7 Toys Every Kid Wanted in the 1950s

A boy wearing a futuristic space helmet and goggles demonstrates the wonders of Robert the Robot, a new toy manufactured by the Ideal Toy Corp. The robot will be showcased this summer at the American Fair in Moscow. It walks, it talks, its eyes light up - all by remote control, and for a 1959 price tag of about six dollars.
Getty Images/ Bettman

On January 23rd, 1957, Frisbee inventor Walter Morrison sold the rights to his creation to toy company Wham-O!, setting the stage for the release of one of the most popular toys of all time. But the Frisbee is only scratching the surface of the great toys of the 1950s.

Believe it or not, back before the days of flying drones, iPhones, or video games, kids played with actual toys! Fueled by their own imaginations (as well as the ingenuity of toymakers), children who grew up in the fifties embraced fun toys and gadgets that would become staples of households everywhere for years to come.

Do you remember these favorites?

Toy Robots

Fueled by the popularity of 1951 movie The Day The Earth Stood Still, toy manufacturers leapt into action to create a variety of toy robots. The first mega-popular kids’ robot was Robert the Robot, which was released in 1954 and heavily promoted in that year’s Sears Christmas catalog. Robert’s plastic body was a break from the traditional tin robot toy, and when kids played with his cable-connected remote, they could make him go forward or backward, get him to light up, or even have him speak: “I am Robert Robot, mechanical man.” Though largely forgotten today, Robert was so popular at the time that he was depicted on T-shirts and immortalized in song.

These mechanical masterpieces never really went out of style, evolving over decades with characters like Star Wars‘ R2-D2, the Transformers, and Voltron. While modern versions often have actual robot-like functionality, the charm of the simple plastic toys of yesteryear make for fond memories for those who loved them as kids.

The Slinky

Invented by Richard James in 1943, the Slinky was the most fun you could hope to have with a metal coil. Powered by nothing but gravity and imagination, children everywhere loved watching it spring its way down staircases. Both exciting and soothing to watch, the Slinky’s appeal was never-ending, which explains why its popularity rose to new heights in the fifties — but the famous commercial jingle didn’t debut until 1962.

 

Mr. Potato Head

Did you know that Mr. Potato Head was the first toy advertised on television? Invented by George Lerner in 1949 and manufactured by Hasbro in 1952, this classic gave children everywhere a simple, safe way to appreciate the value of potatoes while literally putting a smile on someone’s face (or rearranging it to their liking).

Younger readers may not remember that the original Mr. Potato Heads involved pushing facial features and accessories into actual potatoes! Parental complaints about children playing with rotting vegetables caused Hasbro to begin including plastic toy bodies with the toy sets starting in 1964.

> 6 Fun Facts about Mr. Potato Head

 

Hula Hoop

Another hit from the fine folks at Wham-O!, the hula hoop was first developed by Richard Knerr and Arthur Melin, who were inspired after seeing Australian kids spin hoops made of bamboo around their waists. Mass-produced and released in 1958, these core-building favorites were a hit with kids from the start, eventually gaining additional traction with fitness-minded adults.

 

Play-Doh

Soft, squeezable and full of color, Play-Doh was the predecessor to the glut of slime and squishy products that dominate today’s toy shelves. The ultimate clay product for kids, this non-toxic marvel was actually one of the toy industry’s happiest accidents. Believe it or not, Play-Doh was initially created to help clean coal from wallpaper, and it wasn’t until it was reworked into a product for children to play with in 1956 that it truly found its purpose.

 

Barbie and Friends

A portrait of Ruth and Elliott Handler, the couple who introduced the Barbie doll in 1959, holding a Barbie and Ken doll. The couple will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award from Doll Reader magazine.

Sneaking in at the end of the decade, Mattel officially introduced Barbie to the world at New York City’s American International Toy Fair in 1959. Created by Mattel’s Ruth Handler (and named after her own daughter, Barbara), the doll line was a hit from day one, selling over 300,000 dolls in the first year alone thanks to a sponsorship deal with The Mickey Mouse Club. With the introduction of Ken in 1960 and countless friends, accessories, and new lineups in the years that followed (not to mention that blockbuster movie in 2023), the most popular doll line in history remains a child’s play essential to this day.

 

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