‘Toy Story’ Sparking Demand For Classic Toys

Matthew Rodriguez is hoping to find a splashy new video game under the Christmas tree. Don’t tell him, but his mom went for Mr. Potato Head instead.

Thanks to the Disney hit movie “Toy Story,” parents across the country are revisiting the toys they played with as children. The computer-animated film highlights such Baby Boom favorites as Mr. Potato Head, Slinky and Etch A Sketch.

At the Toys R Us in this Los Angeles suburb, the “Toy Story” section was nearly cleaned out by 11 a.m. Thursday. Martha Rodriguez was buying Mr. Potato Head for her 6-year-old son Matthew.

“They get too hooked on video games, and I would prefer them to play with these kinds of toys,” she said. At $11, it’s also cheaper than most electronic toys.

Behind another shopping cart, Carol Roberts was loading a $10.99 Etch A Sketch for her 7-year-old son Mitch. “If I hadn’t seen the movie, I would have forgotten all about it,” said Roberts, who twisted the dials of the drawing toy when she was her son’s age.

“Toy Story,” which debuted over the Thanksgiving weekend as the nation’s No. 1 movie, features toys that come to life when their young owner leaves the room. The lead characters, Woody and Buzz Lightyear, share a toy chest with a variety of old-fashioned toys, from Barrel of Monkeys to Twister to Slinky.

Betty James, whose James Industries has made Slinky for 50 years, said she is rushing to keep up with the demand for the coiled toy.

The tiny Pennsylvania company (120 employees) is making a new $14.95 Slinky Dog copied from the film. The initial order is for 50,000 Slinky Dogs, but James said the toy probably won’t be available until after Christmas.

Hasbro’s Mr. Potato Head, which debuted 45 years ago, also has a special movie version. The standard Mr. Potato Head sells for about $6, but the new “Toy Story” model - featuring more parts and a bowler hat - sells for about $11. Hasbro expects Mr. Potato Head sales to go up at least 25 percent.

“Most of the buyers are parents who played with Mr. Potato Head when they were children,” said Sharon Hartley, a Hasbro general manager.

Many of the Etch A Sketch purchasers are of the same mind-set. Sales at Toys R Us and Wal-Mart are up more than 200 percent from a year ago, said William Killgallon, president of Etch A Sketch maker Ohio Arts. The toy came out in 1960.