Collectively,
the finalists that are in the running to be inducted into the National Toy Hall
of Fame in Rochester, N.Y., make for a very strong field of contenders this
year.
Among
the 12 toys, games and playthings nominated, only three or four are likely to
be selected. Winners will be announced in early November.
Here
is the alphabetical list of finalists: Bingo, Bop It!, Care Bears, Mahjong,
Monster High dolls, Mouse Trap, Pokémon Trading Card Game, Polly Pocket, the slide,
Sorry!, Tickle Me Elmo and Yahtzee.
“This
year’s group gives everyone plenty to talk about – from classic games to plush
icons and other toys that have shaped generations of play,” said Michelle
Parnett-Dwyer, senior curator at The Strong National Museum of Play, home of
the Toy Hall of Fame. “The debate is part of the fun because every toy sparks
different memories and makes its own case for why it matters.”
Criteria
for induction include:
Icon-status
(the toy is widely recognized, respected and remembered).
Longevity
(the toy is more than a passing fad and has enjoyed popularity over multiple
generations).
Discovery
(the toy fosters learning, creativity or discovery through play).
Innovation
(the toy profoundly changed play or toy design).
Some
of the 2026 finalists have been nominated before, including Bingo, Care Bears,
Tickle Me Elmo and Yahtzee.
All
those work for me as being hall-of-fame worthy. Here’s why:
Bingo
is a game of chance that originated in Naples, Italy, in 1530 or thereabouts.
It was modified by both the Germans and the French before making its way to the
United States.
In
1929, the game was introduced in America as “Beano,” using dried beans as
markers on cardboard playing cards, by Hugh J. Ward, who lived in the Hazelwood
neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pa., along the Monongahela River. Ward copyrighted
the game and published a rule book in 1933.
The
game was further popularized and commercialized by Edwin S. Lowe of Brooklyn,
N.Y., a toymaker and game entrepreneur. He overheard someone with a
winning card accidentally blurt out “bingo” instead of “beano.”
So, Lowe went
with the name “Bingo” for his version of the same game.
Lowe
hired Carl Leffler, a Columbia University mathematics professor in New York
City, to come up with non-repeating number groups so that fewer people would
get Bingo at the same time.
By 1930, Prof. Leffler had invented 6,000 different
bingo cards.
This
was also the answer to the prayers of an unnamed Catholic priest in
Wilkes-Barre, Pa., who had seized upon the game thinking it to be the solution
to his problem of financing the parish school. He bought several sets of the
game and invited his parishioners to play the game with great gusto and
frequency.
The
E. S. Lowe Company had great success with its bingo game sets, while also
manufacturing chess and checkers games and assorted plastic toys.
In
1956, Lowe acquired the rights to a dice game was invented by an anonymous
Canadian couple, who called it “The Yacht Game,” because they played it on
their yacht with their friends.
Lowe changed the name to “Yahtzee.”
The
Milton Bradley Company acquired the E. S. Lowe Company (along with rights to
Bingo, Yahtzee and other toy lines) in 1973 for $26 million. Milton Bradley
became a subsidiary of Hasbro in 1984.
A
large Yahtzee tournament is held annually in January in Eureka, Calif.,
sponsored by two local Rotary clubs there to benefit Nation’s Finest, an
organization that assists veterans in need in northern California.
Soft
and sweet, cute and cuddly, Care Bears have been teaching youngsters
compassion, kindness and consideration for others for 45 years.
The
Care Bears were created in 1981 by artist Elena Kucharik of Cleveland, Ohio,
for American Greetings.
The plush stuffed animals were subsequently
manufactured and released by the toy company Kenner in 1983. The Care Bears’ unique
“tummy symbols” have special powers.
Authentic
Brands Group of New York City acquired the intellectual property of Care Bears,
one of the world’s most enduring family entertainment franchises, in August
2026.
Tickle
Me Elmo made his debut 30 years ago as a furry, plush doll based on the bright
red Muppet character Elmo from the “Sesame Street” children’s television show
and Jim Henson Productions.
Elmo shakes, giggles and vibrates when squeezed.
Tickle
Me Elmo was introduced in 1996 by Tyco Toys of Woodbury Heights, N.J.
The toy
franchise rights are now owned by Mattel, Inc., of Segundo, Calif., as part of
its Fisher-Price division. (Mattel acquired Tyco Toys in 1997.)
“Putting
electronics into a plush-type toy had been done before, but Tickle Me Elmo took
it to the next level and allowed the toy to emulate the experience of being
tickled,” reported Chris Bensch, who recently retired from of the Toy Hall of
Fame.
“When
Elmo was tickled, he laughed, then he laughed some more and shook with glee.
Tickle Me Elmo relates to basic play elements – anticipation, surprise and
pleasure,” Bensch said.
Among
traditional board games, Mahjong, Mouse Trap and Sorry! have a lot of fans as
well.
Mahjong
(also known as Mah-Jongg) evolved in the 1700s, as a gambling card game in
China. Variations spread to Korea, Japan and other Asian markets.
In
1912, Joseph Park Babcock of Lafayette, Ind., an engineering school graduate of
Purdue University, was sent to Suzhou, China, by his employer, the Standard Oil
Company.
He
and his wife enjoyed playing the Chinese tile game and created a simplified
version of Mahjong to introduce in America in 1920. Rules were standardized in
1924, and many game sets were then produced in the United States by several
companies.
Mouse
Trap was first released in 1963 by the Ideal Toy Company and is famous for
being one of the first mass-produced, three-dimensional board games.
The game’s
iconic contraption was inspired by the complex, chain-reaction cartoon
machinery invented by artist Rube Goldberg, who spent most of his career in New
York City.
The
design concept for Mouse Trap was created by Marvin Glass and Associates, a toy
design and engineering firm based in Chicago.
(Milton Bradley took over
production of Mouse Trap in 1986, and ownership transferred to Hasbro in 2016.)
Sorry!
is a board game that was invented in 1929 by William Henry Storey of
Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. The game was subsequently sold in the United
Kingdom by Waddingtons of Leeds in West Yorkshire, the British games
manufacturer.
Storey
was granted a U.S. patent in 1933, and Sorry! was adopted by Parker Brothers in
1934. Hasbro acquired Parker Brothers in 1991 and continues to produce Sorry!
as one of its flagship products.
Sorry!
is one of many variants descended from Parcheesi, which originated in India.
Instead of traditional dice, players draw cards which control the movement of
their four pawns from start to home.
A
Toy Hall of Fame spokesperson said: “Sorry! has lasted because its game play is
so random that it prompts good-natured (and devious) gotcha! fun. Even young
players can claim victory over adults if they draw the right cards.”
The
venerable playground slide is a generic nominee for the Toy Hall of Fame, and a
bit of a sleeper. You never know how the panel of judges will score the
generics. (Also, consider the fact that the playground swing is already in the
Hall of Fame.)
The
Hall of Fame spokesperson said: “While the origins of the first slide for play
and recreation are debated, many scholars believe slides have existed for
centuries. Slides are both a means for thrill-seeking and exercise.”
“Although
the apparatus has changed over time, the benefits of playing with a slide
remain the same. Slides help kids to develop motor skills, encourage
exploration and promote play. And many grown-ups agree that riding down a slide
is invigorating.”
The
odds of being voted into the Toy Hall of Fame appear to be fairly slim to dim
for Bop It!, Monster High dolls, the Pokémon card game and Polly Pocket. Here’s
a brief description of each, provided by the Hall of Fame.
Bop
It! debuted in 1996, combining electronic game processes with free play and
physical elements in an innovative way. The handheld game challenges players to
follow voice-recorded commands and press the large button, or pull a handle or
twist a lever, depending on the instruction. Experts claim the game helps with
hand-eye coordination, focus and attention and sensory motor integration.
Monster
High hit the fashion doll scene in 2010. The first line included Frankie Stein,
Clawdeen Wolf, Lagoona Blue and Cleo de Nile. These were not just the children
of vampires, mummies, werewolves and sea creations, but complicated characters
with backstories packaged in small diaries. Monster High dolls have defied
traditional beauty standards, encouraged self-love and inclusivity and broke
the mold in the doll aisle.
Pokémon
Trading Card Game has sold billions of cards since it debuted in 1996. The
game’s mechanics are straightforward and can be grasped within a single game.
Supported by a dedicated community of anime enthusiasts, manga readers and
video game players, the Pokémon card game is renowned for its accessibility,
making it an attractive option for players of diverse ages and backgrounds.
Polly
Pocket has proven since 1989 that good things come in small packages. The first
Polly Pocket playsets consisted of a pastel-colored clamshell case that opened
to reveal an entire world with molded spaces such as a beach, café or country
cottage, giving kids a sanctuary to hold in their hands. Polly Pocket was a
simple concept for creative play rooted in whimsy and escape.
Thus
far, 90 individual toys, games or playthings have been inducted into the Toy
Hall of Fame since it was established in 1998. The charter members are
indicated in boldface type:
Alphabet
blocks, American Girl Doll, Atari 2600 Game System, baby doll, Baby Nancy,
ball, Barbie, Battleship, baseball cards, bicycle, Big Wheel, blanket,
bubbles, Cabbage Patch Kids, Candy Land, cardboard box, checkers, chess, Clue,
coloring book, Crayola Crayons, dollhouse, dominoes, Duncan Yo-Yo,
Dungeons & Dragons and Easy-Bake Oven.
Erector
Set, Etch A
Sketch, Fisher-Price Corn Popper, Fisher-Price Little People, Frisbee,
G.I. Joe, The Game of Life, Hot Wheels, Hula Hoop, jack-in-the-box, jacks,
Jenga, jigsaw puzzle, jump rope, kite, LEGO, Lincoln Logs, Lionel
Trains, Lite-Brite, little green army men, Magic 8 Ball, Magic: The Gathering, marbles
and Masters of the Universe,
Matchbox
Cars, Monopoly, Mr. Potato Head, My Little Pony, Nerf, Nintendo Game
Boy, paper airplane, Phase 10, pinball, Play-Doh, playing cards, puppet,
Radio Flyer Wagon, Raggedy Ann and Andy, Risk, rocking horse, roller skates,
rubber duck, Rubik’s Cube, sand, Scrabble, sidewalk chalk, Silly Putty,
skateboard, slime and Slinky.
Star
Wars action figures, stick, Super Soaker, swing, teddy bear, Tinkertoy,
Tonka Trucks, top, Transformers, Trivial Pursuit, Twister, Uno, View-Master and
Wiffle Ball.
