If you have been following the news this past week, then you may have learned that Hasbro, one of the largest toy companies in the world, is in the process of laying off over 1,000 workers. This comes after another round of layoffs earlier this year. You can read more about the layoffs here. While it's helpful to understand how that all happened, I thought it might be happier to revisit some of Hasbro's most memorable and successful toys from the past several decades. After all, this is the Pop Culture Retrospective Podcast. I find a lot of comfort in looking back, so let's do that via the toys of the past. So here is a brief overview of 5 of the most well-known and successful toys in Hasbro's history.
G.I. Joe:
This infamous action figure is probably one of the most well-known toys of all time. The first-ever action figures debuted in 1964 and were marketed for boys. G.I. Joe had 21 moving parts and also came dressed in 4 different uniforms to reflect the branches of the military. G.I. Joe was developed by Stanley Weston. He licensed the toy for just (in hindsight) $100,000 to Hasbro. During the first year of its debut, Hasbro sold almost $17 million worth of merchandise. The second year over $30 million worth of G.I. Joe merchandise sold! Needless to say, G.I. Joe has been a strong part of the Hasbro brand for decades and shows no sign of slowing down! Side note - if you remember the film, "The Boy Who Could Fly" then you may remember that Fred Savage, from "The Wonder Years," played the role of a young boy who was obsessed with G.I. Joe!
Glo Worm:
As the name reads, a Glo Worm is, well, a light-up worm. It was created by Playskool, which is the preschool-aged toy division of Hasbro. It is essentially a flashlight wrapped in padding in the shape of a segmented worm. The head was hard plastic with a sleeping cap and illuminated when squeezed. The popularity of Glo Worms grew quite quickly and before you knew it, they had their line of picture books and animated specials. There was also a Glo Worm Christmas Special featured during an episode of My Little Pony. Glo Worms or an off-shoot of Glo Worms were featured in various happy meals in fast food restaurants and were made into small, plastic figurines that were sold in stores. Glo worms, although not nearly as popular as they were in the 1980s, are still made to this day! Fun fact: The Glo Worm was the best-selling holiday toy of 1982! If you'd like to learn more about other top holiday toys from the 1980s, check out this episode.
Mr. Potato Head:
Believe it or not, Mr. Potato Head has been around since the early 1950s. He was invented by a gentleman named George Learner. He made dolls out of potatoes and fruit for his younger sisters. At one point he decided to approach several toy companies to pitch his potato doll idea and each time he was rejected. Many people felt like his materials were very wasteful, especially since he developed this concept shortly after the war. Eventually though, in 1951 to be exact, Lerner approached Harry and Merrill Hassenfeld who were textile manufacturers (eventually they would shorten their last name to Hasbro to represent that they were brothers and shift to toys) to invest in his product. Thankfully they said yes and the rest is history!
My Little Pony:
Credit for the ultimate development of the equine toys that we remember can be given to a woman named Bonnie Zacherle. She fell in love with a horse named Knicker when she was a little girl while living in Japan. Zacherle studied illustration in college and eventually landed at Hasbro, the toy company. She had previously worked at a Greeting Card company. She pitched the idea of a toy horse for many years but was consistently turned down. She was told over and over again that girls didn’t want to play with horses, they wanted to iron clothes and cook. She felt frustrated and deflated. Eventually though, in 1981, Hasbro released a 10-inch tall plastic horse called My Pretty Pony, it was moderately successful and sold about 1 million units. After that relative success, Hasbro FINALLY decided to further develop the toy horse idea. Through some discussions and brainstorming with Zacherle, they decided to make the toy softer and smaller, shrinking it to about 5-6 inches and making her hair more combable. At first, Hasbro, based on Zacherle’s design, was going to use a traditional color scheme to appeal to both boys and girls. Eventually, someone convinced Zacherle to make the horses brighter in color, a bit more cheerful and childish. She was initially resistant but she agreed that they could give it a whirl on a trial basis. With that, in 1982, the first 6 original ponies were released: Cotton Candy, Blossom, Blue Belle, Snuzzle and Butterscotch. At a toy fair shortly thereafter, there wasn’t a ton of interest but Hasbro stuck with their guns and decided to produce the horses and they immediately flew off the shelves. It was almost an instant success. Included with the ponies was a carrying case that sort of resembled a horse stable, just big enough to hold the 6 ponies. The stable was white with a pink shingled roof, complete with a handle. My Little Pony has had many incarnations over the years and I think it's safe to say that these equine icons are not ready to get put out to pasture, anytime soon! I did a full episode all about the history of My Little Pony (it's an interesting story! ). You can find that episode here.
Lite Brite:
During a holiday light window display in New York City, several toy creators had a brilliant idea. Burt Meyer, Marvin Glass, and Henry Stan saw the display and wanted to recreate the illuminated masterpiece, but on a smaller scale. Soon, the Lite Brite would be born! The original design was a plastic panel, covered with black construction paper, in front of a bulb. When the colored pegs were placed in the panel, they created a vivid picture. Since its inception, the Lite Brite has evoked thoughts of mosaics with its colorful design. Some Lite Brites come with patterns such as Mr. Potato Head and G.I. Joe. I wonder where the ideas for the patterns came from?!
Despite the unfortunate news coming out of the Hasbro company, it is important to remember their positive contributions to the world in the form of some memorable toys. Did you have any of these toys as a child? Do you have any memories of playing with them? Let me know in the comments!
