Slime

In 1976, Mattel Toys unleashed a green snot-like substance on an unsuspecting public in the form of Slime. Sold in a green garbage can and certain to bring hours of fun grossing out your friends, parents and siblings, Slime made quite the splash on the toy market, especially when the holidays rolled around.

Once you removed the lid and tilted the plastic can, you were greeted to a cold and clammy viscuous goo that seeped through your fingers creating a most unforgettable sensation. Later versions even included rubber worms, as if adding something more unsettling to the mix was necessary.

https://youtu.be/qQ52-Fivk6k

 

So what exactly was Slime? Well, basically a combination of borax and guar gum. It was slightly moist to the touch and required a tight seal on the can at night if you hoped to play with your toy the next day. Let air work its magic for too long and you were left with a substance that was no longer slimy, but hard.

The success of Slime led Mattel to introduce a short-lived board game utilizing the substance called Slime Monster.

 

The original Slime sold well throughout the 70s, but underwent some transformations in the decade that followed. Jumping on the Ghostbusters bandwagon, Slime was re-branded as “Ecto Plazm.” It would also find renewed fame with the introduction of the Nickelodeon kid’s network, which featured the substance extensively on multiple shows and marketed it as Gak for the new generation.

If you have fond memories of playing with Mattel’s Slime back in the day, I hope you’ll take a moment to share your recollections in our comments section below.

You may also like...

1 Response

  1. G says:

    It smelled pretty unique and somewhat horrible

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *