Toy Fair 2013 kicks off February 10!

Despite the big Northeast snowstorm, I made it to New York City for Toy Fair 2013.  It was a day later than planned, but in time for the kick-off on Sunday, February 10.

The American International Toy Fair, now in its 110th year, is sponsored annually by the Toy Industry Association, a non-profit organization.  Buyers, manufacturers, and the press will be on hand for four days at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, trying to determine products and trends that will drive the toy business in 2013. In addition to being able to browse and talk with over 1,000 exhibitors, attendees have opportunities for education, industry updates, and networking.

There's always a lot of hype about hot toys, and big companies with mass offerings tend to take the news spotlight.  While many of these items are fun and flashy, they often do not fit the mission statement of Fundamentally Toys. I'll be making the rounds and looking for toys that help children develop a wide range of abilities from reasoning to math to social skills - in addition to having FUN!

I'm encouraged to be hearing some pre-fair discussion that a major theme of this year's Toy Fair is a re-focus by toy makers toward classic, traditional toys and games.  I'm excited to see what's in store!

Kitty in the City: Monopoly Fans Choose a New Game Token

Kitty in the City: Monopoly Fans Choose  New Game Token

  

Over 250,000 fans took to Facebook to vote on a new game token for Hasbro's popular board game, Monopoly.  The results are in and a cat has clawed its way to the top with 31% of the vote, climbing past four other contestants: a guitar, diamond ring, helicopter, and toy robot. No surprise, given the fact that over 33% of U.S. households have cats according to latest statistics available from The Humane Society of the United States.

New kitty will give old Scottie dog someone to chase around the board! This new feline is bound to be a favorite to be fought over from among the race car, battleship, top hat, thimble, shoe, wheelbarrow, and Scottie dog.

Voters also voted on which existing game pieces to keep. Sadly, the iron got the fewest votes and is being cast aside. People probably can’t really relate to an iron anymore these days.  But everyone has their favorite Monopoly playing piece and I’m happy the thimble got to stay for now. 

Since the launch of Monopoly in 1934, playing pieces have been replaced throughout the years. But this is the first time that the company has included input from the public. The online vote was a fantastic way to engage fans over social media and update the game.

Creator of Etch A Sketch Dies

News has just been released that André Cassagnes, inventor of the Etch A Sketch, died near Paris on January 16, 2013, at the age of 86.

Launched in 1960 by Ohio Art, the Etch A Sketch was the first high tech-looking toy of its time. The magic and mechanics behind the small, TV-like box were really quite simple:  Users manipulated two knobs which internally moved a stylus that created sketches on a grey, powder-coated underside of a screen. Sketches could be magically erased by turning the screen upside down and shaking it. But what was most interesting about the toy was how Cassagnes came up with the idea in the first place.

In the late 1950s, Cassagnes was working as an electrical technician in a French factory which manufactured embossed wall coverings.  The factory used metallic powders in its process and the inventor noticed how the powder clung to the back of a plastic decal he had peeled off a light switch. He ran his pencil through the clinging powder and saw that it made a design which appeared on the opposite side of the decal. That chance discovery gave Cassanges the idea to develop a toy which he called “L’Ecran Magique” (The Magic Screen).

He took his idea to the Nuremburg Toy Fair in 1959, where Ohio Art saw it, bought the rights for $25,000, and worked with the creator to refine it.  In 1960, Ohio Art launched the final product as the Etch A Sketch.  It quickly became the hottest selling toy that year, and has since continued to enjoy a steady popularity even in the face of electronic video games and gadgets.  Over 100 million have sold worldwide.

In 1998, Etch A Sketch was inducted into the National ToyHall of Fame in Rochester, New York.  It has also been named by the Toy Industry Association as one of the hundred best toys of the 20th century.