How I became a monster loving kid and the monster toy enthusiast I am today!

[Hepcat]

...I currently have my 10 year old grand-daughter sleeping over night at my house here in the city, she's having the time of her life here, she's so excited with all these monsters here in my house, she's really having fun....

Well then this is your big chance to unsexually stereotype your grand-daughter! Take her down to the hobby shop immediately and get her one of the Aurora monster, Revell "Big Daddy" Roth fink or Hawk Weird-Oh kits! They've all been reissued. Let her choose the one she wants (and if she wants a warplane, warship or muscle car instead/as well that's fine too). And get her some paints as well. Then work on building it with her helping her every step of the way so that she's delighted with the finished product and thus encouraged to build more!

And if she's enthralled by the model train sets or slot-car sets at the hobby shop, so much the better! Get her (and yourself) one of those as well. And maybe a Dr. Dreadful Lab too!



Mad scientist would be a great career aspiration for a young girl. Maybe she'll be the one to discover a cure for cancer when she grows up!

[skully]

Hi Hep!  She was, for a while, into "Monster High" dolls, and she really likes the entire "goosebumps" series, as well as watching monster flicks (as long as they're not too scary),  believe it or not, one of her favorites was the Elvira hosted "Crawling Hand"!!  She likes to play in my "painting" room, where I have my original art, in years to come she will realize actually what these pieces are. Her younger sister will probably follow in her footsteps.

[Hepcat]

"Monster High" dolls are still dolls, i.e. girlie stuff. Take them down to the hobby shop so that they can follow in the footsteps of Melodee Ann Nicholls from this thread:

http://www.universalmonsterarmy.com/forum/index.php?topic=29876.0

[skully]

Hey Hep!!  Thanks for that link, actually,  that set "wasn't" complete, a complete set was found in, I believe, in Chicago or somewhere, at a toy show, which included in the shipping box, I believe 2 early issues of Famous Monsters magazine, which were actually missing from this particular set. I actually remember, in grade school, girls building the Aurora Monster model kits, so cool.  I also remember, in the back part of our school playground, all the kids, gathered around, to look at the "then" new orange boarder "horror monster" gum cards, again, so cool.  One of my favorite past-times were shooting "mibs  (marbles),  I had thousands of them back then. 

[Sean]

What a collection Hep!!  Goodness!  You are blessed to be in a position to pursue this love like you have.  More power to you.

The genesis of my own "Monster Kid-Dom" was fueled by watching "Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstien" at my grandma's house on Sundays after church.
Furthering the movement were my excursions at a young age to Terry's barbershop---where, after my trim, my dad would have us stop in to Steve's soda shop a few doors down to visit a cousin who worked there as a soda jerk.  We'd sit at the counter and get cheeseburgers and fries and root beer floats.  After eating lunch, I was permitted to peruse the stands that were chock full of comics and magazines and pick one.  I then was allowed to pick one candy.  What a way to desensitize me to getting a haircut!  I started out getting Superhero comics, but moved to getting Monster comics.  My favorite was Werewolf By Night.  I then discovered Famous Monsters of Filmland.  I would get one and the neighborhood kids would sit around me on the front porch and we'd flip through it together.  The candy choices? I'd usually walk out with a pack of Wax Bottles or a Marathon Bar or Sugar Babies. 

[Hepcat]

One of my favorite past-times were shooting "mibs  (marbles),  I had thousands of them back then.

One of the very few things I still have from my early years are my marbles. They survived in an old steel cookie jar. For proper display I transferred them into a hexagonal goldfish bowl and placed them on top of the kitchen pantry about five years ago.

[Hepcat]

...after my trim, my dad would have us stop in to Steve's soda shop a few doors down to visit a cousin who worked there as a soda jerk.  We'd sit at the counter and get cheeseburgers and fries and root beer floats.  After eating lunch, I was permitted to peruse the stands that were chock full of comics and magazines and pick one.  I then was allowed to pick one candy.  What a way to desensitize me to getting a haircut!  I started out getting Superhero comics, but moved to getting Monster comics.  My favorite was Werewolf By Night.  I then discovered Famous Monsters of Filmland.  I would get one and the neighborhood kids would sit around me on the front porch and we'd flip through it together.  The candy choices? I'd usually walk out with a pack of Wax Bottles or a Marathon Bar or Sugar Babies.

Oh man! Where was Steve's soda shop? Is it still in business?

[Sean]

Oh man! Where was Steve's soda shop? Is it still in business?

Steve's was in Sayreville, NJ.  Sadly it no longer exists.  I wish I could go back.  I'd be there tomorrow.

[skully]

Same here, my one of many stops used to be Margies, located at 10th and Spruce.  My school (grade school), was right across the street, and while walking home, I'd always stop and get a great soda fountain cherry coke, I always watched so that they put in enough syrup, then the fizz water would go in, and they'd stir it with a long spoon. Sometimes I would just sit at the marble counter and drink it, and spend maybe a nickle for some penny candy. Yes, I'd go back tomorrow too!

[Hepcat]

Steve's was in Sayreville, NJ.  Sadly it no longer exists.

Very sad.

[Hepcat]

I wish I could go back.  I'd be there tomorrow.

Same here, my one of many stops used to be Margies, located at 10th and Spruce.  My school (grade school), was right across the street, and while walking home, I'd always stop and get a great soda fountain cherry coke, I always watched so that they put in enough syrup, then the fizz water would go in, and they'd stir it with a long spoon. Sometimes I would just sit at the marble counter and drink it, and spend maybe a nickle for some penny candy. Yes, I'd go back tomorrow too!

I'd join you fellows! We could all go together.

Evidently there was an old-fashioned soda fountain in Cairncross the Chemists' pharmacy at Dundas St. and Clarence in downtown London, Ontario up until 1979 when the building was demolished. I didn't realize that it was even there though since there was nothing about the exterior of the store to lure me in as a youngster. The wares in Birr's Nuthouse (later Nut and Candy Land) right next door always drew my eye instead. Model kits, comics, bubblegum cards, potato chips, soda pop, etc. were available in several other stores in the immediate vicinity and I don't think I ever ventured inside Cairncross until late in the afternoon one Christmas Eve in 1977 or 1978 to buy some bubble bath or a perfumed powder puff for my sister.

Here's a photo of that Cairncross pharmacy from early in the twentieth century:



Just another instance of not knowing what you've got till it's gone. The Whistle Stop Drive-In was another such place until it was destroyed by a gas leak explosion(?) sometime in the mid-1980's. It was a fabulous diner with foot long hot dogs that prompted train crews to stop just three blocks from the downtown London CNR station for a quick bite whenever they were on schedule. Meanwhile I dropped in to sample the offerings no more than once or twice despite the fact that it was less than half a mile from my house! Arrrggghhh!!!

[skully]

Hey Hep,  I'm with you on that one.  Can you imagine, going back to those days, and seeing everything as it was, don't know if I could actually take it, I'd probably just fall over!  There is, however, a place that still exists from my past, Schell's, on 5th. St. highway in Muhlenberg, about 15 miles outside of Reading. We moved to Muhlenberg township when I was 12, 1966. It was (and still is) a great walk-in, drive-in food "hangout" place for us, and it still almost looks the same! We would always ride our bikes there, and just chow down the tasty great food, they had the best barbecue sandwiches, great big burgers, and all the other good stuff. When we got older, we would all go there at night as a hangout and just goof around with our cars and girlfriends, no one ever bothered us, and they had a miniature golf course on the property too, it's still there! So many memories of this place, good, bad, naughty and nice, I could write a whole page here about it. almost like American Graffiti !!!

[Hepcat]

Wow, too cool! Here it is:

Schell's

[skully]

Damn Hep!!  GREAT!!!

[Hepcat]

Evidently there was an old-fashioned soda fountain in Cairncross the Chemists' pharmacy at Dundas St. and Clarence in downtown London, Ontario up until 1979 when the building was demolished.

So it seems that by the late 1940's Cairncross the Chemists had expanded to a chain of six(!) stores in London with the newest in the Hotel London billing itself as London's first "New Look" drug store!

https://www.facebook.com/vintagelondon/photos/pb.256233541169617.-2207520000.1475184476./967154970077467/?type=3

And that large, "ultra modern" location had a soda fountain too! Thing is though that as a kid/young fellow I never had reason to pass through the doors of the Hotel London which was demolished in 1972. Therefore I wasn't even aware of the existence of that Cairncross store in the Hotel London and can't even tell you whether it lasted until 1972. Oh well....