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The nation's oldest operating toy store, FAO Schwarz, is turning 150 years old this year. To commemorate this milestone, the company has assembled a collection of more than 20 iconic toys spanning the decades that customers can view at its Fifth Avenue store in New York until April 10.
The toys date to the early years of the 20th century and include a Richard Stieff Teddy Bear. Also on display are the original Barbie and Ken dolls, a prototype of the Etch A Sketch, and seven of the original Hot Wheels cars. Many of the items come from the archives of the toy manufacturers that made them, and some are in their original packaging. There also are a few glimpses into the history of FAO Schwarz itself. The company’s iconic FAO Schwarz Clock Tower, pictured here, adorned the store from 1986 to 2004, and has returned to mark the occasion, singing out the theme song, “Welcome to Our World of Toys” every five minutes. A sales ledger from 1909 and a number of the company’s early catalogs are also on display. FAO Schwarz was one of the first retailers to use a mail-order catalog to market its products. It began the practice in 1876, 14 years after its founding during the Civil War. Please read on to see a sample of the historic toys in the collection as well as get a glimpse of a few scenes from around the store. |
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Richard Steiff Bear (1905)Company: Steiff FAO Schwarz is also well-known for the life-sized stuffed animals it sells. These plush critters fill the Grand Hall. So it seems only fitting that the collection of toys includes a teddy bear from Stieff, one of the world’s oldest designers of stuffed animals. The gray mohair bear pictured here is a 1905 Richard Steiff Teddy Bear, which was designed by and named after Margarete Steiff’s nephew Richard. This style was produced through 1951, and was a departure from Stieff’s earlier teddies because it had a rounded face, a blunt snout and an embroidered nose. |
Candy Land (1955)Company: Hasbro Board games like Sorry! and Monopoly have been a childhood staple for decades, and while new variations of these games continue to be introduced, the basic ones endure. The collection FAO Schwarz has assembled includes a first edition of Sorry!, which was published by Parker Brothers in 1934, and Candy Land, which was created in 1949. A 1935 edition of Monopoly and a 1967 version of Battleship also can be viewed. This copy of Candy Land shows the game was introduced with color spots and cards. The characters that mark a player’s progress were introduced later. |
Silly Putty (1950)Company: Crayola Silly Putty is one of those fortunate accidents. It was discovered accidently while researching potential rubber substitutes during World War II. Since 1950, more than 400 million Silly Putty eggs have been sold. |
Crayola 64 Box (1958)Company: Crayola Burnt Sienna, periwinkle, or cornflower — which is your favorite? The Crayola 64 Box, with the built-in sharpener, debuted in 1958. |
Easy-Bake Oven (1964)Company: Hasbro Since the Easy-Bake oven was introduced in 1963 by Kenner, millions have been sold. The toy, now owned by Hasbro, first used a light bulb as a heating element, but it has been updated many times over the years and now contains a real heating element. |
Hot Wheels (1968)Company: Mattel In 1968, the Hot Wheels brand was introduced as a line of 16 die-cast vehicles in a 1:64 scale. Today, the brand is an enduring classic. More than four billion Hot Wheels cars have been manufactured. At FAO Schwarz, seven of the original Hot Wheels cars are on display, including custom versions of the T-Bird, Fleetside, Barracuda, Camaro, El Camino, Hot Heap, El Dorado and Ford J-Car. While most of these were based on cars of the day, others were based on racing cars. The Ford J-Car, for example, was based on a real race car that became known as the Ford GT40 Mk IV and the Hot Heap was based on the Model T roadster known as “Tognotti’s T.” |
Cabbage Patch Kids (1982 and 1983)Company: Original Appalachian Artworks Cabbage Patch Kids dolls were at the center of one of the biggest toy crazes of the 1980s. Originally created in 1978 by Xavier Roberts, the dolls were first known as the “Little People.” Pictured here is a doll from the first adoptable, hand-sculpted edition of Original Cabbage Patch Kids, released in 1982, as well as a vinyl-face version, which kicked off the toy frenzy in 1983. Visitors to the FAO Schwarz gallery can also see the original Barbie and Ken dolls as well as several Hello Kitty items. |
Tickle Me Elmo (1996)Company: Tyco The mania over Tickle Me Elmo toys had parents scuffling in the aisle during the 1996 holiday season. The toy was based on the popular “Sesame Street” character and featured his contagious laugh.
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