60s - 3/22 - Retroland

Bomb Pops

For many a former kid, the arrival of summer coincided with the joyous ringing of faraway bells, ones that signified the approach of a little white truck, filled to the brim with frozen treats. And assuming your parents were generous with their spare change, you would soon come face to face with a vast menu of choices plastered on the side of the truck. With so many items to choose from, a great many gravitated loyally to the most patriotic of Popsicles - the Bomb Pop. Popular for over 50 years now, they have proven that they are as American as apple pie and Chevrolet.

Bozo the Clown

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Few clowns have ever enjoyed the same enduring popularity as the lovable red-haired, white-faced icon known as Bozo. For over half a century, literally dozens of men have donned the floppy shoes and red nose for the television cameras and endeared Bozo the clown to generations of young viewers.

Bozo’s Grand Prize Game

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While working on the Chicago-based Bozo the Clown show in 1962, producer Don Sandburg had a great idea for a contest. Called the Grand Prize Game, it soon became apparent that seemingly every kid in the area wanted in on the action. The stakes were high – a silver dollar and a Schwinn bicycle for any kid that had the ability meet the challenge. Today, we take a look at this memorable game, both on television, and in the arcade game that followed.

Bubble Up

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Ah, the cool refreshing taste of lemon-lime flavored soda. For those who prefer that particular flavor combination, the mind probably wanders to one of the two iconic brands, 7-Up and Sprite. But nostalgic fans clearly remember another effervescent carbonated beverage that once completed the tasty lemon-lime trilogy, Bubble Up.

Cabazon Dinosaurs

Candid Camera

Candy Cigarettes

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Years before the public fully understood the dangers associated with smoking tobacco, it was glamorized to no end in movies and on television. And youngsters weren’t immune to the allure of their favorite hero suavely dangling a cigarette from his or her mouth. Eager to imitate the image, but a little too young for the real thing, we settled for candy cigarettes. Now a tyke could hang out on the street corner, a miniature James Dean or Bette Davis, showing that they too had what it took to look tough (fake pack rolled neatly in the sleeve of their shirt.) Eventually, of course, nicotine addiction became frowned upon and so did confectionery replicas of cigarettes, who finally lost their…cool.

Candyland

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Not since the days of the historical chocolate and peanut butter merge has there ever been a pairing so heavenly as that of board game and candy. Images of gooey confections, locales that would bring a diabetic to their knees, all wrapped in an easy-to-play board game – is it any wonder that it caught on with the little ones?

Cap’n Crunch

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Of the many modern urban myths that tangentially involve breakfast foods, there is one universally accepted truth that has been handed down unchanged from successive generations since its inception in 1962. Unaffected by the march of time, immune to the threat of the frozen microwave breakfast brigade, this truth goes marching onward in the whispers of knowing children, and in the late-night binge by their parents who remember too late to save themselves: if you eat Cap’n Crunch too quickly, or for too long, you will experience the dreaded Cap’n Crunch Mouth. CCM is an unfortunate malady that shreds the gums and roof of the mouth, rendering the subject useless for the next four to eight hours. Depending on the severity of the damage and the sensitivity of the subject, one conceivably could suffer for several days, unable to chew anything more complicated than oatmeal, which, incidentally, is where Cap’n Crunch got his start.

Captain Kangaroo

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Every morning, he opened the door to his Treasure House and invited kids to share an easygoing hour of laughter and learning. He wore a jacket with giant pockets, and thus came his name, Captain Kangaroo. He had the longest running children’s program in network television history. (Only Public TV’s Sesame Street can beat the record.) Let's take a look back at this beloved show.