tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24558766.post982760093749643629..comments2024-03-08T03:21:10.018-06:00Comments on SECRET FUN BLOG: FULL CIRCLE WITH JOHNSON SMITH & CO.Kirk D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05700097965524197825noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24558766.post-71496225019767705182013-12-08T14:57:03.891-06:002013-12-08T14:57:03.891-06:00anonymous- The mouse and a lot of the stuff you me...anonymous- The mouse and a lot of the stuff you mentioned is in my other book! www.amazon.com/Mail-Order-Mysteries-Real-Stuff-Comic/dp/160887026X<br /><br />Thanks for sharing your war stories.<br />KirkKirk D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05700097965524197825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24558766.post-62358627142484608442013-12-08T12:07:57.437-06:002013-12-08T12:07:57.437-06:00This is really too good. I remember this company a...This is really too good. I remember this company all to well. They taught me a valuable life lesson about not believing everything you read. When I was a young kid in the 50s, I found a copy of the catalog that changed my life in my older cousin's bedroom. I devoured it from cover to cover. It was so stimulating. Things I never dreamed existed, literally. Promises of grandeur for 15 cents. The listings were so enticing. Cool cartoon-like line art. Very imaginative ad copy promising the world. This was my first encounter with the concept of mail order. I had never known about it before. It took me months before I got up the courage to order anything. I finally made a small 'test' order after days of serious contemplation of what to buy. A 'magic mouse' that climbed up your arm in life-like manner for 15 cents, a 'magic fish' that wriggled in your hand for 10 cents, some joke items, and I don't remember what else. When I got the items, they were just an ordinary cheap hollow plastic vinyl mouse, a flat cellophane fish that wriggled from the heat of your hand, and who knows what else. Oh, they did just what the catalog said--if you manipulated them yourself. LOL! That was a rude awakening to the not-always-honest world of mail order and commerce in general. I did manage to get some really cool stuff later on when I was willing to spend the money. An awesome aluminum sling-shot, a carbide cannon, some neat magic tricks, and many more. Ah, life was good… :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24558766.post-42924331520810769602007-02-23T12:07:00.000-06:002007-02-23T12:07:00.000-06:00Thanks, Kirk!Thanks, Kirk!Jon Khttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03346075090240271003noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24558766.post-61984620540090701062007-02-23T11:55:00.000-06:002007-02-23T11:55:00.000-06:00Thanks Todd, now I'm the one ripping off kids! ha ...Thanks Todd, now I'm the one ripping off kids! ha ha!<BR/><BR/>Jon- I think your mock-up ad is incredibly cool!<BR/>You really stayed true to form and I enjoyed seeing so many modern day equivalents of the old classics. Well done.Kirk D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05700097965524197825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24558766.post-64670989497606793892007-02-23T01:35:00.000-06:002007-02-23T01:35:00.000-06:00Congratulations! That's a lot cooler than my own ...Congratulations! That's a lot cooler than my own tribute to the Johnson Smith Co, which I did back in June 2005 on my own blog... you can check it out here: http://waffyjon.blogspot.com/2005/06/what-if-johnson-smith-company-were.htmlJon Khttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03346075090240271003noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24558766.post-40316969479147042782007-02-22T11:09:00.000-06:002007-02-22T11:09:00.000-06:00Congrats! You now have hit the big time!!Congrats! You now have hit the big time!!Todd Franklinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16400377734350011046noreply@blogger.com