I love these things! I always have!
I never knew their history, but now that I do...I love them even more!
I've never seen a kid that didn't really enjoy playing with a Slinky if you gave them one. Heck, even grown-ups will take one that a child has left laying around and start playing with it!
The Slinky is one of those toys that folks can invent their own games with, and that is always good for the imagination! Simple toy that can inspire and encourage...we need more of that type of toy, in my opinion!
How the Slinky got stuck between a cult and a mid-life crisis
In 1943, naval engineer Richard James invented the Slinky. When a spring fell off of his workbench and began to “walk” across the floor, he figured he could make a toy out of it. His wife Betty agreed, and she came up with the name Slinky. Introduced in 1945, Slinky sales soared (say that three times fast), but that wasn’t enough to satisfy Richard James.
By 1960, despite his success, Richard James was suffering from a serious mid-life crisis. But instead of falling for fast cars, dyed hair and liposuction, Richard James went a different route, and became involved with a Bolivian religious cult. He gave generously to the religious order and left his wife, six children and the company to move to Bolivia.
Stuck with the debts left by her husband and a company that desperately needed her leadership, Betty James took over as the head of James Industries. A marketing savant, Betty James was responsible for additions to the Slinky line including Slinky Jr., Plastic Slinky, Slinky Dog, Slinky Pets, Crazy Slinky Eyes and Neon Slinky. It was great for boys and girls around the world that Betty James didn’t suffer a midlife crisis. In 2001, she was inducted into the Toy Industry Hall of Fame, and perhaps even more laudably, her Slinky dog was forever immortalized in Disney’s Toy Story movies.
By 1960, despite his success, Richard James was suffering from a serious mid-life crisis. But instead of falling for fast cars, dyed hair and liposuction, Richard James went a different route, and became involved with a Bolivian religious cult. He gave generously to the religious order and left his wife, six children and the company to move to Bolivia.
Stuck with the debts left by her husband and a company that desperately needed her leadership, Betty James took over as the head of James Industries. A marketing savant, Betty James was responsible for additions to the Slinky line including Slinky Jr., Plastic Slinky, Slinky Dog, Slinky Pets, Crazy Slinky Eyes and Neon Slinky. It was great for boys and girls around the world that Betty James didn’t suffer a midlife crisis. In 2001, she was inducted into the Toy Industry Hall of Fame, and perhaps even more laudably, her Slinky dog was forever immortalized in Disney’s Toy Story movies.
Now don't you just love a toy with an interesting history? Sure seems to make them more fun! To this day, I can entertain myself for hours playing with one!
I've given these as gifts at Christmas and have yet to see them go unused. The grands and grand nieces seem to be just as happy with one today as anything I have seen them playing with!
Don't tell anyone, but I keep one put back at my place for reunions and get-togethers...when the kids start to show signs of becoming bored! It never fails to entertain!
Now, my friends, let's get some fresh coffee and sit in the kitchen. Wanna play with my spare Slinky?
