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Baitball Blogger

(46,576 posts)
Sat May 5, 2018, 11:44 AM May 2018

Who remembers the precursor to the etch and sketch?

Now, I don't know if it was a precursor, but it was rudimentary and did the same thing.

But, it was basic. Just a cardboard that had a black sticky substance painted on one side, and a clear sheet that was laid over that. Then, with a stylus you drew whatever you wanted, then, when you wanted to start over, you pulled the clear sheet up and your drawing vanished.

Anyone remember what they were called?

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Who remembers the precursor to the etch and sketch? (Original Post) Baitball Blogger May 2018 OP
Magic Slate CurtEastPoint May 2018 #1
Magic Slate Yonnie3 May 2018 #2
yeah.. I thought I'd seen some recently... Those kind of simple "toys" used to be more fun hlthe2b May 2018 #5
When I was young store bought toys were a rarity. Yonnie3 May 2018 #7
I've seen displays of handmade "wood-worker"- produced toys like train sets and toy trucks hlthe2b May 2018 #9
I made wooden toys for sale for a short while. Yonnie3 May 2018 #17
they sound really cool. And, yes, I can well imagine how time consuming they are to produce.. hlthe2b May 2018 #18
I do remember the Magic Slate and as a young boy' justhanginon May 2018 #8
I remember those too. They were simple but fun. hlthe2b May 2018 #10
On the roof or blown up by a firecracker Lochloosa May 2018 #11
Yep! I look back and remember doing that and I am justhanginon May 2018 #14
Rights of passage my friend. Lochloosa May 2018 #15
Those toys are getting harder and harder to find. Arkansas Granny May 2018 #12
I use to think these were cheap toys that would break before the end of the week, Baitball Blogger May 2018 #20
Don't forget the slinky. nt Ferrets are Cool May 2018 #31
oh, yeah... Loved the slinky... hlthe2b May 2018 #33
Loved those things too. So many memories. nt Ferrets are Cool May 2018 #34
One of my favorite things mountain grammy May 2018 #42
A history Yonnie3 May 2018 #3
That's funny. I had no idea. defacto7 May 2018 #6
Toy ? We used them as message boards. Put one by each phone. eppur_se_muova May 2018 #4
This article is from April 11, 1987........ Little Star May 2018 #13
OMIGOD. Someone needs to pitch this to Pruitt. Baitball Blogger May 2018 #19
I though you meant a slate and chalk. TexasProgresive May 2018 #16
Oh yes, the Magic Slate! Ohiogal May 2018 #21
Then there was the Pluto Platter, the prototype for the Frisbee. VOX May 2018 #22
Before that there were lard bucket lids. Lars39 May 2018 #25
Luxury! When we were young we played with a stick. Ron Obvious May 2018 #23
You had a stick? Baitball Blogger May 2018 #24
Sticks and a creek and a dog. IADEMO2004 May 2018 #28
IKR, some kids were just so privileged... malthaussen May 2018 #44
Paper and an eraser? helmedon1974 May 2018 #26
The Snackshack May 2018 #27
I remember - loved those! BadGimp May 2018 #29
I had one. Ferrets are Cool May 2018 #30
I used to love those kaleidescope thingies... llmart May 2018 #32
I still give those as little gifts to kids, but the parents and up playing even more with them, tblue37 May 2018 #41
I remember my first color etch-a-sketch Ptah May 2018 #35
I had both! Generic Brad May 2018 #36
I remember those. had both, magic slate and etch a sketch Demovictory9 May 2018 #37
And before that, pencil and paper ? left-of-center2012 May 2018 #38
We used to have those.... LeftInTX May 2018 #39
I loved those on long trips! nt tblue37 May 2018 #40
Loved that thing.. mountain grammy May 2018 #43

hlthe2b

(101,730 posts)
5. yeah.. I thought I'd seen some recently... Those kind of simple "toys" used to be more fun
Sat May 5, 2018, 11:53 AM
May 2018

than the big ostentatious plastic filled $$ toys now, I think... I'd get three of four things like the magic slate, a game of jacks or pick up sticks, maybe some silly putty or a sparkly jump rope...

Those inexpensive toys kept us occupied for hours as kids.

Yonnie3

(17,376 posts)
7. When I was young store bought toys were a rarity.
Sat May 5, 2018, 11:58 AM
May 2018

My parents made toys for us. We were on a very tight budget. We did have a magic slate which was grudgingly shared.

hlthe2b

(101,730 posts)
9. I've seen displays of handmade "wood-worker"- produced toys like train sets and toy trucks
Sat May 5, 2018, 12:02 PM
May 2018

that beat just about anything produced commercially. A lot of those end up selling for big $$ today or in museums. Not to mention the hand made "rag" dolls of old.

I know a lot of people bemoan the demise of ToysRUs, but to me, it was just a warehouse full of that plastic (landfill-headed) expensive stuff that would entertain a kid for about a second.

Yonnie3

(17,376 posts)
17. I made wooden toys for sale for a short while.
Sat May 5, 2018, 01:09 PM
May 2018

I the late 70s I was working in a custom cabinetry shop and made toys in the evenings. Tugboats, paddle wheel river boats (rubber band driven), puzzles and so forth. I placed them in artsy-craftsy stores on consignment. They could not be cheap because I paid the cabinetry shop owner for material plus tool time and paid commission to the stores. It was very hard to sell them and even break even.

justhanginon

(3,287 posts)
8. I do remember the Magic Slate and as a young boy'
Sat May 5, 2018, 12:00 PM
May 2018

we always loved the little balsa wood glider from the corner store. I think they were either five or ten cents apiece, took about ten seconds to assemble and invariably ended up on a neighbors roof.

justhanginon

(3,287 posts)
14. Yep! I look back and remember doing that and I am
Sat May 5, 2018, 12:23 PM
May 2018

frightened in retrospect at some of the really dumb things we tried as kids. I remember our solution to the high price of aerial bombs was to shoot M-80s out of a Wham-o slingshot. Me doing the slingshot and my brother lighting the fuse. Good god, can't get any more dangerous than that. Thankfully we survived with all our fingers intact.

Arkansas Granny

(31,484 posts)
12. Those toys are getting harder and harder to find.
Sat May 5, 2018, 12:15 PM
May 2018

I have tried to buy my grandkids toys that require no batteries. It seemed that so many toys, including those for infants, didn't need any interaction, just push a button and watch the toy play.

I bought them books, board games, card games and arts & craft projects. They loved them.

Baitball Blogger

(46,576 posts)
20. I use to think these were cheap toys that would break before the end of the week,
Sat May 5, 2018, 01:15 PM
May 2018

until I realized my other four siblings were playing with my toys when I wasn't around.

hlthe2b

(101,730 posts)
33. oh, yeah... Loved the slinky...
Sat May 5, 2018, 08:47 PM
May 2018

And back in the "day" these viewfinders just memorized me... Like 3D glasses today...

Yonnie3

(17,376 posts)
3. A history
Sat May 5, 2018, 11:50 AM
May 2018
https://www.completeset.com/the-classified-history-of-the-magic-slate/


This favorite, classic toy has delighted children for decades and also served to protect sensitive government information.

Spy stories are great. They’re great when they’re intricate, gritty thrillers and they’re great as cartoony, action romps. Some of the best parts of these stories are the tools spies use. In the grittier ones, you get to see the inventive ways covert operatives used and manipulated real-world technology. In the more over the top takes, you get to see all sorts of wacky, implausible gadgets. So what exactly do you imagine when you think about a spy’s arsenal? A pen with a recording device in it? A car that turns into a submarine? An umbrella that’s secretly a dart gun? What about a piece of cardboard, wax, and plastic with a picture of Donald Duck printed on it? I speak, of course, about the venerable Magic Slate Paper Saver, the unsung, silent hero of the Cold War.

<snip>

Little Star

(17,055 posts)
13. This article is from April 11, 1987........
Sat May 5, 2018, 12:16 PM
May 2018

It was to be a super-sensitive inspection tour of the new U.S. Embassy under construction in Moscow. But how to keep some discussions during the visit hush-hush?

Well, there's always Magic Slates.


http://articles.latimes.com/1987-04-11/business/fi-760_1_magic-slate

TexasProgresive

(12,148 posts)
16. I though you meant a slate and chalk.
Sat May 5, 2018, 12:40 PM
May 2018

I remember Magic Slate. Had one as a kid. It was more fun than EtchaSketch. I never could do much with one, but some people could do fantastic work on the EtchaSketch.

Ohiogal

(31,671 posts)
21. Oh yes, the Magic Slate!
Sat May 5, 2018, 03:52 PM
May 2018

I was constantly drawing when I was a child and used to wear the darn things out & my mom would get me another one.

VOX

(22,976 posts)
22. Then there was the Pluto Platter, the prototype for the Frisbee.
Sat May 5, 2018, 04:25 PM
May 2018
https://atomicscout.wordpress.com/tag/pluto-platter/
<snip>
In 1956, a toy company called Wham-O (founded in 1948 by Rich Knerr and Spud Melin) acquired the rights to the ‘Pluto Platter’ and in 1958 the company introduced the Wham-O ‘Frisbee’.
<snip>
 

Ron Obvious

(6,261 posts)
23. Luxury! When we were young we played with a stick.
Sat May 5, 2018, 05:01 PM
May 2018

We used to scratch our names into the dirt. And we liked it!

And if you tell the kids today that, they wouldn't believe you.

llmart

(15,502 posts)
32. I used to love those kaleidescope thingies...
Sat May 5, 2018, 08:44 PM
May 2018

where you look in one end and turn the other and it made colorful shapes like you were on an LSD trip. LOL

I also liked my Popeye and Olive Oyl colorforms.

tblue37

(64,982 posts)
41. I still give those as little gifts to kids, but the parents and up playing even more with them,
Sun May 6, 2018, 09:08 AM
May 2018

from nostalgic delight.

I also give ViewMaster 3-D viewers, with those circular cardboard "reels" (disks) of pictures:


https://www.flickr.com/photos/fueledbycoffee/242654758

I like to give kids low tech that spur their imagination.

Colorforms and Play-Doh are also popular with the kids I give gifts to.

Generic Brad

(14,270 posts)
36. I had both!
Sat May 5, 2018, 10:52 PM
May 2018

When my Magic Slate got too scratched up to work, I would eventually get another from somewhere. That was a cheap toy. The Etch-A-Sketch was an expensive one (at least it was billed as one in my house when I was little).

LeftInTX

(24,560 posts)
39. We used to have those....
Sun May 6, 2018, 03:07 AM
May 2018

They never seemed to last very long. The film would get bent or the black stuff wouldn't work anymore. Or it would get wet. Or I would use a crayon on it.

The fact that I probably abused them probably didn't help.

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