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Show Family Weekly Xorcmbtr 23, m9 The Best of the New A Toy the dolls who dance ballet, the games that bust your brain (or back), the spacemen who go way out all waiting to make life fun again for Here they are By TERRY SCHAERTEL IFtoy iswant going to be popular to know what YOU with children this Christmas season, just look at the world around you. Toys reflect the times. In World War II and during the Cold War, soldiers and weapons were popular. Now it's spacemen. In the Depression, the favorite game was Monopoly, in which a player could become a "millionaire" or a bum. Today's popular games are ones, with plenty of "Twister," in which participants twist together almost like pretzels, started the fad three years ago, according to the game manufacturer Milton Bradley, Inc. The company attributes games to the fact people are more open and friendly today. n This year's game is "Limbo Legs." It features an electric "limbo rod" for jumping, which can be set high or low, fast or slow. (It may also reflect our affluent society, which has the time and money to go to the Caribbean Islands where the limbo dancers entertain.) It costs about $6. In another area, children no longer want a doll just to cuddle; they want body-conta- ct go-g- body-conta- o. ct body-actio- action, too. Two new dolls from Mattel, for example, are "Dancerina," a ballerina who moves arms, legs, and head in the classic positions, and "Swingy," who dances to a rock beat Ideal's action doll is named "Beautiful Crissy." Her hair actually grows. It can be washed and styled to fit her wardrobe. Transportation toys remain popular provided they do something. Ideal produces powered cars and tracks (complementing the larger Motorif ic line) . The Minis can be held in a child's palm but have plenty of racing zip, thanks to small d batteries. Mattel also produces toy cars and has added a to last year's popular "Hot Wheels." Battery cars come with operated, the an assortment of tracks and bridges. A different line of miniature cars comes from Corgi. The price range is about $1.50 to $4. The details are said to be so accurate that, "It's like looking at the real thing through the wrong end of a telescope." Among the tiny details are engines, air intake, carburetors, exhausts, spoke wheels, doors that open, and spring suspension. In the stuffed animals field, Germany's Steiff, which made the first Teddy bear, has come out with a new "mink" aniTeddy and a brand-nemal for $10. (No, it's not a real rodent, but it's cuddly.) Also new to the American market is the "Betthupferl Ease," translated as "bed jumping" in German. The tradi- Mini-Motorif- ic "N"-8ize- "Super-Charge- die-ca- r" st die-ca- st w tion is that a child receives a reward like candy for being good all day and promptly "jumping into bed." The goody is hidden under the hollow bottom of this animal doll. In American and stores, it's called retails for about $3.75. In preschool toys, the latest from Fisher-Pric- e includes the House" for little sister. Family "Play It hinges open and locks shut with a handle for carrying it over to a playmate's house. Five play people and 11 pieces of furniture, movable staircase and closet, a doorbell that rings, and garage door that slides all come packed in a "moving van" carton. For little brother, the combination "Tool Box Work Bench" can help develop mechanical skills. It features a "Hide-a-Gif- t" four-roo- m rugged area for pounding. Giant screws can be turned with the tools that come with the set. The vise has a safety feature, so no matter how hard the youngster turns, it cannot harm a little finger. Among the other (scaled to skills) are screwdriver, claw hammer, wrench, and saw. ver"Shuffles," a plastic table-to-p sion of shuffleboard, is this year's entry from Aurora, a company which specializes in taking large games and scaling them down to "apartment size." It retails for about $10. Another miniaturization is "Flashmodel-ca- r d back," a nonstop, set an powered by racing l. The set includes two e cars, six feet of plastic race tracks, control, a simulated play-par- ts high-spee- air-press- hand-contro- two-lan- two-spe- ed Ideal Toy's Mini-Motorif- Race has ls duo-contro- ic Sprint for each driver. grandstand, and a pit stop. Suggested retail price, $12. Aurora also puts out a line of miniature trains called "Postage Stamp Trains." Even the most extensive layouts can be contained on a table top. Dune buggies are "in" with the set and now, in smaller versions, with the kiddie set A beach jeep by Tonka is shown on our cover. An elaborate version of the dune buggy is from Kenner, which says it is the first model that can be used outdoors as well as in the house. The child riding it can maneuver it around furnitura and drive it in reverse. For g sealed alkaline safety, a battery and recharger are provided. It is powered by a electrical system with an armature-typ- e motor. Reabout tail, $59, including battery and recharger. Road racing is growing popular in adult and children's worlds, too. build-it-yours- ge sea-and-s- long-lastin- Strombecker, for instance, offers "Can-A- m ctl activates musical notes; use tune cards or tap out your '' J Jlj I XXl . inspired by the Canadian-America- n Challenge Cup Series. It retails for under $40. The racing circuit contains two steeply banked Monza-typ- e e turns, changing tracks ; highly detailed cars ; plug-i- n contro- 1 nt;! - r?J J$ J rX 1 Home Road Racing Sets," 24-fo- ot two-lan- llers with built-i- n dynamic brakes ; starting track with fiTxjLTf , 'fZM ' WVC. v$I V-- " Build Postage Stamp Trains (above) trains. yourself with miniature Sy ge ' Clnf5 rVrw Deelie Bobbers' (left) notched wheels create whatever forms you want. Family Weekly, November pff JjC C&T j I J fcif SS, 1969 plug-i- n termi- nals; nonsnag fence; ILL. approved power pack. A scale of 148 is used for a build- Guru (left), a think game, combines simplicity with chess strategy. oe |