OK, shoppers, you know what tomorrow is. That's right: Black Friday.
No doubt tonight you will be combing the Internet as well as any circulars you may have found this week (and be assured there are plenty) for the best deals on you-name-it Friday morning.
For those of you with kids or if you're just shopping for kids, you know there is going to be that one gift that little Billy or Jennifer really wants and guess what? Good luck getting it.
Just like Arnold Schwarzenegger's hunting down a TurboMan doll in "Jingle All the Way," parents are going to have a hard time finding this years "it" gifts. But before we tell you what those are going to be, let's take a stroll down Christmas Fad Lane and look at a few toys that drove parents crazy over the years.
THE HULA-HOOP, 1958: The Hula-Hoop has been around since the days of the Egyptians, but it took Richard Knerr and Arthur Melin, founders of the Wham-O toy company, to turn it into one of the first huge holiday fads. In 1958, cash registers across the country rang up the hoop sensation an estimated 80 to 100 million times. Like most fads, the hula revolution died out as quickly as it began.
THE FRISBEE, 1964: It's often said that lightning never strikes in the same place twice. Not true in the case of Wham-O. As the success of the Hula-Hoop died down, another product, the "Pluto Platter" was beginning to gain steam. After changing its name to the "Frisbee" and reworking the rim thickness and top design of the toy to create a more controllable disc, sales soared, and by 1964 you could be sure every child had one of these flying discs under the tree.
No doubt tonight you will be combing the Internet as well as any circulars you may have found this week (and be assured there are plenty) for the best deals on you-name-it Friday morning.
For those of you with kids or if you're just shopping for kids, you know there is going to be that one gift that little Billy or Jennifer really wants and guess what? Good luck getting it.
Just like Arnold Schwarzenegger's hunting down a TurboMan doll in "Jingle All the Way," parents are going to have a hard time finding this years "it" gifts. But before we tell you what those are going to be, let's take a stroll down Christmas Fad Lane and look at a few toys that drove parents crazy over the years.
THE HULA-HOOP, 1958: The Hula-Hoop has been around since the days of the Egyptians, but it took Richard Knerr and Arthur Melin, founders of the Wham-O toy company, to turn it into one of the first huge holiday fads. In 1958, cash registers across the country rang up the hoop sensation an estimated 80 to 100 million times. Like most fads, the hula revolution died out as quickly as it began. THE FRISBEE, 1964: It's often said that lightning never strikes in the same place twice. Not true in the case of Wham-O. As the success of the Hula-Hoop died down, another product, the "Pluto Platter" was beginning to gain steam. After changing its name to the "Frisbee" and reworking the rim thickness and top design of the toy to create a more controllable disc, sales soared, and by 1964 you could be sure every child had one of these flying discs under the tree.
EVEL KNIEVEL STUNT CYCLE, 1973: In 1972, what little boy didn't want to
be Evel Knievel, the death-defying stuntman? Ideal Toys cashed in on
that desire and released the first set of 6-inch Knievel figures. They
were a huge success, and would lead to the "it" Christmas gift of 1973,
the Evel Knievel Stunt Cycle, a working miniaturized cycle piloted by a
bendable Knievel figure. Powered by a hand-cranked launcher, the cycle
could be propelled towards any obstacle the user could think up.THE ATARI 2600, 1979: In October 1977, the Atari 2600, the gaming system credited with the popularization of the cartridge-based video game console, was released. Initially priced at $199 and shipped with two controllers and a "Combat" video game, the console underwent a few cosmetic changes over the next two years. By 1979, the Atari 2600 was the best-selling Christmas gift of the year, selling more than a million units. By 1981, that number grew to 10 million, thanks to the creation of a hot new video game featuring a little, yellow, ghost-hunting creature named Pac-Man.
CABBAGE PATCH KIDS, 1982: Bring up the name Xavier Roberts to any child of the '80s and you're sure to incite at least a small smile. It was Roberts after all whose name was sewn to the cloth butts of every lovable doll from the Cabbage Patch collection. The dolls were mass-produced beginning in 1982 and have been credited with causing one of the biggest Christmas gift rushes in history. Although still produced globally, Cabbage Patch dolls have never recaptured the glory that once caused fistfights in local toy stores. TICKLE ME ELMO, 1996: When Tyco introduced the bright red Sesame Street character that could laugh and shake when squeezed in 1996, they could have never imagined the commercial whirlwind that would follow. Parents fought through the aisles of stores, classified ads sold the plush toy for hundreds of dollars, with some fetching as high as $1,500. According to People magazine, 300 customers stampeded a clerk at a Walmart in Canada on Dec. 14, 1996 after they spotted him with one of the remaining toys in stock. People reported that the clerk "suffered a pulled hamstring, injuries to his back, jaw and knee, a broken rib and a concussion."
WII, 2006: The latest in a long line of Nintendo-produced consoles, the Wii was introduced in 2006 and still to date is one of the hardest items to find on store shelves. The success of the system is largely because ofin part to the Wii Remote. The controller has motion sensing capabilities and optical sensors that allow players to fully interact with a slew of games for the system. Imagine flipping spells with your wand like Harry Potter or putting on a golf course. All doable through the wonders of the Wii.
This year is sure to be no different from past Christmases that had their "it" gifts.
This holiday season, the first of two big items to watch is the Elmo Live doll. Yes, the furry red devil is back. Retailing for $60 at stores like Target and Walmart, Elmo seems to actually talk as his mouth opens and closes, his arms wave and his legs cross, all while Elmo tells stories and sings songs to your kids.
One more big gift that many children will be wishing for this holiday season is the fully interactive Kota the Triceratops. "Are you kidding me?" said 34-year-old Jennifer Parton of Palm Coast while watching a demo of the 2½-foot-tall dinosaur at the Palm Coast Target. "Where were these when I was kid? This is absolutely incredible."
Parton couldn't be more right. The $269.99 Playskool invention walks, talks and can be tickled. It roars, moves its eyes and wags its tail. And here is the coolest part: all this can be done while your child actually rides the "real life" dinosaur.
We've come a long way since the Hula-Hoop.
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