Monday, November 13, 2017

Toy Hall of Fame

 Toys Beloved By Generations

In a culture that places a high value on the 'work ethic', it's refreshing to know there is a museum that chronicles and honors play. The National Toy Hall of Fame includes folk toys and education and has recently announced its 2017 inductees. They are:
1) paper airplane, 2) Wiffle ball, and 3) Clue.

The hall, which is located inside Rochester, New York's interactive The Strong museum, was designed to showcase new as well as classic beloved toys. Nominations can be made by anyone an final selection advice comes from historians, educators, and others who support or engage in creative  toy-related careers and activities.


More than 65 toys have been placed in the hall of fame, including crayons and dominoes. All of them foster creativity and discovery. Here’s a brief look at a few of the most recent additions:

Paper Airline

No one is really sure about the origins of this toy which is fundamentally made of paper. Some credit the ancient Chinese with inventing papyrus paper that could be folded and flown. Others note that Leonardo DaVinci considered the dynamics of parchment airplanes. Researchers and experts say that the principles that make an airplane fly are the same that govern paper versions. Even so, paper airplanes can be made of manly shapes, colors and weights. Consider Pop artist Peter Max’s 1970 book of psychedelic paper airplane templates.

Clue

This murder mystery game has been around since 1949. While there were other murder-solving games prior to this one, Clue has been noted by hall of fame advisers that none "Combined its simplicity of play with the enjoyment of solving the 'whodunit', not to mention the 'where' and 'what' of the game's pretend murder. The board game's success is linked to pop cultural interests of the time. Murder mystery novels and suspense films were a big hit in the 1950's. It is interesting to note that it remains one of the more popular board games.


To learn more about nominating a toy, click here

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