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Nothing Beats a Hot Wheels Lunchbox

Thermos

Thermos

It was the early 1970′s, Nixon was president and I was in kindergarten. I don’t have a positive opinion on global warming, but most of my memories of going to school at that age are crisp autumn Virginia mornings. I also distinctly remember doing something that would makes me cringe at my uptight advanced age – I remember dragging my metal lunch box across the gravel of the school yard. Actually, pushing it around the gravel – ultimately scraping most of the paint off the sides of the box. That kills me now, because I am sure that little metal box is worth some money – it was a sweet Hot Wheels lunchbox.

I found this picture of the Hot Wheels thermos that came with the lunch box, but I can’t seem to find a picture of the actual lunch box. The lunch box itself was rugged, but the paint (probably lead paint to boot) wasn’t immune to my school yard abuse. That gravel scratched up the paint pretty badly and that upset my Mother. Mom was very structured and was able to eventually teach me a lot about respect for my possessions. At that age, keeping my lunch box from being scratched up wasn’t the top thing on my priority list.


“Good fences make good neighbors.”

People tend to remember things in one of two extremes – either things were really tough or the world was much better in the “good old days.” Realistically, the seventies were no different that any other time. Kids would confuse their coats or books or lunch boxes. Not everyone had a Hot Wheels lunch box, but my Mother felt it was better to identify my lunch box with her trusty Dymo label maker. I remember that well used device also, because it was lime green and matched our shag carpeting in the basement of the house. You could drop the label market on the floor and not see it. Ah, the Seventies were such a great time (you see, I just did that – hearkened back to a simpler better time. It was neither simpler nor better.) Color labels did not exist when I was a kid – not that I remember. The labels were pure functionality – black with white lettering. I think they did have color labels later in the 1970′s, but I am not 100% certain. I might have labeled my Pet Rock with a non-black label while listening to the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack.


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This entry was posted on Saturday, September 13th, 2008 at 6:45 pm and is filed under Creativity. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.





  • http://www.ticklemeplant.com Jenny

    Cool thermos but I’m glad we are heading more in a green direction.
    I love the new TickleMe Plant Mini-House/ party favor I found it at http://www.ticklemeplant.com This is the most amazing plant you will ever see. The leaves fold up when you tickle them!

  • http://www.marytakesyouhome.com Suffolk Va

    I can’t imagine how much plastic and other items went into making those thermos either. I do remember getting a hot wheels lunch box though!

  • http://www.herbalhairshampoo.com/ Erin Lewis

    I’m personally a huge fan of the implimantations of various product designs as well as the actual product’s box design. Hot Wheels is notorious for extremely innovative ways of combining unique box designs to help ‘spark’ the senses of buying the product. Regardless of what the product really is. I remember as a kid always wanting Hot Wheels products due to the interesting designs they implemented into their boxes and different holding packages.

    Now to think that Amazon and other institutions are going against that and implementing the new simple cardboard box idea. We’ll see what kids think, but I dunno how I would feel if I was a kid that received a christmas present in the new amazon plain brown box….Just doesn’t seem as fun as all the cool designs available.

  • http://www.rasmussen.edu/online/online-bachelors-criminal-justice.asp Frank

    Hey Erin,

    Great post and what you said is so true, I remember all the awesome packages/techniques that Hot Wheels used to captivate me when I was a younger kid. I remember always wanting those cool Lunchboxes and the latest and greatest Nascar toy. Oh the nostalgia!

    Nice of you to bring up the simple box idea that Amazon is doing. Here is a link to an article about it
    http://www.popgadget.net/2008/12/amazon_discover.php

    I don’t think that it’s meant to destroy the image of the product but make it easier for people to actually get into the product itself. Although I agree, it’s probably not as exciting for the children to see just a plain brown box and not an exciting wrapping.

  • http://www.bcnadvisors.com/ Kelly

    Frank – Thanks for posting that link. I had actually never heard about that and was about to do my shopping online at Amazon this year for various family members kids. Does anyone know if they actually went through with this? I don’t like the idea of sending the kids a boring brown box.

  • http://www.justin-phillips.com Justin

    What a post, I was just looking up Hot Wheels lunchboxes since I saw some at a garage sale and was wondering which to pick up. These remind me so much of my childhood that it really isn’t even funny! I absolutely love them. Thanks for the post, looks like I’ll have to dig a little deeper.

  • PeterGibbons

    Hot Wheels used to be much bigger back in the day. People didn't seem to be as TV video game based and kids used to have fun. Great post and wish I had seen it earlier

  • http://www.zenagen.com Peter

    Hot Wheels used to be much bigger back in the day. People didn't seem to be as TV video game based and kids used to have fun. Great post and wish I had seen it earlier