MEMORIES:
cintipli remembers...I remember getting this for christmas. As soon as I got it out of the box I wanted to try ... More »
Posted on 01/24/07
Manufacturer:
Thingmaker: the name says it all. It made… things. Like an Easy Bake Oven for stuff you didn’t want to eat. You know, like Creepy Crawlers, the first collection of toys fresh out of the oven for the Thingmaker. The Thingmaker sits proudly at the top of favorite toy lists for the Baby Boomer generation and with good reason. Unlike other toys that promise hours of fun, the Thingmaker truly did. Countless hours would be spent in the process of making toys, though they passed with quickness for those more intense about this scientifically creative process.
Mattel launched the Thingmaker in 1964 along with Creepy Crawlers, a mold set that created bugs, snakes, bats and other “creepy crawlies.” Numerous Thingmaker sets would follow. Using the same concepts you could make new sets of creatures and things with the metal molds contained in each expansion pack. In addition to the molds were extra items like beads and paint, that could be used to decorate your… thing.
Though the process was time-consuming and seemed complex, it was at its heart, creative. Plastigoop, the material poured into the molds, could be combined before placing the Plastigoop-filled mold into the little electric Thingmaker Oven, making new and often unusual colors. . Just a few minutes and presto! A poof of smoke and a whiff of chemical odor later, the tongs would be used to take out the molds and dip them into a cooling pan with cold water. Once cooled, the toys could be touched. As soon as it was safe, and the toys were popped out of the mold, it was time to decorate our new creatures with fancy accessories.
Thingmaker wasn’t right for every kid, however. The process of making something with it took patience and precision, lest you end up with a glob of goo for a toy or a toy that would never come out of the mold. The most difficult and painstaking portions of making the Thingmaker toys weren’t entirely in the preparation and the baking. The true test of a child was his or her willpower to not pry the toy from the mold before it was properly cooled. Too early and you could damage the toy or burn your fingers. Despite all that it took, for many, the Thingmaker was a truly rewarding experience, with many owners becoming true artists of the Thingmaker craft.
The Thingmaker was an immediate success with kids around
Like all best-loved items from the Baby Boomer generation, there were safety issues involved, and parents and lawmakers started cracking down on toymakers on petty issues like burns, cuts and ovens catching on fire. By 1974, Mattel quietly stopped production on the Thingmaker, leaving the majority of Gen X without the Thingmaker. 18 years went by and suddenly, the Thingmaker was poised to make a comeback. Toymax brought back the Thingmaker for its legions of fans – with a much safer oven. Baby Boomers rejoiced at the news, now able to bring the joy of the Thingmaker to their children and grandchildren. Thanks to the joy that is the Internet, longtime fans of the Plastigoop are able to convene, at least virtually, to trade secrets and get the lowdown on where to purchase their goods, ensuring that the Thingmaker will continue to delight and entertain newer generations, for hours and hours on end.
