The "An All-Time Great Toy" Story

It was an ordinary day. Cleaning out the chest of drawers we have in one of our guest rooms. The chest of drawers is 40 years old, but still in great shape. We purchased it with a crib and changing table when we found out that Carol was pregnant with our first child. At the time it was green with yellow and orange plastic handles, but in the early 2000s we had it repainted with a neat beach scene we had found in a book. One of my former classmates from high school had a son who was an artist, and we paid him to redo the chest of drawers. Turned out great and is the centerpiece of the bedroom. It is filled with stuffed animals, toys, coloring books, crayons, markers and an entire drawer of Play-Doh and plastic Play-Doh items that form the Play-Doh into different shapes. Can after can in a variety of colors is stuffed in the drawer. Most never had the lids put back on correctly so they have hardened. After examination, I pitched everything but the Fun Factory. As I was cleaning out the drawer, I stopped to read the information on the light cardboard container that housed the plastic cans of Play-Doh. Pretty interesting ingredients. Hard winter wheat, rice and even some tapioca. Wow, a meal in a Play-Doh can. Salt to help it from getting hard and Amylopetin to keep it pliable. Vegetable oil to keep the dough moist, a fragrance to make it smell good, Aluminum Sulfate to give a bitter taste so children don't want to eat it, Borax to prevent bacteria from forming in the dough, Peg 1500Monosterate, which is a patented ingredient, to reduce the dough's stickiness, and coloring. Just had to "Google" the stuff and I found some interesting facts. The non-toxic compound was originally concocted by Noah McVicker of Kutol Products in the 1930s to be used to clean wallpaper. About 20 years later Joseph McVicker, Noah's nephew, joined the company. Joe's sister was an elementary teacher in Cincinnati and was complaining to him about the clay they used in class was too hard for the children to form. He went to work and in 1956 he and his uncle took out a patent for the previously un-named material, now called Play-Doh. Came in just one color, off-white. Shortly after the invention of Play-Doh, it was taken to a national education convention and was first sold in the toy department of Woodard & Lothrop Department Store in Washington, D.C. Packaged in a 1.5 lb. cardboard can with a metal top and bottom featuring children playing with the dough on the label. The picture of the children was later changed to an elf as the mascot for the product. Color was added in 1957 with the addition of red, blue and yellow and was featured on Television on Ding Dong School and Captain Kangaroo. In 1960 The Play-Doh Factory was introduced and the mascot on the label was changed to a child dressed as an artist known as Play-Doh-Pete. The cans were later changed in 1986 to plastic, since the metal bottom tended to rust. Play-Doh evolved to being named one of the 100 most memorable and creative toys of the 20th century with more than two billion cans sold. In 1996, Hasbro, the now owner of the products, celebrated the 50th year of Play-Doh. After reading how important a product Play-Doh has been, I guess I will need to re-stock my drawer with a few more cans. Did see it now comes in fluorescent colors! It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy. PS - photos from the top are: Chest-of-drawers we have in our guest room, original Play-Doh packaging with children playing in cardboard with metal top and bottom, Elf is featured on can with plastic top and metal bottom, Elf is changed to the artist Play-Doh-Pete, 1960 Play-Doh-Factory, new color additions. Check out the Fun Factory in link below.