If you were a kid who enjoyed making colorful pictures-or perhaps even looking at bright lights, then you might have played with a “Lite-Brite.” A Lite-Brite was a fun colorful toy that let you poke colorful pegs into dots that created a picture. Each picture was color-coded so that you knew which color peg to poke into the picture. When you were all finished placing your pegs, you got to turn on your Lite-Brite and see the beauty of your finished photo. It was a toy that could be played with for hours.
The first original Lite-Brite toy was created in 1967 by the Hasbro company. Its pegs were available in primary colors such as yellow, green, blue, red, orange, purple, pink and clear. Some of the pictures that kids could create with the colored pegs included popular television characters such as Mickey Mouse, My Little Pony and Scooby Doo.
The Lite-Brite was a popular toy in the 1980’s and many of us probably owned or at least played with one at some point in our childhood. Today, the Lite-Brite is still a popular toy, but it has changed in its appearance throughout the years. It was first available as a flat screen version, and then offered in a 3-D cube and more recently, a FX edition that spins around and plays music.
Those of us who owned a Lite Brite as a child, don’t have to live with just our memories. With the new technology offered through iPad, you can now download it and relive those artistic creations that enhanced our imaginations. Most of the Lite-Brite toys today retail around $10. You can buy them at most retail outlets such as Wal-Mart or K-mart. They can also be purchased at the online shop at Hasbro.com. If you happen to have your own children, you can take the delight in playing with an updated version of the toy all over again.
The Lite-Brite is a toy that has been played with for many generations. Today, you can take Lite-Brite on the road, use it as a flash paint spinner or create today’s popular cartoons like Disney Princesses and SpongeBob. With just a few colored pegs and bright lights, this toy has continued to entertain children for over 40 years-and it doesn’t seem to look like it’s stopping any time soon.