Retro Review – The 80’s Playground

I had to take my oldest daughter to school earlier this week because my youngest was sick. I don’t go to the school much anymore because Mrs. Dub takes her in the morning. But as I was passing one of the Primary Schools, for some reason I really noticed the bright plastic playground this time. This is a school that she had gone to before and I’ve been there a hundred times, but this time, it stuck out. I noticed how “safe” the playground looked and it made me think about my old playgrounds from the 80’s. Not that I want my kids playing in a minefield; it just took me back to the days of my childhood playgrounds and all the wild times I had.

Let’s be perfectly clear; I am an advocate for playground safety. Anyone who knows me will tell you that I go a little overboard when it comes to trying to protect my kids from getting hurt. But I think we (70’s-80’s kids) would have gotten bored pretty quickly with the playgrounds of today. Kids today have pocket video games, movies on iPads, and so many other ways to keep them entertained. In 1983, my entertainment came from trying to survive playground equipment made from steel and welded metal that would make Lord Humungus from “The Road Warrior” proud.

Let’s start with everybody’s favorite, the Metal Slide! There are several red flags here, so I will just rattle these off in no particular order. First, these slides were higher and steeper than any slide you will find today. They were also made out of a shiny material that could reach just below a melting point on a warm South Georgia afternoon (keep in mind that shorts were pretty short back then). So first, you had to climb this behemoth. Then, you had to mentally prepare yourself for the possible second degree burns you would receive on the back of your thighs. Perhaps the only saving grace for the heat of the slide was the otherworldly speed you could attain on this slick beast. If you were wearing the right fabric, you could be down the slide faster than if you actually fell off it. This created its own set of hazards; such as a proper landing, which was akin to a running stop if you could manage to land on your feet.

If heights weren’t your thing, you could challenge the old rusty Merry-Go-Round. I’ve never been a huge Merry-Go-Round guy because of the nausea it would cause when I would spin in a circle too fast. I do remember sitting in the middle of this death trap a few times while several of my friends would spin it as fast as possible to see who could stay on the longest. If you left the safety of the center because your stomach couldn’t take it, you risked getting pounded by the metal poles that were used to properly hang on. And once you were ping ponged through those, you were looking at a pretty nasty landing on the ground. Finally, you had to stay in the prone position where you landed to let the earth stop moving so your mangled equilibrium didn’t force you right back into this spinning contraption!

Some playgrounds had “The Rocket”, or some version of it. We didn’t have this exact model but it was similar. Look at the kids on this and you can surmise that this was about 30 feet tall, with the ability to climb almost all the way to the top of it on a steel ladder. While the height and potential for falling and smacking several floors of metal were enough to make this a disaster in waiting, they had the nerve  to add on something we discussed in the beginning; the metal slide, but with a much higher landing platform.

Now we are starting to get into some of the stuff that was really rough. This version of the Monkey Bars was pretty tame to what I will close with but it still had a lot of potential for injury. If kids just climbed the ladder and tried to swing from one end to the other, this wasn’t so bad. But when we were in 6^th grade, we would climb to the very top and try to sit and walk on the bars, above where it was actually intended to be enjoyed. In fact, I was sitting on the top of one of these on that fateful Valentine’s Day that my girlfriend (ex) threw a teddy bear in a mud puddle and rifled it at me in a fit of rage. But we have discussed this on the blog somewhere before so I won’t dredge up the details of that for this post.

Even the basic Swing Set could be quite an unforgiving device under the right circumstances. First off, just like the metal slide, this was much higher than the swings you’ll find today. We had the ability to reach tremendous heights with these swings. The seats were a hard rubber that would flex and were connected with a thick metal chain. If you were taller, you could roll the seat over a few times and it would shorten the chain so your feet wouldn’t drag the ground and slow you down. This swing set was all about the dismount though. Who could fly the highest and farthest? And there was also a high stakes game of “dodge’em” that we played that was epic. We would fill the full 8 person set with people swinging at various intervals. Then, one unlucky kid would attempt to run from one center pole to the other without being creamed, all while trying to be the fastest time. There were some NASCAR style collisions in this game!

Finally, the most deadly apparatus of them all, the Jungle Gym style Monkey Bars. Who in the world thought up this apparatus and how many years in prison did they eventually get? We had a version that looked exactly like this on the 3^rd grade playground and I saw more than my fair share of kids who fell off of it. The height was one thing to overcome as an 8 year old but if you fell in the middle, you ran the risk of clanking every rung on the way down. It gives a real meaning to “fell out of the tree and hit every limb on the way down”. In hindsight, nothing good could’ve come from us playing on this. There was nothing to gain from conquering this monster but there was a lot to lose;including teeth, blood, and dignity.

I was overjoyed when I was introduced to this piece of playground equipment. There was still a risk of injury but it was easily the most fun I had ever had at school. The heat didn’t bother us, bugs were an afterthought, and you could always find chicks standing around watching so it was the perfect place to try to impress somebody. We would eventually move on to fancier goals and equipment over time but I still remember the old rusty goal on the 5^th grade playground where I honed my jump shot. The worst days were the days after a good rain because the court was just a big puddle and we had to resort to other activities. I have a lot of fond memories of playing basketball in school when I was a kid.

As a part of those fond memories, I also harken back to certain basketball sets of my youth. I’m talking about sets that had some of the greatest players in the history of the game; 1989 Fleer, 1990 Hoops, 1991 Skybox, and of course, 90’s Topps. These were some of my favorite sets because I was only 9 when 1986 Fleer was out and by the time I had reached an age where I could fully appreciate the hobby, that particular set had really blossomed into a higher end set for rich kids. I still don’t own a 1986 Michael Jordan RC but I will one day, mark it down! I do own some 1990 Fleer Jordan’s and that is what we are reviewing today.

1990 Fleer had a really clean design, much like 1990 Baseball. While the Baseball set is not looked back on too fondly, the same can’t be said for the basketball release. It is still very popular among collectors.

The backs of Fleer in the 80’s and early 90’s were very recognizable with the alternating bland colors. I don’t mind these backs though because they provide a lot of information.

Another extreme positive of this set is that it is loaded with players that were included in the NBA’s Top 50 Players that was unveiled in 1996 at the All-Star Game.

Reggie Lewis did not get to fulfill the career that he began in such superstar fashion. I was a big fan and he will always be one of those “where were you when” type of players. When he passed away in 1993, I was at a church summer camp, playing basketball myself. I really wish we could have seen Reggie play a full career.

Another one of “my guys” back in the 90’s was Manute Bol. I still remember the game where he drained SIX 3-pointers in one half! In 1993, as a member of the 76’ers, Manute went 6-12 on his 3-pointers and was a fan favorite for me from then on.

A lot of modern collectors may not remember this Rodman. Before he was tatted up, wearing wedding dresses, and dating Carmen Electra; he was a fairly normal dude with his appearance. He still liked to mix it up quite a bit, but who didn’t in Detroit?!

This card captured the patented Patrick Ewing one hand dunk. He did this dunk so many times. He was really a stud but his teams always ran into a buzz saw from Chicago in the playoffs. Then one year, they had an amazing chance at a Championship berth but Ewing blew a very makeable layup against the Pacers in 1995. I felt horrible for Ewing at the end of that game!

A lot of modern fans think of Charles Barkley as the outspoken, hefty, announcer on TNT these days. In fact, Draymond Green doesn’t even give him the respect he deserves. In the 90’s, Barkley was a tremendous athlete who dominated the boards and has a highlight reel that Draymond Green can only wish he had!

One of my all-time favorite players was Akeem Olajuwon, who would later become Hakeem Olajuwon. The “Dream Shake” was one of the deadliest moves for a big man during that era. If you enjoyed good basketball and liked players who did the talking with their abilities, there was no way you couldn’t like The Dream!

Another super athletic center that did his talking on the court was David Robinson, “The Admiral”. Another favorite of mine, The Admiral was a tremendous scorer and defender and was later complimented by Tim Duncan, as they became Champs.

One of the reasons the Bulls went on the historical run of two separate 3-peats in the 90’s was Scottie Pippen. Pippen could score, and was a great compliment to Jordan; but he was most impressive on the defensive end of the court. He was long and was a turnover creating machine.

The All-Star Inserts remain popular in 1990 Fleer. The Jordan is the most sought after but the list includes Isiah, Magic, Barkley, Robinson, Olajuwon, and many other greats.

The crown jewel of any late 80’s through 90’s set is His Airness, Michael Jordan! Any card with Michael Jordan on it belongs in sleeves and top loaders. I won’t get into the whole “who is better discussion” but I will just say that there has never been another Jordan in my opinion. This card alone makes the box worthwhile.

The score for 1990 Fleer on the Dub-O-Meter is one of the biggest no-brainers since the inception of the blog. This set gets an easy “5”! The design is great, the checklist is unbelievable, and the All-Star chase is very memorable from the era. When you throw Michael Jordan in the mix, there is not much more you can say about the set. It’s phenomenal and I recommend taking a shot on a box whenever you can find one at a reasonable price.

J-Dub