nostalgia

A few bits, boards and pieces from our vintage game/toy box…

Tigger, a piece from the 1988 Winnie The Pooh Train Set.

Vintage Game of The States box with spinners.

Retro Where’s The Beef? gameboard.

A huge metal gun from an old Clue game.

A vintage game board with multiple games (and cool graphics).

The ‘B’ side, sports games.

A Slater card from the Saved By The Bell game. (He’s soooo dreamy!)

A classic die from Skunk game, and an old plastic state (Utah) from Teach-a-Toy puzzle map of the US.

A vintage Pig Dice Game shaker cup (love, love, Love the graphics on this!)

Statler Muppets game piece.

Red”Infra-Scope Goggles” from an old Undercover game.

Retro The Jetsons Funpad Game piece.

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Lately, I’ve been reaching back into my younger years and reclaiming some of the basic building blocks that led me towards being a generally creative person. Of course, this literally refers to reclaiming actual wooden building blocks, but also such wonders as the Etch-A-Sketch (I went out and bought a new one), the Galt Toys Tack-On Picture Board, and the most wonderful of all building toys, the Lego.

None of the Legos that I had as a kid are still around, but we had a TON. They were inherited from a family of 6 uncles and aunts, before the era when Legos started getting fancy hinges and blocks that weren’t strictly squares (and an occasional slanted roof tile), so we were pretty fundamental in our constructions. We lost the use of the Legos for a long period when one of our brighter uncles decided to adopt a pet mouse and build playthings for it out of out Lego supply. Later, the mouse found a new home, and we got our Legos back – complete with mousy evidence wedged in their crevices and gnawed off of the corners. I think that we lost a bit of interest in them when snapping two pieces together also required prying mouse droppings out from the connections. The Lego supply found its way out of the house and to some undisclosed location – but they were getting pretty ragged anyhow, as indestructible as they are.

Sure, Legos were neat, but my only interaction with them for the past decade or so came in the form of a few small Star Wars Lego sets that I’ve lost to the recesses of the closet, and a little customized Lego that I painted up of my girlfriend. It wasn’t until I saw this original Iron Man custom Lego creation that I realized again the potential of the building blocks.

As someone who looks at everything in the world around me as things that I can scavenge for parts that I can use in art projects, I was hilariously blind to Legos, which already came completely ready to assemble into whatever the heck I felt like. In a quest for spare parts, I pretty much missed the neon, flashing, screaming ‘SPARE PARTS’ sign over the ol’ Lego depot.

Lego did a great job in building up their own nerd cred by expanding their line brick by brick, introducing the technical & programmable Mindstorms sets, and even venturing into action figure territory with their Bionicle line. They publish a free monthly magazine, and they have a subscribable Lego ‘Brickmaster’ Collectors Club that’ll send you six exclusive sets, one every 2 months, for a price of 40 bucks. A Lego set that you can’t get anywhere else pretty much spells AWESOME to me, and I’m a new subscriber. Anything that adds bricks to a limitless collection is fine by me.

So, I’m a reborn Legoholic, and this year, the Times Square Toys ‘R’ Us is calling my name during ToyFair. Upstairs, they have a fill-your-own-bag of Legos section, with a vast selection of Legos spread all around you like a rainbow of throat-destroying candy. Did you know that you can also buy Legos by the Brick in Lego’s online shop? You name the shape, and they’ll bag it up and ship it to you. To make this function even more amazing than it already is, they’ve created a Digital Designer program, totally free to use, which allows you to design a fully 3D Lego model of your choice using a huge variety of bricks in a huge variety of colors… and then you can click on a button and have the parts sent to you. Of course, you’re charged for each individual brick, but you can make whatever the heck you want, test it on a screen, and then have the fun of building it in person without going through the hassle of picking through a dozen Lego sets to scavenge for appropriate pieces.

I needed to kinda cleanse my soul after a rough weekend, and in the process of also cleaning my room, I found a few old Lego sets I picked up for various reasons & never assembled. Until very recently, I’ve had a purist approach to Legos. You build what’s on the box, and you keep the parts from different sets far apart. In the interest of creation and expansion, I’ve abandoned this attitude, realizing that if I keep the instruction manuals from all of these sets, I’ll be golden if I ever want to build them again. Sure, I might have to dig a little more, but the blueprints are the most important part. And if I want to remain a little bit OCD about it, I can store all of the pieces for any given set in a single Ziploc bag, which can then go into the collective tub of Legos.

I dug out my Batman vs. Catwoman set, which I purchased because it had a Lego Batman in it for my Batman collection, and I also dug out my Mutant Squid, which I purchased because it’s a mutant squid. One doesn’t need any more reason than that. And then I went on eBay and sought out huge mixed lots of pieces, and within an hour, I had over 2000 pieces from various auctions ordered and paid for, from basic blocks to aircraft parts to other odds and ends. If I wanted 100 yellow Lego flowers, there’s an auction for that. eBay is rich with very specific parts auctions for very fair prices. In fact, the individual pieces seem to sell even better than the big sets, and the minifigures are worth their weight in gold, with a single tiny Chewbacca going for almost ten bucks at times.

Waiting for the mail was never a strength of mine, and I went out and bought an $11 ‘Lego Creator’ set, which is Lego’s line of ‘moderately complex’ models that avoid using any super-specialized pieces. Of course, if the box has a picture of a spider on it, I’m the guy who builds a devil robot wielding a mace instead. And that’s just the beginning. The transience of Lego designs, the need to take something apart to make something new, has almost been made painless by the advent of being able to digitally chronicle them, and even digitally duplicate them (and save the schematics) in Lego Digital Designer.

Sure, Lego has all kinds of collectible Skeleton Warriors and Dragons and Exo-Squad and Bionicle and Knights, but they’re all just bricks. In this way, there’s not a single Lego set that doesn’t have an appeal.

Which just made collecting a lot more expensive.

Deanna’s been talking a whole lot about nostalgia and it’s relationship to collecting, and recently, those talismanic toys of the 1980s. Of course, when the conversation turns to He-Man and Ninja Turtles, I’m inclined to chime in.

As one of those 80’s nostalgia kids, and being only 25, I fall directly into the retro-collectibles demographic. And I’m a sucker for it, as are a vast majority of my friends. I think that beyond even pure market value and simple nostalgia for the items themselves, we all have one thing important thing in common : we’re actively unhappy with the way the world is turning out, which is unabashedly violent and complicated and divorced from our own personal goals and ideals. Plus, no Jetsons cars, teleportation, or robots to do our bidding / make sweet love to. We were promised these things and we’ve come to collect. But mostly, my friends and I are all political subversives in our own casual ways.

As a result of the current sociopolitical climate, all of us seem to hearken back to a time when the sociopolitical concerns and the frontiers of destructive sciences were so much simpler. I’ve discussed this at length with my comrades-in-nostalgia, as well as some older generations, inquiring of them if things were in fact a lot simpler just 20 years ago, or if it was just my youthful perceptions that were coloring things so damned rosy – and while the word ’simpler’ is subjective, the response was unanimous – yes, things are more complicated now. To be incredibly general about it, some things are better, and some things are worse – but it remains complicated.

THIS, I believe more than anything else, has been affecting the insurgence of the 80’s toy market. Us children who spent their formative years concerned with Krang’s exploits in the Techodrome, or how Egon was going to ensnare the spectre du jour, or the secret adventures of Lion-O on Thundera. Us sympathetic pseudo-denizens of Tatooine. We remember these times, but it’s not only our explicit love of the TV shows and that lenticular Eye of Thundera premium rings from Burger King. The key to the appeal of these things also resides in the ambient memories, ostensibly unrelated to the objects of our nostalgia-lust. And now, we have some disposable income.

When I think of riding my bike to my friend’s house to play Astyanax on the NES, I have an organic memory of fearlessness. We were not, at that time, in a world where every week held a new announcement of an abducted child or three, and I could ride my bike unconcerned. The ozone layer wasn’t quite so thin, employment wasn’t quite so difficult and the cost of living wasn’t quite so high. These shiny, flashing, plastic things existed, and are charming by their own virtues – but they also are representative of a better time, not just a cartoon show.

I’m certain that ‘better’ is also an arguable adjective, but I can tell you that my young, restless comrades and I can usually be temporarily sated by a boxful of Ninja Turtles – and even in the middle of our social and emotional unrest, it’s tangible proof that things can be simpler, and things can get back on the right track, and in a general sense, that spells out hope. And that’s where ‘collecting’ comes in – our senses reconnecting with something physical, and the need to consume it in quantity. Maybe Muppet Babies was a really stupid show – I don’t honestly remember, but I do remember watching it every Saturday while eating biscuits and bacon, and then playing in the yard and building lizard cages on the back porch. Buying a Muppet Babies DVD will never be the equivalent of being back in those times, feeling the same things, thinking the same magical thoughts, having all of your hair back and not regretting that skeevy girl you hooked up with in college, and that’s probably why I’m always looking for the next fleeting connection to the ‘better’ times. Each small memory is brief and powerful, but they fade in a modern context.

Deanna’s answer on ‘whether or not to sell your 80s toys now’ was more than complete, but as someone who is both actively buying and selling relics from my 1980s childhood, I can tell you that my personal attraction waxes and wanes. The happier I am with how my life is moving forward, the less I have the need to nest myself in regression. In the many, many times when I find myself floundering in depression, I built up a fort of NES games and couch cushions around me and shut out the scary world. So are us children of the 80s who actively collect these things just a gathering of malcontents?

Maybe, but we’re not dangerous.

On Sunday I posted Nostalgia Often Drives The Collectibles Market, to which dinocollector posted the following comment:

But my question is will generations of collectibles continue to increase in value or will they peak at some point? Obviously they will peak and decline when people of that generation start dying, but will they peak well before that? I still have most of my toys from the 1980s and I plan to sell them eventually, but when should I sell them? Most children of the 80s have jobs now so they can afford to buy back their toys. Should I continue to hold on to them or will there be a point when all of the 80s kids who want nostalgic toys acquire them so the demand goes down?

While I don’t pretend to know the precise answers (and I would be very skeptical of any who declared they held the answer), I have a few thoughts on the subject.

(Most of this is true of any area in collectible, so if you’ve been wondering when to sell off your collection to make a killing, read on and see just some of what the factors in the collectible market are.)

Not everyone who had these 80’s toys will want them ‘back’ — or at least not yet. Those 80’s kids are not even 30 years old yet, and, speaking as someone who has been-there-done-that, pre-30’s means you may not have the desire to once-again pick-up your old childish things, and, even if you do, you may not have the place to put them. If you’re still in college, just starting your career or a family, you may not have the money to spend on collectibles either.

Another factor in considering when it will be a hot time to sell retro 80’s toys is the matter of money. Most collectors do not have unlimited wealth; adding to collections is based upon the available discretionary income. So it’s not only the matter of the age of the collector as it pertains to employment status and career wages, but the economy as well. When times are tough, the purse-strings can tighten on collectibles purchases.

The appeal of these toys is not just limited to just those who were kids in the 80’s. For example, those who were too old to play with action figures but were fans of the films may covet Star Wars items. And there are also those too young to have seen the films when they were first released, but who deem the series to be a favorite. Or they assign other reasons to their collections. Each of these groups also has the same considerations noted above as well.

Guessing just who wants the toys from the 80’s, when they’ll want them, and when the income they’re making allows them to go hog-wild buying back their childhood, well, it’s just that — a guess. Sure, some marketing folks somewhere are busy trying to figure out these demographics, running the numbers on the percentages and comparing them to other market trends, but even if that’s a science, there’s more.

Other factors in the appeal of 80’s toys include, but are not limited to, changes in the life of the category.

Some things which will increase the value of 80’s toys are:

As most 80’s toys were media tie-ins, new films or works being released will revive interest in the older items too.

Losses in terms of deaths of creators, actors, writers, etc. as well as catastrophic losses such as fire destroying original items being stored.

The creation and success of related works, such as when new science fiction films are released which are credited to or inspired by the genius of Star Wars, Star Wars items will increase in popularity.

Some things which will decrease the interest in this category are:

The popularity of any other pop culture phenomenon (people spending their money on tech gadgets, for example).

The rise in popularity of other collectible categories. How many of those children who grew up in the 80’s are busy collecting Harry Potter items with their own kids rather than buying back the toys from the 80’s? Or maybe you’ve grown from Cabbage Patch kids to Marie Osmond dolls — and are headed to antique dolls?

Remaking or remarketing classic 80’s toys to new generations can both increase and decrease the interest in toys — they receive mixed reactions.

Many in the world of collecting have discussed the changes in collecting brought on by the Internet and online selling venues like eBay.

With the ability to sell online & the ensuing press coverage given to stories of the wealth hidden in your closet, many people are not disposing of the junk in their closets like they once used to do. Those boxes which mom and dad have saved for you and told you to come pick up now that you have your first home (or your own place has more storage than theirs does), are less likely to be picked-up and driven directly to the local thrift shop as a donation. With all the extra toys saved, and many of them listed for sale, the number of toys available keeps the prices lower.

Ahh, but then the questions become… How long will ‘everybody’ hold onto this stuff before they decide to clear out the clutter before a move? How long until part-time sellers tire of this and dump the stuff?

Eventually there will be a point when the price peaks, at least in your lifetime. It’s sad to admit, but true, that many collectibles are tied to generations and so when their incomes become fixed or they pass away, the interest in these collectibles wanes and the prices drop.

But in nearly every case, the interest will likely become reborn as younger folks remember ‘the classics’ or re-discover the genre again for some reason or another. Again, it could be a new film which sets-off a whole cultural reaction, or it could be individuals who remember those toys from old photos of grandpa, or a love of your childhood cars leads to a lifelong love of Matchbox collecting. It could even be that those lowered prices which ignites new interest. Who can tell?

Which just goes to prove that collecting is a lot like gambling. It’s not just about the money, it’s about loving the game.

The collectibles industry is huge and that will likely never change. But what drives the industry is buyers, and while their passions may change as far as what they’re collecting, they’ll likely always be collecting something.

Pinning down what they’ll buy and when? Well, that’s a guessing game.

I was reading Don’t count on old bikes selling high by Lynn Hopper, and one passage really stuck out:

Nothing else drives the antiques and collectibles market like nostalgia, and as collectors mature, the nostalgia moves up, datewise.

It’s something I’ve long noticed, but never really took the time to mention — at least not so succinctly.

Saturday the family went rummaging — three generations of our family. There were my parents, Derek and I, and our three kids. My parents were looking more for antiques, while Derek and I look for more vintage and retro items. (The kids just look for stuff they recognize — they have no real sense of nostalgia past the last decade.)

I agree that nostalgia plays a large part of our hunting. If we’re talking bikes, it would be my folks who would remember those classic bikes from the 40’s and 50’s as part of their childhoods. And true antique bikes would be something they remember as well, even if it was their grandpa’s bike or old family photos with bicycles in them. Me, I’m completely smitten with those 70’s banana seat bikes because I’d want ‘my old bike back’ — however, as I haven’t found one I can both afford and actually ride, I have a classic 1940’s bike because it still feels vaguely familiar (I can remember one of the oddest teachers at school who rode to work on his most of the year). To the kids, these are just all old junky bikes. lol

In other areas of collecting and hunting the same is true.

For example, I used to be able to go to the local charity thrift shops and buy retro Scooby-Doo books for a quarter and sell them on eBay for $20 or more. Mom’s jaw would drop when I told her of the sale. While I remember my ‘old’ love of Scooby, mom doesn’t have that connection. Not only does she likely still just see these books as the junk she was always telling my sister & I to put away, her lack of love means she doesn’t see how many others who also want their Scooby stuff back.

As sellers of antiques and collectibles, naturally we are most drawn to the things which excite us. This means my folks deal more, have a higher percentage of their inventory, in antiques than Derek and I ever have. And all of this means we are more knowledgeable in specific areas or periods. Our sense of nostalgia comes from the items being familiar. We are more excited when we see those objects, so we collect them or invest in them to re-sell — either way we buy them. Because we are buying these objects more often, we become better acquainted with them as far as history, condition, how common or rare they are, etc. This means we become more familiar with the objects in ways which go past just remembering our past. It’s a not-so-vicious cycle.

When Derek and I had a booth in one of the local antique malls our booth really stood out from the other dealers’ booths. Of course we had many true antiques, but the bulk of our wares were vintage and retro items. While this was great when the college kids and younger shoppers came in, for they made bee-lines to our booth and loved looking at everything there, we quickly discovered that in our area at least, the majority of these shoppers were just that — shoppers, not buyers. So after a year, we left the store and other than the occasional yard sale, we sell exclusively on the Internet.

Now this is not to say that younger buyers won’t spend money on vintage and retro items — this was just our experience here in Fargo (and a few years ago at that). I do know that in other locations this is not the case. In fact, when I lived in Wisconsin, we Wisconsin sellers felt we ‘made a killing’ off of those young urban Chicago folks. (Don’t feel bad, those folks still felt they were robbing ‘the Wisconsin rubes’ because our prices were so much lower than Chicago prices. It was a symbiotic relationship.) Location is a large issue in buying and selling collectibles for several reasons. Age, economics, and other trends affect sales, and just as an item’s rarity is often determined by location — breweriana is plentiful in Milwaukee and farming items are everywhere in Fargo — the smart dealer pays attention to these things. (And Derek and I haven’t stopped loving our vintage and retro goodies — we’ve just focused on presenting those goodies where those collectors are.)

If you agree with me that the age of a collector will quite often affect what category of collectible he is interested in collecting, or at least the period or age of that category, then I suggest to you another theory…

Many have claimed that eBay is responsible for the closure of many antique malls and mom and pop antique and collectible shops. Lynn Hopper did so in that article on old bikes, writing:

EBay revolutionized the world of antiques, helping many dealers, but closing down many small shops.

But I suggest to you that perhaps there is more to the story. Perhaps those dealers didn’t consider the market changes, didn’t reflect the younger buyers’ interest in newer items, by having those ‘newer’ items in their booths and on their sales floors.

When the trend-spotters and appraisers say that the market is good for arts and crafts movement pieces, that the market for Oriental rugs is decreasing, or whatever it is they are saying now, I think they should be taking into account the element of nostalgia.

Instead of saying that “mod is so hot right now” because the design style is similar to some home decor trend set by designers at Target, perhaps they should look at the ages of those designers and see that the current batch of trendy hipster designers are young folks inspired by their own sense of nostalgia. (And perhaps the designers’ success is more based on the sense of nostalgia shared with consumers than on any style sense they have themselves.)

Smart members of the collectibles industry have taken note of this. For example, both the toy and comic book markets have noted this shift, and they’re cashing in on it.

Individual dealers can do the same by looking for items which speak to younger collectors in search of ‘newer’ items and add them to the mix rather than only offering true antiques.