Marx Warriors of the World

I found these Marx "Warriors of the World" figures at a sale yesterday for $1 each.  They date from 1963 and are part of a larger series of Marx figures that featured everything from Pirates to American Indians to WWII soldiers to Knights and Roman soldiers and gladiators like mine below.  They stand 6" tall and are really pretty cool.  I was shocked at the $1 price tag.  Somebody didn't do their homework.

Of Plates, Buttons and Woodpeckers

I was at the estate sale of a rabid plate collector this morning.  Her closets were filled with those collectible painted plates that were all the rage in the '80's and '90's.  In another room, I found a bag full of pin-back buttons that didn't really appeal to me and in fact it took me a minute to figure out what they were.  They were from a collector's plate convention in South Bend, Indiana in the early '80's and promote some of the manufacturers and depict some of the plates available that year.  I know, exciting stuff, but stick with me for a moment.

Santa's Village

I previously blogged a "Santa's Village" brochure among the others I found last Spring.  Recently, I came across yet another one with different pictures.  "Santa's Village" was a North Pole-themed amusement park that opened in the 1950's.  They had 3 locations; 2 in California and 1 in Chicago. In addition to Santa Claus, the park featured other fairy tale buildings, rides and characters.

Reader's Digest Condensed, June 1974

I recently came into a cache of old Reader's Digest magazines from the 1970's and you know what that means -- more scans!  If you're not a fan of old ads, move along.  If you are a fan of old ads, fasten your seatbelts...oh wait, this is the 1970's. No safety belts.  Well, just hang on for your dear lives then.

Camping by Coleman

Camping trips were one of the highlights of my summer growing up.  I loved the campfires, sleeping in a tent (I can still smell the wet canvas), fishing, hiking and those mysterious only-for-camping appliances my Dad used like the Coleman stove and lantern.  The sight of watching him add white gas, pump pressure into the tank and finally light it was like magic.  Of course, I wasn't allowed to handle  them, especially those silk mantles in the lantern that disintegrated on touch.

I found these Coleman owners manuals in the cabinet I blogged about here.

The first up is for the Coleman 425D Camp Stove from 1965.

Six Gun Junction

I don't recall when I picked up this brochure, but it would fit in nicely with those I blogged about here.   This one features "Six Gun Junction", a Ghost Town attraction in Biloxi, Mississippi.  I don't know about you, but I don't think of the Old West when I think of Biloxi.

Summer Time Comic Book Fun with Vicki (or at least the ads)

We didn't have air conditioning when I was little and when we did get it, we rarely used it.  So many of my summers were spent in our basement where it was cool (temperature wise, that is.  As basements go, it was as uncool as they get and was actually kind of scary).  I would spend hours reading comic books, a lot of which were from my older brothers who were alive during that sweet spot of years to see the birth of the Marvel Age of comics.  I guess what my rambling is trying to get at is that I've always associated summer with comic books and this being July 1st, I thought I'd bring one out that I recently picked up at a sale.

I was never a big reader of the Archie line, but I did have a few and when I saw this cover, I assumed it was an extension of those comics.