Memory Bank: Ding-a-Ling Robots (Topper; 1970)

"Stand back, world!" the advertisements blared. "You are witnessing the creation of an incredible new world," and the "most incredible new toy you've ever seen."

All this hyperbole concerned a toy competitor for Ideal's Zeroids. In this case, it referred to Topper's Ding-a-Ling Robots, a whole line of toys manufactured in the late 1960s and released in 1970.

Topper created several Ding-a-Ling robot characters with various jobs, including Fireman, Shoe Shine, Answer Man, Spy, Boxer, Rocky, Chef, gopher, Claw and Police Man. 

And then, those robots -- thanks to an innovative, interchangeable power pack -- could "defy all laws of gravity" and walk glide or race across "special skyways." They could also drive their own vehicles.

The greatest Ding-a-Ling, however, was "King Ding," a giant robot that dwarfed the rest.

No doubt this all sounds terrific, but the Ding-a-Lings never made a huge mark on the toy market of 1970.  

Personally, I discovered them in the mid-1970s, as a kid, on the secondary market. Week after week, we would see the Ding-a-Lings at yard sales, selling for about a dollar a piece. 

I soon had in my possession Brain (the Ding-a-Ling driver of King Ding), the snap-handed Claw, and Fireman.  I loved these little, hand-held robots, and I remember my Dad customizing them with special paint and decals. This worked for me because in their original, mint state, the robots are a bit too bright and colorful.  My Dad -- a consummate modeler -- dirtied them up for me, so they looked like they had a history and a story.

These days, my son Joel is big into robots, and so I found for him on E-Bay a few Ding-A-Lings, and at least two of the special skyways.  In particular, I bought the "straight space skyway"  and the "Pyramid Set" you see pictured in this post.  

He wants the King Ding, more than anything, but those toys cost a fortune.  If I ever get my hands on one, I'll let you all know.

In the meantime, here's the original commercial laying out the details of this Toy Robot Empire

At Flashbak: Robot Empire -- Topper's Ding-a-Ling Robots of the 1970s

At Flashbak this week, I also posted about some vintage toy robots of the 1970s: Topper's Ding-A-Ling line.  I discovered these at yard and garage sales of the disco decade, and have loved them ever since.

Here's a snippet and the url: (http://flashbak.com/robot-empire-remembering-toppers-ding-ling-robots-1970s-35161/ )

"In the late 1960s, a toy company named Topper master-minded a toy robot takeover of the universe. In 1970, Topper introduced the Ding-A-Lings: six-inch tall robots with distinct personalities that -- thanks to removable battery operated back-packs -- could walk and move under their own power.

Topper’s robots were designed according to their positions or vocations in a robot world.  There was Claw, who could grab things with giant pincers.  And there was Fireman, who could squirt water from a hose. 

And then there was Policeman, Chef, a boxer named Rocky, and the super-intelligent Answer-Man. 

These tiny robots were colorful and individual in appearance, and they inhabited a fully imagined universe.  For example, Topper manufactured several track sets like the “Super Return Space Skyway” by which the robots could traverse their prospective metropolis. The robots could hook on to the tracks of their space highways, and ride them right-side-up, or upside-down."

(Continued at Flashbak...)