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Monthly Archives: May 2017
Shaker Maker
Shaker Maker is a toy for creating your own figures. The steps are simple and quick: mix their special Magic Mix powder with ordinary water into the provided Shaker, then pour into the two-piece moulds. Your character can be removed after about five minutes and will have already started to set. Once fully hardened after a few days, the character can be painted.
The original toy was licensed by the Ideal company. The earliest advertising I’ve found so far is 1972. As well as Ideal’s People, Animals, and Birds, other sets included Disney, Batman, Superheroes, Buck Rogers, The Lone Ranger, and the Flintstones.
UK. Ideal Toy Catalogue. 1972.
UK. Ideal Toy Catalogue. 1972.
Shaker Magique – France.
France. PIf Gadget. 1979.
MOUSETRAP… turn the crank and snap the plank
Mousetrap is a board game from the Ideal toy company that was produced in 1963. It’s gameplay can be perhaps best summed up by one if its advertisement jingles from the 1990s:
“Just turn the crank, and snap the plank, and boot the marble right down the chute, now watch it roll and hit the pole, and knock the ball in the rub-a-dub tub, which hits the man into the pan. The trap is set, here comes the net! Mouse trap, I guarantee, it’s the craziest trap you’ll ever see.”
The pic below shows a 1972 Ideal catalogue page.
UK. Ideal Catalogue page. 1972.
1980 advert showing the French version of the game known as Traque-Souris.
France. Pif Gadget. 1980.
BUCKAROO
Buckaroo is a turn-taking game of balance that involves hooking items onto the saddle of a mule before it can ‘buck’ the items off. The toy was released in the UK by Ideal in 1970 and went on to become a global hit. Buckaroo is still sold to date and remains a popular toy.
UK. Ideal catalogue page. 1972
Buckaroo ‘Bourico’. France. 1981.
Buckaroo ‘Bourico’. 1980s. France.
Danish Retro (Pt 2. Playmobil)
Welcome to the second part of Danish Retro.
In this edition we look at 1970s and 80s Playmobil, as advertised in comic books from Denmark.
Big thanks once again to our guest image contributor Jaltesoren. Part One can be viewed here
Denmark. 1989. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1987. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1982. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1978. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1979. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1981. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1978. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1983. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1978. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1981. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1984. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1980.
Look out for another installment of Danish Retro coming soon!
Thanks for looking.
Danish Retro (Pt 1. Lego)
“What have you got there?” I asked Wooof this morning, as he emerged from the mail room. “More bills? Eviction notices?”. “Nope,” replied the cat, “it’s a bunch of new ads… all the way from Denmark.”
We’d like to say a big thank you to TVTA reader Jaltesorensen for offering to share with us almost a hundred vintage Danish adverts from the 1970s, 80s and 90s! As a fan of Danish advertising, and with the site peppered with dozens of examples from my own collection, the chance to add even more is a pleasure and delight. So… it’s straight off to work for the office cat and me, as we make for the editing room to post up part one of what will surely be a three-parter of Danish vintage delights.
And we promise this time there’ll be no crazy clown ads to kick things off!
Cue editing room sounds…
… sounds like…
Sturr… sturr… nummer…
Sturr… sturr… nummer…
Sturr… sturr… nummer…
Bubble Gum. Denmark. 1987. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Smarties. Denmark. 1991. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Oops, sorry, we accidently lied about the clown adverts.
Moving on, part one of our Danish Retro will focus on Lego.
Denmark is the home of Lego, and we begin with two ads for Fabuland sets. According to the good folk over at Brickipedia Fabuland was a Lego theme that ran from 1979 to 1989. The theme included sets depicting the land of Fabuland, and introduced us to characters built of humanoid bodies with animal heads.
Fabuland by Lego. Denmark. 1979. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Fabuland by Lego. Denmark. 1980. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Next up,
Wizards, pirates, knights, Robin Hood, the wild west, and other sets…
Lego medieval / fantasy sets. Denmark. 1986. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Lego pirate sets. Denmark. 1989. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Lego pirate sets. Denmark. 1991. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Lego knights / medieval sets. Denmark. 1987. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1985.
Denmark. 1984.
Lego knights / medieval sets. Denmark. 1987. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Robin Hood.
Was ever there a legend that took from the 1%, and gave to the many not the few?
Lego Robin Hood. Denmark. 1988. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Lego wild west sets. Denmark. 1976. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Lego sets various. Denmark. 1982. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1980.
Denmark. 1978.
Rumfart!
Stop giggling at the back. Rumfart means space exploration.
As some of our readers know, Wooof and I groove on space exploration. Anything space-y is always a bonus at TVTA. Lego released some amazingly cool space sets throughout the 1980s. I mean, just look at the care taken to create the following dioramas.
Lego space sets. Denmark. 1987. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Lego space sets. Denmark. 1988. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Lego space sets. Denmark. 1983. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1981.
Lego space sets. Denmark. 1989. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Denmark. 1988.
We end part one of Danish Retro with two ads from a Lego line I had never heard of.
If only Lego made jewellery…
Well, they did. Briefly. Brickipedia says the line was called Scala, and featured jewellery and beauty accessory sets which were primarily aimed at younger girls.
Lego Scala. Denmark. 1979. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen.
Lego Scala. Denmark. 1980. Image supplied by Jaltesorensen
That’s all for now. Look out for Danish Retro part two coming soon!
Thanks for looking.
Late editorial: No vintage clowns were harmed in this TVTA Danish special. Suggested reading: A State of Denmark by Raymond Derek (1970). News recap: Bargain Basement Brexit Britain Windows XP Govt Greatest Hits 2017 Now That’s What I Call Shite featuring the hit twoones “in strong and stable we trust”, “We will screw you over”, “Give us your money tossers” and “the people have decided!”. Elsewhere, a ferret-headed North American bod in a suit nods in approval. Elsewhere, France fends off its own populist onslaught. Elsewhere, guns that shoot with a mushrooming finality point their muzzles around the globe. Sport: Remains in a state of corruption and greed. Foxes of England beware… you will not be gassed as your badger brethren, but will be hunted down in the name of traditional sport. Weather Report: The sun still shines, the oceans move, and the winds continue to blow… imploring us to harness their power. Long-range forecast: grim but with bright spells, and a high pressure of hope. Words of the day: In. Give. Don’t.
Märklin Trains
Marklin trains. Denmark. Anders And & Co. 1986.
In the 150 years of its existence as a company, Märklin has developed from a small factory for tin toys to a producer of high quality metal toys. Today, Märklin is one of the leading brands in the model railroad market, offering the possibility of adding to and expanding existing layouts and collections from previous sets.
(Text adapted from official website: Märklin USA)
The company was founded in 1859 in Germany. As well as specialising in model railways sets, Märklin has produced doll house accessories, tin plate toys, construction sets and slot car racing sets.
Marklin trains. Denmark. 1967.
Marklin trains. Denmark. 1970.
Marklin trains. Denmark. Anders And & Co. 1981.
Marklin trains. Denmark. Anders And & Co. 1978.
Marklin trains. FAO Schwarz 1974 1975 Winter Fall catalogue. US.
Post updated 08/05/23 with new images.
The Vintage Toy Advertiser 