GENERAL MOTORS TEST THE SCRAMBLE BUG CONCEPT IN "MOON TRAVEL" FILM

General Motors test lunar vehicle concepts including an early balloon wheeled vehicle like the Scramble Bug.

Boxes of Memories

Talking to Woodsy recently in light of his recent nostalgic posts of plastic toys and novelty bits and pieces, I suddenly realised that I still had some of these things myself. As a complete hoarder, I rarely throw stuff away and have even the tiniest items from childhood. While most of my hoard is toys, there are other things which I find to interesting or just too downright precious to throw away. 

One of these is the screaming skull keyring shown above, which dates from the mid sixties and would have come from the Harbour stores in Rhyl, North Wales, a favourite holiday haunt.

In amongst several boxes of stuff I have, all of which would fall into the category of 'memento' is a pocket fob watch my dad gave me, with his signet ring strung on the chain. The watch was originally my grandfathers and he apparently had it from a german soldier during the second world war. What is especially wonderful is the small section of cloth in the outer case, which when I removed it, revealed a tiny cut out photograph of an unknown lady. Whether this is my great grand mother or some relative of the german soldier, my dad was never able to clarify.

Next up is a random selection of the more recognisable things, a hand written recipe for ginger beer from when I was about 9, a football fixture card by Walkers Bitter, a sew on Blue Peter badge, tube of iron filings from a Thomas Salter Magnet Experiment set, King Tuts Mummy Case (Tut himself having long since been grave-robbed), a tin car, naked woman keyring, a Britains (or Charbens) Iron Chicken, a Honey West capgun, Silver Jubilee Commemorative coin and some of my collection of compasses.

Rubbing shoulders with this lot of ephemera we have a ceramic Loch Ness Monster, some armourial badges, the head of a jiggly skeleton with jewel eyes, a rubber crab, school prefect badge, plastic brush from a Corgi trailer model, Action Man dog tag, some wooden animals, Telfords Iron Bridge miniature, a fly brooch, plastic glider, Charlie Horse and Wishbone from MB Games Operation, a thupenny bit and a jaw harp!

The red 'cone' is a slide viewer from about 1969 from Currys grotto in Liverpool.

Notice the Play-Doh and Dalek Gun on the shelf beside me!

To round it all off, a collection of old pennies, ranging from 1967 backwards, one of which I fished out of a crack in a now demolished wall in Church Street, Southport, outside the clinic I used to work in, while I was waiting for a lift.

The bottom two are new 1p pieces, remade into deformed tokens by a novelty machine in the Cadbury Bournville Factory in Birmingham. 

So many things when considered from an outside point of view would be regarded as worthless, but to me, each one is a direct link to some evocative memory of my past.

MORE STRANGE WORDS AND ABBREVIATIONS ON EBAY

Here are some more strange words and acronyms garnered from just 30 minutes of searching Ebay. I've no idea what some of them mean and a only vague idea of the rest! Do you know readers?

1. NOS
2. OVP [German listings]
3. Realty
4. Escrow
5. Gate Release Fee
6. Smog fee
7. Trending
8. Lay Away
9. Patina
10. Concession
11. Recast
12. Consignment
13. Inventory
14. Stock
15. Junkyard Lot
16. Cardback
17. VG+
18. Estate find
19. Tote
20. Toter
21. NIP
22. N.I.B
23. LIS
24. MOSC
25. HTF VTG
26. Minty
27. Creamsicle
28. IOP
29. SP VG

PROJECT SWORD AND SPACEX ROBOT

This is the TV screen film, seen in two different ways, inside the Robo Con TV toy robot by Estrela. Featured many times on MC I never get fed up of seeing Project SWORD and SpaceX vehicles on a robot screen: namely the Booster Rocket and MEV2.

Estrela made a rifle to go with it, which had the same graphics. Also blogged. 

Anyone got one of these beauties? Clink the label below for more posts.

THUNDERBIRDS ARE GO : BREAKDOWN

The latest  story featuring the Thunderbirds happens to take place on Virgil's birthday, and he's worried everyone has forgotten it.

'Breakdown', written by Benjamin Townshend,  is very much a Virgil episode with Thunderbird 2 taking centre stage.

The action takes place somewhere near the northern Arctic Circle. A member of a scientific expedition manages to  call International Rescue from an emergency beacon on the ice. Suffering from hyperthermia and exhaustion,  all he can say is "Breakdown! ". 

I must say, I really enjoyed this episode. It featured a proper rescue that didn't involve anyone associated with International Rescue. Virgil took control of a situation that wasn't all that it seemed,  and the ending, without giving too much away should make everyone smile.

Even Torchy gets a name check!

Thunderbirds Are Going!

The second issue of the new Thunderbirds comic came out this week with a very respectable TB2 cover mount. It will be interesting to see where the cover gifts go after issue 7...

PLASTIC CLASSICS: VINTAGE CHARMS AND NOVELTY TOYS

Its too soon to talk about the Big Day so I won't but the onset of the dark month of November has got me thinking about the promise of day-glo party favours and Hong Kong novelties. My childhood was chock-full of little plastic toys and vending charms, so here are a few that have been picked up by that big claw in my mind:

Plastic pipes: the classic Dad shape and the three-pot bubblers: blub!

Plastic pea shooter: tchooom!

Ball floater: pfffft!

Plastic catapult: Yeoooow!

Skull key rings: Yikes!

Skeleton key Rings: dem bones!

Top Hat Skull: the Bone Daddy!

King Kong figures: Grrrrrr!

Super Balls: zzzzzooooom!

Strange Change Lost World cubes: plup!

Which plastic toy thingies do you recall readers - from Birthdays, parties, holidays, Thanksgiving or trips out?

MILK AND BUTTIES AFTER SCHOOL IN THE 1960's

When I was a spotty schoolboy in the Sixties I would come home from school [or skoo] on a Friday and celebrate with a large jam butty and a huge glass of milk.

The butty would be made from Mother's Pride, the very whitest and softest of bread, stork margarine or Lurpak butter and a thick filling of Robinsons strawberry jam with whole strawberries in it. On biting into it the jam would squeeze out from the sides of the butty and go all over my hands. I used to love licking the sticky stuff off my fingers like a dog!

The milk was full cream from the Milk man, a pint bottle in the fridge and poured into a tall hi-ball glass. If I was feeling posh I might have had a straw but mostly I liked to gulp it down in as few gulps as possible. I would finish with a dramatic 'aaaaaaa' and wipe the milk-tash from my face with the back of my arm as if I'd just done a 15 hour shift down the pit!

Heaven!

Nowadays its a much less interesting affair, a strong cup of Yorkshire tea and a Mars Bar from Aldi called Mister Choc. 

What did you have have when you got home from school readers?