stop at McDonald's and everyone got the same thing - Big Mac, fries and a coke. I never liked them before and now it is pretty much the only thing I order at McDonald's (now I only have to remember "Number one with a Coke" )
Image-769 1981NJ Patch.jpgQuoted from DCP:People would hide in the trunk to get in free.
My sister hid me in the trunk in the summer of 1975 to see the Towering Inferno at the Drive-In. A little internet hunting showed that by 1980, it was closed. Can barely tell what it once was today.
Rt 45 Theater (resized).pngtowering (resized).jpgQuoted from OLDPINGUY:This utterly useless coin purse. (1960s Rubber didnt last)
I had a couple of those growing up - they were used by company's as giveaways. Believe it or not, these are still being sold today for imprinting or just to buy (in a wide array of colors). Who buys one of these things?
s-l300 (resized).jpgQuoted from zombywoof:My boyhood home did not get cable until well after I had moved out for art school at age 18.
Quoted from pinzrfun:My side of town was just slightly more spread out than the OTHER side, which got cable a few years before we did. I remember my stepdad going crazy - "$17 a month to watch TV? We watch it for free right now!"
Growing up we had cable as early as the early 1970s - It was a small town and the cable company brought in multiple network stations from different nearby market areas, PBS, WGN and a couple of more - We had no box so I think less than 13 stations total. I just thought that was the way it was everywhere. We had the "kids" color tv in the basement, which was a hand me down and when the arguing over which station to watch resulted in the selector knob being broken, we used vice grips to change the channels (Like the picture below).
Later, in the very early 80s when they got HBO with a converter box, it was billed separately and so my brother and I went and got it secretly and paid the bill (like $9-$10) down at the office in person each month. Parents never knew we had it, we hid the box in the cabinet under the TV. Got to watch all those uncensored R rated movies
tv (2) (resized).jpghbo (2) (resized).jpgQuoted from EdisonArcade:They also gave us Super Dave Osborne, who I thought was hilarious on Letterman
I don't remember ever seeing that show but I remember Super Dave Osbourne. He always strapped in with "real Saskatchewan Seal Skin Leather"
bob_einstein_super_dave_osborne__1942_2019__by_shinrider_ddjs8rx-pre.jpgQuoted from pinwiztom:How many of you guys remember or admit to playing these childhood games/activities, even though some of them were "girly"?
Three sisters, so yeah ...
I have his exact church bank from growing up - my grandma glued the plank shut that you slide out to get the money. It was completely full until I broke the slide open to get the money. I think it was intended to give the change to the church for an offering. They didn't get it..
il_570xN.293291112.jpgQuoted from Luckydogg420:Here we have Swiss Rolls….and yes; we also unrolled them to eat.
Not just a childhood memory - still getting these for a guilty pleasure today. They have grown smaller as I have grown older, so they remain a right-sized snack
Quoted from cottonm4:I never heard the Chipmunks sing Beatles songs.
I never hear of this album either, but this is the one we had as a kid. We also had a Spike Jones album too we listened to, but no clue which one that was.
220px-Let%u2019sAllSingWithTheChipmunksActualcover (resized).jpgMy home town theater circa 1990. Saw Star Wars here in 1977, first movie to stand in a long line for and first movie to view more than once in the theater.
Also saw Jaws here in 1975 with my Grandma. The placed was packed and we arrived late and the only seats were 1st row center. Had to look up at the screen. When the body popped out of the sunken boat, nearly crapped my pants.
4170298736_d157005d88_b (resized).jpgjaws1 (resized).jpgQuoted from pinwiztom:The first time I ever flew was also on a private plane.
I don't remember my first flight, I am sure it was from St. Louis to basic training at Fort McClellan, Alabama. I remember my next five flights though, they were all takeoffs, no landings (Fort Benning, GA Jump school)!
jump (resized).jpgQuoted from mooch:Anyone remember Skelly Truck Stops?
I remember Stuckey's - we use to argue how it was pronounced (long U or short U - it's long, rhymes with lucky). Still in business selling candy and their name evidently (https://stuckeys.com/)
This one in Springfield Illinois is now a cool restaurant called Motorhead's that has been under constant improvement since it opened. May go there today now that I think about it, pretty good food and a great slice of auto Americana.
stuckey's (resized).jpgmotorheads-springfield-il-800x601 (resized).jpgMotorheads-1200x676 (resized).jpgQuoted from cottonm4:I would not have imagined that plain looking building had a killer ceiling.
Yes, the ceiling is beautiful. The first time we walked into the place they had just opened, didn't even have a full menu, the parking lot was still gravel, not nearly as much memorabilia, no sign - the place still looked pretty dumpy from the outside, then you came in and saw that ceiling and understood the attraction of the site. (Oh, it is right at an exit on I-55, location helps )
Since that sign picture they have built a big music/party hall and done even more to the outside.
Hey! In my defense, there was not a schoolhouse rock for vowels. Luckily, there was one for interjections...
Quoted from OLDPINGUY:Wanna Guess how many?
My guess is 750 - approximately 20 high by 6 wide by 6 deep. Scientific method
Quoted from cottonm4:My guess is 6 by by 16 high = 576. I went with 575 for around number
That is probably closer than me - I assumed a couple of rows in the lid area and then two more for extra measure. I noticed the thread Art started has over 100 guesses now...
Quoted from cottonm4:Right inside the front door is an elevated floor that I imagine is where the office jerks and managers located, with the managers being able to look down on the factory floor to see who was goofing off.
The real question is how does it smell inside?
Quoted from cottonm4:But, to answer your question, I smell nothing when I walk I the store.
I am sorry to hear that - the sense of smell is tied so strongly to memories, it is a shame to lose that.
I was poking fun at whether the place still smelled like Mentholatum ointment - your post reminded me of Vicks Vaporub. My mom would put it on our chest when we were sick to help keep our sinuses open. Every time I smell it, I think of that and her - a great memory.
vicks (resized).jpgQuoted from cottonm4:The jeans could not have been on any tighter if they were painted on.
You had your tight pants on like Jimmy Fallon...
Quoted from cottonm4:Shop classes were the only way I managed to graduate high school
Quoted from zombywoof:I credit that and a general apathy for my election, but Vo-Tech got me through graduation.
I dropped my college prep courses and took small engine repair, big engine repair, and welding my senior year. Went into the Army and then college afterwards when I was more ready. Those shop classes were life skills I have used my entire life. I think the only high school class I got more benefit from was typing. Didn't hurt that I was like the only guy in that class either
class (resized).jpg
Quoted from cottonm4:The best I can do is remember looking at the ladies underwear section in the the Sears catalog
Here is an interesting website - A whole bunch of Sears/Eatons/Montgomery Wards wishbooks from 1937 on.
http://www.wishbookweb.com/the-catalogs/
In 1975 I was more interested in Pong than the ladies section (that changed in just a few years of course...)
page0412 (resized).jpgQuoted from cottonm4:How many of you learned to work on cars because all you could afford was a POS-----and it was not even the car you really wanted? It was...ahem...just transportation.
Had a 1972 Pontiac LeMans literally driven by a little old lady with less than 60,000 miles. Instead of getting new tires, I paid to have stripes put on it. Ended up wrapping it around a fire hydrant on a rainy night. Next car was a $200 Ford Capri to drive around while I used the large engine repair shop class in high school to remove the engine from the LeMans (350) and drop it into a 68 Camaro. Got the engine in but went into the Army before the car was done - eventually sold it without every really driving it much.
Quoted from bob_e:By the looks of that Camaro its 327 may have past its service life. I hope the 350 had the 4-bbl vs the 2-bbl carb from the factory
Quoted from cottonm4:I can see you are a little more refined and reserved than me. That Camaro is the POS I was talking about.
That is a 16 year old boy's fixer upper
It was a POS - but it came without an engine and it was cheap so it was perfect. The only real difference between the Pontiac 350 and the Camaro engine compartment was different motor mounts, which I got from a wrecked Firebird in the junk yard for just a few bucks. Even the transmission mount worked as I recall. The Pontiac had the 2 barrel but it was destined for a 4-barrel but then I sold it . I did have headers for it though, easier to put on before completely inserting the engine.
Quoted from Atari_Daze:I was friends for a short time with one of the rich kids in the next neighborhood over, they were the only ones I knew of that had this "monster".
Too funny. We did have two t.v.s growing up but the "big tv" I think was 27". The basement "kids" tv was 19" and we broke the channel knob arguing over which of the 13 stations were we going to watch. From then on out, it was vice grips for turning stations
tv (resized).jpgQuoted from pinwiztom:Anybody here been thru or near a tornado?
Have had several close calls, tornado touch downs within five miles, go to basement. Amazon distribution center destroyed in St. Louis in December 2 miles from my office.
Part of their roof outside my office window...
20211213_073309_HDR~2.jpgQuoted from OLDPINGUY:Sunday Night was Mutual of Omahas Wild Kingdom, and then Disney.
Awesome memory! Same for us. Family night. Popcorn and Pepsi. One of the rare times we got to drink soda. 16 oz bottle, split in two.
pepsi (resized).jpgpopcorn-metal-circle-bowl-93345156 (resized).jpgQuoted from dirkdiggler:Picked this up today for a couple bucks at a sale. Trucks are great. Smooth wheels. Can't find any marks or signage. Any help appreciated.
My brother had that skateboard - mid 1970s I think. The polyurethane wheels were first adapted to skateboards in 1973 and that really launched the skateboard craze of the 70s much like SS boasted pinball in the same era. I agree with RCA1 - most likely mass-produced Sears or Monkey Wards...
ad (resized).jpgQuoted from girloveswaffles:I'm just old enough to remember when milk cartons used to look like these:
I don't remember those milk cartons but do remember getting milk delivered - we had a container like this and even had a cut-out in the house like the picture below (house built in mid-forties). It wasn't for very long before the delivery stopped and we started getting gallon milk cartons at the store.
Quoted from girloveswaffles:Remember when we had a lot of different smaller grocery stor chains to shop at?
I remember even earlier, the neighborhood grocery store (like the one below), Hensen's one block away, between next to single family home and a laundromat. Huge (as I remember it) candy aisle. They lasted a long time, I think even into the early 80s (before Walmart came in and ran the IGA and everyone other last standing grocery out of town).
grocery (resized).jpgQuoted from OLDPINGUY:I had the first two, and got into a lot of Trouble, when in kindergarten,
I went into the bathroom with the kit hidden, and came out in black face!
Funny story Art but there goes your chance at hosting the Oscars!
Quoted from mooch:It was always this same Oscar Mayer variety pack in her fridge.
It was Bologna in our house. I remember the kid that sang the Bologna song on the commercial - My bologna has a first name, it's O S C A R ...
I also remember my mom made me a bologna sandwich for lunch for the 8th grade trip to the state capital. Sat on the bus and went bad which I found out after I ate it - not a pretty sight.
Quoted from cottonm4:I did that ruler spinner a lot. Somewhere around 8th grade. LOL.
I still do it; or spin coasters; or doodle all over my note pad. It is probably annoying to those around me but since I am oblivious it's ok
Quoted from cottonm4:This is an orange peeler.
I am not a big orange eater but these look like great stocking stuffers for Christmas, especially since we seem to have a lot of fruit baskets around then, so I will get some along with the usual lottery tickets, nuts and candy bars.
Quoted from cottonm4:This is a later model as I am having no luck finding any pics of an early 70s microwave.
As you posted, the first Microwave made for home use was the Amana Radarange, 1967. Just under $500 ($4,400 today - less than half a new pinball!) Litton's technology advancement of a new magnetron feed reduced costs to the $350 -$400 range and change microwaves to the shape we see today. The 500 model is shown below, you posted a 560 and the in between versions look close to what you posted.
Here is some irony now: Today's microwave ranges from $60-$100 (pro model ) to $250-$300 (Premium/LE), a decline in price of over 1,400%. Anyone know what a 1967 4-player pinball cost new compared to $10K today?
Also, microwaves have been around a lot longer than the 1970s, first patented in 1945 and first used in the public in 1947 in a Speedy Weeny vending machine in Grand Central Terminal, New York.
litton series 500 (resized).jpgQuoted from cottonm4:You speak as if you used to engineer them or sell them.
No, I had a research project on the use of the microwave as a Faraday Cage (they do act as a Faraday cage but really only effectively in their licensed range of 2.45 Ghz) and got a dose of history along the way, the kind that doesn't come up in conversation very often so your post brought back some memories! We also had the 560 model in our house (I believe). They called this series "Meal in One". They introduced a smaller counter top services in the early 70s as well called the "Minutemaster" 400 series.
s-l1600 (resized).jpgQuoted from mooch:Here’s a fun 15-minute film:
Quoted from DCP:That was totally great...I watched the whole thing!
Yep, me too
Quoted from pinwiztom:hose rattan weave plate holders
We had those exact ones for a very long time, but some years back upgraded to these...
plate (resized).jpgQuoted from xsvtoys:Inspired by Googie architecture. Googie is a cool thing if you haven't looked into it.
Oh man, I haven't heard that term in while but yes I agree it was inspired by the Googie style (also sometimes called populuxe or even DooWop). Basically Atomic Age architecture. Here is a famous example of it in a sign and a new retro Googie sign very close to it...
sign (resized).jpgvegas (resized).jpgThis is the one we had in the 1970s. Sunday night - Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom and Walt Disney World. Family night. Early into Pajamas, Hot Air popcorn and we got to split a 16 oz bottle of Pepsi, the only time we got soda at home. Also argued over who got more Pepsi.
Marlin Perkins always had his assistant Jim doing the heavy lifting "My assistant Jim will now Castrate this Water Buffalo" kind of stuff. Awesome memories.
popcorn popper (resized).jpgPepsi (resized).jpgjim (resized).jpgdisney (resized).jpgQuoted from dirkdiggler:Lots of us have seen the Bally pinball backglass puzzle but I don't think I've seen this one.
$12.99 on Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/MasterPieces-Piece-Jigsaw-Puzzle-Family/dp/B07Q891B41/ref=sr_1_1
Quoted from RichWolfson:Industrial Arts or "shop" was not a vocational program.
Quoted from cottonm4:There were two girls that also enrolled in that class. This was in 68 or 69. Females in shop classes were not common.
I dropped my college prep classes and took welding, small engine repair and big engine repair my senior year of high school. Loved those classes, true life long skills acquired. But the class that I got the most use out of to this day was typing. Mostly girls in that class and I use it every single day (right now of course!). Went into the Army right out of high school, then to college, but it was typing and the vocational classes that stuck with me from high school.
Quoted from pinwiztom:try $50 a bag today
just stopped in to the grocery store today over my lunch hour for a few things - $56.
Quoted from DanQverymuch:You guys are looking for the "you know when you're old" thread...
So true
Here is a childhood memory - I bought a plastic knife at Santa Claus Land in Indiana for $2 when I was probably eight and lost it before we even left the park and I don't remember anything else about that visit except I lost this plastic knife that I had paid for with my own money.
s-l400 (resized).jpgQuoted from Azmodeus:Here’s a great website. I thought.
https://brandedinthe80s.com/
I like the Awesome 80's bedroom section. My own room was never as cool as some of these.
My grandmother lived in a very small village and when she got to high school, it was 10 miles away in a bigger town. Horse and Buggy in the Spring and Fall, and she boarded in town over the winter.
I grew up in a small town, rode my bike in grade school (1/2 mile), junior high (1 mile) and high school until I got a license (1 mile). In fourth or fifth grade I started band, playing the trombone and still rode my bike, balancing it between the handles of my sissy bars. Needless to say, I gave up the trombone after one year.
My kids rode the school bus, or were occasionally dropped off on the way to work.
I pass by a high school on my way to work now, and the line to drop off and pick up kids by parents literally is 50 vehicles long, spilling out onto the road and blocking through traffic. Seems no kids are allowed to take a bus, walk or ride a bike anymore...
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