Weird, Fun and Arguably Dangerous Toys from the 50s and 60s

Take a look at some of the weirdest, fun and arguably dangerous toys from the 50s and 60s.  These toys will make you wonder how these toys ever made it to stores or maybe why we don’t have these toys anymore.

Back in the 50s and 60s, there was no consumer movement to protect consumers and their children. As long as the toy made money, it went on the market.  It wasn’t until 1969 that the first federal safety standard for toys was signed into law.  Until that year, tons of kids got to play with potentially hazardous toys that would lead to a trip to the emergency room.

Today, gone are the good times of owning fun, interesting and dangerous toys.  Since you can only buy these vintage toys on Ebay or from collectors anymore, let’s look at some of the toys that you missed out on during your childhood.

Atomic Energy Laboratory

The 1950s brought us many weird and interesting toys.  In addition, it was a time of fear of the red terror and possibly a nuclear holocaust which of course brought about the birth of the “Atomic Energy Laboratory toy set.

Known as the “U-238 Atomic Energy Lab”, it was first introduced to kids in 1951.  Its creator, Albert Gilbert who is better known for inventing the erector set thought it would be a fun and interesting way to learn about atomic power and its many uses.

The concept behind this toy was great except for the fact that it also included real radioactive materials. The toy was pulled from store shelves less than a year later.

It’s too bad  the toy never made the premise for a comic book.  It would have made a great background story for a mad scientist or as one of Peter Parker’s mutant nemesis.

Belt Buckle Derringer Toy Gun

This is another throwback from the 50s with much sexual overtones.  Yes, the 50s were certainly a time of innocence for America as they thought it would be a good idea to have a toy cap gun that could be fired with a simple thrust of the hips.

This toy cap gun was hidden in a belt buckle would be fired by thrusting your hips and stomach.  Not only did it allow kids to shoot a hidden gun, it also gave them practice for more grown up activities!

The dangerous part of this toy was not in the projectiles but in the firing caps.  The technology at the time was not very good and it was common for it to actually catch on fire near the crotch area.

Needless to say, a few kids from that era were unable to pass on their genes to the next generation.

Good time folks, good time.

Gilbert Glass Blowing Set

This toy comes to us directly from the now defunct Mysto Manufactoring Company that was famous for providing supplies for magic shows.

It later branched out into chemistry and inventor sets which would have made today’s parents scream bloody murder.  Some of its other famous toys include the Molten Lead Casting Kit and its U-238 Atomic Energy Lab.

The Gilbert Glass Blowing set showed kids how to make their very own glass containers! The glass blowing kit was simple enough to use.  It even included  a torch that would heat up to 1,000°F.

The child would just melt some sharp glass pieces and would then proceed to shape a glass container by blowing in a tube using their mouth.

Agent Zero Sonic Blaster

Let’s take a look at some of the toys from the 60s which was during the Cold War.  This brought about the popularity of some pretty cool spy toys which included the infamous Agent Zero toy line.

The Sonic Blaster was such a toy that was shaped like a pump action bazooka that would fire a blast of air towards a distant target.  This fun toy would use a strong blast of air to propel dirt, rocks and anything you could think of.

The only downside to this toy is that it tended to make kids deaf as thanks to its 157 dB that could cause permanent hearing loss.

On a fun note, one of its tv ads featured a young Kurt Russel before he became Snake Plissken from Escape from New York!