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Tonka® Trucks
Just after World War II, six Minnesota teachers who wanted to manufacture garden tools founded Mound Metalcraft in the basement of a local schoolhouse. In 1947, they acquired a competing company and inherited a miniature metal steam shovel in the process. This gave them the idea of making toys. Using pressed steel, they designed a digger and a working "crane and clam." After selling 37,000 units in the first year, the teachers abandoned garden equipment and concentrated on making toys. They also changed the company name to "Tonka," after nearby Lake Minnetonka, and branched out, adding semis, wreckers, dump trucks, fire trucks, and forklifts. While earning a reputation for durability and realism, Tonka kept up with changes in real-life construction and transportation. The company introduced pick-ups in 1955, a Jeep in 1962, and the bright yellow Mighty Dump Truck in 1965. The latter became Tonka's best-selling toy for the rest of the century. Hasbro acquired the company in 1991. More than thirty trucks now fill out the Tonka line.
View-Master®
When Harold Graves, president of Sawyer's Photographic Services, went to the Oregon Caves National Monument in 1938, he saw fellow camera buff William Gruber using two cameras strapped together. Gruber explained that he planned to update the stereoscopes common in 19th-century drawing rooms by producing three-dimensional color slides and a new hand-held viewer. By the next morning, the two had made a deal to produce View-Master. They introduced their creation at the 1939 New York World's Fair and then began selling it through specialty photography stores. Following the lead of its predecessor, the first reels presented views of scenic attractions around the country. In 1951, however, View-Master acquired its main competitor, film-strip production company Tru-Vue, and with it the stereo licensing rights to all Disney characters. Graves and Gruber hit the jack-pot. View-Master began offering 3-D images of the brand new Disneyland amusement park and stills from Disney movies and TV programs. Once sales exploded, View-Master offered slide reels of virtually every major kids' show and motion picture. A number of different manufacturers have produced View-Master, including Tyco Toys and Fisher-Price.
