Toy OTD: Schmid Bros. Snoopy Music Box (1968)

This is a very special childhood toy with a lot of history.

When I was a kid, there was a drug store in Vermont called Campbell's Pharmacy - it was where I bought a lot of my comic books, and they also sold figurines, music boxes, and other gift items. Snoopy was prominently displayed in the main window, and being the huge Peanuts fan that I was, I immediately fell in love with it. I stopped to look at it every time we went by the shop. Or at least I did until it disappeared one day. I was heartbroken.

Of course, my parents had bought it for me, and it became one of my favorite possessions. I played it constantly, even though I had no idea what the song Over There was really about. I even took it into the bathroom with me at bath time, until one day it fell off the back of the toilet, landing on the floor. The fall rendered it silent.

I was very upset, but Dad patiently opened the doghouse up and repaired it. As an explanation for the damage, he painted bullet holes on the side, simulating an enemy attack! And so I've kept it to this very day. I've discarded and 'upgraded' many of my childhood playthings, but this one simply has too much love inside of it.

Of course, I think this music box is wonderful - the design is crude, even primitive, but that's part of its simple charm. In a way, it's just as elemental as the comic itself. An astronaut version that plays Fly Me To The Moon was also made at the time.

These music boxes weren't made in enormous quantities, so naturally they're sought-after collectibles today. There's one up for auction on eBay right now starting at $9.99 + shipping, but I'd be prepared to pay $100 or more for it. Good luck!

In Other Hanna-Barbera News

My CalArts buddy Mark Christiansen just finished a book of his Sid Sirloin character, and you can buy it right now on eBay for $5.00 + shipping (sales tax too, if you're a CA resident)!

Mark is a super-hard-core Hanna-Barbera fan, and his work reflects the best qualities of the H-B style. Pick up a heaping teaspoon of piping hot nostalgia for yourself, or for your little one(s)! You'll be glad you did. Well, I know Mark will. Me, too.

The Greed Of Christmases Past: Wishbookweb.com

If you don't already take enough trips down memory lane, here's a site that's archived a bunch of the old Wish Books. If you're under thirty years old, your parents may not have ordered all (or any of) your presents from JC Penny or Sears!

I loved the ritual of the Christmas Wish Book arriving each year - poring through the toy section for weeks, carefully circling and meticulously listing the stuff I wanted.

At one point, I had everything on this page but the plush (before Star Wars, Peanuts was the thing for me)! It's wild to look through these catalogs now - just like today, some of the toys are great, and others are really awful. Check 'em out!

Retro Gamer Builds 'Super Stick'; Freud Rubs Eyes In Disbelief From Heaven

GAMERTELL.COM: A super sized Atari 2600 joystick
Posted September 16, 2007 at 06:43 PM by PJ Hruschak

In the latest issue of Make magazine, there is a page (18, if interested) devoted to a project that would make any retro gamer drool.

Titled “Super Stick,” the brief article describes an oversized Atari 2600 joystick made for the I Am 8-Bit museum exhibit at Gallery 1988 in Los Angeles, CA. The joystick, created by Jason Torchinsky, measure 5 feet tall, approximately 15 times larger than an original joystick. It’s made of fiberglass, coiled hose and meal plates and took a month to build.

And yes, it works.

Attendees to the gallery opening were able to jump on the joystick and give it a go, stomping on the red button and enjoying the four direction goodness, playing an unnamed game projected onto a wall.

If you’ve not heard of or read Make, it’s a DIY magazine for gadget geeks featuring things like customizing your bike, LED sweaters and mobile movie theaters. It retails for $14.99 US, but worth the hefty price for all the fun projects it offers. It comes out four times a year.

Warm, Fuzzy Nostalgia Or Ungodly Crap? You Decide

As you may have seen on my Flickr page, I just found a treasure trove/trash pile of old Hanna-Barbera kiddie LPs (both sleeve scans and uploadable mp3s) at the Children's Records and More blog.

None of them are all that good, but I only had two of these records as a kid, and I was always curious to hear to the others. The neat thing about them is that they use real H-B voice talent (except Alan Reed and Mel Blanc), music and sound effects! Plus the sleeve art is pretty cool. Check 'em out!

Thanks to Men-oo-she-a for the tip-off!

This July 24th... The Wolfman's Got 'Nards

A 20th anniversary, two-disc set of The Monster Squad's being released - I'm assuming this is its debut on DVD. I remember liking it at the time, but who knows how it'll seem to me now? I'll probably rent it for a nostalgia wallow.