The X-Entertainment Blog!

11/13/2007: Waxing About Christmas Wish Books: 1985 Editon.

Wow, this one took forever to put together. I know the topic of Sears Wish Books came up a few threads ago, and I had to bite my virtual tongue to avoid mentioning that they were going to be the topic of the next full-length article. So, here we are: The newest article covers six things I had and six things I always wanted from the 1985 Sears Wish Book, only that's a lie, since the photos are actually from the '85 JCPenney catalog. Same difference, really.

I'm pretty certain that this will be a recurring feature, and I'm already chomping at the bit to dive into one of my catalogs from the early '90s. Will probably do at least one more of these before the season goes kaput.

One of the featured items in the '85 catalog review is the "Million Color Drawing Set" from Clowny, the second most awesome crayon company in history. I didn't get one back in 1985, but the set is important proof that no amount of time can end our chances of finally snatching the toys that "got away." Thanks to good timing at a church fair sometime back, I now stand before you as the proud owner of what simply must be the last remaining Clowny "Million Color Drawing Set" in existence.

For those who don't recall (or who weren't alive), the basic gimmick with Clowny crayons was that most of them weren't a single color, but rather a messy soup of dozens of colors. When you used the crayons, your line might've started off red before changing into yellow and finishing green. This didn't make them practical for use with coloring books, but with crayons this wild, who wanted to paint within the lines?

The "Million Color Drawing Set" included three different types of Clowny crayons and a gigantic drawing pad. Now that I've seen the set, I can confirm that the drawing pad was only gigantic so they'd be able to justifiably use a box that made the set appear to be much larger than it actually was. Take away the pad, and they could've fit the remaining contents into even the smallest Ziploc.

The main stars of the show were the Million Color Stick and the Million Color Block. The former works like lipstick tube, while the latter is kind of neanderthalic and simple, but in a good way. I haven't held a Clowny crayon in my hand for over twenty years, and what's really hitting me most is the smell. Oh, that wonderful smell! Like stale clay mixed with construction paper, it's just behind gasoline and coconuts as my favorite smell ever.

Also included with the set were ten Color Finger Tips, which let you doodle in crayon much in the same way that you would fingerpaint. I prefer the other versions, since Clowny crayons don't feel like rightful Clowny crayons if they don't look like the remnants of a Crayola 64-count box set ablaze.

My personal triumph in finally finding Clowny again notwithstanding, the years I spent praying for that triumph seems like a good segue into a survey. I'm sure we've done this survey before, but there must be some kind of reasonable statute of limitations when it comes to online surveys. In the comments, talk about some of the toys and other childhood items you always wanted, but never got.

I didn't mention this in the article, but I strongly suggest clicking the "item description" photo in the Dinobots section. It's hilariously incorrect.

i always wanted the huge Voltron and no matter how much i begged and begged it seemed to never appear under the tree or magically gifted to me on my date of birth…

The metal detector is one of those things every boy wanted but wouldve just ended up in the corner by December 26th. I know that now that I'm older and wiser.

I always wanted a Teddy Ruxpin, but never got one. I just thought he was adorable and talking toys were rare and expensive back then, so I never got one.

I also wanted to try Electronic Talking Battleship, but never have. I've played the regular version, of course.

Just thought of a another one. A chemistry set. I guess I just wanted to play mad scientist and see what would happen if I mixed various chemicals together. Would a explosion occur or turn green like the Hulk, etc? Which is why I never got one.

Well, I always wanted to be a regular and witness history with a great article. So here I am.

So i've come to a revelation while reading the 1985 Sears wish book article. I was born in 89 as the only child, yet I remember playing with everyone of these toys. Conclusion, my family must have been poor.

The Sears Wish Books were frickin heaven on earth. My gf bought ones from 1985-1988. One of them actually has an ad for children's furniture (toybox, table, etc) and has a big sign with the universal circle with a strike through it (aka the "NO" sign) and NERDS in the middle.

Maybe we've become more P.C. since the early 1980s, maybe Revenge of the Nerds actually worked in creating Nerd Empathy, but I could never see such a thing advertised today.

I miss the Wish Books. J.C. Penney has catalogs you can pay for (boo to that!) but they aren't even close to the same level of magic.

And I had Clowny!! It was so much fun to use! Nothing like a rainbow orgy at your fingertips!

JLAJRC:
They actually sell Teddy Ruxpins again. I bought one for my gf's niece last year. They're a little smaller in size now and thusfar there is no Grubby or connecting cable (maybe they are testing out the sales on a renewed Teddy) but after doing research on this last Christmas the new one (no longer owned and made by Worlds of Wonder) is somewhat cheaper and available online. I bought the one I got through Target.com for about $50.

The old ones can be had on eBay but with Grubby and accessories they can run $100-200 depending on what you want.

Josh St.: I felt that way earlier tonight when I found a Flickr photo set featuring the 1979 Sears wish book, and recognized several of the toys and appliances as ones we had. I wasn't born until '85. Then again, my family has always been a little behind the times; we still own a TV and a microwave that feature that weird woodgrain veneer.

Most of the toys I remember wanting and not getting were things more boy-oriented: Legos, Ninja Turtles, and race car sets. My mom was very girly as a kid and loved baby dolls and Barbies, and assumed I was the same. So I had a huge collection of every kind of dolls and all kinds of pink stuff, despite not being very girly myself. I didn't really get anything "boyish". She wouldn't even get me a set of building blocks.

Haha, I'm not surprised my first two comments got bounced. Someday… Anyway, this is going to come stream of conscious style. You have the coolest brother EVER. Five hundred smackers for a robot that tends bar? The allure is… overpowering… *drool* Star Wars figures had toys that allowed the to be propped up? My childhood now seems incomplete… Voltron looks friggin' sweet! Anybody that has watched Pete & Pete knows a metal detector. It's how the family got their car. =P

…And suddenly, my heart and jaw drop as a shiver finds its way down my spine. My eyes begin to swell with tears, yet my stomach is trying to return its contents. I am amazed, impressed, scared, nauseous, and confused, all at the same time… How could ANY playset be as cool as the freaking G.I. Joe Aircraft Carrier!?

As for toys that I always wanted but never received, there were three. The first was a little RC car that could jump on its own. I don't know why, but it always seemed awesome. The car I got could drive upside down or right side up, but that wasn't nearly as cool as a free-jumping car. The second was a 3-in-1 table thing that had pool, air hockey, and an arcade basketball game in one. It was about $300, go figure. The last thing was a Lego castle. I've always been a sucker for knights and castles, and the prospect of owning one that I could build and customize was too much to handle. Eventually I did get my hands on a witch's castle, but it was nowhere near as cool as the bright gray and blue castle.

My buddy, Rowdy, in elementary school had the USS Flag. I used to go over to his house for that and he knew where his dad hid the Playboys. The razor was used differently back in '85.

Hey long time no comment from me!
One of the toys I always wanted (and Hell, lets be realistic, still want to this day) was the My Little Pony Waterfall playset. I always did like activities that involved dunking my toys in water, especially if they didn't belong there in the first place!

Currently making some edit tweaks/fixing typos, so if you get a blank page, just hit refresh.

Matt, I'm the same age as you and have been reading your site for years because you always seem to relate to the way I feel about all these "artifacts" of our youth. I've never posted before, but after all these years, this is by far the article I've enjoyed the most, and the first one to inspire me to say "Thank You!"

I always wanted the Power Wheels. And no, not the girlie pink (pleh!) Barbie version- I wanted the boy one. The boy kind was cooler, and even today I want one. Still. And I can drive a real car!

*sigh* Nothing on that list really calls out to me, except the pound puppies. But I was born in 1984, so these aren't the toys of my youth. Although I didn't want the Barbie car, I did want a My Size Barbie when those came out…

We got a Sears and JC Penny wish book today and if I were to stack them together they wouldn't be as big as an old fashion 1980s Sears wishbook. Maybe this is why I'm so humbug.

Always wanted the GI Joe Defiant complex. Sometime around the mid-90s a kid around the corner from us was selling his astonishingly complete set for something like 75 bucks at a garage sale. I still think he was insane. Oh well…missed my chance.

However, I did get Fortress Maximus instead, so I guess I really won out after all…

I guess I'm the only person in the world who would take Vehicle Voltron over Lion Voltron.

After reading the '85 cataloge review I had to hit up E-Bay to see how much a U.S.S. Flagg was going for these days. There are several lots where you can get random pieces of it for cheap, but one company has a complete, 100% deal for 850 damn dollars. 850 bucks! Holy shit! That's how much your biggest dreams of childhood costs you folks. Just so you know.

As for the one that got away, I'm still pining away for a proper Optimus Prime. I never got one. I don't mean one of these shitty new versions either. I'm talking about the original, small square shaped deal, with grey trailer attached. GOT to have the grey trailer. A few years ago they reissued it and it looked exactly the same as the original. I would settle for that, but even those are going for over $100 on E-Bay. I always wanted a good Soundwave too. Luckily, he's not quite as hard to find.

Hey, my roommate did the coolest thing today. She made me a birthday cake! And it's my favorite kind! My birthday was over a week ago, but hey whatever. It's free cake. I ain't complaining.

Vehicle Voltron is cool and all, but yeah, dohopoki, you're high or something. I don't know what that's all about.

I just recently acquired what you refer to as a proper Optimus Prime. Its a Japanese reissue called "Encore Optimus Prime." I paid 75 bucks or so for one in the package from an online shop. Forever shall it remain in its box…

My best friend had the USS Flagg. It was every bit as awesome as it looks. His dad had mounted it on a rolling wooden platform so it could travel around the garage to suit whatever adventure we were having with it. Good times.

Slag! Warrior Dog! Someone find me a warrior dog with horns hips that pull out and we'll make a deal of some sort.

I swear i had some crayons similar to this, although I could just be confusing it with throwing all my Crayolas in a big ziploc bag and the colors rubbing off on each other.

15 Vehicles of 3 different themes VS 5 Lions that don't even have that hairy neck fur. What's the point of being a lion with out that? They might as well be tigers. 5 bad tigers.

I never could find The Blank from Playmates Dick Tracey line. I had every other figure but The Blank was always the one I wanted the most, even after I found out he was actually Maddonna. I don't know to this day if the figure only exsisted on the back of the box.

Man, after reading that article I feel totally gypped for having been a girl in the 80s/90s and not a boy, especially due to my mother's aforementioned boy-phobia. Those toys are totally freaking awesome. My pile of dolls could never stand up to dinosaur Transformers.

I actually had The Blank. I remember stumbling upon it in a clearance at a random KB Toys for $2.98. Pretty sure I still have it lingering around somewhere…

I remember that tragic December in 1982 … the start of my inferiority complex … 3 out of my 4 best friends called me Christmas morning to brag about their new treasure: The Kenner Star Wars AT-AT.

As I tried to hold back the tears, I knew that my really crappy cardboard version of the snow walker (the one that was just a re-purposed sandcrawler playset) had finally seen the last nail in it's coffin. And even though I hadn't finished opening presents yet, I searched my feelings and knew it to be true — Santa had indeed passed over our house when it came time to dole out the Snow Walkers that year.

Here's a sweet scan of the glorious AT-AT as advertised in a 1982 Sears Christmas Catalog:

For any who are interested, this guy has a TON of hi-res catalog scans on his flickr page. I got caught there for a few hours when I started looking at all that goodness. = )

I also spent many months hunting down The Blank. If I remember correctly, the figure was only produced in tiny amounts, and those tiny amounts were only available in Canada. Something about Madonna having a fit because it was technically her character and she hadn't been set up for royalties.

James: I got the AT-AT for Christmas probably a year after that, when it was repackaged for ROTJ purposes. It was quite a moment.

I was totally about to post a link to Wishbook's Flickr page. I love that guy and salute him at least once a week. It is really cool when he posts a catalog from pre-1950.

Aw man, I never knew about the Optimus play tent, but I did have an A-team one which lasted about a week.

The article puts me in mind of the great British tradition; in Primary School, as Christmas loomed (so, October), the teacher would shirk her duties for a couple of afternoons by giving us a cut out Christmas stocking each and a big pile of catalogues. Our task: to go through the catalogues and choose what we wanted for Christmas, cut out the pictures and stick them onto the stocking. Fights would break out if all the Ghostbusters figures had been clipped, or if someone had to ask for that dopey Beetle car gag over the Ghostbusters tower. Because, of course, if you didn't get your favourite toy onto the stocking, it was the end of the universe. That, or you had to draw it, and Santa would have thought you were a massive nerd.

dohopki: I see your point and all, but…but they're lions! Freakin' lions that come together to form a bigass robot!

Jerrod Well, good deal. I'm still determined to score one somewhere, but I gotta take it out and mess with it at least a couple of times. Last year I went back and bought up a bunch of recent versions of all the old guys that I always wanted but never got. I got a Bumblebee, Starscream, Hot Rod, and a couple of others I don't remember right now. Occasionally I'll take them all out and transform them and line them up and marvel at their presence. And most of them come with some sort of projectile that they can shoot so I always have a little war. Then I transform them all back in to vehicle mode and put them back in the bubble pack all tied down with those plastic S&M bonds that they come with. One day, the proper Optimus will stand front and center. That shall be a glorious day, my friends.

Just got through having some of that above mentioned birthday cake, and not to seem ungrateful or anything, but she burnt the shit out of that thing. I mean, not that I could do any better. Just sayin'. I washed it down with my third can of Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash of the night. I took a gamble and bought a 12-pack tonight. I had to try it out after reading the article. It paid off well.

I'll tell you the best one, one of my last toy sets right before I became more interested in heavy metal t-shirts and 4000 dollar shoes was of the Power Rangers. The second interation of their Zwords (SP?) was based on mythalogical beast. By far the best designs of all the Sentai style shows and the toy totally justified them. Each of the 5 figures was worthy of being a toy itself, particularly the Dragon Man, the Pheonix and whatever mythical thing the bear was. In fact the Dragon Man was sold seperately, basically a transformer that was a badass flying dragon and then a cool warrior guy with a staff. Then the rest of the pieces ingeniously transformed into convincing armor for the man. It was the one design of all these types of robots that really made sense, they didn't become legs or a head, they became boots and a helmet. It was pretty big put together (bigger than future toy zwords from what I have seen) and they came with tiny to scale peg versions of the power rangers that you could put inside the chest where they operated from. Even the the Dragon Man's staff connected to the Pheonix's detachable tail to become a trident style weapon. You didn't have to be a fan or a kid to appreciate the design, as evident by the christmas I got them all, even the parents seemed a bit jealous.

I always wanted the actual Ninja Turtles action figures. My dad bought me obscure characters like Leatherhead and that duck with the grenades, but refused to get Donatello, Raphael et al. To this day, I don't understand why.

Dang. I've always written The Power Rangers off as a sorry Voltron ripoff, but that sounds really cool.

A friend of mine currently has the USS Flagg, and it is indeed every bit as impressive as it sounds.

Toys that I remember wanting but not having… Optimus Prime and Megatron. Transformers were good in that there was a nice spread of low-price major characters (Bumblebee, the Insecticons, the casettes), but of course, everybody wanted Prime and Megs, and they were more expensive. I also remember particularly wanting Omega Supreme. I now have a reissue Prime, but I'm still waiting on Megatron and Omega Supreme.

I also remember wanting Thundercats figures, and not having any but Monkian (who was technically my sister's figure.) Strangely, every family of kids I knew had Monkian but no other Thundercats figure, except one kid who had Mumm-Ra. I have since acquired many of the figures, but, ironically, do not yet have Monkian.

Any of the action figure playsets would have been great for me. Growing up, my family wasn't particularly blessed with money, so I had various action figures but never any of the more expensive playsets to put them in. It was cardboard boxes and paper towel tubes for me.

Of all of them, I probably wanted the Ghostbusters fire station the most. Although Ninja Turtles was the crowning obsession of my youth, they lived, to be fair, in a hole in the ground. You can call it a sewer den all you like, but it's a hole, and as such a hole is all you need. But the Ghostbusters needed a fire station, dammit. Ray says we've gotta try this pole, and who am I to argue with Ray? But I was never able to try any poles at all. It makes me weep.

I could probably pick this and many other toys I wanted up on eBay now, but I don't think I want to. Some of these toys will be even better if they forever remain as awesome as I imagined they'd be.

My cousin had the U.S.S. Flagg. That thing was like the most mindblowing toy of all time to a kid. It was downright mythical to me. In my mind I remember it being no less than twenty feet long and five feet wide. Obviously it wasn't, but that didn't matter. In my mind, it was as good as a toy could get. It might as well had been an honest to god aircraft carrier.

Sadly, I never got one. But I speny many a day and many a sleepover at his house being a coveting it. Just starting at it and wishing it was mine.

I loved the Wish Book. Even though the prices were jacked up on just about everything, it was awesome to look through.

Jazzy: It cracks me up that you mention the woodgrain veneer because my parents just got rid of their 1970s microwave about six months ago. And there was nothing wrong with it, I had just finally convinced them to update a little. They still have shag carpet.

I'm with BethanytheMartian, I always wanted a My Size Barbie, but I was a little too old by the time those came out. My cousin had one and I remember telling her "Barbie doesn't like you anymore, she's my friend now."

I think I mentioned it last year, but I asked for a Lite Brite every year from the time I was four until I was 21. I finally got it the year I turned 21, played with it for 20 minutes and never touched it again.

Probably the coolest toy I ever had was the Rainbow Brite Color Cottage Playset, which I was very excited to find pictures of just now. The only thing that bummed me out was the fact that my parents bought me the initial playset and then refused to get me any of the cool gear that went with it. Rainbow Brite needed a second bed for when Barbie came over for a slumber party! But she never got one, so Barbie picked on her and called her "Weird Head Girl." That's right… "Weird Head Girl." Poor Rainbow Brite.

By the way, I'm with you Matt, I always wanted one of those character play tents, but never got one. So I resorted to reading in a washing machine box, which was equally as fun. In fact, I'd give just about anything to have a huge cardboard box to read in to this very day. I would cut windows and a door out of it, hang up curtains and make people knock before they came in. Having an actual house is nowhere near as fun as having a cardboard house, apparently.

I also wanted the K'NEX set that made a ferris wheel, but nooooo, my cousin got that one. And to this day I hate him for it.

Man, how do you have such a good memory? I can only remember a few Christmases, and certainly can't match years to presents. Oh my god, I've just realized that the best I can remember of Christmas is waking up in the middle of the night and watching the blinking tree. I can't remember opening presents at all, except one time when I got a Swarovski crystal figure. What the hell is up with my memory blanking???? Oh wait, I can also remember some Bill Nye the Science Guy VHS's and mini television from a few years ago (the TV, not Bill Nye).

On a completely different note, I just watched Psycho for the first time and totally fell in love with Norman Bates.

Matt's on a holiday roll. Thanks to X-E, my boyfriend and I have been ablaze in SierraMist Cranberry and Vodka for a week, I've spent $200 in Xmas lights to make my house look like the holiday blog background and there's literaly a pile of stocking stufferes in my bedroom… everything from holiday pez to a set of Transformers ZipZaps for me and my bf to terrorize our kitties with Xmas morning.

I'm now going to my parents attic to drag out my CareBears Fun Hut (found on pg. 252 of the 1985 wishbook). I'm camping out to be first in line for Waiterbot's Vlog vol. 3.

I secretly fumed at my parents for years because they never got me a Carebear when I was a kid. (I was born in 1983, wasn't there some kind of law requiring me to have one????) But a couple of years ago, I realized just why I had been denied that particular toy.

I always wanted the Snoopy Sno-Cone machine but my parents wouldn't let me have one because they thought it was too messy. I came across one at a yard sale with I was like 12 and bought it, and my mom made me MARCH down there with it and give it back to the person because my mom was a freak about used things. My friend finally bought me a new one when they we re-released in the 90s, but eh, it wasn't the same (and the snow cones weren't even very good. That blade really isn't sharp enough to shave the ice all fluffily like they'd have you believe).

Omnibot. Even though I knew there was no effin' way that plastic shell on wheels could EVER serve me a drink, I wanted to believe.

Matt, pound puppies are not unisex. It's easy to tell that all the puppies in the picture are all boy puppies.

I guess I'm the only person in the world who would take Vehicle Voltron over Lion Voltron..

I'm late to the party, but YES. Have you seen the anime? They'll actually have status screens of ALL the pilots. I don't really care what number 11 is doing. He's probably picking his nose

Though, kudos for liking an underdog, you know that is usually how I roll. I've got Vehicle Voltron, he isn't horrible, but he isn't the holy grail like my diecast LionForce

Matt, I've been reading X-E for a few years now, but have never commented before, for some reason. Anyway, I guess I just want to thank you for what you do here - I look forward to reading your Christmas posts/articles almost as much as I look forward to Christmas itself!

As for the present I always wanted but never received - well, there were a few. One was the metal detector. Another was Nintendo; my parents thought it was "unhealthy" to sit in front of a screen all day (I was one of those kids allowed, like, 30 minutes of TV/day, for a while), so that was out of the question. However, I think they felt guilty eventually and bought me a VTech Socrates "educational game system" instead–does anyone remember those? I guess it was supposed to be some sort of compromise, and I'll admit that it was pretty fun, but in the end fractions and geography just couldn't compete with Mario.

One thing I asked for and never thought I'd actually get but did was a 3-in-1 game table with foosball, pool, and air hockey. That was awesome.

My friend had those crayons and I wanted them really bad…But the toy I wanted most was the My Little Pony Bride and Groom. They had RINGS for their HOOVES!! But alas all my mom could find was the bridesmaid…

The one thing I wished for out of those books…and never ever got was the Easy Bake Oven. I still really want one. However, my mother managed to buy much of my clothes from Sears and JC Penny's.
Thank you for reminding me of Conky's name. Awesome article.

Hmm, I still can't get the article to load. I always wanted one of those play tents though, never got one.

I LOVED pound puppies! I even had the pound kitties as well.
I was a pretty lucky kid,I usually got what I asked for thanks to my dear sweet Grandma loving her only little granddaughter SO much! I was also the type of kid that would fixate on one or two things and collect all I could from that thing. So the only time I was ever dissapointed was when I didn't get the Care Bear Cousin Tenderheart Lion but I had all the original Care Bears so I think My dad just didn't want to open that can of kid collecter craziness.

Perhaps age is dimming the memories (I realized yesterday that I turn thirty in February) but the only think I ever recall really, really wanting badly and not getting was a pair of CCM Tacks (read: half-way decent hockey skates for the uninitiated). My mother refused to get them for me after I busted up my front teeth playing hockey the year before and didn't want me skating, but if I was going to skate, I was going to skate on girly white leather figure skates. Most of my Christmas desires were sports related — new goalie jersey, new Copas, Air Jordans, Tacks, hockey gloves, Flyers jersey … Mom thought for sure I was going to end up a lesbian until I got caught with the boyfriend in the driveway …

I remember wanting Vectrex (sp?) when it first came out it was one of the first stand-alone video game systems, where you didn't need to hook it up to a TV screen, and the built-in screen seemed large in the commercials. However, in 1985, when I was at summer camp, another kid had his old Vectrex with him, and I really wasn't that impressed with it.

Interesting that if anyone decides to search on X-E for the word "lesbian", this thread on Christmas toys will come up at the top of the search results…

Man, does this bring back memories! Anyway, I always wanted the NES (and then the Game Boy), but never ever got one. My folks were strongly anti-video game, but the closest we came were those Tiger LCD games. Those kept my brother and I quiet. Sadly, the many we had were lost to the sands of time; which blows, because those things go for stupid money now.

On Nickalodian AKA Nick Jr, there used to be commercials to send away for this whole package of stuff from Sweet Pickles. You got stickers and magazines, and some other stuff. All I know is that it was called Sweet Pickles, and on the ad there was a sweet pickles bus and some charactes and kids running around. Does anyone remember this??? it was on during Pinwheel, and the Little Kuala and junk.

Oh man the Wishbook was so great back in the day! I remember pouring over that thing from mid-November on writing down on notebook paper the page number, letter, and name of every item I wanted. I had this weird compulsive thing where I forced myself to pick at least one item from every page (even the bike helmets and clothing pages). It was all very anal-retentive but in the days before Amazon.com it was all we had.

As far as a toy I wanted but never got goes, that would be the GI Joe tank bed tent with the inflatable turret. Every year I asked for that to no avail. I've checked eBay but no go.

Can't quite recall anything i didn't get. I guess my memory blocked out the memories for happiness sake.

I do however remember the best ever gift i got was when i teared off that christmas wrapping to unveil a proton pack and ghost trapper. Think i took that thing everywhere i went with me. I wonder what happened to it :/

"a series of books that rate just between the Bible and Choose Your Own Adventure: Gorga the Space Monster in terms of personal worth." that line will go down in history as the best line of prose ever written. seriously i love this article. 1985 was the year that i was born, and its weird because i have watched enough 80's shows and read enough about the early 80's that i feel like i was there. Also, i lo9ve your comment about how the only thing missing on the U.S.S. Flagg was the thing that shot cheetos…i am in my psychology lab right now and i literally laughed so loud that the other person in the lab jumped. anyways, i havent read any of the comments yet, but im really curious to see what everyone else always wanted for christmas. I personally always wanted a robot named 2-XL which came out in the late 80's early 90's. one of my friends had one and i wanted to play with it, but she was not having that when we had so many barbies to play with. i just remember that in the commercial the robot said "a moth can smell another moth six miles away" and i thought it was sooooo badass.

Omnibot - Yeah, I had the others. Hootbot, Dustbot, Chatbot. None of them could compare to the awesomeness of Omnibot. I, however, think anyone who owned an Omnibot as a kid probably grew up to be an asshole. There. I said it. No one could have been that privileged and not developed a tremendous coke habit.

Teddy Ruxpin - Again, I had his cohorts…most notably, Fob, who was definitely a cool puppet but lacked the ability to mouth the lyrics to my Little Shop of Horrors cassette tape. Hearing Teddy Ruxpin refer to himself as a "mean, green mutha from outer space" would have been f'ing sweet.

Matt, this is one of the greatest articles you've ever written. I mean, I sort of hate you for finally managing to jump-start my Christmas spirit before Thanksgiving, but it's still a terrific accomplishment.

I wanted a Nintendo. Or a Game Boy. In fact, every new console that came out, I wanted so badly it made my teeth itch. But my parents were solidly anti-video game, so I never got to break into the medium outside the arcade cabinets at the local Pizza Hut until they accidentally bought a Tandy 2000 based on the assumption that it was educational. And that's why I display nothing but contempt for all you joystick-waggling console jockeys to this day. It's all a case of sour grapes inflated to epic proportions. Well, that and a lack of a strong wRPG catalog for the last couple of generations.

Also thought of one more. I really wanted the Fisher-Price PXL 2000. It was this toy camera that could record audio and video on a regular cassette tape. True, it could only record about ten minutes of material…but the thought of being able to commit ten minutes of parodied car commericals and news reports of the Ultimate Warrior crushing New York City was too much.

Additionally, they had one that came with a mini Black and White TV. Anything mini is awesome.

If I was gay, and legal, I'd make you my wife. This is the best wedding gift ever.

But back to reality…damn, this takes me back. I was only born in '87, so I caught the tail-end of the Sears Wish Book Greatness, and I even remember the first year it sucked (well, I forget the exact year, but I do remember getting a Sears Wish Book about 1/4 its size in the mail and being depressed)

And I forgive you for using the JC Penney's Book, I remember that one too and remember how similar they were.

This is the first time I've heard of Clowny, but I've heard of just about everything else!

Hell, I wanted a Metal Detector too! I remember seeing ads for Omnibot 2000, or possibly its upgrade by the time I reached your age in '85.

And Voltron…I missed out on the Really Awesome One of yore (I got Regular, Stealth, and Dinosaur versions one Christmas a few years back when Voltron became popular again for that one year), but thanks to that Random Transformers Box I got at that flea market last year or so, I got the original, die-cast Yellow Lion. Sigh, I like the Black one the best (I even noticed that the "ears" of Voltron aren't out in the Wish Book pic) The Yellow one was a good consolation prize, as I always thought the lions that made up the arms were the lamest. Their heads don't even move! Their mouths don't even open or close! Oh well.

But the Dinobots = yes. I grew with Generation 2, so I had the Dinobots as well, but for some reason, Sludge (the "dog") and Swoop ("Bird/Plane") weren't reissued with the likes of Almighty Grimlock. I think I got them for Christmas one year, too. I definately remember getting Optimus Prime for one of my birthdays.

And "The Spread" is dead-on. It's one of the only times on Christmas Day that I KNOW that it's Christmas. Every gift I got was in that kickass pile, bragging to people who had no interest whatsoever.

I also wanted to try Electronic Talking Battleship, but never have. I've played the regular version, of course.

I got the Star Wars version for one Christmas. It's really a waste of time & money when you're an only child with no friends. That, and all the moves were preset, you couldn't cheat at it!

Damn…I'm so pumped for Christmas now! I think I want to blog about my own Christmas wishes of the past, but this post is getting pretty long.

I remember those wish books like it was yesterday. My grandmother kept them for years and I would look through them all year long, picking out toys that were probably out of circulation at that point. I can recall a GI JOE command base in one of the books that I thought was the coolest thing ever…yet never got it. Oh well, can't complain though, "Santa" always treated me well.

This is off the subject of the wishbook, but did anyone know that some dude bought the house from A Christmas Story and turned it into a Christmas Story museum?

Steven - why did you put Santa in quotation marks? Are you trying to tell me something? I'd be worried about not getting any presents if Santa saw me doing that.

Your Pal, who's been very, very, very, very, very good all this whole year long,

P.S., I really have been good. Please believe me, Santa, please! Please and thank you. I've practically been an angel

Matt, you were a very lucky boy to have Voltron. I wanted one sooo badly when I was a kid, but $50 was too much to spend on one toy, apparently. All I got was some cheap 10 dollar plastic knock-off. I still hold it against my mother to this day. I think I complain about it every Christmas, and I'm 28 now.

I also remember the glass robot cases at Toys R Us. The robots sort of went in ascending order of size, ability, and price. Stuff like HootBot and CoinBot at the beginning. My siblings and I had saved up a little bit of money (couldn't even manage HootBot), so all we could afford was FlipBot, a little "robot" with spinning arms that makes a ton of noise and flips over when it hits the wall. It was still cool though.

I take that back, Voltron was apparently $70.
Still should have bought it for me though.

You can all be jealous of me: I had Teddy Ruxpin. Original Flavor, but I don't think I had Grubb.

Once again, you were dead-on on the only thing missing from USS Flagg was the thing that shot Cheetos. Thinking in terms of myself when I was a little boy…that just seemed right.

And I'll agree that I've thought of owning Conky too, even now. I'd love a robot to print a secret word that we'd all be forced to scream. You never had the secret word be something common like "Me" or "and" it was always stuff like "more," "like," and "Zyzzybalubah" (damn, that was a great episode)

The second interation of their Zwords (SP?) was based on mythalogical beast. By far the best designs of all the Sentai style shows and the toy totally justified them. Each of the 5 figures was worthy of being a toy itself, particularly the Dragon Man, the Pheonix and whatever mythical thing the bear was. In fact the Dragon Man was sold seperately, basically a transformer that was a badass flying dragon and then a cool warrior guy with a staff. Then the rest of the pieces ingeniously transformed into convincing armor for the man. It was the one design of all these types of robots that really made sense, they didn't become legs or a head, they became boots and a helmet.

That would be the Thunder Megazord. And I agree that it was the best designed Megazord (the original is still my absolute favorite). I remember having a friend get that, and day he got it, the first thing I said was "can I borrow it?"

Needless to say…I got it a few months later. It just seemed weird that you had to buy the Dragon by itself, and get the other 4 in its own package (the Firebird, the Unicorn, The Griffin, and the Lion). It made sense when they came out with the Tiger, who combined with those 4.

Speaking of which and of lost wishes, up until the In Space series, the only major Zord I didn't have was the Green Dragon from the first seasons. My cousin had it, though…Yes, the same one who had all the GoBots. And I was jealous. Still am.

JLAJRC I always wanted a Teddy Ruxpin too! I would even try winning them at the Fair! I finally got one last year when Walmart had them.

I did however have a banner Christmas one year with a Barbie Convertible Power wheels, Mouse Trap, PJ Sparkles, My Pretty Ballerina and NKOTB dolls.

On the subject of Teddy Ruxpin… To clarify, these comics were made around the time of Michael Bay's Transformers movie, when G.I. Joe was also announced to be a movie.

I'm still trying to wrack my brain thinking of something i asked for and didn't get. I'm sure there had to have been something but i was also spoiled rotten.

IF i think of something i'll get back to ya's.. now on to the main article for reading lol

All this talk about Wish Books has got me wondering if anyone knows about this toy that I pined for as a kid but never received. 1985 sounds about right for it. It was a huge purple mosquito puppet that "talked" in some sort of freaky noise-feedback sort of way. Anyone have any idea what this was called? My fortune for that danged mosquito thingy!!

kbbaker: Sounds like you're talking about Sectaurs. Check the article on the site's main page. Sectaurs didn't talk, but they made some noise.

Hi Matt! I thought so at first, too–I'd just gotten done checking out that article.

But oddly enough this toy was some freaky attempt to make the idea of a feedback-noise-making mosquito puppet lovable. It was geared toward girls more than guys and I'm sure the reason nobody seems to remember them today is that…well….who wants to go to bed hugging a mosquito?

My mom works for a company affliated with the Knex company and gets Knex half off! I still have all my Knex! The ferris wheel with motor, rollercoaster, big ball factory and several other sets! Now I wanna bring them out and put them together but have no room

For those of you interested in Super Mario Galaxy, Toys R Us is giving away a $25 gift card with the game. I think the offer is only valid until 5 PM (local times), so if you planned on picking up a copy and you didn't reserve one, they're quickly selling out according to the clerk at my local TRU.

I so remember the commercials for Omnibot. I was never dumb enough to ask for one, though. =p

Jedoc, my parents were anti-video game, too. I remember a family friend once gave my siblings and I a NES (complete with Duck Hunt gun) and they wouldn't let us keep it. They did eventually buy my sister and I a Game Boy each (the old grey one), thus the origin of my current relative disdain for most console or PC games, and my unconditional love of handhelds.

I wanted one of those big plastic cars you got in and drove around. The weirdly-shaped orange and yellow ones. I can't remember who made them or what they were called, but my parents would occasionally let me pilot one around Toys R Us, back in the days of huge, broad aisles.

My grandmother got me a Teddy Ruxpin at a yard sale once. That thing was fucking creepy. I have never trusted a stuffed animal that speaks.

MessiahRP: I know they tried to revive Teddy not too long ago. But to me there is a big difference between a 10 year old wanting one and a now 25 year old wanting one. Not quite the same feeling.

Eric S.: I LOVED the glass cases Toys 'R' Us used to have. That was where all the cool, expensive, electronic toys were (Teddy may have even been in those cases back then)that you just knew you were never gonna get unless you won the lottery or something.

I just thought of another toy I always wanted but never got. Remember the Lazer Tag fad of the late 80s/early 90s? Kids would dress up in future gear that came with a gun to shoot. I always wanted to do that, but never did.

Somethin'Funny I know about that whole christmas story museum thing. it was all over the local news a few years back. I live about 30-45 minutes south of cleveland, so i guess if i really wanted i could go on a visit. im scared that it will not live up to my notions of grandeur though. I too participated in the "spread" and even now that i am moved out of my parents house, when i go over for christmas morning, i totally do the same thing, only using the couch in place of my bed. Also, I was wondering if any of you have facebook, because i would so totally be your friend on there, and i could finally start that x-e appreciation group.

Now I'm curious though. Just how often do you search X-E for the word "lesbian"?

Speaking of wishbooks, I got the Toys 'R' Us one not too long ago. Wal-Mart even has one now.

That kid makes me want to wear Liono clothes too. Only found one typo in the first part of the crayola paragraph: and not because I one of those kids

Sweet stuff dude. BTW, just to earn the jealousy instead of stares for being so nerdy:
I have the Flagg and its box in my basement.
And yes, it is STILL FREAKING AWESOME. That is all.

You notice they're ALL wearing liono shirts but the one showing him off is the one showing teeth.

I always wanted a Barbie swimming pool for some weird reason. I remember the Glitter Beach Barbies were big when I was in middle school and they had a picture of a hand made ocean on the back of the box and I knew the moment Mattel ever sold THAT I would HAVE to have it. But the closest they ever got was a pool shower. I wanted it too. And I always loved the little forest animal things that had their own houses and familes. I have NO idea what they're called but they wore cute little clothes and had little furniture and there were bears and rabbits. They were covered in that fuzzy velvety stuff. I actually DID get one of those but when we moved we put some stuff in my granparents attic and as I was not the favored grandchild it quickly got tossed because "rats ate it" but I knew that the plastic the little things were made of was too hard to eat plus I had just snuck up there and played with them a few days before they were conviently tossed. It was a sad day. I lost all my favored toys but my parents made it up to me so….But to this day I still check out the Sears Wish Book and find myself….oddly enough….wanting toys from it-LOL-25 years old and ipods don't thrill me, computers give me a little buzz, but toys and anything strange or unusal rock my world off its axis-LOL

kbbaker Are you talking about Party Animals? I cant find much on them anywhere, but im sure thats what you meant with the mosqito…they would talk back at you with a weird feedback when you talked to them…

The toys I wanted most were Mother Goose and Cricket!!!!! They were the upscale cousins of Teddy Ruxpin. Cricket was a girl with a sweater and skirt and would tell stories when you put a tape in her back…I also wanted the talking cabbage patch kids, but they were 99 dollars.

The funniest little story though, about how I pined for and received the My Little Pony babies dream house….that thing was OH SO EPIC for a little girl…what happened was that ther was this little kid inthe neighborhood who was gross and stuff, and a paraih among us neighborhoood kids…so I asked him over to play one day right before christmas, in hopes that santa would see that I was being a good girl. We all played with these little mcdonalds cars that zoomed and spun around when you pulled them back. And I had a pretty impressive collection of thundercats and Monkeyian was the first one my brother and I had. I also always wanted Mall Madness board game too.

And Matt you made my week with this article and everyone else thanks for them flicker pages of catalogs…im gonna have me a grand old time later browsing through em…I've been sick for awhile, so i cant get out much,and now i can be occupied for a bit.

Sorry to double post, but Casper you may be thinking of Sylvanian Families or MapleTown. Sylvanian families are probably it though. I has some too…they were really easy to lose pieces to.

Emily: I had a Socrates! I loved that thing! I was kind of a nerd kid, though, and enjoyed word games more than anything in the whole wide world.

I also wanted the 3-in-1 table, but I was an only child with no other kids living in my neighborhood that were my age, so there was no one to play it with.

I had the original Teddy Ruxpin, but no Grubb as well. My parents only bought me two tapes/books, so the novelty of Teddy wore off pretty quickly. And he was really heavy for a four-year-old to cart around all over the place. I think I still have mine.

Chaomancer Omega: I still have an Omega Supreme in really great condition in the original box, and I love it still.

For those who've always wanted the Omnibot 2000 experience, and like Star Wars, I saw an R2D2 at Books A Milllion the other day that looked really cool. It carries a drink, the dome on top moves around, it responds to voice commands and will follow you around.

I got a Star Wars: Phantom Menace edition of Monopoly for Christmas the year that movie came out. I stuck it in my closet and have never played it. It's still got the plastic shrink wrap on it. I've never been much of a Monopoly player, honestly. I'm more of a Risk man.

JLAJRC: Yes! Lazer Tag! I never had one, but my cousin did and we used to have death matches out in the back yard. It's like paintball but without the seering pain of getting nailed at close range in the back of the head (something I've experienced personally). I'd love to get some Lazer Tag going again one of these days.

The U.S.S. Flag. There's one o thems stuck to the ceiling of a near by Comic shop with G.I. Joe guys battling on it. All upside down, mind you. I never wanted one for two reasons: 1) I was a little too young to care about something gray. 2) I didn't really like millitary stuff.
The Fright Zone though? That I wanted. I had all the figures featured in the picture, I had Castle Grayskull, I had Snake Mountain, and I had Spydor! The Fright Zone seemed like the next step for my parents or grandparents to get me but it just never happened.
I also had a Pound Puppy. A tan one. One night when my dad put my brother and I to bed he foolishly put the tan one in my brother's bed and the *ich* brown one in my bed. I threw a tantrum and tossed the poor puppy on the hard wood floor and manged to break one of the only non-plush parts of the dog, his nose. That ate me up inside for weeks after. Had I been older I could have easily asked my dad to hot glue the nose back on but I didn't know such a glue existed at that age. The nose got lost somewhere, never to be put back on. After that I claimed the puppy as my own and my brother took the tan one. I felt like I owed it to the neglected plush pup. I still feel terrible about that.
I'm going to go now.
I need to be alone.

Excellent trip in the "wayback machine" Matt. I was 9 years old in 1985, this was my hayday for childrens toys. I got the Frightzone and all of the Horde figures that year and Im proud to say that they are still sitting in my parents basement. When my son and daughter are old enough we will have a great time digging out all of the stuff I played with as a kid. Thx for the memories buddy!

I actually received a metal detector for my birthday one year. It was 2nd hand, and so old I think it ran off of vacuum tubes, but it was way cool. We lived on about 3 acres of property that was at one time a farm, and I found a ton of old farm implements and horseshoes, and even an old coin or two. Lugging that thing and a shovel around was about the most exercise this chubby 12 year old got at that time.

mandy_Reeves: I always wondered what Cricket was. I had a Cricket cooking set with cookie cutters and bowls and all and a cook book, but I never knew who Cricket was. My parents were notorious for buying me accessories for toys I didn't have.

Great article Matt. I always loved getting the new Christmas Catalogs every year. Does anyone happen to know anything about the other figures that are shown at the bottom of the full page scan of Hordak's Fright Zone page? The pic that has the yellow and blue snake man type figure. The figures look familiar and I cannot remember what they were called.

The biggest toy I always wanted was one of those real jeep car things for kids to drive around. Of course they were like $500 dollars when I was a kid so I got nothing but amused chuckles from my parents when I'd ask for one.

and! I also very much wanted The Blank figure! I had all the other Dick Tracy figures (who all looked like they had a case of roid rage next to all my other action figures) but we could just never find The Blank. I think I wanted it so much because it was Madonna, but I had to make due with a little plastic Breathless figure that was all figure and no action. Her arms were permanently fixed to her sides and I remember my Grandmother not wanting to buy her for me because of all the cleavage.

We have a couple of VHS tapes from Christmasses around 86-89, and all of the commercials were:
Pound Puppies
Gum
That ice-skating McDonald's commercial

I had a Pound Purry. I think I might still have it somewhere. We also had a video of Pound Puppies, and some Colorforms.

Toys I always wanted but never got… Well, I guess the main one would have to be Snake Mountain.
I loved Masters of the Universe as a kid, and unashamedly still do to this day (a daily vistor of the He-Man.org forums, and numerous MOTU figures surrounding me as I type). Although they bought me a few figures, my parents were generally of the school of making me save up for the toys I really wanted.

That said, one Christmas when I was abot 6 or 7, I hit the jackpot when they got me Castle Grayskull for Christmas. Everyone whos anyone knows that it's the greatest playset EVER bar none. I loved it. So naturally, next Christmas, I wanted a home for Skeletor and his crew.

Christmas was the only time I was ever gonna get lucky for such a 'big' toy, but my Mom was trying to ween me off of MOTU by that point, insisting that I was too old of them. Even though I still watched the cartoon, played it with my friends, and got so much out of my figures. I never did get my Snake Mountain.

Until about five years ago. I finished collecting a whole set of the vintage toys, Snake Mountain and all. With that finally done, I needed a new goal in my life. I'm still searching for one…

Every time I visit the family up at the Jersey Shore I always see some dude with a metal detector on the beach. I too was envious.

I remember flipping through the Sears catalog many many moons ago and there was a picture of a couple of kids sitting in a wooden helicopter that was obviously just a yard play-thing. But I thought it was a real helicopter and damn it, I needed it. I had dreams about flying around the neighborhood and parking it on the school's roof. Man, I was a dumb kid.

I always wanted Hasbro and/or their Japanese life companion Takara, to try and make some kind of TransFormer the size of the USS Flagg. It wouldn't have to be all that complicated to change, look at the GoBots Command Center. Ok, so 90% of the GoBots were about the size of a Hot Wheels car, but they had transforming bases for both factions. Anyways….

Among the various toys I really wanted, but never got? Mego Star Trek figures, and the Enterprise Bridge playset.
The present I got, but didn't want? Long-time posters know this one. Toilet Paper.

Lexi I totally remember that add for the Sweet Pickles books that you could send away for. It was very similar to those zoo card things you could send away for and collect in this green container, it always reminded me of a recipie box, but with educational animal cards instead of recipies. Also, do you remember the ads for ZooBooks??? Sweet Pickles rocked BTW.

Matt AWESOME ARTICLE! Thats a lot of energy and time represented right there. Hopefully you enjoy putting this massive article together as much as we are enjoying reading, and re-reading it!!!

James Thank you so much for posting that link to those Wish Book pages. My gosh, the hours I am going to spend on there is just going to be sad!

I always wanted that Barbie dream house, that looked so freaking 1970's, with its 70s colors, and weird angled roof tops. I had the generic Barbie dream house, which still rocked. I had NO idea how expensive all these toys were!!! My gosh!!! Its insane how much all these huge plastic play sets were!!! All the doll houses, and fortresses, and kitchen sets. Upwards of $100. Why were they so expensive??? It almost seems like you get more for your money now, toy wise!!!

I've got my Christmas list now. Great article Matt. I remember sitting in the living room floor for hours circling what I wanted, debating to myself the strengths and weaknesses of each choice, trying to come up with an argument for each one if it was shot down. Great times.

I'm finally supposed to be getting my Wii back this week. I wasn't planning on getting Mario Galaxy but a $25 freebie sounds good…I called the closest TRU and they said they weren't selling UNTIL 5:00 and that they've had a lot of calls about it already, so by the time I could get there it would probably already be sold out. Oh well, thanks for the tip anyway, fistpittingnork

I finally got around to reading your Wish Book article, and that anecdote about the rock tumbler had me busting a gut laughing! I remember having a similar motivation after receiving a science lab kit for Christmas that included a whole bunch of chemicals. I was tempted to just mix a bunch of chemicals at random, to see what would happen, but fortunately I did not. I actually took the time to read the manual, and made some neat chemicals, like fingerprint ink and a "water to wine" experiment where you mixed two clear solutions, and when they combined, they turned a pink color.

The Holiday Wish Book… brings back great memories. One of the things that I really wanted was Teddy Ruxbin and the Barbie Dream House. One thing I didn't ask for but got, was a Cabbage Patch Kid. My mother stood in line for hours waiting to get me one on the day they first came out. I was only 2 at the time so I am sure I had no idea what a Cabbage Patch Kid was, but it was a great doll and I still have it to this day.

There's a vintage toystore in BC Canada called Toy Traders that has THREE of those aircraft carriers on display, along with hundreds of GI Joes and vehicles in an enormous diorama. If you're ever up here you should check it out!

I'm sure you're already aware, but the new Jones Soda holiday packs are out- there's even one for Hannukah! Are you going to conduct a taste testing this year?

On a different note, I'd personally prefer a giant plush Wuzzle to a Pound Puppy.

Best gift I got but never asked for was my Nintendo. I never asked for it because I assumed if we were steady enough financially to have such a luxorious item that we would have had one when by the time everyone else did. Still, it was a couple years till SNES.

The one great toy that eluded me was the Eternia playset! That was one toy that I made sure to tell my parents about time and time again, but I still didn't get it. I guess I can't be too disappointed though, because not many other kids got it either, and I was pretty lucky anyways.

On a side note - Matt, I have seen the USS Flagg out of the box, and it was great! As a kid, my rich neighbors had it, and their attic was pretty much their whole play area. At 7.5 feet, it was huge, especially then, but they had plenty of room for it. They had a yard sale and moved not long after, but by the time I went the Flagg had been sold. I ended up buying Serpentor and his chariot, and a mess of Flag Points that you could use to buy other Joe gear. One of them was the 4-POINT flag point that came with the Flagg! I still have it to this day.

Now to actually contribute to the topic at hand here. My parents still have a lot of JCPenny, Sears, Service Merchandise, and other 5 lb catalogs laying around some where, some still with notes and dogears, tags, or anyt other sort of emprovised page marker. One is a 1985 or 1987 Sears book with a picture cut out of one of the pages.

The picture was from the underwear section and it was of 2 or 3 little girls in panties. Now before you guys start thinking the wrong things here, it was for a joke gift from my younger brother and I for our youngest brother. He wanted "hot chicks" for Christmas, as mentioned on his list for my parents, so we gave him hot chicks. He was about 12, they probably would've been about 10, though the catalog was printed at least 10-12 years before we clipped the photo out, so the hot chicks were totally 80s.

My brothers and I, despite most of the catalogs containing the same exact items, would be just as eager to flip through the last catalog as we were the first. We would make sure we listed everything we wanted, including page numbers and which catalog they were found in, and then we would polish up our rough draft list, taking off stuff that sounded good at the moment but crappy now, or things we knew we weren't going to get, leaving one fantastic final copy that absolutely cannot be denied.

If only I put as much effort into researching and writing for my Lit classes in HS and college.

I remember there was this one gift that I wanted more than any other gift (from any Christmas) and walking into the living room Christmas morning and seeing it sitting there waiting on me. That gift was a Twin Turbo Trains track set. It was set up before I finished opening all my presents.

I finally read the Wishbook article and it was awesome, of course. I also had that crayon kit and a tan Pound Puppy named Buttetscotch. Only mine came with a dogtag that had his name and mine on it. I slept with it for years.

Just like Matt wanted that robot but never got it due to the price, I also had something that I always wanted like that: A pinball machine. Didn't/doesn't matter which one, a pinball machine would rule. But those things are expensive, plus we have no room for one.

Matt's brief mention of Pee-Wee's Playhouse reminds me that I always wanted the action figures they had. Well mainly Conky and Jambi, just to see if I could get wishes and a secret word to scream. I don't think I ever asked for it specifically, though, mainly because there were other toys I wanted more. You know how every kids drops an item from there list because there's better stuff they wanted. This was the drop-off item for me.

Old Jim: Fun chemistry fact: one of the chemicals in your "water to wine" experiment was almost certainly phenolphthalein, which also functions as a colorless, nearly tasteless, and horrifically powerful laxative. So it's basically a tiny plastic vial filled with revenge.

It took me a long time to remember something I wanted but didn't get. I didn't really ask for a lot because most of what I desired as a child simply didn't exist. Like a gun that shot knives.

I did finally remember, at the mention of lazer tag, that I wanted something similar really badly but my mother flat-out said no to it. It had bright green guns with camo print and a headpiece that vibrated when you got shot.
I don't remember the name. I think it had the word "survive" or some variation thereof in it.

One gift I loved, but never asked for, was given to me for Christmas in the late 80s. It was a cassette tape recorder. I didn't appreciate it then as much as I do now, but I have a box full of cassette tapes with the most random things recorded from the late 80s up until somewhere in the mid 90s.

Some of the best recordings were of me and my brothers and friends pretending we're news reporters interviewing eachother about [you name it].

We were filthy mouthed little hellbeasts, one interview was my younger brother and I. He was interviewing me about my alien encounter. Well, I was telling him about how the aliens pushed me down on my bike and starting sucking my… yeah.. but something with the tape had messed up during the recording so when played back it sounded like "pushed me down on my bike and started sdick" (ucking my was cut out). For some reason thats one of my favorite tapes out of the entire box.

Sorry to just go on and on about crap you guys probably don't care about, all at the same time I've probably made myself out to be some weird alien sex having paedophile.

The best gift I never asked for was probably three X-Men action figures. It was about a year before the animated series, so I hadn't really heard of them, but I thought the toys were awesome.

I got Magneto, Storm and Wolverine, and not only were they the coolest gifts that year, but they were the start of an obsession with the ToyBiz X-Men line that lasted until I was about 12.

Which benefited me because by the time all the other kids I knew got into the X-Men, I already had the coolest collection of action figures.

Bill i just read your blog about your uncle matt, and i have decided that it is my new goal in life to own a watch that calls me an asshole on the hour. also, is that the flea market in daytona? my mom and grandma made me go with them the last time i went to florida and i half loved it and half wanted to kill myself.

One thing I never understood about all those X-men action figures is why they were always packaged with machine guns and other such weapons they never used in the comics. I can buy Wolverine with a machine gun or sword, but Magneto with a laser gun I never got.

I always wanted that USS Flagg playset. I don't even think I knew the name of it as a child, I just knew it was a huge aircraft carrier to stage my G.I.Joe battles on. I did get the Terror Dome though, which doubled as my Technodrome since I never got that toy, and pretty much any villains all had that. I was fortunate enough back in high school to get my hands on the remake metal Voltron, which I still have to this day albeit one of the legs is missing. I should've kept that one in the box but it was just way too awesome to keep sealed.

My best friend had a USS Flagg playset and just about every other G.I.Joe from my era. I was so jealous. Anyhow, I just searched for it, and although I live in CO, this could be cool for any of you wistfull L.A. folks, http://cgi.ebay.com/GI-Joe-USS-FLAGG-Aircraft-Carrier-Amazin....

I used to have both the Lion and Team Voltron's back in the day, wish I knew what I did with them. As far as toys I wanted and never got…Castle Greyskull. I loved the MOTU figures and used to pine for either it or Snake Mountain but never got either.

Here at work, I have access to a heat gun. I might just have to experiment and make myself my own million color crayon. In the category of toy that one has no right to want now, but will get anyway, I might buy myself that Crayola light-up board jus so I can make my own version of the neon sign from "Porky's."

Wow.. back in my day, the big line was Jurassic Park… the first line with the big T-Rex… Good times…

When I was younger, I forget the exact year but we'll say mid 90's, I wanted that set that let you build your own monster face. It was called "Freaky Face" or something stupid like that, but it was basically a dummy head and a million monsters ears, eyes, teeth, warts, scars, etc. that you could put together any way you wanted. God, I could almost TASTE that thing, I stared at it in catalogs everyday and bugged the shit out of my parents about it. So I was pumped when on Christmas morning there was a huge box I figured to be about the right size under the tree for me. I was sorely disappointed when it proved to be a Tonka dump struck. Not that a Tonka dump truck wasn't cool, but when you're jonesin' for a monster face to put fake zits all over, it's just not the same.

I don't remember the Sears or J.C. Penny books but I do remember Consumers. I remember one Hannukah where my grandmother practically raided Toys R Us' She-ra aisle for my sister and I. We got the Crystal Castle too. I'm not sure if that was 85 though. Maybe it was Rose Petal Place if not. And of course there always was the Barbies. 1985..Maybe Barbie and the Rockers?

I feel like such a spoiled little bitch. I had nearly all of the featured Wishbook gems.

The Optimus Prime tent was awesome as a playhouse, but, because I was a hypochondriac, I'd take it off my bed at night for fear it might suffocate me in my sleep. More than meets the eye indeed.

I had the black Voltron and my brother had the blue one. Our neighbor, Josh, had the red one. This left us with a torso, one arm and a leg. Not much fun, but better than Barbie. I guess I needed more friends.

The Power Wheels electric cars always eluded me as a kid. The commercial where the kid is driving the jeep version through the woods had me drooling.

Hmm… I don't know if I can think of anything specific that I got but didn't ask for. Not because I never GOT any such things, but because I didn't make detailed wish lists as a child. Instead I just watched TV with my mom in the room and when I saw a commercial for a toy I wanted, I'd just blurt out "I want that!!" Consequently, by Christmas I had totally forgotten what I had asked for, so everything was a surprise.

Overall I think my most-loved gifts were all my various Nintendo systems (every game console I've ever had was obtained as a Christmas gift), a Super Mario electronic pinball machine, and a unicorn lamp that I got when I was like three.

However I think the gift that impressed me the most was a fancy, old-fashioned baby carriage for my baby dolls. Now, as I've said before I was never too much of a girly girl. But this gift was special because it was from Santa himself. See, in my family the presents were always under the tree well before Christmas, and were from my parents. Santa merely came and filled my stocking. But this carriage was different, because it was by the tree fully assembled and unwrapped on Christmas morning. Finally I had a toy left from Santa on Christmas morning, like those kids on TV! In your face, space coyote!

And how did I make use of this carriage? The same way little girls all over the world use baby carriages, of course. I shoved my cats in there and insisted they "be the baby". I got a lot of scratches that way.

I wanted that damn colorful unicorn from Rainbow Brite. And the BIG one. I had a little one, but I had the BIG rainbow brite, so that little unicorn was useless. To this day, I still have a thing for horse toys- plastic ones, stuffed ones…
Like that FurReal pony they have out this season- ooh, I want that like nobody's bizniz.

Does anyone remember Dolgin's, or was that just a regional store? Their catalogs are the ones I remember the most, although they were very similar to Sears and JCPenney. Used to have a few of them from the 80's but I think I got rid of them years ago.

Like many others here, the Lion Voltron was what I wanted but never got. I got a small version of the vehicle Voltron for Christmas one year. You couldn't separate it into its various components, but it was still nice to have. I remember my parents saying it was almost impossible to find.

I also would have liked to get some of the more well known Transformers. I usually got the knockoff kinds that you'd find at Target or the occasional GoBot (I admit I did like Leader-1.) When I did get a Transformer, it was usually a very obscure one. I think I got a couple of the Protectabots one Christmas.

mandy_Reeves you are right and therefore my hero. Now that I am able to do a little Googling with the correct name I see they were made by Axlon, makers of Petster(? the robot cat) and AG Bear. Now all I have to do is try to track down a mosquito of my own!

Even though I was a child of the 90's, I absolutely love 80's toys and love it even more when you write about them, Matt. Can't wait to see what the upcoming weeks bring, but here's hoping more toys from that era!

I remember i always wanted one of those fisher price plastic clubhouses. Remember those, in fact when I was a kid I always just wanted a club house of some sort, in a tree a big walking closet just some place that I could call my own. I vow in front of all the other X-readers that if my kids ever ask for a plastic fisher price club house Ill be giving them one of those!

DJ DHahahaha.
BTW, anyone notice that that kid in the Tcats gear MUST be young Ashton Kutcher?

I remember that I always wanted street fighter figures. I used to play that game night and day as a little kid. This was before they were even made but I would ask for them every year and never get them. On a side note one of the coolest presents I ever got was a WWF wrestlers fooseball/hockey table type thing w/ the wrestlers as the players, sickkkkk nasty.