Surveying the Gen X landscape and the origins of geek
This is my last post of the year, everybody. I’ll be back on January 2nd. I leave you with an Atari Christmas commercial from 1981 (via MySaturdayMornings/YouTube).
Oh, and speaking of Atari, don’t forget that we’re passing an Atari 7800 around. It’s not too late to participate.
Would you let your parents dress you up in these atrocious outfits if you knew loot like this waited beneath the tree? Yes. Yes you would.
In the first shot, unboxed, we’ve got two Tauntauns (Solid Belly), the Falcon, Darth Vader’s Star Destroyer, and a Darth Vader Collector’s Case. Among the heap of boxes behind the kids, I see the Snowspeeder, the Twin Pod Cloud Car (I think that’s a second one on the far left), and the Cloud City Playset (a Sears exclusive). Only one of the toys is from the original Star Wars line: Darth Vader’s TIE Fighter. You can see it better in the third photo.
Our furniture looked like this. We had those TV trays. My dad had those moccasins.
Target, December 19, 1981. (Bonnie McCune/Denver Post)
The only thing better than perusing classic toys on toy aisles during Christmastime is perusing stacks upon stacks of classic toys on toy aisles during Christmastime. Our toy department manager is stocking the Alpha-1 Rocket Base.
Behind the bundle she’s holding you can see stacks of Millenium Falcons.
(First image via Big Ole Photos)
Are you serious? There’s an entire layer of toys that’s covered by other toys!
The Spider-Man comic on the right, underneath the Death Star, is Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #27, a Bronze Age key. It marks the first time Frank Miller drew Daredevil.
The ship on the left, above the Radio-Control Racer, is a Star Bird Avenger. Right next to it is the Star Bird Command Base, seen below via John Kenneth Muir.
The red box under the tree is Tin Can Alley, a shooting game from Ideal. The rifle emitted a light pulse that, if aimed correctly, would knock over the cans on the “range.”
(First image via WEBmikey/Flickr)
(Video via tvdays/YouTube)
Clever, although our parents already knew how desperately we wanted an Atari and all the games we could play. It reminds me of the scene in A Christmas Story where Ralphie puts the Red Ryder ad in the middle of his mom’s magazine.
This VCS (Video Computer System) Cartridge Adapter sounds interesting. According to the back of the box, “just insert the Adaptor into your 5200 SuperSystem console, plug in your 2600 cartridge and 2600 controllers, and you’re ready to go!” If you had 2600 carts and controllers, wouldn’t you also have the 2600 itself?
We’ve also got some game reviews from the same TV Guide. Frostbite gets a 5, but Moon Patrol “is proof that space is becoming a creative vacuum in the video-game industry.” I was terrible at Time Pilot, but it had a great concept and I loved flying around in that infinite sky.
A $30 cartridge, according to my handy inflation calculator, comes out to about $70 today.
(Images via eBay/Randy Rodman)
I love the smell of a newly assembled Battle Cruiser on Christmas morning. Is that a jug of moonshine by the TV stand?
(Via veronicamoonlit/Flickr)
December 23, 1979. (Steve Barnett/The Seattle Times)
The Micronauts stuff is on the left. Start on the bottom shelf. See the Rocket Tubes?
Go up one and you’ll see a much smaller box. That’s the Warp Racer.
Go up one more and you’ll see part of the Battle Cruiser box. Right next to that is the Star Searcher.
(First image source: Seattle Washington Archive)
I had lots of Tinker Toys. We had that chair, that carpet. My dad wore those moccasins.
Date unknown. Early-’60s? Mr. Potato Head was introduced by Hasbro in 1952. Mrs. Potato Head came along the following year.
I love his expression. “Huh? Can’t you see I’m really busy here?” He’s putting together the Polar Battle Bear. Waiting in the wings (top box) is the wicked Cobra H.I.S.S.
(Photo via killerlouise/Flickr)
Score. Coleco Vision came with Donkey Kong, and I see a Donkey Kong Jr. cartridge as well. Word Yahtzee? Please. That box was “lost” before the day was over.
We’ve got a G.I. Joe box, but I can’t tell what it is. Bigfoot is a monster truck toy from Playskool. You turned it on with a key and it had forward and reverse gears.
(Photo via colorcritical/Flickr)
(Video via RetroTY/YouTube)
2 Warps to Neptune 