Breyer plastic horses. Colorforms. Crayola 64s (the BIG box). What was your favorite toy as a child? University staff reminisced, some even waxed nostalgic, when asked to name their favorite toys.
For some, the answers seem obvious. That toy might even bear witness to what they do today (parents take note: That kid creating a giant Lincoln Log farmhouse might one day be a college dean.) For others, well, they were just little kids and the toy was just a beloved item.
Kevin Paul Hofeditz, theatre arts professor, fondly remembered his table-top hockey game. He said that while growing up in Edwardsville, Ill., a 12-year-old Hofeditz held his own against his 18-year-old brother. Today, Hofeditz still enjoys some knock-down, drag-out competition with his 10-year-old son in a newer version of the same table-top hockey game.
Kathleen Anderson, associate professor and extension horse specialist, animal science, remarked, "I do remember a favorite toy and it does fit what I ended doing for a career. I had a spring rocking horse and I wore it out because I didn't have a real horse of my own."
Another horsey sort was Kim Todd, assistant to the chancellor. "Breyer plastic horses-I had a whole stable full!" she said. "Oil paints, watercolors, chalks, charcoals and all that artsy stuff. And my imagination with my best friend-we played in the woods for hours at a time."
Cecil Steward, dean of the College of Architecture, remembers that "at an early age I was intrigued by things that were assembled by hand - things that were a challenge to put together, like model planes. But Lincoln Logs was the first toy that made me realize that I enjoyed building things."
Phyllis Larsen, director of Public Relations, fondly remembered her Yogi Bear Colorforms, which included Yogi, Boo-Boo and picnic baskets. She also enjoyed toy trucks. Inspired by Nancy Drew, young Larsen planted clues and cryptic messages and then "discovered" them the next day.
Robert Hillestad, professor emeritus, textiles, clothing and
design, loved his beige Teddy Bear because of its texture.
Harvey Perlman, dean of the College of Law, thinks his toy might have some adult relevence. "One of my favorite toys was an erector set. I think it relates directly to academic administration. You try to take a variety of pieces and put them together into something that works - and invariably some piece is missing."
Vaughn Robertson, assistant director in Multicultural Affairs, couldn't stop laughing when reminiscing about his favorite childhood toy: a pair of hand-me-down, slip-on rollerskates converted into a skateboard.
Growing up without much money in Wichita Falls, Texas, Robertson said he and many of the other neighborhood kids took the toy business into their own hands. He and some of his buddies couldn't afford store-bought skateboards, so they fashioned their own custom-made transportation from skate wheels and wood.
The resulting board was good enough for a 12-year-old Robertson to cruise the limited sidewalk areas around his house. But his mother banned the beloved board when his 10-year-old sister broke her arm while wheeling around in heavy skateboard traffic.
Peg Bolick, curator of botany at the NU State Museum, has a similar memory. Bolick and her younger brother put roller skate wheels on a wooden box and used it as a scooter.
When she was growing up in Lebanon, Kan., Sue Rosowski's favorite toy was a soft stuffed doll with a plastic face she named Mrs. Derg. Rosowski is Adele Hall Distinguished Professor of English and Willa Cather Studies.
"What I remember from very young childhood is a doll, Mrs. Derg.
She was a vehicle for telling stories. I remember being told stories by
my parents in which Mrs. Derg played a role. We would tell stories to
each
other," Rosowski said.
Patrick Nickoletti, a lecturer in educational psychology, said, "My favorite toy as a child was a pocket-sized, nondescript, action-figure with whom I would stage a universe of situations to contemplate and act out. Even once I had outgrown the figure, I kept it for a long time because it symbolized such an unbridled sense of wonder and adventure."
Chancellor James Moeser remembered when and where he got his toy: "I recall getting a wooden train from my uncle when I was 5 years old recovering from an appendectomy. This was during the last days of World War II, and no metal toys were available. I was absolutely in love with trains as a child. My father used to take me down to the train station when the trains came in, and he would often drive along the highway alongside the trains so that I could enjoy them. (This was in the days of the steam locomotive!) I dreamed of being a train engineer. I don't know if this has any relevance at all to my job today, although I suppose you could make all kinds of metaphorical references to being the conductor or the engineer of the NU train. I'll leave that up to you."
Ellen Weissinger, associate dean of Teachers College has an elaborate memory.
"When I was 7 or 8, my Aunt Helen gave me one of those boxes that you put hardware in. You know, the kind of thing that has all those separate little places that you put screws and nails in. And each space had a different toy in it. There were jacks in one box, erasers in another, a little puzzle in another, things like that. I was fascinated by it. After the toys were gone, I kept it and put other things in it. When my nieces were that age, I made one for each of them. Did it influence my career path? I don't know, maybe. What it did influence was my desire to have everything in a little box. You should see my house."
Ron Bonnstetter, associate professor of curriculum and instruction, was in fifth grade when his brother gave him an old scanner from a police car. He figured out how to hook it up to a battery and he created an antenna for it. He remembers it well because of the hours he spent listening to the scanner. "I put all the equipment on some shelves in my closet and you could find me in there day and night, even at three in the morning."
Patricia Freeman, curator of zoology at the NU State Museum, has a list of favorite toys, starting with the Silly Putty she ordered from the back of magazine. She still has a smooth rock she found in a creek and made a leather case for. She also had a cap gun with an easy-working trigger. "I loved guns. I was such a tom-boy," she said.
G
eorge Corner, collection manager at the NU
State
Museum remembered a Teddy Bear named "Teddy Tim" that Corner
just
couldn't give up. In fact, he still has him. "He's been through the
mill," Corner said.
Planetarium coordinator Jack Dunn was also a train fan. Dunn's favorite toy for years was an electric train. "There were all these different accessories and engines you could collect. My dad built me a big table and I had a big lay-out in my room," he said. "I was interested in a lot of things but I didn't really get into the astronomy thing until high school."
Suzanne Rohde, associate professor of mechanical engineering, checked with her mother to confirm her memory. "I guess I was really, really interested in cooking, so my Suzi Homemaker E-Z Bake oven," is her first-choice toy. Apparently, she used it so much that they ultimately had to buy three ovens. After that it was her chemistry set. Both toys figure in her adult interests, she said. "I was intrigued by taking two things and processing them such to make another thing. Pretty much what I do now in mechanical engineering as a materials person - I take two materials and create a new one out of them."
After some thought, Diandra Leslie-Pelecky, assistant professor of physics and astronomy, realized her favorite toy was the Spirograph
"I remember looking at the wheels and wondering what pattern they'd make before I made the pattern."
This is a big part of what she does now in her work - she works with patterns and works to see the patterns in things
Jan Kauffman, associate director of the Nebraska Human Resources Institute, said, "While this isn't exactly a toy, I remember being most excited about two gifts I received as a child. One was my first pair of roller skates. I can recall so clearly how I felt with that key on a string around my neck. It must have been my first key because I felt extremely grown up as I manipulated the screws on the bottom of my skates with that key. I loved the feeling of freedom my skates gave to me, sailing along on the sidewalk and listening to how the sounds would change, depending on the condition and age of each square of cement. This was probably about third grade or so.
"Then, in fifth grade, I got the best gift ever. I received my first bicycle. It was a pink and white Schwinn with a built-in horn and a carrier on the back. It represented such freedom. My best friend and I spent hours on our bikes, exploring north Omaha and going so far away from home that our parents probably would have killed us if they'd known.
"While neither gift has a thing to do with my career choice, it's interesting that they both have to do with transportation. Traveling has clearly emerged as one of my life's greatest passions."
NET's Rod Bates remembers three hot items. "Lincoln Logs, a toy pistol and holster, and a clock radio. The Lincoln Logs were so versatile. You could build anything you wanted. You were only limited by your imagination. The toy pistol and holster were really cool at a time when I wanted to be a cowboy. Unfortunately, the neighborhood bully stole it from me and broke my heart. Finally, when I was older, I received a clock radio which was the biggest gift I had ever received. I was just blown away by the magnitude of it. Of course, by today's standards, it doesn't seem like much. But, to me it might as well have been a new car."
Ricardo Garcia, associate dean of graduate studies, remembered
a gift that gave him some freedom.
"I was 12 years old when I inherited a hand-me-down Montgomery Ward bike that my older sister and two older brothers had run ragged. The bike was pretty well stripped down: no fenders, no chain guard, no bike stand, and the tires we worn smooth and booted with other pieces of tires. Nevertheless, I took that bike everywhere; it gave me the freedom of flight. I could go where no one had gone before - over hills and dales and dusty trails, down country roads.
"I acted out stories - Secret Agent Man (before James Bond was around), cowboy good guy after the bad guys, space ship exploring the galaxies (before Star Trek). When the bike broke down, I went to the junk yard and got spare parts and fixed it. Now the love of that toy never lead to being a spy, or an astronaut, or a sheriff, but to this day, a ride on my bike cleans all the cob webs away! In the kind of jobs I take, that's very much needed."
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