Gonks

Lite-Brite, Etch A Sketch, Construx, Mr. Potato Head, View-Master, Tamagotchi, Polly Pockets, Shrinky Dinks

Gonks dolls first appeared in Britain in the ’60s, and quickly carved out a place in the hearts of thousands of people thanks to their adorable spherical appearance and singular style. Propelled by popular artists such as Ringo Starr and Peter Sellers, the Gonks craze even inspired a film, Gonks Go Beat, before conquering the rest of the world with several original versions and an evolution of their look.

Meccano

Believe it or not, this construction set has been part of the youth of millions of people since the early 1900s! The original set takes the form of perforated metal plates of various sizes that can be assembled using screws and nuts. A multitude of components, such as wheels, axles and gears, are also included to make the structures more complex. This 1952 photo shows models built by young people for an exhibition.

Talkboy

Fans of the movie Home Alone 2: Lost in New York will remember the hours they spent recording and changing their voices with their Talkboy, a cassette recorder and player used by main character Kevin McCallister in this second opus. Created for the film, this toy had two models, released in ’92 and ’93, the latter exploding in popularity with its added variable-speed voice changer. The Talkboy craze continued into the late ’90s, with the occasional new versions added here and there, such as the all-pink Talkgirl.

Lite-Brite

One of the most popular and best-selling toys of all time, Lite-Brite has been a treasured childhood memory of many since the ’60s. The classic version is made of a box with a grid panel containing a light bulb inside. You put a piece of black paper dotted with coloured letters over the grid face, and you insert plastic pegs over the matching colours to form a picture. All that’s left to do is stand in the dark, switch on the box and admire your work!

Etch A Sketch

Those who grew up in the ’60s will remember all the drawings they made with their Etch A Sketch. This toy, also known as Télécran in France, works with two buttons that move a cursor to draw a continuous line. You need to be skillful and imaginative to render the design that you want. And if you want to erase it all and start again, just shake the screen!

Construx

In the ’80s, there were those who swore by Lego, and those who preferred the newcomer Construx. This set is made with sticks that fit into cubic connectors, enabling a variety of constructions, even mobile ones, thanks to the addition of wheels and motors. The product’s versatility and the opportunity to test one’s engineering skills made it a covetable toy in its day.

Mr. Potato Head

The first toy to be the subject of its own TV commercial, Mr. Potato Head has been part of the daily lives of children since the ’50s. Designed to help youngsters enjoy vegetables more, the original toy consisted only of accessories and limbs to be placed on a vegetable of their choice. It received a body in the ’60s, and its current form appeared and was developed in the ’70s and ’80s.

Furby

An iconic creature of the ’90s, the Furby quickly became popular thanks to its cute, original design and unique “Furbish” language. This toy is a small electronic creature that reacts to touch, speech and light, and is more or less active depending on the attention it receives. It can even interact with other Furbies, much to the delight of its owners, who are passionate about perfecting their learning.

View-Master

Since the ’40s, almost every decade has had its version of the View-Master, a binocular-shaped device that allows 3D viewing of slides printed on small discs. Simply pull the trigger to rotate the disc and move on to the next image. From movie stills to magnificent landscapes, this toy has provided many generations with immersive journeys.

Poo-Chi

The adorable robot dog won the hearts of thousands of children in the 2000s. Poo-Chi could bark, sit, sing and express his emotions thanks to integrated LED lights. After inspiring a bunch of derivative products in the form of other animals, the Poo-Chi craze fizzled out in just two years and the brand died out, replaced by furReal and its fur-covered robotic animals.

Tamagotchi

This toy was a source of both intense joy and bitter disappointment for young people in the ’90s. The game consists of caring for a tiny virtual creature that appears on the screen of a small, egg-shaped handheld electronic gadget. Despite all their efforts, players’ creatures often ended up dying, causing quite the heartbreak among their owners who became attached to them, and annoyance among parents and teachers, as the children of the time didn’t dare put their Tamagotchi down in fear of causing its death.

Polly Pockets

Popular in the early ’90s, the original Polly Pockets were small, portable boxes in which you could find a small plastic character living in its own miniature dollhouse. Today’s versions are much larger, and the originals have since become prized collectibles. Those who own a rare version might be able to resell it for a few hundred dollars!

Shrinky Dinks

Creative kids have been developing their artistic talents since the ’70s with Shrinky Dinks. Made from polystyrene plastic sheets, they feature designs you can paint with acrylic paint or another similar heat-resistant material. After that, you put them in an oven and the shape shrinks, thickens and hardens without losing its colours, and you can turn your work into jewelry or fill a collection.