When I was a kid, we got all of our toys from local stores. We had a Western Auto and Wal-Mart for “local” local. We had a Toys R Us about 30 miles up the road. And across the parking lot from that, we had a good, old-fashion 80’s Mall. If we wanted a toy, we could physically get it the next time we went to the store, provided we were doing well in school and weren’t getting in trouble at home.
There was no eBay, no online shopping, and no ordering directly from the manufacturers. The Sears Catalog was really the first “ordering” I remember but that wasn’t even necessary since there was a Sears at the Mall I mentioned before. Who wanted to wait on things to be mailed to us?
The first big toy I remember getting was Castle Grayskull. I first had He-Man, Battlecat, Man-At-Arms, Skeletor, and Panthor. Then I remember getting Grayskull. I think my characters rounded out with Man-E-Faces, and Beastman. I don’t remember actually obtaining some of the characters because I was too young. But I remember having all of these particular toys. And I remember going to the toy section to look at new characters every time I went to the department store during that time. Seeing them in that shiny plastic, brand new, was a sight I distinctly remember.
Then there was Optimus Prime in 1984. This beauty sat on a shelf at the local Western Auto. I got enough money for my birthday (or at least close) to take a ride with my parents up to the store to pick one out for myself. Certain memories have a weird way of sticking out over your life. This one in particular stays with me. The toy was up on a shelf behind the counter. Watching the clerk take that box off the shelf and turn and hand it to me is etched in my brain. That store is no longer there – the building itself leveled and replaced by a small green space in front of a bank. But I can still see it all in my minds eye.
As I got a little older, the toys got a little more extravagant. Enter the Tyco Challenge 100! You could design multiple tracks; the classic oval, figure 8, and even the dreaded demolition derby crossroad. My dad and I would lay in the floor or our dining room and race for what felt like hours. I got my first callouses from that controller, years before the NES Controller shaped my hands. There was such a delicate balance between speed and traction that I was too young to grasp. I was wide open, all the time! Such a memorable box – I’m tempted to buy one for $10 off of eBay!
Most of the time, all it took was seeing that shiny toy in the window of a store. Seeing that great 80’s packaging made us want for what was inside. And most of the time, the packaging and commercials wound up being a little bit romanticized; as the actual playing was never quite on par with the advertising. Very fun indeed, but not what they showed us. I never had dirt and miniature trees in my living room floor to complement the GI Joe battles I had.
You know, there was a window to sports cards as well during that time. When I started collecting sports cards, one of the “new innovations” in the hobby was card companies trying to make packaging tamper proof and hard to see through. I remember Upper Deck being a leader in that breakthrough. But other companies were producing wrappers that it took a devious collector to foil. But during that time; rack packs, jumbos, and grocery packs were still a big hit as well. And those always had a window to the front and the back of the packs that would give you a look at just a couple of cards to help sway your decision.
A little known part of my collection is my unopened wax packs. And when I say wax, I also mean cellophane. It was a regular occurrence to see this type of packaging with a Tony Gwynn All-Star, or a Nolan Ryan 15th Year Card, or even a low hyped rookie from time to time. But if you were REALLY lucky, you could stumble upon some major gems, but it was very rare. As a kid, I assumed it was because the adults had already “pack searched” and as I grew older, I realized I was correct. But over the last 10 years, I have been able to pick up fun packs to add to my collection.
Take these two 1988 Fleer Cello Packs, for instance. Atlanta had two really good rookies in 1988. And I have found both cellos with those rookies on top. Are the Gant and Glavine going to break the bank? No, but I do have “uncirculated” copies of each of their rookies.
Here are two of my unopened Jordan’s. I have a pack of 1992-93 Stadium Club with the base Jordan on the top. You can make out the “Chicago” in the wrapper. And then I have a 1992-93 Topps Rack pack with an MJ on the back! These are pretty tough to find; at least for a reasonable price.
If you are a Junk Wax collector like me, you will certainly remember this card. The only thing better than the 1989 Future Star Jefferies, is one in an unopened pack!!
Speaking of 1989, you aren’t going to find an 89 Upper Deck Griffey Jr by looking through a wrapper. But you will occasionally find a Donruss Rated Rookie! And here is a Sheffield too!
1987 was a banger year and Topps is one of the most remembered sets in baseball card history. There are a lot of fun rookies in the set but here are “The Big 3”! Interesting that they are all on the last panel.
The oldest one I own is this 1984 Topps with Darryl Strawberry on the front. I carry a healthy disdain for the Mets; especially as a life long Braves fan. But I did always love Straw and Gooden.
This last one is for my real OG Junk Wax Friends! In 1990, you could not imagine pulling a bigger rookie than Kevin Maas. For a time, he was bigger than Frank Thomas, John Olerud, Sammy Sosa, Juan Gonzalez, and David Justice. Here is one of the remaining uncirculated Kevin Maas Fleer Rookies for your viewing pleasure!
While pack searching is certainly frowned upon in the hobby; going back and buying old packs with your favorite players on the front seems to pass the sniff test to me. You won’t ever find me in Target with scales or magnifying glasses. But if a cello of 1990 Donruss with a Juan Gonzalez hits EBay, you better believe that I’m putting in a bid!
Here’s to Happy Collecting and missing the old commercials and stores that hooked us on toys!
Dub