Goodbye my old friend.

"I don't wanna grow up, I'm a Toys R Us kid."

When I think of my childhood in the 80’s, it’s hard not to think about the kid mecca, Toy R Us. Back then Toys R Us was something special. You knew going into that store you’d be treated to isle after isle of marvelous, jam-packed shelves of toys that stretched from floor to ceiling! If any of your family members extended you a trip to visit a Toys R Us it was like getting a Golden ticket to the Wonka factory!

"The stuff dreams are made of."

At least that’s the way my kid mind remembers it. Or maybe that is just the way it actually was. I still have my inner child and love toys! When I go into a toy store I still want to run up and down the isles looking at all of them. You can ask my wife, she’ll totally verify I do that. 

Geoffry's design changed over the years.

Geoffrey the Giraffe was the long neck mascot of the toy chain. He was a very recognizable character because there were plenty of commercials featuring him and his family between cartoons on Saturday mornings. If you were a kid of the 80’s, you were in front of a TV every Saturday morning so it was hard to miss them. 

My favorite Toy R US commercial is this one from Christmas 1981

Isles 7C, 8C, 9C of Toys R Us was the piece de resistance where you'd find action figures, toy guns, and playsets. Here the packed shelves truly loomed above you. Peg boards were filled front to back and never seemed to be empty.

So many Joes...

There was every Star Wars toy, He-man would call you to Castle Greyskull, G.I Joe’s were poised and ready for epic battles in your backyard and Optimus Prime and his fellow Autobots stood ready to transform and roll out with you.

"Is this heaven?"

These beautiful, wonderful isles of toys were always the place I ran to first when I got into the store. My grandmother would shout for me to stop or slow down, but nothing could keep me from these isles of magnificence!

This kid is clearly on a shopping spree. Lucky bastard!

The video game isle was a treasure trove of the store. Plastic title cards for every console were plastered up and down the isle. On the front of the card was a cover image for the game. When you flipped the card up, you would find images and a description of the game. To choose the game you wanted, you would pull a pirce ticket using Toys R Us' unique ticket system.

The ticket system was simple; grab a ticket, go to the register and pay, then pick up your item from the "cage," located at the front of the store or from the back if you were picking up bigger items, like bikes, swing sets, etc. When you approached the "cage" you would hand your ticket over to the employee behind the glass(I always enjoyed peeking into the cage and seeing all the games arranged on the shelves). The employee would retrieve your game and pass it back to you through the window. With game in hand, a big grin on your face, you'd bounce happily out the exit doors and onto gaming bliss!

Tickets, please.

Did you know Toy R US used to hold weekend events! Anyone remember Character Day?

Character Day was a chance for kids to meet their heroes. Actors or maybe it was employees, would dress up like Spiderman, Wonder Woman, Darth Vader and other various heroes and villains and pose with kids for pictures. 

They did this once or twice a year in the early 80’s. There wasn’t much more to it than that other than if you were lucky you got to pick out a toy while there.

"Oh my god it's Darth Vader!" is what I probably said.

When I graduated high school I got a job at my local Toys R Us. I worked there a year before going to college and during the summer breaks. Even though I was older, I still loved being around toys. I worked on the floor or sometimes as a cashier, but I really enjoyed working in the warehouse retrieving items for customers and unloading trucks. The advantage of unloading TRU trucks was being able to see new toys before they hit the shelves. That was an advantage as a toy collector. During my employment, The Power Rangers were the hottest toys out. Everyone was scrambling to get them. Occasionally customers would drop some extra cash your way if you brought them a box from the warehouse.

Toys R Us changed its store layout in the 90’s to an organic layout and got rid of the long isles. It was an effort to lose the warehouse vibe and fit more in with the newer toy shops popping up at the time. It is my personal opinion that this is when they started to lose the magic. I remember feeling different walking into a Toys R Us once they changed. That’s hard to explain, but something about seeing toys tower over you was more exciting than the adopted the more spread out look. Here in Los Angeles near my home I discovered a Toys R Us that has a floor layout very close to the stores in the 80's. I love going into that store because I feel a piece of childhood. It’s sad to think of that store closing. I went there just the other day after hearing the announcement just to walk around and look. Toys R Us is something special to me. It’s a big part of my childhood, but nothing last forever and it’s time to say goodbye. 

As a Dad of two boys I’ve brought my kids to Toys R Us several times. While I would run to the action figure isles when I was their age, they run for the Legos. We all had/have our happy toys. Even in my 40’s I still go to the action figure isles to see what’s there. I still get happy to see shelves filled with toys. The magic of my childhood memories of Toys R Us still lives in me. I’m a Toys R Us kid at heart and always will be!