40 years ago: Local retailers remove unsafe toys

From the Lawrence Daily Journal-World for Dec. 9, 1972:

  • Lawrence merchants this week removed 300 toys deemed unsafe from their shelves. Retailers removed toys that had either been listed as banned toys by the Food and Drug Administration or which they themselves considered to be unsafe, according to Pat Weiss, volunteer worker with the Kansas University Consumer Protection Association. Among the offending toys were a Romper Room Musical Block Clock by Hasbro, which had weights that could easily be dislodged and swallowed; an “I Cry Mama” doll whose sharp wires could end up protruding from the surface; and a Jaymar Specialties Grand Piano with Color Chime Xylophone which had sharp points and edges.
  • Store windows in Independence, Mo., were exhibiting signs saying “Come On Harry” and “Give-Em-Hell and Let’s Get Well” in support of former president Harry S. Truman, who was critically ill in a Kansas City hospital.