Kid A Posted May 21, 2018 Report Share Posted May 21, 2018 So my mom has a friend who worked at a TRU distribution. With the closure of the stores, she lost her job as the distribution warehouses closed as well. She knew I used to go there quite often and she gave me this the other day. This shirt is pretty cool. Made me think of all the times I went there as a kid. TrekMD, RickR and StormSurge 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nosweargamer Posted May 21, 2018 Report Share Posted May 21, 2018 That shirt is both cool and ironic.. StormSurge 1 Quote The No Swear Gamer on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChtJuo040EOCTVziObIgVcg Host of The Atari 7800 Game by Game Podcast on iTunes, Stitcher and YouTube Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gianna Posted August 29, 2020 Report Share Posted August 29, 2020 I have a lot of memories of going to toys r us with my mom. I would often get gift cards for holidays or my birthday, and over time they would stack up and I'd have a lot to spend! I remember the summer before 1st grade going with my mom and grandma, and what stands out to me about that trip was the Willy Wonka chocolate bar I was bought. It had a pretend gold ticket in the wrapper. Once we got to the car my little sister decided she wanted it and I was told to share, which made me mad. 😬 I remember when I'd have a stack of gift cards I'd end up spending like 2 hours in the store figuring out what I wanted! Lots of Barbies, dolls, pretend food play sets, and tamagotchis were bought. Also, I remember getting a pink Nintendo DS along with Nintendogs. After the tru by me closed, it became a Spirit Halloween store for a few months. I remember going inside and feeling a bit sad. You could see where the aisles were based on the marks on the ground, and there were some signs left hanging. 😞 socrates63 and RickR 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
socrates63 Posted August 29, 2020 Report Share Posted August 29, 2020 (edited) Toys R Us was my go-to in the early to mid-80s. I bought my 2600, 800, C64 (which I returned), and Vectrex at the Toys R Us in Southcenter Mall (Tukwila, WA). I didn't shop at the other toy stores like KB Toys. Thinking about it now, it's amazing how such a short amount of time has had such a large impact on my life. Growing up, my life mantra was the TRU slogan -- I don't want to grow up. I'm a Toys R Us kid. That's a mentality that has stayed with me my entire life. Edited August 29, 2020 by socrates63 TrekMD, Gianna and RickR 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrekMD Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 RickR, socrates63 and Justin 3 Quote 🖖 Going to the final frontier, gaming... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickR Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 6 hours ago, socrates63 said: Southcenter Mall (Tukwila, WA) I know that mall! I've been there many times. It's huge. The very first Toys R Us in Oregon was the Clackamas store, which stayed open for over 30 years I think. Similar to @Gianna's post, it was a Spirit Halloween store last year, which was sad and ironic. A lot of the failed big-box stores have suffered that fate. I drove by that old Clackamas TRU store today, and it's being converted into a baby-stuff store (similar to Babies R Us I imagine). I guess that's good. Better than having it just sit empty forever. socrates63 and Gianna 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDN Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 I never bought anything at TRU. Well, actually, there was this one time when I was either 3 or 4 years old. I went there with my grandparents and there was this pencil doodle thing with a trak pad that you wrote letters with or something. I loved that thing. It broke when I was maybe 6. Otherwise I have no memories there. I never went to many strictly-you stores when I was a young child. socrates63 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
socrates63 Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 (edited) It's a generational thing. In the 80s, we shopped at toy stores. I guess our grandparents mail-ordered from the Sears catalog. Did you know that computers were sold at computer "dealers"? PCs were not something that you can buy off the shelf like today. It was almost like buying a car. I remember helping my church to buy an AST 286 PC in the late 80s. We talked to a salesman and went over the different models and configurations, negotiated, and then placed our order. During the 90s, we saw the rise of mail-order PC manufacturers (Dell, Gateway, etc.) that changed that model. Nowadays, I wonder what kind of memories kids today are cultivating. It's all online shopping now. Edited August 30, 2020 by socrates63 RickR and HDN 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDN Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 3 minutes ago, socrates63 said: Did you know that computers were sold at computer "dealers"? PCs were not something that you can buy off the shelf like today. It was almost like buying a car. I remember helping my church to buy an AST 286 PC in the late 80s. We talked to a salesman and went over the different models and configurations, negotiated, and then placed our order. During the 90s, we saw the rise of mail-order PC manufacturers (Dell, Gateway, etc.) that changed that model. We still have a few "computer dealers" around here. It's a miracle they are still open. socrates63 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDN Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 8 minutes ago, socrates63 said: Nowadays, I wonder what kind of memories kids today are cultivating. It's all online shopping now. I obviously can't speak for them. Though I am technically a youth, my childhood is so radically different in some aspects that it is hard to compare. I don't think either of my parents got a smartphone before 2014. I was raised on obsolete media. I didn't even get my own phone until last year and still, it's an iPhone 5. I couldn't get Snapchat or Tiktok on there even if I wanted to (and BELIEVE ME, I don't want to). socrates63 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gianna Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 @socrates63 me too. That picture is sad 😞 socrates63 and Justin 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
socrates63 Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 16 minutes ago, Gianna said: @socrates63 me too. That picture is sad 😞 I'm not a drinker, but @Gianna I think we need to go to a bar and drink and reminisce 🥂🍻 Here's to our childhood memories and Geoffrey. May he live in our hearts and memories forever. We ❤️ you and miss you, Geoffrey. Gianna and HDN 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
socrates63 Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 2 hours ago, RickR said: I know that mall! I've been there many times. It's huge. It is big, and there's a bunch of shopping areas that extend the mall all around. There used to be a theater there, and that's where I watched Temple of Doom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDN Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 5 minutes ago, socrates63 said: It is big, and there's a bunch of shopping areas that extend the mall all around. There used to be a theater there, and that's where I watched Temple of Doom. For some unknown reason I have never seen Temple of Doom. I've seen the rest of them and enjoyed them all thoroughly, even Crystal Skull. But for some reason I have never seen Temple of Doom. socrates63 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
socrates63 Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 It's not my favorite Indy movie, but it's deserves a watch. If you suffered through Crystal Skull, then you certainly deserve to watch Indy's second adventure 🙂 HDN 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDN Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 (edited) 1 minute ago, socrates63 said: It's not my favorite Indy movie, but it's deserves a watch. If you suffered through Crystal Skull, then you certainly deserve to watch Indy's second adventure 🙂 I didn't suffer through it man. In fact, I didn't know about the hate until after I watched it. I thought it was actually pretty good. Not as good as Raiders or Last Crusade, but still a solid movie. Edited August 30, 2020 by HDN Little Atari Harrison Ford socrates63 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Posted August 30, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 I totally forgot about finishing this thread. I have more photos and memories to share. I'll post more as I can. Have I told the story yet about how some TRU assistant managers were in cahoots stealing PS2s and N64s six at a time off the back of the truck as they were unloaded at the dock, then started a whisper campaign blaming me for the theft "because Justin has a video game website (THIS Atari website that you're on right now!) so he probably sells PS2s and N64s on there" Gianna, RickR, HDN and 1 other 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
socrates63 Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 Do tell @Justin! I assume there’s a happy ending since you’re still here and the I/O is still up and running 🙂 Justin and Gianna 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Posted December 24, 2023 Author Report Share Posted December 24, 2023 I created a new Photo Album for all of my Toys R Us pictures from around this time. I was launching this website during that fall and it became a pretty big part of my life during that time, and in my memory the two are intertwined pretty closely, so there are a few early pictures of the site in there too. Many of these photos were taken specifically for our first Blog entry for this website - an article titled "The Toys R Us Affair: The Influence of Atari Today" which documented Atari-related items being sold in Toys R Us at that time. You'll notice some early internet graphics and pictures of TRU associates holding up Pac-Man and Galaga for PC, etc. I dragged and dropped most everything I found in that folder to be able to share with you, I'll sort through these pictures and add more details in the future, as well as update this thread with more memories and stores at some point in the future. It's been nearly 25 years at this point, I should write them down and share them before I forget them Enjoy: RickR and socrates63 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickR Posted December 24, 2023 Report Share Posted December 24, 2023 These pictures are so dang awesome. Thanks so much for this gift. They take me back in time, no DeLorean needed. Justin 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.