Best Christmas Toy

[JET15]

Time to wax nostalgic... what was your favorite toy from Christmas past?

 

Mine had to be a a Packers-Bears electric football game. You know, the ones with the green stands that the men get wrenched on to. You'd jam the ball in the runners arm and run the Flying-V into your opponent's gut. They'd have an equally whacky formation to try to stop it. Oh, sure, you'd start with formations that resembled an NFL one, but when the chips were down you'd do anything to win.

 

How about the inevitable offsides when all the men jumped because someone got a little clumsy and pushed down on the field as they were setting up their formation... a quick dent and pop in the field and all the men jump offsides. That usually led to an off-field fight, right?

 

How about the oversized QB that could rocket the ball into an adjacent field if you weren't carefully. That dude had to be put in unnatural positions to hit those receivers and I do mean hit them. He practically knocked them over. Conversely he was the kicker, too, right? And wasn't his leg as weak as a noodle? He could throw the ball farther than he could kick it.

 

And then there were the bad stands that just couldn't run straight. Somehow they'd always end up on the Bears players and you'd laugh as the Packers men ran true right through the Bears who were going in circles like they were just lost out there. Bwa-hah-ha. Now that's good fun.

 

The control of the on/off switch seemed less than adequate. I remember we eventually turned our game into a non-electric version because we gave up on the noise and no-control rumbling of the motor. We simply tapped on field with a drum stick for better control. It was like slow-mo. You could see those monster collisions setting up and there were fewer arguments about the location of the tackles. We even improvised a pad to tap on in each endzone rather than tapping directly on the metal field.

 

Who needs Madden Football when you've got an electronic football? Heh, heh.

 

Merry Christmas

[Fatter than Joey]

Oh, sure, you'd start with formations that resembled an NFL one, but when the chips were down you'd do anything to win.

 

Yeah -- I had one of these and loved it. I thought though you could only get SB teams -- I had the Steelers and the Cowboys. We played the hell out of it.

 

I was the Dick LeBeau of Electronic FB defense -- I am not being immodest to claim that I revolutionized the game by creating the "Spirograph Defense" -- basically I abandoned the silly notion of having players running straight ahead and set up players to run either tight or loose circles. My friends would laugh at me in the first quarter but their laughs would turn to tears as they would be losing 22-0 in the 4th quarter.

 

My best Xmas present -- hands down -- Intellevision.

[BoneDaddyKool]

Tecmo Super Bowl for me.

[colbyjack]

No x-mas present stands out more to me than the Star Wars Millennium Falcon, which I think I got in 1980. The Atari 2600 was close, but my brothers technically received that gift, I think the same year I got the M-Falcon.

[burniebrewer]

I have a hard time recalling a favorite toy, but my favorite present as a kid was my Philadelphia Eagles Mike Quick #82 jersey.

[OldHoss]

http://images.yuku.com/image/pjpeg/29c350b69d648a4018e5f423a68c9075878516c.pjpg

 

Nothing else has ever come close.

[radman12484]

When I was like 4 or 5 I got the Ghostbusters suit with the proton pack and everything. Kind of wish I could still fit in it. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif

 

 

[burniebrewer]

I know what I want this year:

 

http://bab.imageg.net/graphics/product_images/pG01-3713147reg.jpg

 

I used to have one of those table top ones when I was younger, but my friends and I wore it out with our all night marathon tournaments. This would be perfect for having the boys over. This may be the present I buy for myself this Christmas.

[JET15]

burniebrewer: Ohhhhh, I hear ya. I was trying to convince the wife of the high entertainment value of a rod hockey table. Farm and Fleet seemed to have a good deal on one a fwe weeks back and it reminded me of my table-top hockey game with the Canadians vs the Rangers. I had mad skills.

 

I like the version you showed. Looks durable and doesn't mess with a dome. The dome just prevents the occasional wild shot from hitting your opponent in the grill which would seriously hamper the taunting factor. Gotta go domeless.

[TURBO]

some of my favorite toys as a kid...(great thread, it was fun going back into my childhood and seeing the things I used to treasure)

 

http://www.geocities.com/Area51/1799/johnnywest/johnny/bxdjohnny101.jpg

 

http://www.vintagetoyroom.com/lots/lot1707b.jpg

 

http://www.gasolinealleyantiques.com/kits/images/SlotCars/afx-marioset1.JPG

 

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51MKKUeUq1L._AA280_.jpg

 

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/roadshow/series/images/highlights/2004/sanfran/hotwheels_lg.jpg

 

http://www.btinternet.com/~nsinbath/images/ssp1.jpg

 

http://www.iamspencer.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/12/eviltoys.jpg

 

http://www.geocities.com/md_dude1/Rescue.jpg

[burniebrewer]

burniebrewer: Ohhhhh, I hear ya. I was trying to convince the wife of the high entertainment value of a rod hockey table. Farm and Fleet seemed to have a good deal on one a fwe weeks back

 

 

The Farm and Fleet one is very similar to this one, and according to their online ad, is on sale for $199 until 12/24/07. Still time to get one!

 

http://www.farmandfleet.com/catalog/product.aspx?i=557254&h=060103002

[Patrick425]

Turboricky, you are really starting to bring back some memories for me now, I had the Hot Wheels Juice machine, the Smash up derby, and the Evil Knievel Stunt Cycle. I also remember getting a Comodore 64 and thinking, wow, I'm really on the cutting edge of technology now! I think I was either a seinior in HS or a freshman in college.

[TURBO]

oh man, who didn't have the ssp smash up derby as a kid growing up in the 70's? We used to have neighborhood ssp parties where we'd bring our ssp's and race them down the street. I had a really cool one that kind of looked like a snowmobile, but was a funky looking vehicle... Pulling those ripchords and letting them fly! Here are some others I remember having at one time before they got wrecked by curbs, or head on crashes with others:

 

http://www.gasolinealleyantiques.com/transportation/images/Kenner%20SSP%20Page/jetstarred1.JPG

 

http://www.gasolinealleyantiques.com/transportation/images/Kenner%20SSP%20Page/ssp-mirrorgreen.JPG

 

here is a link to an ssp commercial:

 

http://www.retrojunk.com/details_commercial/5285/

 

I had the Evel Kneival van too... EVEL WAS KING back in the day, who didn't at least skin off their knees or braek a bone trying to jump stuff on their bikes, all in the name of EVEL!

 

Good times...

[Fatter than Joey]

I had the Hot Wheels Juice Machine as well... I remember giving my brother beatdowns with the plastic track segments -- Those things produced epic welts!

[TooLiveBrew]

No x-mas present stands out more to me than the Star Wars Millennium Falcon, which I think I got in 1980. The Atari 2600 was close, but my brothers technically received that gift, I think the same year I got the M-Falcon.

YOU ARE A GOLDEN GOD! I never had the Millennium Falcon, sadly. It has clearly affected me to this day.

Mine was the Ewok Village. That's right -- Ewok Village. To this day, my mom will quote me (I was like 4 or 5 at the time) from that Christmas morning... "How did you know I would LOVE THIS?!"

http://www.12back.com/playsets/ewok.jpg

http://theswca.com/images-toys/figuretoys/ewokvillage-catalog.jpg

Still have it at my parents' house - along with all my other action figures. Bless my parents for consistently being able to find SW action figures well after the release of ROTJ (1984 - when I was 3). Made for many super Christmases.

[bork]

Voltron by a landslide.

 

http://www.toyarchive.com/STAForSale/NEW2001+/Voltron/TrendVoltronLionSetSealed1a.jpg

 

 

[Fatter than Joey]

YOU ARE A GOLDEN GOD! I never had the Millennium Falcon, sadly. It has clearly affected me to this day.

 

Yeah -- I never had it either -- The Millennium Falcon was clearly the line in the sand that seperated the parents who truly loved their children from those who were simply trying to fulfill obligations to their state/church. My parents Land Speeder-loved me, but certainly not Millennium Falcon-loved me.

 

Mine was the Ewok Village.

 

Yikes -- Ewok Village was so lame. My brother had Ewok Village, but that was OK because he was clearly my awesomeness inferior.

 

Death Star!

 

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g154/naturehouse/Toys2Remember/DeathStar5.jpg

[TURBO]

My parents Land Speeder-loved me, but certainly not Millennium Falcon-loved me.

 

I don't know about you, but SANTA brought me my landspeeder, not my parents, jeeeesh, get a clue...

 

http://www.toysrgus.com/images-toys/figuretoys/landspeeder-front.jpg

[bjkrautk]

http://www.12back.com/playsets/ewok.jpg

Still have it at my parents' house - along with all my other action figures. Bless my parents for consistently being able to find SW action figures well after the release of ROTJ (1984 - when I was 3). Made for many super Christmases.

Also got the Ewok village for X-Mas. Just to be non-duplicating:

 

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/0/03/Captainpowerxt-7.JPG/180px-Captainpowerxt-7.JPG

 

That thing was freaking awesome....for a year or two, then the show went off the air.

(It also holds sentimental value for another reason that I won't go into detail on....let's just say Santa dropped it off with my parents a little early.)

Honorable mention: Atari 2600 (not directly a gift to me), NES, Super Nintendo (since I can't remember if either was actually a Christmas gift).

[Pedro]

Oh, man. Some great memories. One of my favorites from childhood...John Brodie's Talking Football.

"It's high enough, it's long enough...but it's wide to the right."

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s220/rbrandtjen/TalkingFootball1971.jpg

[Fatter than Joey]

The dad on the box, looks like he is going to bust that kid in the chops

[uecker9]

Oh, man. Some great memories. One of my favorites from childhood...John Brodie's Talking Football.

"It's high enough, it's long enough...but it's wide to the right."

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s220/rbrandtjen/TalkingFootball1971.jpg

Wow - was that called Talking Monday Night Football later? With little records? " It's a flea-flicker pass....touchdown!" I remember that.

 

[Hammer]

I got an electric race car set for Christmas when I was about 5 years old. It was pretty sweet. You have the cars, the tracks, the wires, the sparks when the cars would run over the track...PRICELESS and safe fun for a 5 year old.

[Pedro]

The dad on the box, looks like he is going to bust that kid in the chops

I belive "dad" is actually John Brodie (if memory serves).

And yes, Uecker9, it was later MNF Talking Football.

[Patrick425]

Anyone remember this game? There was a light bulb underneath the box. One player would pick an offensive play and the other would pick a defensive play. They would line them up and the put them on top of the box, covered with a thicker paper board. Then you would slowly slide the paper board away to reveal the results of the play.

 

http://images.yuku.com/image/pjpeg/6bc15b9774f8941853a7acc6febbdfbff27345c.pjpg