Uploaded February 2023 | Updated September 2026, 13 hours ago
Motorola made toys? No... Well, yes!
"Here it is, fellows and girls... the world-famous Motorola 'Handie Talkie' radio. Exact reproduction of the famous war-proved 'Handie-Talkie; radio used by our armed forces everywhere." ...It has the "Signal Siren," the Earphone, the slide-away aerial, the hand strap, and the "secret code 'click' switch." Pause the video if you want to read all this. But the rest of us are going to move on to the box and.. the actual "handie-talkie."
Now normally when a toy version of a thing is made, it's not made by the actual maker of the real thing. You know? But here THIS is, made by none other than the Galvin Manufacturing Corporation, the actual makers of real, quote, "Motorola Home and Auto Radios, 'Handie Talkies', and 'Walkie Talkies.'"... You'll note this toy is "made of durable plastic." The best kind.
Now, let's have a look at this little gizmo itself. Well, my oh my, you can see that this is definitely durable plastic. I think we would have destroyed this in one afternoon playing "army," as we used to do on those days as a kid when we could think of absolutely nothing else to do. "You're dead," the argument would ensue. "No, I'm not." "I shot you." "No, you missed--and now I've got you covered. Drop the walkie talkie" "No, it'll break." "Tough, this is war."..."How long do I have to stay dead?" "I don't know. Count to 100." And on and on it went till we were so bored we all went home.
Far less breakable were these, the actual handie talkies.. which weren't toys, and these guys weren't playing. It's no accident that Motorola became in later years a leader in mobile phones. There is more or less a direct line between their first handie talkie in 1940 and their first hand-held portable telephone, which they demonstrated in 1973 and first offered for sale in 1983.
Motorola's toy "handy-talkie radio." An exact reproduction, it says, only in red & white. Well, "the enemy's coming; You'd better take cover. B24's are approaching." Oh, and you'd better hide that thing. Nothing says "Hey, over here!" like red and white.
#antiques #collectibles #1940s #1950s #walkie-talkie
Motorola made toys? No... Well, yes!
"Here it is, fellows and girls... the world-famous Motorola 'Handie Talkie' radio. Exact reproduction of the famous war-proved 'Handie-Talkie; radio used by our armed forces everywhere." ...It has the "Signal Siren," the Earphone, the slide-away aerial, the hand strap, and the "secret code 'click' switch." Pause the video if you want to read all this. But the rest of us are going to move on to the box and.. the actual "handie-talkie."
Now normally when a toy version of a thing is made, it's not made by the actual maker of the real thing. You know? But here THIS is, made by none other than the Galvin Manufacturing Corporation, the actual makers of real, quote, "Motorola Home and Auto Radios, 'Handie Talkies', and 'Walkie Talkies.'"... You'll note this toy is "made of durable plastic." The best kind.
Now, let's have a look at this little gizmo itself. Well, my oh my, you can see that this is definitely durable plastic. I think we would have destroyed this in one afternoon playing "army," as we used to do on those days as a kid when we could think of absolutely nothing else to do. "You're dead," the argument would ensue. "No, I'm not." "I shot you." "No, you missed--and now I've got you covered. Drop the walkie talkie" "No, it'll break." "Tough, this is war."..."How long do I have to stay dead?" "I don't know. Count to 100." And on and on it went till we were so bored we all went home.
Far less breakable were these, the actual handie talkies.. which weren't toys, and these guys weren't playing. It's no accident that Motorola became in later years a leader in mobile phones. There is more or less a direct line between their first handie talkie in 1940 and their first hand-held portable telephone, which they demonstrated in 1973 and first offered for sale in 1983.
Motorola's toy "handy-talkie radio." An exact reproduction, it says, only in red & white. Well, "the enemy's coming; You'd better take cover. B24's are approaching." Oh, and you'd better hide that thing. Nothing says "Hey, over here!" like red and white.
#antiques #collectibles #1940s #1950s #walkie-talkie
