Nostalgic Toys Making Comeback

Interesting news item recently: In hard times, nostalgic gifts strike a chord. Parents remember how much fun they had with certain toys and want that same happiness for their children.

Makes sense. Maybe I’ll get the kids Jarts, that lawn dart game from my childhood. A cross between tossing horseshoes and slinging daggers in a circus act, the game was a thrill a minute. What could be more fun than impaling the neighbor kid’s foot? OK, maybe bloodying his nose with a Clacker ball.

Dolls were, and still are, popular items under the tree. A perennial fave on Contessa’s wish list was Chatty Cathy. Just pull a string and she spoke, saying simple words like “hello.” Chatty didn’t do much else, other than raising her arms straight up in the air over her head. She looked like a UT fan tossing up her hands in disgust after the College Bowl Championship Series bids were announced.

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