Customer Reviews

Wham-O Super-Book: Celebrating 60 Years Inside the Fun Factory

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If you ever owned a frisbee, super-elastic bubble plastic or a super-ball... this book's for you. A great nostalgic look back at all things Wham-O.

I gave this to my wife for Christmas and we spent and hour just reading, laughing and yelling "I had that"!

I didn't even need my afternoon cup of coffee after reading this book...I was just totally energized, like the first time I bounced a Super Ball! A very fun read.

Like most of the outrageously zany toys it showcases, Tim Walsh's Wham-O Super Book "rolls, jumps, skips, whirls, loops, climbs, circles, soars and rotates perpetually with body-english!" Walsh uncovers the unbelievable stories behind many of the fads and must-have toys of our childhoods and reminds us as adults how great it was to have so much ridiculous fun.

This is very enjoyable, and a strong nostalgia flashback if you were born in the 1940s-1960s.

An extremely visual book, with more product packaging graphics than text, it covers everything from the outrageously successful (Superball, Hula-Hoop, Slip n Slide, Frisbee, Hacky-Sack, Silly String) to the hilariously obscure (Purple Moon Cat, Kooky Froot, Superball Dice, Chain Gang Drinking Coasters).

Who knew they marketed a Patio Style Bomb Fallout Shelter Cover? ("40-Million May Die! How about YOU?"). Or a rubber loop with handles that promised "bosom development" and "Swedish exercise for family health!"?

They also made weapons in the 1950s, and I had forgotten that we owned a Wham-O Sportsman ("PROFESSIONAL MODEL USED BY MEMBERS OF THE NAT'L SLINGSHOT ASSO."), their first product, which they created in 1948 to launch airborne meat (I am not making this up! It's in the book!) for training pet falcons! My dad, a biology prof and bird-lover who authored a book on genetics for pigeon breeders, used one to fire ball-bearings at feral felines stalking bird nests in the ravine behind our home in the sixties.

[...]

Get it! It's SUPER! It's WHAM-O! Hours of FUN for the WHOLE FAMILY!

Toy enthusiasts, young and old, will love Wham-O Super-Book! This fun and fascinating

look into the amazing world of Wham-O reminds us that having fun is one of the best

parts of life. A child at heart, I bought this book for my own personal collection but

plan on buying additional copies as gifts. The visuals are fantastic too. Another great

book by Tim Walsh that leaves you with a happy heart for sure.

I loved this book! IT's SUPER!

I was apparently a WHAM-O addict in my youth... I identified so many products! SuperElasticBubblePlastic, Super Stuff, Water Wiggle, Slip'N'Slide, Frisbee, Super Balls, Hacky Sack... just to name a few.

Either I bought them because they were priced at "allowance" level, or I begged my parents until they relented. Much to their chagrin due to scraped elbows and knees, stained or melted carpet, furniture varnish ruined, or windows smashed. Oh well, childhood was not so "safe" then but I survived with a big grin!

Wonder layout, graphics, ads, photos, stories and anecdotes about the company's full history and the time line of the products: winners, losers and lethal categories.

For kids of ALL AGES... toys 'n'n stuff from the 60s, 70s, 80s and later!

More info and teasers about the book can be seen at the author's website here:

http://www.theplaymakers.com/WHAM-O/SUPERBOOK.html

In a recent interview the author of this book said that if a book author or musician sold as many products as Wham-O did, they would be in halls of fame, but the story behind the company has been largely ignored, until now.

I'm from the area where Wham-O was founded an I had no idea about the company. I remember the goofy commercials and the wacky products. But who knew that the company had such an interesting history?

The book's design takes its cue from the colorful packaging of the past and sets the mood for a fun, informative and thoroughly enjoyable book.

If you have a "big kid" on your list who is a little old for getting actual toys, (ahem, I'm looking at you, Dad...) then get this book and make his/her day!

I love toy books and this one didn't disappoint. Great photos and history of each. Buy it, it is a fun read!

What a great book that brought back great memories! Walsh did a great job celebrating the FUN!

This book is great entertainment, filled with photos and images and is fun to read. I love it! Brings back memories from my youth.