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that it needed to compete with the success of Kenner’s Star Wars action
figures. Roger Sweet, a member of the team, added modeling clay to
bulk up Big Jim. In turn, Mattel illustrator Mark Taylor developed the
proposed aesthetics for the action figure and, voila, He-Man was born.
Mattel premiered their Masters of the Universe action figures with
an elaborate back story in mini comic book form. The comic books
supplied a wealth of characters as potential toys and soon Mattel and
Filmation launched an animated television series based on them. The
cartoon series, which aired from 1983 to 1985 and featured a bold style
and comical voices, further shaped and enforced the commercial power
of Masters of the Universe characters.
Over the decades, Masters of the Universe has enjoyed significant
popularity, in part, because Mattel used comic books, television, and
the big screen to create a cohesive world for its toys and related
consumer products. New variations and characters were regularly added
to the line to keep the toys in front of the kids. The team at Mattel rules, and today, optional rules to change the play. A Risk player
understood that kids like the opportunity to project themselves into the employs strategy, or decision-making, that will affect the game’s
role of the heroes. Masters of the Universe characters had the strength, progress and outcome. Part of the game’s appeal is that, unlike most
weapons, and power to defeat the villain. war games, more than two players may compete.
Risk is the first such strategy game for multiple players, mass-
produced and enjoyed by generations. Its influence is touted by game
2021 collectors and experts, but on a personal level, many serious gamers state
that their interest in these games began when they first played Risk.

SAND AMERICAN GIRL DOLLS
Sand may be the most universal toy in the world. From a geologist’s
perspective, sand is a dry, gritty material consisting of small, loose Following a visit to historic Williamsburg, Virginia, and a
pieces of rock, soil, minerals, and gemstones. But children recognize Christmas shopping trip for her nieces, educator, and newscaster
sand as a creative vehicle for play suitable for pouring, scooping, Pleasant Rowland developed and launched a line of 18-inch dolls
sieving, raking, and measuring. Wet sand is even better, ready to representing an era of America’s past. Each doll was paired with rich
construct, shape, and sculpt. historical narratives and accurate reproductions of clothing and
accessories. Rowland decided to sell the dolls—Samantha, Kirsten, and
Molly—by direct mail. Between September and December of 1986,
American Girl dolls sold $1.7 million worth of product.

Historians have every reason to believe that the earliest people
played in the sand. As early as the 1800s, newspapers reported on the
building of sandcastles and other sculptures. Nineteenth-century
photographs capture beachgoers burying companions in the sand. A
charitable group in Boston formed the first sand garden in 1885. The
group deposited a pile of sand in a Boston chapel yard and invited chil-
dren to dig with small shovels and to make sand pies. Sand gardens
provided a space for children in densely populated urban spaces to
employ free and directed play, away from the dangers of the streets.
These sand gardens launched the playground movement in America. Rowland’s formula for combining doll play with rich history lessons
Thirty years later, British pediatrician and child psychiatrist Margaret worked, in her words, like “chocolate cake with vitamins.” In an era
Lowenfeld devised Sandplay therapy as a means of expression for when some education experts claimed that the curriculum of many
non-verbal communicators. schools paid too little attention to historical subjects, American Girl
The tactile qualities of sand fit well with the sensory emphasis of may well have filled a void. The success of the dolls led to ancillary
education recommended by Friedrich Froebel, Maria Montessori, and products such as a monthly magazine, movies, games, puzzles, online
Jean Piaget. Sand provides unique opportunities for tactical, physical, books and quizzes, and several retail stores where dolls and accessories
cooperative, creative, and independent free play. are sold in an environment that resembles a birthday party as much as
it does a shopping excursion. American Girl now offers a range of dolls
RISK with a variety of skin tones, face molds, eye colors, hairstyles, and
textures. When paired with intelligent stories based on history or with
The French filmmaker Albert Lamorisse designed a board game individualized representations of girls growing up in America, the dolls
with simple rules but complex interactions, La Conquête du Monde promote diversity in the toy industry.
(The Conquest of the World) in 1957. Purchasing the rights, Parker
Brothers published it with a few small changes as Risk in 1959. It
became the first popular game involving strategy, diplomacy, conflict, 2020
and conquest.
Risk players control armies of tokens on a world map board in
attempts to capture adjoining territories from other players, battling by BABY NANCY
rolls of the dice. The winning player defeats and eliminates opponents In response to the Watts Riot, Louis S. Smith, II, and Robert Hall
and occupies all 42 territories on the board – and thus all six continents. worked with civil rights activists and community members to form
There are various strategies for winning the game, special two-player Operation Bootstrap with the goal of empowerment and social and
20 Journal of Antiques and Collectibles