The Energon Pub

[LOST Cybertronian]

We received the following press release regarding the Indianapolis Children's Museum visitors and fans vote to choose their favorite from the '100 toys (& their stories) that defined our childhood'. Our favorite toy line Transformers took the silver coming in second.

Indianapolis, IN (PRWEB) September 11, 2012

After eight weeks of voting, more than 24,000 votes, and 600 stories shared, the final results are in and The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis online visitors and fans have determined their favorite toy from the past century. The top toy is G.I. Joe®!

On July 16, the public was asked to weigh in on the ‘100 Toys (& their Stories) that Define Our Childhood’. The goal was to determine favorites from a list of 100 toys iconic of childhood as chosen by curators of The Children’s Museum’s collection. After the initial five weeks of public voting, the list of 100 Toys was narrowed down to the top 20 from which the public was again asked to rank favorites. The results of this last vote determined the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners.

The final order for the top 20 toys is:

Gold: G.I. Joe®
Silver: Transformers®
Bronze: LEGO® Toys
4. Barbie®
5. View-Master®
6. Bicycle
7. Cabbage Patch Kids®
8. Crayons
9. Play-Doh®
10. MONOPOLY®
11. Raggedy Ann®
12. SpirographTM
13. Etch A Sketch®
14. Little Golden Books®
15. Hot Wheels®
16. Lincoln Logs®
17. Candy Land®
18. Roller Skates
19. Silly® Putty
20. Mr. Potato Head®

“The feedback and support from the public for this initiative has been extraordinary,” said Dr. Jeffrey H. Patchen, president & CEO, The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis. “The stories people have shared about intergenerational learning, family traditions and memories has been heartwarming and life changing in some cases. Toys are a powerful tool for exploration and imagination as we learn and grow. They foster many shared memories across generations and, as was represented in the voting and story sharing for 100 Toys, across cultures as we read stories submitted from Germany, Canada, Australia and Israel.”

The 100 Toys project included iconic toys from the past century (1910-present) that were representative of childhood. As one of the few children’s museums that is also an artifact collections museum, The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis has more than 120,000 objects in its collection. Museum curators took great care in considering which 100 toys to choose that would represent a wide variety of experiences.

“Each of the toys the public chose for the top 20 has been produced for 25 years or more, which is not surprising considering their cross-generational appeal,” said Patchen. “Objects such as crayons and bicycles have been around for decades - evoking strong emotions and fond memories with children, parents, grandparents, and even great-grandparents. These toys give us common ground and are good conversation starters involving the entire family.”

Several generations of enjoyment were evident in the stories submitted to the museum website including a gentleman who shared multiple incidents in his own childhood growing up in Indianapolis during the 1950s. Like many of his generation, he played with trains, toy soldiers, and a Yo-Yo. Memories were also shared on toys popular in the last few years such as Beanie Babies® and Tickle Me Elmo, although many of the toys included are timeless such as toy tools, dress-up clothes, toy trucks and baby dolls, which alone received 31 story submissions!

Beginning on Sept. 11, the final 20 toys will be on display at The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis for the public to view through the end of the year. Although voting has ended, the public is still encouraged to share their own memories of each of the 100 toys on The Children’s Museum website at http://www.childrensmuseum.org/100toys.

About The Children's Museum of Indianapolis
The Children's Museum of Indianapolis is a nonprofit institution committed to creating extraordinary family learning experiences that have the power to transform the lives of children and families across the arts, sciences and humanities. For more information about The Children's Museum, visit http://www.childrensmuseum.org, follow us on Twitter @TCMIndy, Facebook.com/childrensmuseum and YouTube.com/IndyTCM.

[Sentinel Maximus]

I love that my two favs are up there G.I.JOE and TRANSFORMERS! I'm surprise STAR WARS didn't even register here It revolutionized the 3 3/4 inch action figure.

[Megatron Wolf]

wow gijoe and transformers got 1 & 2 thats actually surprising, thought 1 & 2 wouldve been barbie & hotwheels. Well since GIJOE got top spot maybe now hasbro will actually do something with the franchise other than barely put out a toyline and do a short series or movie every few years.

[Fires_Of_Inferno]

Oh man, now I want a View-Master!

[njb902]

Oh man, now I want a View-Master!

What is a view-master?

[MGrotusque]

Oh man, now I want a View-Master!

What is a view-master?

It's a device that opens the perceptions of reality and enables the operator to view/look upon other dimensions and worlds far beyond his/her mortal reach. Groundbreaking technology for it's time.

[Fires_Of_Inferno]

Oh man, now I want a View-Master!

What is a view-master?

It's a device that opens the perceptions of reality and enables the operator to view/look upon other dimensions and worlds far beyond his/her mortal reach. Groundbreaking technology for it's time.

EXACTLY!

[njb902]

Oh man, now I want a View-Master!

What is a view-master?

It's a device that opens the perceptions of reality and enables the operator to view/look upon other dimensions and worlds far beyond his/her mortal reach. Groundbreaking technology for it's time.

EXACTLY!

Ohhh I remember those.

[MGrotusque]

Long View should have had the "View Finder" gimmick incorporated into his design now that i think of it.



Would a bin fun.

[MarkNL]

Wow, TF on the 2nd place is very good, regarding that LEGO is very popular around the world.

[XDMan]

Well, looks like Hasbro isn't that bad after all!

[Va'al]

The Children's Museum of Indianapolis have update their future events schedule, and our favourite transforming robots are taking over the exhibition space again! In honour of the arrival of animated series Transformers: Robots in Disguise, the Museum is hosting a collection showcasing different characters and their evolution from 1984 to the present day. It also seems to coincide with the currently expected air date of the series in the US - could this give us a more precise estimate? Check out their information below!

TRANSFORMERS: Robots in Disguise™

March 7–July 26, 2015
As Hasbro’s TRANSFORMERS franchise celebrates its 30th Anniversary, get ready for a museum exhibit that shows the fun and innovation that has gone into the creation of the iconic robots. This exhibit will showcase the heroic Autobots and villainous Decepticons, including favorites like Bumblebee, Optimus Prime and Grimlock. Since their introduction in 1984, TRANSFORMERS characters have converted from robots to vehicles, jets, dinosaurs, and animals. The excitement and fast-paced action of a brand new animated series, Robots in Disguise from Hasbro Studios will debut in 2015 and the exhibit will feature new characters that will be sure to inspire families to create even more new stories. What are the secrets to creating something that can move and twist and contort itself into an entirely different being? TRANSFORMERS fans of all generations can use their own imaginations and explore the design and engineering that goes into crafting these beloved characters.

TRANSFORMERS, TRANSFORMERS ROBOTS IN DISGUISE, the logo and all related characters are trademarks of Hasbro and are used with permission. © 2015 Hasbro. All Rights Reserved. Licensed by Hasbro.

[Va'al]

We reported a while back on the exhibition held by the Children's Museum of Indianapolis with everyone's favourite transforming robots, opening on 7th March. The museum has actually been in touch with us, and via Hasbro approval, shared images and designs for the event, which we've mirrored below to motivate people to visit what looks to be a really fascinating look at the Transformers franchise in a museum setting!

The exhibit design and social media teams at The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, the largest children’s museum in the world, are excited to share these preliminary design sketches for the upcoming exhibit Transformers: Robots in Disguise™. The exhibit opens at The Children’s Museum on March 7, in partnership with Hasbro.

These sketches are used to convey the overall experience of the exhibit in the early stages of development. They help illustrate the relationship between the displayed objects and the hands-on learning activities. You can learn more at http://www.childrensmuseum.org/future-exhibits, or follow the museum on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to see the latest behind the scenes moments. (facebook.com/childrensmuseum, Twitter @TCMIndy, Instagram @childrensmuseum, #IndyTransformers.)

Enjoy this sneak peek!

Welcome to the Transformers Universe! The exhibit’s entry will ask you to “Choose Your Team,” with featured photo ops with Optimus Prime and Megatron.

Examine Transformers vintage toys and character images, which represent a sampling of the 6,000 characters developed by Hasbro over the past 30 years. This space includes a 10’ Optimus Prime statue from Transformers: Age of Extinction, an Autobot and Decepticon character display, and other interactives focused on the fantasy world of Transformers.

There will also be a display of full-size Transformers fan costumes, including The Children’s Museum’s own Bumblebee costume.

The Hasbro toy design area will allow you to participate in key phases of the toy making process including aspects such as conceptual design, engineering, and testing. Enter an immersive space emulating Hasbro designers at work and watch a 3D printer printing a grey model prototype.

Autobot Central is a facilitated program space featuring hands-on workshops where visitors design robotic creations using some of the same skills used by Transformers designers. The space will also feature vintage commercials and cartoons.

The Become Bumblebee interactive asks visitors to imagine if YOU were a Transformer as you virtually transform into a robot on screen.

[griftimus prime]

why would they have combiner wars megatron with g1 prime? and megatrons cannon is on the wrong arm.

[Flashwave]

Gee, this is half an hour from me, and mopst of that time is spent sitting in Indy traffic, not actual distance. I should probably go...

why would they have combiner wars megatron with g1 prime? and megatrons cannon is on the wrong arm.

1) The kids don't mind nearly as much as we do. Megs is Megs.

2) I'm betting its a mirrored image. We've seen that artwork before.

[SlyTF1]

I would travel across a sea of stars to go to this place. I'll try to at some point. Even though, I live nowhere near it.

[morphobots]

Gee, this is half an hour from me, and mopst of that time is spent sitting in Indy traffic, not actual distance. I should probably go...

why would they have combiner wars megatron with g1 prime? and megatrons cannon is on the wrong arm.

1) The kids don't mind nearly as much as we do. Megs is Megs.

2) I'm betting its a mirrored image. We've seen that artwork before.

You're closer than me, man. I'm 3 hours away, and I put in for the day off from work to go. Told my co-workers I'm going to point out everything the exhibit got wrong

[Flashwave]

Gee, this is half an hour from me, and mopst of that time is spent sitting in Indy traffic, not actual distance. I should probably go...

why would they have combiner wars megatron with g1 prime? and megatrons cannon is on the wrong arm.

1) The kids don't mind nearly as much as we do. Megs is Megs.

2) I'm betting its a mirrored image. We've seen that artwork before.

You're closer than me, man. I'm 3 hours away, and I put in for the day off from work to go. Told my co-workers I'm going to point out everything the exhibit got wrong

Well, just saw what day it was, and already have an obligation on the SE side, I'd say "Seibertron.com mini-meetup". I still have several shirts in my dresser that need an offical type wearin'

[morphobots]

Gee, this is half an hour from me, and mopst of that time is spent sitting in Indy traffic, not actual distance. I should probably go...

why would they have combiner wars megatron with g1 prime? and megatrons cannon is on the wrong arm.

1) The kids don't mind nearly as much as we do. Megs is Megs.

2) I'm betting its a mirrored image. We've seen that artwork before.

You're closer than me, man. I'm 3 hours away, and I put in for the day off from work to go. Told my co-workers I'm going to point out everything the exhibit got wrong

Well, just saw what day it was, and already have an obligation on the SE side, I'd say "Seibertron.com mini-meetup". I still have several shirts in my dresser that need an offical type wearin'

I don't know exactly when I'll be there, owing to our crazy Indiana weather, but it will definitely be on the 7th. I can PM you when the date gets closer.

[Va'al]

A we've been mentioning through today, site owner Seibertron was able to make the trip the Children's Museum on Indianapolis, in order to visit the new, Hasbro licensed, Transformers: Robots in Disguise exhibit we reported on a while ago!

If you head below and click on the images provided, you can take a look at a fairly extensive gallery covering the various parts of the history of the Transformers showcased, from interactive features, the prototypes and models on show (from unused toys to BotShots and more), the Soundwave through the ages collection, the vehicles of Movie Optimus Prime and Bumblebee on display, a Beast Wars diorama, a "design a Transformer" area, cartoons running in a room where kids can play with simplified 3 Step Transformers, an area where you can "become a Transformer" by motion-capture controlling a screen Bumblebee, and much much more than meets the eye!

[Primeultimus]

I own the Slot car set in the bottom picture. Really awesome to play with!

[Va'al]

Curious about the Transformers: Robots in Disguise exhibit at the Children's Museum of Indianapolis, but cannot make it yourself, and the gallery we posted earlier is just not enough? Check out the embedded video below, then, and bask in almost 40 minutes of walkthrough to the whole thing as site owner Seibertron shows us around the place, and gives his thoughts live as he explores the museum with his family!

[Sigmus Prime]

Ugh. Wish I still lived close to there - I may have actually been able to make it . Nevertheless, this looks like a pretty cool little event - hopefully they'll do it again sometime.

[LE0KING]

When does this end? I live about thirty minutes from there and I'll try to swing by when I go home for spring break.

[King Kuuga]

When does this end? I live about thirty minutes from there and I'll try to swing by when I go home for spring break.

July 28th I think the sign said.