TOYS R US Newspaper Insert (November 26, 1995)

 

Let's go back in time for a short while.  Do you remember going through the Sunday newspaper, which was giant because it was overflowing with extras? I remember pulling out my own stack that was relevant to me...there was the color comics page, the weekly TV book to go through (which was the only way you would know what movies would be shown), and of course the sales flyers! 

What we have today is a Toys R Us catalog, from around Thanksgiving of 1995.  Let's see, what made the front cover? Some cars nobody remembers...something called "Baby Sip 'N Slurp" which sounds terrifying, and the motorized board game of the week.  Not very thrilling, but don't worry, it's about to get better!

Aha, Game Gear! I had one of these.  So the system was $120, and games were upwards of $40.  I have conversations with folks where we are trying to remember the cost of video games back in the day, and the truth was, they were always expensive.  I remember new Atari 2600 titles being $50, which was a car payment back then! Interesting that the Game Boy is 50 bucks...note that it's not a "Game Boy Color," just the crummy first one in a colorful shell.  Game Boy Color didn't come out until 1998!

Board games.  I am not sure how these are still made in Current Year, but they are.  The VCR game in the bottom left looks interesting (they were about gone by this time).  Note the "Tiger Talkboy" on the right-hand page!

I don't have much to say on this page. We could laugh at how bad the Pocahontas movie was.

This next page is interesting in one way, because I think pretty much every single thing on it is still available!

Oh, and suddenly we are in a good place, but you have to look hard to get past the "dull."  I would've told you there was going to be a full page of Star Wars, as the action figures made their return in 1995, but there isn't so much as a mention here! However, there are two moments of coolness:  

ToyBiz Spider-Man figures were $5.99! Good grief! And the giant playset was only $29.99.  And, of course, Batman figures had already been a staple of the toy aisle by this point in time.  And, I saved the best for last:

Well, finally! One of the problems with the Trendmasters Godzilla line was that there was never anything to promote.  There was no hip cartoon or game, and the current films weren't available in the United States, so it always got pushed back into a corner.  Here we have mention of the 40th ANNIVERSARY GIFT SET (the second version; note the prototype art being used here) and the "Godzilla Missile Blaster Set." Wait a second...what's actually shown is the GODZILLA ATTACKS NEW YORK playset.  J.C. Penney's got an exclusive, smaller version of the playset called "Missile Blaster Set."  They couldn't even get that right! 25 bucks, though!

Here is the back for completeness...blah, blah, boring building toys.  Note that there is not a whiff of Lego anywhere.  That of course would all change in 1999, when they began licensing (but that's another story).  

I hope you've enjoyed this foray back into 1995, and it's jogged some happy memories for you.  If only we could go back--with a full wallet--and bring back several wheelbarrow-loads of stuff.  (If you figure out how to do this, a friendly reminder to make sure you somehow find currency that's old enough, and not dated 2021 or something, so you don't cause some kind of time explosion...or implosion...or worse.)

Announcing the Godzilla U.S. DVD and Blu-Ray Page! Plus Coming Attractions

A brand new sub-page has just been launched (these can be found at the left hand side of this page), called GODZILLA: AMERICAN HOME VIDEO - DVD & BLU-RAY.  This completes our cataloging of the entirety of home video releases of Godzilla and Toho kaiju films in the United States, all the way from 8mm film to Blu-Ray, and everything in between!

We screw around here at The Sphinx a lot (and we will continue to screw around; why change now?), but our main mission is to catalog all vintage Godzilla items that were ever available in the United States.  This has turned out to be lots more than I ever thought possible.  And, of course, these are always a work in progress, as new stuff is still being discovered, so feel free to send us corrections and discoveries, as lots of nice folks have done.

A reminder:  all of the home video guides are download-able as PDF books; in most cases the PDF's have more information than the pages do. You can download VHS, DVD, or Blu-Ray separately, or the whole home video guide (over 100 pages!) all at once.  I'd love to see all of our sub-pages represented as PDFs...if that were done, it would serve as one huge book representing all American Godzilla items for more than 40 years!  

We have lots of plans for the New Year around here.  The final sub-page will chronicle all of the vintage Godzilla promotional theatrical items that exist (that aren't posters or lobby cards, as that's already been done better) and launch soon.  Plus we will share another TV master tape, as previously mentioned (after we get past one hurdle), and much more--so you'll want to be here for that. And that's today's Soap Box...I feel like I should throw in an "Excelsior!" right about here!

The Things I See (continued)

Happy New Year! It's been a very long time since we've done one of these, and this is a good way to clean up a lot of loose ends that don't need their own posts.  So, let's empty out my folder, and see what we can get into (in no particular order):

Here is a cool inner sleeve from a 1950's RCA Victor record, explaining stereo to the masses.  There are some excellent graphics as well:

Stereo is easy:  The purple slingshot shoots a giant pill into a fan, and then a truck tire goes through your speaker, which makes you one of those bi-racial aliens from the original Star Trek.

I like how they have to explain to people that you have two ears, so therefore you should like stereo.

Do you ever dig through bins of records? Sometimes you find some strange things!

Somebody's not a fan, I take it.

Think about this: what's the last thing you expect to find at a thrift store?

What's funny about this is, this is the very tape that, years ago in the VHS trading days, was often the source for what went around (there was a Japanese laserdisc as well, so if your copy had Japanese subtitles, then you know where it came from).  Scans of this artwork were often passed around too, but this is the real deal, double-sided, holographic sticker and everything.

Weirder still, there was a plain tape inside, but as it turns out, somebody just made a NTSC copy of their PAL original, and kept the case.  But...why get rid of it, though? Hopefully they made themselves a digital copy first, because that's the only chance they are ever going to get.  Sad, really. 

By the way, here are some scans of the insert, just in case it helps anyone:

Moving on, here is a full-page, congratulatory ad for 60 Years of Toho films, showing Godzilla riding on top of a jumbo jet.  Because, why not?

EDIT:  See August Ragone's comment below, where he points out this is NOT a jumbo jet in the ad at all, but of all things, Thunderbird 2! Wow!

Thank goodness for thrift stores.  If I hadn't found this book, I wouldn't have been able to read the other books I bought:

Does anybody remember 2-XL, Mego's amazing robot you could play games with, who ran on 8-track tapes? I re-acquired a lovely, boxed model that I planned to do a full post on, and it came with this cool paperwork that I'd never seen before:

By the way, there's a much cheaper way to relive your 2-XL fun:  it's all been archived for you with an emulator.  Somebody's a genius.

I purchased an LP entitled "The Singing Swinging Banjo," from 1959.  Why did I do this? Because it came with an IBM punch-card attached to the back, that's why!

How cool is this? I was going to do a detailed post about the history of punch cards, but let's face it, it's never gonna happen. Besides, you can learn it all right here at this website.  It's really fascinating.  There was a time when many stores used these for inventory and price, and they were everywhere...and then suddenly, gone.  IBM had so many leftover that they were used for scratch paper for years!

You'd think I'd do a whole post about this, but I own a piece of a real Godzilla suit.  As you can see, they were made into (completely impractical and useless) keychains! Also, there is no date anywhere, but from my research, this was done after GODZILLA vs. SPACEGODZILLA.  These are super rare and never seem to come up on Ebay, but when they do, they always go crazy high.  I took mine out of this dumb rubbery (acidic) holder thing, and put it in an acrylic display box.  Here is the back:

Please see the Comments, where a kind soul has given us the translation of this text, confirming the SPACEGODZILLA timeline!

Lastly, here is real paperwork from a real doctor's office that I found myself in last year.  Note the "Race" section:

I mean, really.  How does this even happen?

The GODZILLA Game in Ideal Catalogs (1963-65)

You hear that sound? It's the sound of Christmas falling down the stairs, because it's been pushed out of the way by New Year's, which is all anyone cares about today (meanwhile, the stores put out Fourth of July decorations).  But I digress, today we are going to look at how Ideal marketed the famous GODZILLA GAME, which is one of the top-tier most important vintage American Godzilla items...and it just also happens to be the first licensed retail American Godzilla item!

These catalogs we are going to look at were sent to retailers, so they weren't exactly meant for public consumption, like later toy catalogs were.  With that in mind, let's start in 1963:

You have my attention!

Note that by 1963, Godzilla was one of the "all-time greats," and let's face it, both games are due to GODZILLA vs. KING KONG.

Points for the Rocky & Bullwinkle game. Also, I feel sorry for the kid who got the "Whizzer Wheel" for Christmas, in the midst of all this coolness.

1964 shows us the immense success that Mouse Trap was (they sold like a billion).  It's the cover story:

So there you are, Christmas morning 1964. Opening what you know is the Godzilla board game, and you get.......The Nurses Game.

Bonus points for: Popeye, Rocky & Bullwinkle again, and Ricochet Rabbit, who I always will have a soft spot for.

Onward to 1965, where GODZILLA is still being offered:

They never even changed the description for the Godzilla game, because I guess it wasn't necessary.  But it is wacky! I'd recommend reading it; it's a hoot. Can you name Godzilla's "3 vulnerable areas"??? I thought you were a fan!

Christmas 2022 Is Saved: The How-To Mega-Pack

So there you are...well, there you will be, anyway:  stuck at some relative's house, with barely enough room on the musty, undersized couch (that smells of cheese balls and Virginia Slims) to even sit, crammed among people you don't know and don't want to see, wishing you were somewhere else.  Dog hair and sweet potatoes everywhere.  It must be the holidays!

Of course, you have to try to talk to these people...if you can get a word in, that is, as they blather endlessly about how amazing their own children are, and how superior they are to you and your side of the family.  If only you had a way to really impress them...if only you had some new skills you could show off...!

This blog to the rescue! Taking advantage of the records below will put you over and above with the skills that you need to stand out this holiday season! To blow those suckers, with their Eagle Scouts and their Honor Roll urchins, right out of their eggnog! Observe!

7 DAYS TO BETTER BOWLING (1961)

Does it even need to be said that bowling prowess makes you the star of any family? What's more interesting than listening to somebody talk about bowling anyhow...reading about golf, maybe?

LINK: Better Bowling

BREAKDANCE (K-Tel, 1984)

One side sweet early hip-hop (when it was good, before it was about killing cops) and one side instructions that are actually rapped to righteous beats, you will thoroughly enjoy learning with this amazing LP that has never seen the light of a re-release.  Includes bonus poster of instructions and moves, which is included! What more could you ask? You, spinning on your head on the dining room table, with green bean casserole flying everywhere, will be all the thanks I need.

LINK: Breakdance

LEARN-PLAY BONGOS WITH "MR. BONGO" (1961)

Okay, so maybe your family is more white bread.  Worry not, "Mr. Bongo" has you covered.  Get ready to hear and say "Dickey, Dockey" until you are numb to the actual words.  Documentation included, but let's be real, we are just hitting a tiny drum here.  It's not nuclear fission.  And that album cover! Not since Led Zeppelin's PRESENCE have we seen creepier pod-people families.

LINK:  Learn (and we use the word loosely) Bongos

HOW TO C.B. (Pickwick, 1976)

Now, truck driving is something that will never go away.  I'm sure it's changed a bit, but return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear when everything was all about the C.B. Radio.  Pickwick spends an entire record teaching you the complete etiquette of using the thing, with LOTS and LOTS of sample jargon.  I mean, you don't want to embarrass yourself out there, and incorrectly pick up skanks when you ask them to meet you for a beer at the nearest Howard Johnson's? One slip of the terminology, and you could end up buying oil at a police station.  I kid you not, an entire dictionary of the slanguage (ugh) that encompasses 500 terms is included! Some of them are rather inappropriate, but who are we to judge.  Those Nutty Buddies aren't going to drive themselves to the grocery store, are they?

LINK: How To Speak C.B.

LET'S DISCO (K-Tel, 1978)

There is a 100-page book that goes with this record (what, K-Tel again?), but you won't need it; it's all there.  Remember:  This photo above could be your family this Christmas, rather than the scenario already described at the beginning of this post.  All I can do is lead you to the water and give you the tools you need.  The choice is yours.  

LINK:  Let's Disco

Good luck out there.  And please, curtail the voluminous emails of gratitude.  Instead, spend your time bowling with your breakdancing grandma to bongo music at the truck stop, which after all is the true meaning of Christmas.

Godzilla Crayon By Number (Craft House, 1995)

Here's another of those things that you won't find anywhere else, and it was really made possible by a complete fluke.  But we will get to that momentarily. 

First of all, as I'm sure you know, "activity sets" have always been popular with manufacturers, primarily because they are incredibly inexpensive to produce (paper products, including jigsaw puzzles, were famously the only Star Wars merchandise to be found when the film first became a surprise hit in 1977), but let's not diminish the fact that they sell very well.  I myself spent many a summer afternoon ruining a perfectly good activity book, watercolor kit, or velvet coloring poster! They have always been a reasonable way to keep a child busy...you have to wonder if they are expected to be all digital today!

If you are a fan of the 1990's Trendmasters Godzilla output, then you've noticed that the look of their particular KING OF THE MONSTERS branding could be found on products made by several other manufacturers (you can see a list of these products on our Trendmasters page).  It gave a nice uniformity to Godzilla products of the time, and this particular item is no exception.

This thin box holds two things:  a 12-page booklet with pages that can be separated easily for coloring, and a bundle of 8 generic crayons in a rubber band.  I would love to tell you these are really terrible restaurant-level crayons and make a joke about it, but they seem to be fine (or perhaps hardened by age, who knows).  What's really strange about them is that they weren't packaged in a box, which would've allowed them to be stored flat, instead of in a round cluster.  At any rate, the manufacturers were smart enough to put a protective sheet of blank paper between them and the booklet...which wouldn't have been necessary if they were boxed, come to think of it.  Also, while we are complaining, the coloring pages are double-sided, which was never a good idea, and certainly made the possibility of markers impossible!

It's dangerous to go alone! Take this.

But enough pedantics, let's get to what you came for:  cool Godzilla artwork! As this is a pretty rare set, and doesn't seem to be anywhere else, I was originally debating even opening it, but lo and behold, that was decided for us.  The seller, in their infinite wisdom, packaged it in a "bubble mailer" instead of a box, allowing the postal service to crush and mangle it, with the final indignity being that the postman folded it nearly in half to cram it into my mailbox.  Thus, fate has decided for us. Enjoy!

If you'd like to download the complete set of 12 scans, you can do so here!