When the beloved toy store F.A.O Schwartz recently stated that they were going to close the doors to their famous New York City flagship location, people began to mourn the loss of this iconic store as if a close friend had died.
The store, with their well-dressed "guard" standing ever vigilant in front of their doors was yet another causality in a world dominated by faster than light internet sales and Amazon Prime two-day shipping.
Due to increasing rent prices, this iconic store, well-known for the famous scene from "Big" featuring Tom Hanks dancing on the lit up piano, will close down forever to the chagrin of toy lovers everywhere. The store had even become a tourist destination for visitors all around the world, and after 30 years of memories, come July 15th it will be gone forever.
This amazing store has lived through all the toy fads; from the invention of video games, to Beanie Babies, Pogs, LEGOs, and countless other toys; this store will be missed and its loss will be felt throughout the New York City community.
In memoriam, make sure to take a look at some of the most iconic toys in the history of America, in memory of one of the most iconic toy stores in America. Do you remember the hype behind some of these toys? Let us know in the comments below!
And please SHARE this list if you're sad about the loss of FAO Schwartz!
1. Pokémon
Gotta catch 'em all! Back in the late '90s and early 2000s, everyone was trying to capture these crazy looking pocket monsters. Since the first generation of the original 151 beasts, a total of 649 Pokemon have now been discovered!
2. Tickle Me Elmo
This toy was introduced in 1996 and quickly became the fad "must have" toy of the season. Due to unexpected demand, a secondary market formed where scalpers would push this toy to desperate parents for hundreds of dollars. Violence was even reported over the limited supply of these toys, and by Christmastime, people were offering thousands of dollars to get their hands on one.
3. Beanie Babies
The Beanie Baby craze hit a fever pitch in the late 90s. The brilliant team at TY realized that you could stuff a small animal with beans, create a demand where some were rare and some were common, and soon enough you would have people going insane to get their hands on the Quackers without wings. Books were made about which Beanie Babies to collect, and literally thousands and thousands of dollars were wasted on this "commodity." When the bubble finally burst many people's "investments" weren't worth much more than a handful of beans.
4. The Pet Rock
Now the stuff of legend, this "toy" became a huge fad in the mid 70's. Sitting in a bar one night, Gary Dahl was listening to his friends complain about their pets. He suddenly had his "eureka" moment and realized he could market rocks as "the perfect pet" and sell them to people as a joke and make a few hundred bucks by the end of it. With a cute play-set, the "live" pets were sold with holes in their box, a leash, some straw, and a booklet on how to care for your pet. Six months later Dahl was a millionaire. Next time one of your friends has a crazy idea it might be worth listening to.
5. Chia Pet
Everyone has heard the famous ad campaign slogan invented by a bunch of Don Draper types when they were pretending to stutter the name of the product: "Ch-ch-ch-chia!" Since the early '80s these terracotta figurines have remained popular as more and more animals, and even president Obama were added to the mix!
6. Pogs
This was the "next generation" of marbles. In the early 90s kids everywhere were buying, trading, winning, and losing these pieces of cardboard. Originally thought to be based off of a traditional 17th century Japanese game called Menko, Pogs were banned by several schools simply because they were becoming too big of a distraction!
7. Furby
These creepy looking toys had moving eyes, opening beaks, and made "cute" little sounds. During the holiday season of 1998 this little toy was on every single kids Christmas list. The aliens spoke Furbish at first, and eventually "learned" how to speak English.
8. Bratz
In 2001 these spicy dolls ignited an angry firestorm by concerned parents over the over-sexualization of little girls. With miniskirts, big eyes, and fishnets, it was definitely awkward to give these dolls to girls who should have been spending their time growing confidence in themselves. Either way, all the hype did was help them get more publicity and sell more of their "sexy" product.
9. Trolls
Created in 1959 by a Danish wood cutter, these simple dolls became widely popular over the years. They became fads during the early 1960s, then again in the '70s and again through the '90s! Attempting to create a new fad in the twenty-teens, the film production company DreamWorks Animation is developing a Troll Doll film set for release in 2016. Just please don't feed them!
10. Rubik's Cube
Since 1974 the Rubik's cube has been the bane of dork, nerd, geek, and dweeb for multiple generations now. A sign of intelligence, many have wished they could, in the middle of a conversation with a pretty blonde girl, solve the puzzle while keeping eye contact, give a witty quip while tossing the Rubik's cube up in the air for her to catch, and walking away before she asks you out to get some unlimited soup and salad and breadsticks at the local Olive Garden. Or you could just rip the stickers off and replace them…
11. The Slap Bracelet
The original bracelet known as the "Slap Wrap" became popular amongst kids and teenagers of the early 90s. After more and more injuries were reported from this popular "toy" interest began to slowly dwindle away.
12. Cabbage Patch Kids
With the opportunity to adopt these "Little People" (as they were originally intended to be named) these toys became insanely popular in the early 1980s. With cute round faces and thick bouncy hair, these toys even made it to the cover of Newsweek!
13. Tech Deck
Tony Hawk would love to be able to do some of the crazy tricks you used to be able to do with your fingers! These toys got so popular that most schools banned them in the early 2000s!
What did you think about these iconic fads? How many did you have? Let us know in the comments below!
And please SHARE them with your friends!
