Dear Lee,
A huge bookstore display of sock monkeys, the hot toy of the year, made me start thinking about how “old” becomes “new again.” Today’s toy and game makers are selling not only new electronic and plastic toys, but also classic board games and toys from our childhood and before.
The sock monkey first became popular in Victorian times, when stuffed animal toys were the rage. The Nelson Knitting Mills in Rockford, Ill., was the first company to use the sock-knitting machine its founder invented in 1869. By the 1890s, the company was turning out thousands of pairs of sturdy work socks, and within 10 years home seamstresses were using the socks to create monkey dolls. In 1920 Nelson started including sewing instructions with every pair of socks. The cover of the 1953 pattern is pictured.
When Nelson introduced socks with red heels, the heel quickly became the favorite monkey mouth. In 1992 the company was sold and the red heel changed shape. Old socks have a point in the red that becomes a smile or frown. New ones have an oval mouth in the red area. The socks still come with instructions for making a monkey.
This year, give someone a holiday gift that harkens back to the past. Eighteenth-century children received wooden Noah’s arks complete with sets of carved animals. Jigsaw puzzles were invented in 1767. Checkers was a very early game that changed a little when the modern rules were adopted in 1847. The “Game of Life” was a popular board game in 1860, and new versions, updated to reflect life today, are in stores now. How about teddy bears (1903), Raggedy Ann (1918), Monopoly (1933), Slinky (1945), Mr. Potato Head (1952), Hula Hoop (1957), Etch-a-Sketch (1960) and my favorite for young children, Candy Land (1940s). All of them are in updated packages now, but the rules of the games are old. Tell your children and grandchildren that these games, not the Wii, were what you played with. And then remind them that all these games are “green,” because they use no electricity.
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