Toy Hall of Fame: The 'forgotten five' classic toys up for induction and how fans can vote

Here's a triumphant toy story: One beloved but forgotten plaything will finally be inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame.

Five toys, each of which has been considered for induction into the National Toy Hall of Fame at the Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester, N.Y. in the past – but have fallen short – are again vying for that coveted spot. This time, one of them is guaranteed to make it.

The five toys on the ballot: the Fisher-Price Corn Popper, My Little Pony, Pez dispensers, the pogo stick and Transformers.

The Toy Hall of Fame decided to have a special inductee to celebrate the hall's 25th anniversary. These five toys have been deemed the "Forgotten Five" because each has been a finalist for entry into the Toy Hall of Fame but failed to make the cut.

“They’re like Susan Lucci was to the Emmy Awards, or Steve Tasker to the Pro Football Hall of Fame,” chief curator Christopher Bensch said in a press release. “Now, one of these five will make the hall and, for the first time, it will be purely in the hands of the voting public.”

You can cast one vote each day until Tuesday, Oct. 24 for your favorite. The winner will be announced along with three other inductees on Nov. 9.

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The 'Forgotten Five' under consideration

• The Fisher-Price Corn Popper: A push toy with colorful balls, has been a repeat finalist for encouraging babies who are learning to walk.
• My Little Pony: The mini horses are in the running after outselling even Barbie for several years while at the height of their popularity between 1982 and 1993, according to the Hall of Fame.
• Pez: Founded in 1948, Pez sells 3 billion individual candies each year and has about 60 or 70 dispensers currently in production, the Hall of Fame said.
• The pogo stick: This bouncing toy was first patented in the early 1900s.
• Transformers: Hasbro’s action figures have spawned comic books, cartoons, and blockbuster films.

What other toys are finalists for the National Toy Hall of Fame?

After the summer of Barbie, it could be an auspicious autumn for Ken. The Ken doll is one of 12 finalists considered for this year's National Toy Hall of Fame class.

The other eleven finalists, announced in September: Baseball cards, Battleship, Bingo, Bop It handheld game, Cabbage Patch Kids, Choose Your Own Adventure game books, Connect Four, Little Tikes Cozy Coupe, Nerf Toys, Slime, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Player's Choice voting has already ended on these finalists and results will be taken into account by a National Selection Advisory Committee ahead of the Nov. 9 inductees announcement,

What toys are already in the National Toy Hall of Fame?

So far, 80 toys have made it into the National Toy Hall of Fame. Last year's Toy Hall of Fame inductees: the top, Masters of the Universe, and Lite-Brite.

Others inducted in past years have included alphabet blocks, Barbie, bicycle, Crayola Crayons, dominoes, Dungeons & Dragons, G.I. Joe, Jenga, Matchbox Cars, Nintendo Game Boy, sand, Slinky, Tonka Trucks and Wiffle Ball.

Here is the complete list of toys in the National Toy Hall of Fame:

• Alphabet blocks
• American Girl dolls
• Atari 2600 Game System
• baby doll
• Baby Nancy
• ball
• Barbie
• bicycle
• Big Wheel
• blanket
• bubbles
• Candy Land
• cardboard box
• checkers
• chess
• Clue
• coloring book
• Crayola Crayons
• dollhouse
• dominoes
• Duncan Yo-Yo
• Dungeons & Dragons
• Easy-Bake Oven
• Erector Set
• Etch A Sketch
• Fisher Price Little People
• Frisbee
• The Game of Life
• G.I. Joe
• Hot Wheels
• hula hoop
• jack-in-the-box
• jacks
• Jenga
• jigsaw puzzle
• jump rope
• kite
• LEGO
• Lincoln Logs
• Lionel Trains
• Lite-Brite
• little green army men
• Magic 8 Ball
• marbles
• Magic: The Gathering
• Masters of the Universe
• Matchbox Cars
• Monopoly
• Mr. Potato Head
• Nintendo Game Boy
• paper airplane
• pinball
• Play-Doh
• Playing Cards
• puppet
• Radio Flyer Wagon
• Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy
• Risk
• rocking horse
• roller skates
• rubber duck
• Rubik’s Cube
• sand
• Scrabble
• sidewalk chalk
• Silly Putty
• skateboard
• Slinky
• Star Wars Action Figures
• Stick
• Super Soaker
• swing
• Teddy Bear
• Tinkertoy
• Tonka Trucks
• top
• Twister
• Uno
• View-Master
• Wiffle Ball

Contributing: The Associated Press

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Follow Mike Snider on X and Threads: @mikesnider & mikegsnider.

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