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Creative Toy Walk of Fame
In the Spotlight:
Play-Doh
Wikipedia.org profile on Play-Doh
Play-Doh is a
commercial modeling compound similar in
texture to bread dough that has been sold as
a children's toy around the world for a half
century. Its exact makeup is a secret, but
it is primarily a mixture of wheat flour,
water, deodorized kerosene or another
petroleum distillate (which provides the
smooth texture), salt, a drying agent such
as borax (which deters mold), an alum-based
hardening agent, and colourings and perfume.
It is non-toxic, non-staining, and soluble
in soapy water. When kept in a sealed
container, Play-Doh remains pliable, but
when exposed to air it hardens in about a
day. However, because it tends to crack
during hardening, it is not good for
projects one wants to save. Many baby
boomers have fond memories of its salty
taste and distinctive smell (due to the
small amount of petroleum distillate it
contains).
Play-Doh was invented by Noah McVicker and
Joseph McVicker in 1956 and awarded U.S.
Patent 3,167,440 in 1965. One of many common
products invented by accident, it was meant
as a wallpaper cleaner. It was marketed by
toy manufacturer Rainbow Crafts, and first
sold at the Woodward & Lothrop department
store in Washington, D.C.
Play-Doh is available in several different
colors and has a distinctive smell and
texture. Over 900 million pounds have been
sold so far. The product is now owned by
American toy giant Hasbro.
Links
The 50-year History of Play-Doh
Play-Doh overview on About.com
Official Play Doh
website
Play-Doh profile on the National Toy Hall of Fame website
Book
Timeless Toys: Classic Toys and the
Playmakers Who Created Them by
Tim Walsh
Amazon.com customer review:
From:
Allan
Bedford "Author of The Unofficial LEGO Builder's Guide"
It took me only a few moments of flipping through this book
to realize how much fun it would be to read. After staying
up much too late that same night reading the book in greater
depth I knew that my initial reaction had been correct. This
text isn't just a dry history of toys and games, but instead
is a collection of fabulous childhood memories woven
together with smiles and giggles. If you had even a couple
of these playthings when you were growing up you are sure to
find great interest in those and the write-ups on many
others.
Before I talk further about what's in the book I want to
make mention of the overall look and feel of the book
itself. This is a hard cover, full-color, coffee table sized
book. But the brilliant design of the book ensure that it
won't sit on your coffee table for very long. It begs to be
picked up and examined. The pictures are large, sharp and
reproduced in vivid colors. Even the dust jacket deserves a
special mention. It uses a special fold at the top and
bottom that has left room for extra info and a quiz to be
printed. The nearly 300 thick glossy pages mean that this is
a heavy book. Don't worry though, you'll have so much fun
reading it you'll never notice!
Now a bit more about what's inside...
The contents are arranged chronologically, with special
sections in the middle for toys from WHAM-O and designer
Marvin Glass. These sections don't break up the flow of the
book at all, but rather fit nicely with all of the other
entries. Each toy, game or plaything includes information
about the year of debut, the inventor, the company or
companies that produced it and so on. The text is arranged
in a two-column per page format but wraps around the
pictures and illustrations as needed. Perhaps the text at
first feels subservient to the photos but not for long. As
I'll mention shortly the text is expertly crafted and
carefully thought-out.
I noted above that the book runs nearly 300 pages but what's
interesting is that it does not contain short paragraphs on
hundreds and hundreds of different toys and games. Rather,
and what I feel is better, the book devotes on average about
4 full pages of text and pictures to each plaything that is
discussed. Walsh, as he describes at the beginning, set very
strict criteria for the items that could be included. By
sticking to that guideline he was able to give us more
detail and depth in each entry than you would typically find
in a book covering nearly a century of toys and games. So
when you find your favorite memory in the book be sure to
sit down and really enjoy the work that the author has put
into that passage.
It's important to mention that Walsh hasn't just filled
these long entries with fluff or boring statistics. The
truth is completely the opposite. After even a few
paragraphs of any entry you'll come to the same conclusion
that I did. Tim obviously has a great sense of humor and
enjoys his subject matter thoroughly. This isn't a a book by
a writer who found something to write about and tried to
make a decent product out of it. This is a warm and
entertaining book written by an enthusiastic participant in
this field who also happens to be a really good writer.
Along with his obvious love for these playthings Walsh has
clearly brought a huge amount of research to the table. As
the author mentions in his notes at the start of the book,
"I didn't want to write a book that contained information
anyone could readily find by searching the Internet in an
afternoon." And I'm pleased to say he didn't write that
book. He wrote one filled with pictures you simply won't
find on the net and certainly not in the clarity and color
that fills these pages. Interestingly though the book does
share a common feature with a website. Since there is no
single narrative binding the book from front to back you are
free to `surf' as it were through the pages finding toys you
remember or discovering ones you may have missed by simply
being born in a different decade. This is yet another thing
that makes this book fun. You don't have to feel pressured
to sit and read it cover to cover. You can pick it up and
read a few pages, set it down and then pick it up again and
read from an entirely different section the next time.
To his credit the author has included the wonderful stories
behind these carefully selected and well-deserving icons of
childhood. It's really those personal tales that make
history interesting. While it's nice to know that Crayola
makes nearly 12 million crayons per day there are more to
playthings than mere statistics. You see, it's even more
fascinating to know that Crayola (called Binney & Smith at
the turn of the 20th century) won a gold medal at the 1900
Paris Exposition. That award was for their carbon black
production that helped make darker shoe polish, printing
inks and car tires. And further, it was that recognition
that to this day inspires the 'gold medal' label included on
their packaging. There are tons more stories like that
awaiting you between the covers of this book.
If you can appreciate the time and effort that must have
gone into creating the prototypes for the first Spirograph
or the first Rubik's Cube then you can no doubt appreciate
the high level of craftsmanship that has gone into writing
this book. I cannot recommend 'Timeless Toys' highly enough.
I think it should be on every coffee table in the world
alongside a vintage Monopoly game, a Slinky and of course, a
pile of LEGO bricks. If any one of the toys or games noted
earlier in this paragraph made you smile then you owe it to
yourself to pick up a copy of this book!
More
You can even get Play-Doh cologne to
"take you back" to your more creatively free-spirited days as a
child!
 PLAY-DOH
COLOGNE SPRAY
Amazon.com
description
Eau de Play-Doh?
No, we haven’t overdosed on modeling compound fumes. Play-Doh
Cologne Spray is a new creation from Hasbro and the Demeter
Fragrance Library designed as part of a yearlong celebration
of the clay’s 50th birthday. Great for hot play dates or
conjuring up nostalgic memories, the 1-oz. bottle emits a
blast from the past in a surprisingly light spray of the
distinctive plastic-doughy scent. Originally conceived as a
wallpaper cleanser, Play-Doh has…uh…shaped fond childhood
memories for millions over the years. Diehard fans will be
happy to know there is even a National Play-Doh Day (Sept.
18th). We kid you not.
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