REPLIES: 146 comments
That tiger thing found on this page http://www.x-entertainment.com/articles/0856/junk/27.html
came in boxes of frosted flakes...it's a diving tony the tiger. Take an empty 2 liter bottle and fill it with water. Toss Tony in , put the cap on and squeeze the top of the bottle and watch him dive to the bottom. Release and he goes back to the top...hours of entertainment for me as a kid.
-Jon
jm4782@yahoo.com
Chestnuts roasted by Jon Maurer @ 01/07/2004 02:11 AM EST
Kickass. :)
Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 01/07/2004 02:12 AM EST
According to the US Patent Office, the Capt' Crunch thing is some kind of 'Propelled disk copter toy'. I think you're supposed to flick the disc with that other piece, somehow getting it airborne. You could probably just throw it though.
Click here for the patent info.
Chestnuts roasted by MG @ 01/07/2004 02:56 AM EST
I remember having that Weird Cap'n Crunch Thing, but I cannot remember what the hell it does. I think the paddle-shaped thing goes into the notch on the top of the round thing. I'm pretty sure it glows in the dark, too. I think I remember thinking it was pretty dumb to begin with.
Chestnuts roasted by Will E. @ 01/07/2004 02:57 AM EST
Brilliant.
Yet another reason why this site rules- Matt will eat 15 year old gum. And we all know you would have shook that Chewbacca head empty down your gullet if it had been full.
Chestnuts roasted by Killer Duck @ 01/07/2004 02:59 AM EST
Isn't there a scene in Douglas Adams' "So Long and Thanks for All the Fish" in which Arthur eats some old tea biscuits and manages inadvertently to kill a virulent strain of virus that would otherwise have wiped out humanity?
Anyway, Matt's adventures with Christmas Crunch and fifteen-year-old gum remind me of just such a scene. It's like Special Forces training for his white blood cells.
Chestnuts roasted by Monster Dog @ 01/07/2004 03:20 AM EST
i had one of those aladdin spinner things...
I still have some of those matchbox cereal trucks, but they are the early 90's ones not from the 70's.
Chestnuts roasted by heeloyd @ 01/07/2004 03:59 AM EST
Combine MG and Will E.'s comments, and you have your answer. Hold the wide end of the flat piece between one thumb and forefinger. Using the other hand, slide the smaller end into the notch on the disc. Pull the disc back, bending the flat piece, and release. In theory, the disc will then whiz frisbee-like across the room. In theory.
Chestnuts roasted by Fox-o-Nine @ 01/07/2004 04:02 AM EST
Now I'm baffled about the Felix comic. Too funy nonetheless.
Chestnuts roasted by Steve @ 01/07/2004 04:13 AM EST
I have one of those Webby figures. I alwaya pronounced the word spearmint "spearament" because that's the way they do in ads and stuff.
Chestnuts roasted by pikachulover @ 01/07/2004 04:20 AM EST
The rice krispies thing is a "popper", i think. The litte suction cup on the bottom can be bent inside-out to make it bounce in the air. I gad one as a kid and would play with it for hours...Damn i was retarted as a kid.
Chestnuts roasted by monkeyboy @ 01/07/2004 05:10 AM EST
Matt -- You're right about the Garfield pencil topper. It may have been manufactured in 1981, and it may even have been offered in cereal boxes from that year, but it was definitely offered at some point in subsequent years also, because I definitely remember having one of those things, and I was definitely born in 1981 and definitely don't remember my infancy. Given my spotty memory, I'd say it made a comeback around 1988 or perhaps even later...
Chestnuts roasted by Wes @ 01/07/2004 05:31 AM EST
Dude, the rice crispy thing isn't missing anything. It's a popper! just turn the base umm... inside out? I guess that's how you'd describe it... and then set it down. Then eventually the base will *pop* and fly into the air. Good, clean, well-balanced fun.
Chestnuts roasted by ODD @ 01/07/2004 06:43 AM EST
Seriously, If you want tons of crap like this, let me know. I'm getting ready to finally move out of my folks house at the chipper young age of 22 and I have a closet filled with usesless crap that I refuse to take with me because it will probably ruin any chance I ever have of getting laid.
Chestnuts roasted by Frank @ 01/07/2004 07:45 AM EST
Let me holla atcha Playa.
Well here I is. Up on X-E afta my first successful night as da GM on Monday Night Long. Beelee dat playa. Oh it aint called Monday Night Long yet, but just wait until day see the ratings that the black man puts in this biotch. Beelee dat playa.
Right now I'm listenin to tha brotha Triumph Tha Insult Comic Dog and he's giving that whitey Eminem a good stern talkin too. Beelee dat playa. Anyway, I think it's time to get down to da bidness. Everytime I come up on da X-E I think my main man Matt has gotten those Racist bones out his body. But then he leaves the color out of da Playmobile story. Beelee dat playa. And then you played the homegirl Mare Wingingham. Ya know that's a sista. Hey Mare, if you managed to harness da power of dat beast and are readin this, holla at ya boy, I should be replacing the Mack Attack at some point and could use a ho... er young lady like yaself. Beelee dat playa.
Now on to today articlea. First of all, on item numba one, you know damn well that it's an item of cracka propaganda. Beelee dat playa. Blig eyes, big head, you know what they haterizin about man. And what's wit the 49 items brotha Matt? Ya see, I happen to know for a fact that Mr. Whitey Matty is hidin somethin. Because lets be honest brothas and sistas, how hard would it have been to make one extra page for one more caucsialicious item? Brotha Darth was lucky just to be included. But he don't count. Dark side indee, beelee dat playa.
So it only leads me to beelee you got something you hidin, I think you need to spill ya guts to the black man about what you got that could very well change the universe right on it's toes. I bet you it's some sorta artifac that proves that the first human was a balck man. Holla!!!
Chestnuts roasted by Theodore R. Long @ 01/07/2004 09:04 AM EST
I love this set up. each click was like opening a present. A 49 day advent calender. Woo!
That bird thing looks strangely familiar to me, but I can't place it. Is it from The Wiz?
Chestnuts roasted by trajeal @ 01/07/2004 09:17 AM EST
I have the willow magic trick, only I got it from burger king and it wasn't a willow magic trick. Basically it was some stupid thing with the burger king kids club. I am david blain.
Chestnuts roasted by Chad @ 01/07/2004 09:18 AM EST
first off, BRILLIANT article!!!
second, am i the only one that noticed matt kept calling the $50 monopoly gum a 20 ?
Chestnuts roasted by saint matthew @ 01/07/2004 09:41 AM EST
A Few Random Comments:
A lot of the items in the bag are old food, as are the subjects of many of your other articles. You may or may not know of Louis Pasteur's famous spontaneous generation experiment. In this experiment, he poured some soup in a flask and boiled it, thus killing of any bacteria already in the soup. Then he bent the neck of the flask to a "swan neck" shape. After waiting for some period of time, he found that the soup had not rotted, but that there was some gunk at the bottom of the swan neck, which turned out to be bacteria that were trying to eat the soup but couldn't make it through the tube. I'm told that these flasks of soup are still around in a museum or something, and that the soup still has yet to rot. If you want to review some really old food, you should try that.
That "Who's the Real Cap'n?" thing was evil. The commercials made it seem like the challenge in this contest was the actual task of figuring out who the real Cap'n was, and that once you figured it out, you were guaranteed to get a prize of your choice. I sent in a note saying it was 'B' and that I wanted a Gameboy. I eventually got a letter congratulating me for finding the real Cap'n, but my only reward was the satisfaction of a job well done.
The Count Chocula card would appear to have come with the Booberry card and the Crazy Cow card. Is there any particular reason why you chose to separate them. If you were going to separate them, why not also separate the Booberry card and the Crazy Cow card? Then you could say that you were showing us fifty things rather than forty-nine, making a nice round number.
I remember that those plastic baseball caps were extremely popular for a brief period of time. It was either immediately before the slap bracelet craze or immediately after it. You couldn't actually do anything with them, but they were a collectors item. Since the popularity of a given plastic baseball cap was usually based on the based on the popularity of the teams they represented, the plain red one probably wasn't very popular. Unless, of course, they said it was Bart Simpson's lucky red cap. If they did that, it would be the most sought after one out there. Anyway, in addition to coming in boxes of cereal, Dairy Queen used to have miniature sundaes that were served in those plastic baseball caps, which you could then wash and take home.
Finally, that Rice Krispies popper thing reminded me of a similar Mario toy that I got once, I think in a Happy meal. Attached to his feet was a suction cup with a spring coming out, and the other end of the spring was attached to a little plastic circle. You would stick the suction cup to the circle and stand back. Eventually, the spring overpowers the suction cup and Mario jumps into the air, just like in the video game. It works a lot better then the old "turn ruber hemisphere inside-out" thing.
Chestnuts roasted by gmfbrown @ 01/07/2004 09:54 AM EST
But what was the one item that wasn't interesting enough to include? 49 out of 50 made the cut, so what was so special about this one?
By labelling it as the least interesting item, Matt has turned it into the most interesting.
Chestnuts roasted by Ubu Rex @ 01/07/2004 10:20 AM EST
Batman Candy Busts = Quality Nightmare Fuel
Chestnuts roasted by Slacker @ 01/07/2004 10:32 AM EST
Cool stuff. I still have the "Cap'n Crunch figurine". My neighbors used to have the Soggies and I hated them for that. I received my Cap'n figure straight out of the cereal box tho. I have a similar "lemon grizzly bear", but mine is orange. No idea where it's from. I really miss the "Rice Krispies Popper". I remember it was very gelatinous and I couldn't resist sinking my teeth into the thing. I had the "Cap'n Crunch Spinner". I remember I made my very own Legend Of Zelda board game, and incorporated that spinner into the game board. Fun times. I remember the "Aladdin Spinner" being deathly retarded. I was a thorougly disappointed child. I do remember receiving the "Rice Krispies Car" in the mail after sending in several UPCs. I have two of them actually, one for play, one for keepin' in tha baggie. However, I got mine circa 1989, as opposed to Matt's 1979 listing. Maybe a re-release? I still have the "Batmobile Candy Dispenser" as well. That was really a lame one compared to the awesome metal toys you could be zooming around. Still have the "Cap'n Crunch Treasure Chest". Very half-assed toy. Again, disappointment in the fact that it could only hold "half" of my entire fortune... (three coins) :( As for the "Mohawk Dinosaur"... it just might be a poorly represented Corythosaurus, which had the mohawk on top of their heads and a similar body shape as the T-Rex. The "Weird Cap'n Crunch disc" is one of my favorite toys ever. I used to flick that thing all over (especially behind the couch, where I would then go into super spy mode to retrieve the captured toy). And yes, flicking the disc with the accompanying stick was way way more fun than just throwing it. I still see those "Plastic Baseball Caps" all the time. The "??????? Purple Figurine" is a Fringie space alien. The "Honeycomb Frisbee" was kind of lame... nothing to 'flick' it with. It might've glowed in the dark, I can't remember.
Chestnuts roasted by Tadashi @ 01/07/2004 10:43 AM EST
Oh yeah, wasn't that "Webbigail Duck Tales figurine" from the Duck Tales movie? I still have a couple of the figures, including the boys wearing the safari hats they wore in the movie.
Chestnuts roasted by Tadashi @ 01/07/2004 10:47 AM EST
I personally chew Winterfresh gum... and was massively saddened to see them change the package a few years back. That's why I oddly have a "classic" pack of Winterfresh sitting on my shelf. One time, someone asked me if they could have a piece...
Me: "Ummmm... that Winterfresh is special."
Them: "Huh?"
Me: "It's the uh... old packaging."
Them: "So?"
Me: "I'm saving it."
Them: "You're a douche."
Chestnuts roasted by Tadashi @ 01/07/2004 10:52 AM EST
great article! i had a similar garfield toy. it may have came in a box of corn pops, im not sure. but it was a yellow lock (no combination) you just would turn it until it opened. it was worthless but i hung onto it for a few years.
Chestnuts roasted by mikey @ 01/07/2004 11:28 AM EST
Boo-ya kaboom! Old cereal toys and cheap crap! It's the little things in life that make sugar-consumption worth doing. I wonder what did happen to the previous owner of all that stuff? Maybe a collapse of Sugar Crisp glo in the dark yoyos sent him to the great beyond. Not unlike the dude trapped under a pile of magazines in his own apartment.
Chestnuts roasted by kingklash @ 01/07/2004 11:45 AM EST
Sadly, we'll never see this so called "junk" again in cereal boxes now that all they give are CD's. In the year 2060 Matt Jr. will take his fathers place and be reviewing a zip-loc bag filled with fast food and cereal CD's he bought for $10,000 (you know, inflation and such).
Chestnuts roasted by kennef @ 01/07/2004 11:47 AM EST
hey matt... i noticed something with Chinese on it in the first pic of the bag of crap ... the 50th item? I happen to read and write Chinese, so if you'll post bigger pics, I'll tell you what it says!
Chestnuts roasted by jjaynah @ 01/07/2004 12:04 PM EST
Bah...shows how observant I am.
I should've noticed that giant card, with attached figure, featuring a turtle riding a swan.
Mystery solved. I remain interested by this item and am confused and frightened by its omission from the story.
Chestnuts roasted by Ubu Rex @ 01/07/2004 12:57 PM EST
The red "Diver Guy" near the top is really an Astronaut Guy. The thinner pressure suit and visored helmet design predate the Apollo program, and likely the Gemini program too, so it's probably from the Mercury program (circa 1958-1964).
Chestnuts roasted by Swamp Thing @ 01/07/2004 01:03 PM EST
I actually named my fish with the hilarious opposite naming system utalized by "Short Neck", thus dooming my betta fish with a life of being called "Goldy"
Chestnuts roasted by Ka-Dave @ 01/07/2004 01:09 PM EST
I had the astronaut guy, the Capn Crunch figure, and the Garfield pencil topper ...
Chestnuts roasted by Al Boondy @ 01/07/2004 01:16 PM EST
I know what happened to the previous owner of the Amazing Bag O' Crap. You see, there used to be not two but three packs of 30 year old Chiclets in the bag. One day, our crap collecting hero got a little hungry for gum. He's spent all his money on cereal, to try and get more prizes and such, and didn't want the Big Red because he loved the packaging too much to destroy it. So, he took his chances on a pack of Chiclets and died from radiation poisoning. Yes, Chiclets become radioactive after 30 years. I read that on a science webpage somewhere, so it must be true.
Chestnuts roasted by Gabbylicious @ 01/07/2004 01:20 PM EST
hly crap this came out today and already 34 comments
Chestnuts roasted by Scourge @ 01/07/2004 01:26 PM EST
The truth about the BooBerry, Count Chocula and cow cards...it's sad really. They were a card game, I believe like Go Fish (or Old Maid). I know we had them but I was little back then. I have enough trouble remembering yesterday...though for different reasons.
Chestnuts roasted by Killer Duck @ 01/07/2004 01:33 PM EST
The "Galaxy Rangers" whistle and license plate were Roy Rogers promo items in 1987 or 1988. A buddy of mine worked at Roy's and I'd trade him promo stuff from my job at Wendy's. I still have a complete set of Potato Head kids if anybody is looking for some.
The red astronaut may be from earlier, but I bought gray and white astronauts from the exact same molds at a science museum in 1985.
Chestnuts roasted by Eeyore @ 01/07/2004 01:47 PM EST
How now Crazy Cow! Yet more evidence of either a really good mind for trivia, or really old age. Cow was sold on the point that it would flavor your milk. I loved the stuff. I was going to blame the demise of Previous Owner on Duck, but my body might be found in a alley with suspiscous bill prints, so I won't. I remember glowing stickers from the monster cereals that had that weird electric blue glow that you just don't see anymore. And Lucky Charms weather forcasting pictures with a fuzzy printing for the pot o'gold that would change color when a storm was already at your door. Don't get me started on original Happy Meal toys.
Chestnuts roasted by kingklash @ 01/07/2004 01:54 PM EST
I had the strange turquoise Garfield pencil topper!! I declare it was issued again, otherwise I don't think it would survive from the 1981 release to my being old enough to remember it ('90 at the earliest) in a house with 3 kids.
Chestnuts roasted by Diana @ 01/07/2004 02:11 PM EST
I used to have the wookie head. I *think* there was chewbacha shaped hard candy inside, but I seem to remember filling it up with the contents of pixie sticks and carrying it about. Eventually it got all chewed up (what is it about that kind of plastic that makes you want to chew it?
Chestnuts roasted by Five17 @ 01/07/2004 02:18 PM EST
Just one other bit of info on the Diving Tony toy (http://www.x-entertainment.com/articles/0856/junk/27.html). It is from 1987/88. I remember having lots of these in my dorm room.
Chestnuts roasted by FourLizards @ 01/07/2004 02:24 PM EST
I've been stopping by here for quite some time, always loved your site. Only became an addict after the whole Kid Cuisine deal.
But yeah, I had one of those tony tiger thins that bob down into a liter of water, and I loved it...kids are dumb.
Chestnuts roasted by Devin @ 01/07/2004 02:26 PM EST
Hey
that Aladdin toy
i remember it
what you do it that you put the stickers on the spinny thingy and spin it
then you ask it a question and stop it and rub off the gray spot and it will give an answer
Chestnuts roasted by josh @ 01/07/2004 03:05 PM EST
Great article. Lots of work to read. :)
Like that Matilda pin, I used to have one addressing a MaryKate and Ashley movie. I think I gave it away. What a mistake that was.
Chestnuts roasted by Melanie @ 01/07/2004 03:07 PM EST
WEIRD CAP'N CRUNCH THING!
It's really stupid. You put the wide end of the "paddle" into the slot in the disc. Hold the other end of the paddle between your thumb and forefinger, while holding the disc the same way with your other hand. pull the disc back (bending the paddle), then let it fly. It shoots across the room when you let go.
Chestnuts roasted by jason @ 01/07/2004 03:08 PM EST
the aladin toy from burger king
they were supposed to be fortune tellers, you put the stickers of the genie on the wheel and spin it..
you then rub the lamp and your fortune appears....
and voila, your fate is determined
Chestnuts roasted by roydrowsy @ 01/07/2004 03:12 PM EST
Where are the sea monkeys? I need more sea monkeys. I got a fever and the only cure is more sea monkey. Everyone gets gold plated diapers if you just give me more sea monkeys.
Chestnuts roasted by Mucas @ 01/07/2004 03:27 PM EST
I love toys that are projectiles. Used to get in trouble bringing them to class. Those were the days...teachers busting your ass for bringing plastic flingy things to school. Now the teachers are afraid of students and they worry more about losing their lives than someone putting out someone else's eye.
Suspicious bill prints...that's about the funniest thing I have ever heard, king. Reminds me of that Grandma xmas song- incriminating Claus marks...
Chestnuts roasted by Killer Duck @ 01/07/2004 03:32 PM EST
Sea monkeys are great...they taste like chicken. Just add some cocktail sauce...
Chestnuts roasted by Killer Duck @ 01/07/2004 03:33 PM EST
Some of this shit has got to be worth money, if only because any sane person would throw them out to begin with.
Chestnuts roasted by Greg @ 01/07/2004 03:45 PM EST
The Honeycomb-branded device is in fact a mini-frisbee, but here's the kicker (are you sitting down?) -- it glows in the dark! I put up with at least three straight boxes of Honeycomb to get these things when I was 7, such was my fascination with barely-glowing pieces of plastic. I bet I still have one in the basement somewhere.
Chestnuts roasted by Josh @ 01/07/2004 04:02 PM EST
Try putting punky T-rex in the freezer. If he changes color then you'll know he's from a long forgotten Fruity Pebbles promotion. I have two of these guys (different models), which I keep in my parents' freezer. Every other year or so, my Mom tries to "give" them to me in my xmas stocking (they're already mine!). In theory you could use it tell if you're freezer's working -- mighty valuable if you're one of those people who can't feel hot or cold.
Chestnuts roasted by purple_monkey_dishwasher @ 01/07/2004 04:09 PM EST
Matt you are killin' it! Keep going man, you- are- onnnn- fire!
Chestnuts roasted by Gerald james @ 01/07/2004 04:28 PM EST
The little flip-r-flyers can be found in the oddest places, you can order them from catalogs like oriental trading company, or win them with ski-ball tickets.
Chestnuts roasted by kingklash @ 01/07/2004 04:33 PM EST
Now this is a classic X-E article. I distinctly remember eating the "candy" from that plastic Batman bust. It had a unique flavor that has yet to be replicated. Its odd that I remember eating that candy out of the many things I did as a little kid.
Chestnuts roasted by Sirkus Peanuts @ 01/07/2004 04:38 PM EST
king, yup. My father's company has a lot of redemption ticket machines. They order from this company (besides Oriental Trading) and in that catalog are similar things. I really love that kind of thing. That must be why every year someone gives me one of those plastic disk shooters.
Chestnuts roasted by Killer Duck @ 01/07/2004 04:39 PM EST
The previous owner was none other than Nathan Bitner, creator of Photog.
Been a while since that fake Bitner posted on teh SuperBlog, and I wanted to make sure the name came up in multiple search hits.
Chestnuts roasted by FreeBird @ 01/07/2004 04:51 PM EST
I was farking one day and came across this site... just wanted to tell you how awesome I think it is. I'm glad to know someone's keeping all the 80's crap alive. I LOVED the macys thanksgiving parade review. I actually took some of the video clips and made a screensaver. (don't worry, you're not the only one with too much time on hand.)
Chestnuts roasted by Sarah @ 01/07/2004 04:54 PM EST
boy oh boy do I wish I had something to say about these. The only one I ever had was the "Expos" baseball hat thingy. I remember begging my parents day after day to take me to Dairy Queen so I could try to get the "Twins" one. It was the only thing I ever begged for like that. Any other time I got my hide tanned. Wonder why they let me whine for a stupid baseball hat?
Chestnuts roasted by brandon @ 01/07/2004 04:54 PM EST
I think I know what that Aladdin spinner is. I believe that you put the genie stickers on the top. You would ask a yes/no question. then you'd spin it and stop it with your finger. The Lamp you touched would then reveil your anwser. It was silly, but fun.
Chestnuts roasted by Chris @ 01/07/2004 05:03 PM EST
Man, now I really want to see that Felix cartoon... Could you post it up in full sometime, Matt?
Chestnuts roasted by Lone_Psycho @ 01/07/2004 05:07 PM EST
You have outdone yourself this time. What a find!
Chestnuts roasted by starnes @ 01/07/2004 05:09 PM EST
This article nailed me a date with a beautiful girl! I was trying to ask her out, got the heebee-jeebies, and read this article, laughed, felt better, got the date. W00T! All Hail Matt! King of the Swedish!
Chestnuts roasted by Prince Corwin @ 01/07/2004 05:17 PM EST
A long time ago, before some of you were born, I used to buy UFO candy. It came in a big round disc. when you finished with the candy, you could pry open the disc, and find a short description of a famous UFO on the inside of one half. And...(oboy, giggle, here it comes) you could use one half to launch the other half like a flip-r-thingamajiggerflyingdoohickeyamabob. Yes, the 70's were odd times. On the plus side, we still had dangerous toys that caused either physical damage (poink! my eye!) or psychological (why are Skipper's boobs growing?).
Chestnuts roasted by kingklash @ 01/07/2004 05:26 PM EST
I seriously want that 50th item, the swan/turtle card and figure thing. I lurve weird stuff like that
Chestnuts roasted by iscabibble @ 01/07/2004 05:36 PM EST
Ho-lee crap...The Aladdin fortune teller thing is one of my favorite burger kids' meal toys EVER.
Chestnuts roasted by Behonkiss @ 01/07/2004 05:51 PM EST
MUST REMEMBER! WILL NOT STOP!
I just had a flashback! when I was a child, I would purchase "powder candy" that came in injection- molded plastic packages. The cool thing about the candy was that the plastic containers connected togethere to make spaceships or robots. I can't remember which! anyone else remember this candy?
Chestnuts roasted by crowbar @ 01/07/2004 05:52 PM EST
There is no mystery 50th item that people keep referring to, the bag contained over 50 items and Matt selected 49 that he deemed note-worthy, and note-worthy they were, great article.
Chestnuts roasted by Brentantation @ 01/07/2004 05:55 PM EST
AHH! That goddamn plasic chicken!
i know it! dont know how but i do
Chestnuts roasted by Jared @ 01/07/2004 06:15 PM EST
There was a miscolored garfield ceral promotion, other than the pnecil topper. I rember getting several garfield bike reflectors in various colors. They were basicaly lare garfield heads with the eyes made out of reflectings stuff and you would put the thing on one of the wheels of your bike.
Chestnuts roasted by Bright Noah @ 01/07/2004 06:35 PM EST
Damn, I had that one. It must be pretty old -- I remember never really knowing what it was. The flickering eyes were great.
Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 01/07/2004 06:37 PM EST
I never thought I'd live to see a Tony the Tiger butt-plug. Too bad there was no Crispy Critters lubricant.
Chestnuts roasted by Russ G. @ 01/07/2004 06:41 PM EST
Believe it or not, I was actually one of those lucky bastards that won a Huffy bike from the good Cap'n. I was three or four at the time, so that puts the contest at about '83 or so. I ate my cereal, looked at the box, told my mom that I'd won the bike, and then went outside to play. After saying, "That's nice, dear," she happened to glance at the box and realize I was right. So she called the number and I got to go to Toys 'R Us to pick up a bike that was too large for me to ride for several years. It is now slowly decentigrating in the attic of my parents' house.
Good times. Way better than the stupid Garfield pencil toppers.
Chestnuts roasted by Jeremy Hull @ 01/07/2004 06:59 PM EST
Yes, the Garfield pencil toppers! I think there was also an Odie one, and, believe it or not, it was his TONGUE you wagged to make him blink. But then again, I may be smoking crack.
And Kingklash, I remember both glowing monster stickers (I'm guessing also from the monster cereals) and glowing dinosaur track stickers (maybe from Krispy Kritters). Very cool blue and orange and red glowing glows. I decorated my bulletin board in my room with them, but I took them down shortly...because the glowing monster stickers led to nightmares... THAT is sad.
And the elongated Darth Vader candy holder..."it's almost as if Topps wanted to illustrate how Vader would appear when surprised." Just the mental image of this tickles me to no end. I can imagine one of his imperial goons telling him rebels have infiltrated his ship...and Darth, all still and emotionless, with a brief elongation of the helmet. Classic. Nay, brilliant.
Chestnuts roasted by Nachokhaki @ 01/07/2004 07:13 PM EST
All that and I forgot to provide my thanks. Matt, boss, that article rawks. Thanks again, man.
Chestnuts roasted by Nachokhaki @ 01/07/2004 07:15 PM EST
btw that candy skate was filled with some of the best cany i have ever had. i can't remember what it was shaped like but it was the chalky yet slightly fruity type. similar to my all time faves which were shaped like bones and came in a tombstone.
anyways yeah that thing made a fun addition to action figures, smaller ppl like legos and such could use it as a mode of tranportation. my brother broke his and the bottom was then used as a skateboard an idea decades ahead of its time!
Chestnuts roasted by Coughlin @ 01/07/2004 07:17 PM EST
Hey I don't know if anyone else was obsessed with those mini baseball helmets (there were also football helmets with stickers you put on yourself) as I was - I thought they were amazing. My friend and I would collect them to see who could get all 26 (?) first. Anyway, I remember getting them in cereal, but mostly those little 25 cent machines in front of the grocery store. When I think about all the money I wasted while trying to find the last one...and subsequently getting that goddamn Yankees helmet everytime...ahh, as usual, thanks for the warm fuzzy reminder of my incredibly dorky childhood, Matt.
Chestnuts roasted by Aaron @ 01/07/2004 07:31 PM EST
This article will DEFINATELY go down in X-E history.
Chestnuts roasted by Freezair @ 01/07/2004 07:31 PM EST
well there is a lot of comments so instead of reading them all, I'm just going to leave my comments on some of the things. The Diver/space explorer guy is in fact a space explorer. I had a whole bunch of these guys.. I think they may still be in my basement actually. The roller skate candy thing seems strangely familiar. As for the Captain Crunch propelled disk whatchama thinger.. I actaully had these with Dark Wing Duck on them. the little plastic bit goes in the slit ont he side of the disk and you pull back the disk and fling it. At least it looks like one of those to me. I also had a fair collection of those plastic baseball caps. Damn I want those chiclets. Don't ask my why. And lastly.. I had that Batman candy head thing too. I think the hats and the batman head thing may possibly still exist in my basement as well.
Chestnuts roasted by Toxicity- @ 01/07/2004 08:05 PM EST
Re: "Series Five" and Galaxy Rangers. It's not supposed to imply that there were four previous series of GR license plates or even four previous series of promo items. Rather, each of the Rangers had a "Series Five Brain Implant" that enhanced innate powers or gave them new ones. So each of the main characters was a Series Five Ranger, or somesuch, and a license plate on a child's bicycle would presumably be a warning that you are (a) equipped with vaguely defined superpowers and (b) an agent of a government that doesn't exist. We really, REALLY need that show on DVD; I remember it as being one of the most unique and deep programs of its time but if I watched it now it'd probably be as bad as Transformers.
Peace,
Zach (no guts no glory, no pain no gain)
Chestnuts roasted by ZQ Adams @ 01/07/2004 08:59 PM EST
Hmm... kind of a pain for people to not read all the posts and keep posting the same thing over and over, eh? But those Garfield reflectors! I'm so glad someone mentioned those, or I would have forgotten until my life's final flashback on my deathbed. Those were definitely in the "sweet" classification of things. Mine was a pink colour, probably due to fading in the sun.
Chestnuts roasted by Tadashi @ 01/07/2004 09:15 PM EST
I had the Garfield pencil topper when I was in the fifth grade,which was in '87-'88,so that's probably when it was rereleased if it had a 1981 copyright date on it.
Chestnuts roasted by Overlord @ 01/07/2004 09:44 PM EST
Matt, these types of articles are awesome, since practically every X-E reader can identify with at least one of the items. Personally, I'd love to see more of these, but hey, anything you write is good enough for me :)
Chestnuts roasted by Rob @ 01/07/2004 09:47 PM EST
Was just readint through some of the comments. I think this blog entry might be even more popular than the advent calendar. Something like 80 comments in less than 24 hours.
King, it's a mind for trivia, actually. In school I could not remember anything but ask me bits of trivia about old tv shows, shit like that, I am so on it. Of everything I have lost, I miss my mind the most.
Chestnuts roasted by Killer Duck @ 01/07/2004 09:50 PM EST
Wow... Just... Wow...
Hey, why didn't you look at the Japanes Phone Card I could see in the bag?
Chestnuts roasted by Mr. Mr. Mr. @ 01/07/2004 10:09 PM EST
I think purple_monkey_dishwasher is right about the punky t-rex. I had one when I was little, and I think it turned white?
Chestnuts roasted by Anita @ 01/07/2004 10:27 PM EST
Ahh, the memories. I can't believe I remember some of this stuff. Of the items listed that my sisters and I had, the unqualified favorite was the Tony the Tiger bobber. I recognized it instantly. We used to spend hours filling up empty soda bottles and letting Tony float to the top.
I wouldn't have been surprised if we had a few plastic baseball caps floating around - they were probably used as props for Barbie dolls or action figures, since none of us were (or are) big baseball fans.
I remember the "Who's the Real Cap'n" promotion, but don't ask me what the toy is. My memory doesn't work THAT well. We probably had the toy. The good Cap'n was one of the few cereals my sisters would eat and I wouldn't touch unless someone already scarfed every other bit of edible cereal in the house. We probably had the Cap'n "Islands of Adventure" figure, and I know we had the treasure chest, because we used it for years as place for our She-Ra and Thundercat figures to find fabulous treasure (or whatever coins we could find under couch pillows that would fit in the chest).
The Duck Tails figure is familiar. I don't think we had Webby, but we may have had the boys. Incidentally, my favorite character on the show was Launchpad McQuack, the pilot who couldn't stay in the air. He was so popular, he was one of two DT characters carried over to "Darkwing Duck" (Gizmo Duck being the other).
Chestnuts roasted by starwenn @ 01/07/2004 10:28 PM EST
Accidentally pushed the "Post This Comment" button before I could add that the Honeycomb mini-frisbee (we used it as a really big plate for Barbie dolls or a really small coaster), the Garfield pencil topper (and the reflectors Bright Noah mentioned - one of my sisters grabbed those), and the Willow coin trick (my brother may still have that in his room somewhere, I know I saw it for years...) also ring proverbial bells. It's amazing how something as simple as a vaguely tiger-shaped or round glow-in-the-dark pieces of plastic can trigger so many memories...
My favorite of the items I'd never seen before was the pencil-shaped pencil sharpner. My mom made me a glasses case in the shape of a pencil, so there's been stranger uses of a common writing utencil.
Chestnuts roasted by starwenn @ 01/07/2004 10:33 PM EST
I have one of those Odie pencil toppers, which my grandma held onto for quite a while then gave to me. o_O you do indeed pull on his tongue to make his tail wag.
Chestnuts roasted by GJ @ 01/07/2004 10:45 PM EST
This whole article thing got me thinking about cereal prizes and shit like that. Way way back (not as far back as king remembers, though), we got some cereal with a contest going on. Thrill of thrills, we were an instant winner! (I keep saying "we" because in this house the folks tried to get the three kids to share) We had won third prize and needed to send the little game piece in and everything...third prize was "A TREASURE CHEST FULL OF GAMES!!!!!" Wowowowowowow! I had never had a treasure chest before, let alone one full of games! I thought about the Bozo show where the kids would win the chest O toys and thought it was perhaps the best day ever! I mean there was going to be something like 50 games here! So we all waited 6 to 8 weeks for delivery. The day it came everyone was jangled with excitement. Yes, jangled. The box was kind of small...the TREASURE CHEST FULL OF GAMES was very thin cardboard box full of small cheap plastic checkers, chess bits, and varied other generic nanoparticles to use with about ten paper-ish game boards. The feeling of being let down was palpable, I tell you...never again did I allow myself to get excited about cereal contests.
Chestnuts roasted by Killer Duck @ 01/07/2004 10:53 PM EST
Yes the Glow in the Dark Cap'n Crunch Toy is I believe called a Flippy Flier. The tab device is the launcher and it is held in one hand while you set it in the notch in the disk, pullback on disk (thereby bending the launch tab) release the disk and your flippy flier will soar through the air!
Chestnuts roasted by FarSighted @ 01/07/2004 11:08 PM EST
Matt - I want those old hollywood card things from the article! My wife collects hollywood crap. I'll trade you a TMNT tv tray from the original run for them...
Chestnuts roasted by planet garp @ 01/07/2004 11:12 PM EST
over 90 comments...looks like this article was a success! :D
Chestnuts roasted by heeloyd @ 01/07/2004 11:40 PM EST
One thing about the Chiclets... didn't they bring back the old logo for a while, since it had much more personality than the italicized, sans-serif font they were using in the 1990s? And I think they never changed the Chiclets logo in some countries.
Chestnuts roasted by Steve Brandon @ 01/08/2004 12:19 AM EST
Damnit! Now I want a mini-plastic baseball hat! I wonder where I can get one these days.
Chestnuts roasted by Bento Bunny @ 01/08/2004 12:26 AM EST
Haha I think we have to subtract about 10 or so posts from the total, since that is probably how many repeated instructions there are for how to work the Aladdin fortune teller... and the Tony the Tiger diver thingy... and whatever that whirly Cap'n Crunch thing is.
Chestnuts roasted by Gabbylicious @ 01/08/2004 12:30 AM EST
when matilda was released on video, the video shop around the corner gave us a matilda badge except it was bigger.
ah, wizz fizz. how did you manage to migrate so far away from home? my sister and i used to get a 'jug 'o gum' or something like that. it was purple and it had sand in it which turned into bubblegum when you chewed it.
Chestnuts roasted by Rachel Cakes @ 01/08/2004 12:35 AM EST
Oh, I forgot. Since you're all insane, you might want to find out which historical lunatic you are. I'm Charles VI the mad king of France. Here's the link http://rumandmonkey.com/widgets/tests/lunatics/
Chestnuts roasted by Gabbylicious @ 01/08/2004 12:36 AM EST
Yes the red plastic figure is an astronaut, I remember having him back in the 70's, I think he came with a toy space rocket and other plastic astronaut figures in different poses.
Chestnuts roasted by Nuke @ 01/08/2004 12:36 AM EST
OMG I HAD ALL THOSE THINGS! This is the best article. Matt is a genius once again.
You are now redeemed for writing that critters 3 article.
Chestnuts roasted by wack0 @ 01/08/2004 01:24 AM EST
Gabbs...what horrors hath you wrought upon me? I am highly disturbed to find out that I am Ludwig II, the Swan King of Bavaria. It's bad enough that I am some dolt I have never heard of, also, apparently, I am a male swan or something. Funny, I think I would have noticed the feathers and penis.
Chestnuts roasted by Killer Duck @ 01/08/2004 02:14 AM EST
Let's see, I remember having not one, but three of those Batman candy heads, just mine had no coloring to their eyes at all. And I remember buying Fizz Whiz when I was little at a penny candy shop when I was in first grade. That stuff kicked the everloving crap out of Pop Rocks. I never knew it was Austrailian. Hell, I never even heard of Austrialia until I was in 3rd grade. I thought that Philadelphia (my home) and New Jersey were as big as half the planet. Remember being a foolish kid?
I remember the Galaxy Rangers Roy Rogers' kids meals. Hell, I fondly remember everything Roy Rogers, because they were my favorite fast food chain of my childhood. I even met Roy Rogers at a grand opening one of their restaraunts. My dad tells me that Roy said to me "I bet you don't know who I am", to which I responded, "You're Bronco Billy", that being a Clint Eastwood film from the late '70's. Roy's burgers ruled... the Fixins was the schiznit, nothing's better than putting 50 pickle slices on your burger when you're like 7 years old. However, the only Galaxy Rangers toy I recall was one where the meal was placed in this big plastic spaceship which was to double as a toy boat. It was also adorned with stickers featuring images of the characters from the cartoon. Mostly the bad guys I recall. But I remember the leader had some kinda superhumanly strong arms and there was another good guy was named "Goose."
Yeah, I'd love to see that and Bionic 6 and all those crappy cartoons I liked on DVD now.
Anywho, I wanted to throw in that you CAN find Superfriends on DVD, so why not any of the other lame crap?
Chestnuts roasted by Joe D. @ 01/08/2004 02:24 AM EST
Now those, those are some sexy old toys.
The "the Mummy" and "Nicker" keychains, or at least the graphics on them, go at least back to the early 1970s--you know those gumball machines where you put a quarter in and you get some random toy or little trinket? I had at least three of those monster-heads like those two, only in glow-in-the-dark, puffy sticker form, out of a machine like that at the supermarket where my Mom used to shop. A major carbon-dating clue was, there was one that was a vampire face that said "Barnabas" (of that godawful vampire drama "Dark Shadows" fame). This was after the show had gone off the air, but before cable TV had appeared, so I was like, "'Barnabas'? What the hell??"
And to double/triple/however many times we're up to confirm: yes, that's a Capt. Crunch flying disk, and the little thing with it is a launcher---you sort of hold the launcer between your thumb & forefinger, put it into the notch on the disk, and sort of pull back n' release. In the "free! in specially marked boxes of..." ad, they showed some kids using 'em.
Chestnuts roasted by Jon @ 01/08/2004 04:46 AM EST
Duck, you mean you don't have feathers? You poor bald fowl you.
Chestnuts roasted by Gabbylicious @ 01/08/2004 04:57 AM EST
"Yes, the Garfield pencil toppers! I think there was also an Odie one, and, believe it or not, it was his TONGUE you wagged to make him blink. But then again, I may be smoking crack. "
Nope, I had both the Odie and Garfield. There was also a Nermal and Garfield's kitty friend. Came in Corn Pop cereal. Garfield was abundent, bought four boxes of corn pops and got three Garfields and one Odie.
Chestnuts roasted by Thomas @ 01/08/2004 05:32 AM EST
Oddly enough, it was 5:30 in the morning, and since I didn't feel like going back to sleep, I decided to sit here and read all 49 articles to this. Meanwhile, I was watching "Garfield and Friends," and then came across that pencil topper thing. I thought for sure that garfield had a different look in 1981 than he does now, to the point where if it was a 1981 edition, I wouldn't have recognized it right away. But then after finding the Garfield cartoon on my computer from the day I was born (11/13/81), I realized that everybody's favorite feline hasn't really changed all that much in the past 22 years. I'm done babbling now. Keep up the good work with the site Matt!
Chestnuts roasted by Skitzo @ 01/08/2004 06:27 AM EST
On that lunatic test i got ludwig II.
I'm glad alot of other people fondly remember those reflectors, they were one of the nicer things you'd get for free out of a box of cereal.
I remember going crazy as a little kid to get all those mini basebal and also football helmets. Even though i didn't really like football i liked the helmets better because they came with stickers to put on the helmet plus a face guard you could deattacht.
Chestnuts roasted by Bright Noah @ 01/08/2004 10:04 AM EST
In response to Skitzo, I always took pride in Garfield because the strip was "born" the same year I was, just two months before me. Back in the late 70s, he was MUCH fatter than he is now. very odd..., he actually slimmed down eating lasagna... move over, Atkins.
Check out this website...it has the first strips.
http://www.tepatoken.com/html/comic/momgarfield.htm
Chestnuts roasted by Nachokhaki @ 01/08/2004 10:21 AM EST
Leave it to Matt to bring back my fond childhood memories. I am new to your site, but I am now a daily reader. These blogs are fun!
I remember having about 25% of that crap as a child. Of course I loved the flipper fliers, and I still have Chewy's head hiding somewhere. I must have collected about 50 of those baseball cap things. They used to be all over the shelves in my room. As for the chicklets, I used to get those for Halloween. That's the packaging for dispersal. Ahh, memories.
Chestnuts roasted by Stilewalker @ 01/08/2004 10:51 AM EST
Guacamole!! I came up Caligula! I suppose, though, I should answer these thing a little more straightlaced or somesuch. Cool, the Duck is Mad King Ludwig, builder of my favorite castle. Location, location, location.
Chestnuts roasted by kingklash @ 01/08/2004 11:40 AM EST
Great article Matt. I also had a lot fo the stuff you found, and if I ever move all my stuff out of my parents I'll probably find some of it again.
Also, with all of this talk about Garfield, who has seen the new Garfield movie trailer. I can't believe they're making a live action movie about him!
Chestnuts roasted by Beerstalker @ 01/08/2004 11:53 AM EST
Congrats, King! You're not only insane, you're also evil! You're a multi-purpose lunatic.
Chestnuts roasted by Gabbylicious @ 01/08/2004 12:49 PM EST
Gabbs, contrary to popular notions, I am not actually a real duck...but I play one on tv. Harder to learn to play a duck than to play violin...It's odd but last night I didn't even see the odd connection between ducks and swans. Very odd indeed. Now time to waddle over to thge newest blog entry. I kind of hate that because I am afraid I will miss something. Sad and sort of pathetic, I guess.
Chestnuts roasted by Killer Duck @ 01/08/2004 01:34 PM EST
I slice, I dice, I took advantage of an amazing RonCo offer! And I owe it all to my near-genius IQ and teaching myself to read at age three so I could figger oot what Spiderman was saying on Electric Company. "Hello, my name is KingKlash, and I'm addicted to TeleVision. What's on?"
Chestnuts roasted by kingklash @ 01/08/2004 01:36 PM EST
Nice article.
Well JON beat me to it, but like he said, that mummy keychain was also part of a puffy stickers series that would glow in the dark. Never thought I'd see those again, but it's an amazing flashback. There was also a werewolf, a vampire and some female figure in those stickers..
Must...find...those...stickers...again.
Chestnuts roasted by Gralo @ 01/08/2004 02:43 PM EST
Is it just me? Or does that blue toy that you blow into to keep the ball in the air look an awfully lot like a damn crackpipe.
Chestnuts roasted by Lemonjello @ 01/08/2004 04:08 PM EST
on that captain crunch thing i know how it works.it is a disk flinger.
Stick peg into notch on the disk. hold the stick part and pull gently back on disk. Release disk and watch it fly..
Chestnuts roasted by Rattrap007 @ 01/08/2004 04:19 PM EST
I think that little dinosaur with the mohok was something i had when i was little. Dunk it in water and see if it changes color, if so then yeah, thats the stupid little toy, Ps they made about 30 of those things, i had a purple stegasaurus too..
Chestnuts roasted by Marissa @ 01/08/2004 05:10 PM EST
Beerstalker I saw that garfield movie trailer today. Being all cgi is bad enough, but they didn't even use the same voice actor as the cartoon version. it is a shame cause a cartoon garfield movie with the proper voice actor would have been great.
Chestnuts roasted by Bright Noah @ 01/08/2004 05:51 PM EST
Bright Noah, the person that did Garfield's voice on the cartoon was Lorenzo Music. Yes, his last name was music. He also used to do the voice of Carlton the Doorman on Rhoda (which was a spin off of Mary Tyler Moore). I am pretty sure the reason why he didn't do the voice for the movie is because he is dead.
Chestnuts roasted by Killer Duck @ 01/08/2004 05:57 PM EST
lol, i had the feeling that after i'd complain about the voice actor being different that some one would point out that he was dead and then i'd look like an ass.
Chestnuts roasted by Bright Noah @ 01/08/2004 06:16 PM EST
Talk about great stuff! Anyhow, regarding the Garfield stuff. I am certain that they were re-released (as several people have confirmed). I can also confirm the existance of the Odie item, as well as bring to light ANOTHER Garfield, this time he was the propper color (orange, but no stripes), and instead of opening his mouth manipulating the tail would cause him to raise his eyebrows.
Chestnuts roasted by Red October @ 01/08/2004 09:31 PM EST
Bright Noah- I don't think you look like an ass. I agree that it is difficult when you associate one voice with a character and them are expected to believe another voice. I can tell the difference with the Looney Tunes when it isn't Mel Blanc, I can tell the different voices in the Peanuts 'toons too.
Chestnuts roasted by Killer Duck @ 01/08/2004 09:53 PM EST
These are great. Funny how almost everybody on here had at least one of those things (especially 80s kids, we all pretty much had the same shit).
Those baseball caps were huge as noted above. I have that batman head sitting in a bag of action figures that consists of X-Men, Batman, Ghostbusters & Toxic Crusaders (among others). I always thought it had a strange scale.. guess I know now.
Chestnuts roasted by Matt (#2?) @ 01/08/2004 09:58 PM EST
Why is everybody going so apeshit over the so-called "50th item"? As Brentantation (great name btw) said, there were more than 50 items, matt picked what he wanted to do.
Besides, while 49 is only 1 away from 50, it's also only one away from 48. also, 7x7 is 49. I don't know much about football, but joe montana played for the 49ers. There's a town in Montana called "Joe". in 1949 Siam changed it's name to Thailand. Andy Kaufman was born in '49. Shit, i'd say all around 49 is a fuck of a lot cooler than 50 could ever be.
I worry about matt. he works so hard. please don't ever burn out matt.
Chestnuts roasted by Chopstick Sensei @ 01/08/2004 10:59 PM EST
is item #41 the gobbledy gooker from the early 90's WWF?? Also maybe it is one of jesus's deciples or my grandma.
Chestnuts roasted by aaron @ 01/09/2004 12:22 AM EST
The Burger King "Aladdin" toy that you have no clue about was a "Magic 8 Ball" for the poor kids. What you did was stick the stickers on the smooth side of the spinner, giver 'er a twirl while you ask the Genie your question, and with the warmth of your hand or breath or whatever is handy, his lamp will reveal the answer to your question much like the "Magic 8 Ball." Provided many answers to the questions of the universe concerning a 5th or 6th grade kid (such as, "Does he like me?" and "Will I pass this stupid test I can't study for cuz I'm playing with this toy?"). Yeah, great fun, fond memories. Ah, how I miss my fortune telling Genie.
I hope that helps, Matt! Thanks for letting us explore your bag o' crap with you!
Chestnuts roasted by Alycia @ 01/09/2004 12:27 AM EST
How many more people are going to say that's the Fortune Top? The Top was a cereal giveaway, not a Burger King giveaway. I think it was in Golden Crisp, or Honey Comb or whatever. I have the ad itself on tape to prove this. It's on a Garfield and Friends tape, to bring the subject back to Garfield. ^_^
Chestnuts roasted by Mars @ 01/09/2004 02:54 AM EST
I am no longer able to chew Big Red Gum. I chewed it so much as a kid that I developed an allergy. If I try to chew it now the inside of cheeks swell up so much that it's difficult to close my mouth. It sucks, because I REALLY REALLY like Big Red Gum. It took me a while to realize that it was the gum that was doing it, too. Kinda sad on my part. Kinda sad that I thought I needed to share that.
Chestnuts roasted by KodaK @ 01/09/2004 12:23 PM EST
wow , i remember at least half of whats there
its incredible man ,
kudos on the article matt
Chestnuts roasted by Xhay @ 01/09/2004 02:27 PM EST
Matt, absolutely fabulous bag 'o crap you got there! I remember having some of that junk. Loved reliving it :-)
Chestnuts roasted by Dana @ 01/09/2004 03:56 PM EST
Wow. That "Who's the real Capt. Crunch" contest brings back many memories. I won a Game Boy from that contest. Thing is, I didn't even know I won until one night when I found a package in front of my back door of my house. I wonder how long it had sat there for...
Dean
Chestnuts roasted by Dean @ 01/10/2004 12:25 AM EST
Is the blue thing the Chik-Fil-A chicken?
Chestnuts roasted by TEd @ 01/10/2004 02:51 PM EST
About the Chiclets, there aren't a "multitude of languages" on there as Matt said. Just one language: Spanish. So the Chiclets probably came from Mexico, meaning they're not as old as they look. A lot of fairly new Mexican packagings look straight out of the 50s; it's weird.
Anyway, the boxes pictured just say Chiclets Chewing Gum. One is Tutti Frutti flavored. The other one I'm not sure but it looks like the pack says "Sabor Yerbabuena."
If that's the case, Congratulations Matt, you now own a pack of Mexican Marijuana flavored Chiclets. Hold your head high and be proud.
Chestnuts roasted by Nate @ 01/10/2004 06:12 PM EST
Where can I get some Marijuana flavored Chiclets?
Chestnuts roasted by OtherMatt @ 01/11/2004 03:51 AM EST
I'm probably to late for anyone to read this, but yes crowbar, I remember the candy spachship containers of powdery death that connected together. Purple, red, blue and such. Wierd spaceshipy designs with "male" and "female" parts to plop them together and a black screw on cap. They also had fruit shaped ones that didn't connect. The plastic chewed really well. My favorite was the one that seemed like a typical saucer, but it only had like two points of conectiness.
Chestnuts roasted by spooky @ 01/13/2004 04:26 AM EST
You dated the article 2003.
Chestnuts roasted by Incorrrect year observer @ 01/16/2004 12:31 PM EST
The other one I'm not sure but it looks like the pack says "Sabor Yerbabuena."
Minty flavor.
I still have that Capt'n Crunch spinner laying under the corner of my bed. Yeah, I guess I should clean under there...
I also used to have the plastic Batmobile, but I have no idea where it went :(
Chestnuts roasted by marril159 @ 01/20/2004 10:11 PM EST
The mystery bird/turtle thing is an inexpensive Japanese charm which you can find at Asian curio shops, grocers, malls, etc. You can find them pretty easily where I live (Hawaii). The two large kanji in black read "choju" ("long life"), and it's not actually a swan but a crane. Both cranes and turtles are Japanese symbols of longevity. Now you know, and knowing is half the battle!
Chestnuts roasted by Just A Lurker @ 01/25/2004 11:56 PM EST
I used to have a gazillion of those Krispie poppers. How I loved them- I distinctly remember playing with them for hours (although I would much rather not remember). I also had the Krispie's Truck. And I love Matt- who but he would actually buy AND write about a bag of crap?
Chestnuts roasted by Ryah @ 01/26/2004 10:47 PM EST
Killer Duck is right; the playing cards with the General Mills characters on 'em came from a promotional deck with Old Maid rules. My grandma had the deck in that ubiquitous Games Closet that all good grandparents would keep for their grandkids when they came over to visit.
There was another deck with numbers on the cards, too, so you could play Crazy Eights.
Chestnuts roasted by Spatch @ 01/27/2004 03:31 AM EST
Matt, great article. I wonder how some people have so much luck in finding treasures like your bag o' crap. In regards to the Chiclets, those are the packages that the homeless street waifs in Mexico try to sell you as they besiege your car right before you cross the border. The package translations are: Goma De Mascar=Chewing Gum, Sabor Yerbabuena=Spearmint Flavor, Sabor Tutti Frutti=Tutti Frutti Flavor. The vendors are actually rather ruthless in the hawking of their wares, so those tiny packages of chewing pleasure probably cost 100 waifs their lives. So now you know that the burden and stigma of bloodshed taints your bag o' crap.
Chestnuts roasted by shinymetallic @ 02/05/2004 11:04 PM EST
That "mohawked tyrannosaurus" is in fact a herbivorous dinosaur belonging to the "ornithosichian family" and it's called corythosaurus. The mohawk is actually a crest made of bone. I was outraged that you actually thought it was a T-rex with a mohawk!! Have you tried chewing it? It looks like it would taste like orange - orange the colour, not to be mistaken with orange the fruit.
Chestnuts roasted by Machinegun Willy @ 02/22/2004 12:43 AM EST
Your Garfield pencil toper is not the only kind they have made i have a garfield orange standing up and when you push its tail its mouth opens!
Chestnuts roasted by Some Guy @ 04/21/2004 04:51 PM EST
You can still get those "Six Pack" soda sand thingies. My sister buys them all the time and gives me the lemon and grape ones. The bottles look identical to the ones in the bag, exactly the same. Also, I should go through my garage sometime and mail some crap to Matt. A 50 gallon roughneck tub filled to the top with old mcdonalds/burger king/KFC ect toys. I'm not kidding.
Chestnuts roasted by EhhEff @ 06/05/2004 02:12 AM EST
Hey that hose guy
http://www.x-entertainment.com/articles/0856/junk/2.html
was a fire fighter I think, I had some when I was a kid and there were red and white ones in various poses (like the little green army men).
Chestnuts roasted by Mr King @ 06/21/2004 09:01 PM EST
i think whoever owned this bag first was a roots version of whoever runs this site ... collecting the best (worst?) of pop culture crap ... except he/she had no place to share all his/her glorious proof of american consumerism gone awry ...
Chestnuts roasted by drasticDub @ 06/25/2004 05:23 PM EST
Well, this one is different. The latest article reviews one of my recent finds, the infamous 
