At a time when everyone is talking about the latest phone...connectivity...and new electronic, time-saving gadgets...

It looks like a "retro" microphone...so, I LOVE it! (Craig Allen photo).
It looks like a "retro" microphone...so, I LOVE it! (Craig Allen photo).
loading...

...my "gift-giving mind" is going...decidedly...

These mini gift boxes look like old Christmas cards (Craig Allen photo)
These mini gift boxes look like old Christmas cards (Craig Allen photo).
loading...

...retro!

Its not exactly that "everything that's old is new again"...

"Bad Hair Day Santa" is Christmas shopping! (Craig Allen selfie).
"Bad Hair Day Santa" is Christmas shopping! (Craig Allen selfie).
loading...

But...as I get closer to celebrating another birthday...and yet another calendar year is coming to a close...I start feeling...nostalgic!

And what I am seeing as I start my Christmas gift crawl is reinforcing those feelings!

3 retro gift ideas in one photo! (Craig Allen photo).
3 retro gift ideas in one photo! (Craig Allen photo).
loading...

While I was concentrating on the Spirograph on the store shelf...it wasn't until I was looking through my pictures, that I see three retro toys in one!

Mr. Potato Head, which debuted in 1952, was the first toy advertised on TV!

Originally "invented" as a rubber substitute during WW II, Silly Putty is a rather versatile "toy."

It bounces...and I was "copying" the comics page with it, in the 1970's...

I remember someone in my family having the Spirograph!

For someone as drawing-challenged as me, the Spirograph was about the only way to "draw" a realistic looking circle...over and over again!

Speaking of the 1970's...

To quote John Denver: "Far Out!" (Craig Allen photo).
To quote John Denver: "Far Out!" (Craig Allen photo).
loading...

The Lava Lamp is synonymous with the decade (although it was invented in England in 1963).

"Stretch" was filled with Silly Putty, right? (Craig Allen photo).
"Stretch" was filled with Silly Putty, right? (Craig Allen photo).
loading...

My brother loved his Stretch Armstrong...until he stretched Stretch...too much. Not even a "band aid" would save this late '70's superhero, in my house! Possibly, "Stretch" fell victim to the family dog, at your place...

"No assembly required!" (Craig Allen photo).
"No assembly required!" (Craig Allen photo).
loading...

What kid doesn't love a Slinky?! (sing along with the commercial, below!)

Especially if you have lots of stairs in your house!

Can you "Walk The Dog?" (Craig Allen photo).
Can you "Walk The Dog?" (Craig Allen photo).
loading...

Yo! Its a YO-YO!

Is it a "toy"...

Open the box, and start "linkin' logs!" (Craig Allen photo).
Open the box, and start "linkin' logs!" (Craig Allen photo).
loading...

...or a veiled history lesson...with its namesake, our 16th President, growing up in a log cabin.

Yup...I had a basket of Lincoln Logs. Come to think of it...I might have inherited those Lincoln Logs from my dad's childhood! They had been around...well...a while. I would even say that this kid's toy is "retro retro."

They were invented by John Lloyd Wright (the son of famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright) in 1916.  Lincoln Logs were inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame in 1999!

"Zoom-Zoom!" (Craig Allen photo).
"Zoom-Zoom!" (Craig Allen photo).
loading...

Have car...will travel! Having a car is...total Americana!

No track necessary!

Let's keep going!

FullSizeRender (15)
loading...

I remember grabbing the "robots" off the toy table in my elementary school days many times! In the cafeteria, there were lots of games....after you gagged down your PB&J and milk...there was toy time before lunch time was over!

"I'll...knock your block off!"

Good times...in a less...dangerous world.

If there is any "childhood" toy that I really get dewy-eyed over...its this one:

I LOVE my "Magic 8 Ball!" (Craig Allen photo).
I LOVE my "Magic 8 Ball!" (Craig Allen photo).
loading...

Its MAGIC! It sees, and knows all!

At a time when I often say to myself "there's an hour of my life that I'll never get back," I don't regret the hours I spent asking questions...and turning the 8 Ball over to discover the mystical answer!

Everyone in my family had fun with my 8 Ball...even my grandparents!

I would have walked out of the store with the 8 Ball...except that I KNOW that my original 1970's-vintage 8 Ball (with a glass...not a plastic...answer window) still exists! It's in a box...somewhere.

Let's so straight to the source:

WILL I FIND MY MAGIC 8 BALL?

TOTALLY! (Craig Allen photo).
Like I have never concentrated before! (Craig Allen photo).
loading...

So...I'll keep looking...thanks!

What "retro" toys of your youth have you seen...or would like to see come back?

"Will kind readers answer?"

This Magic 8 Ball says: "Outlook Good."

Thanks!

More From New Jersey 101.5 FM