Forum Members' Teen/Amateur Wacky Packages

[bludevilok]

Wait, what's Iceflop spoofing?

As I recall, it was Iceflo or maybe Iceflow.  It came in a square plastic container, about a pint--maybe quart--size, and was kind of a cross between a slushie and sherbet.  I just did  a Google search and could find no evidence of one, but I really did eat some as a kid.  The "scary" flavor was actually cherry, thus the red container.  I think different flavors had different colored containers, but there weren't many flavors, maybe orange and grape in addition to the cherry.  Maybe this description will jog someone's memory, but obviously it didn't last long.

[bludevilok]

Again, thank you all for the compliments and specific comments about your faves.  I'm glad you got some laughs out of them after all these years of being stuffed away in a dark closet.  I'll keep 'em coming.

[roughwriter]

You actually anticipated quite a number of Wackys that were done after you created your designs! I am sure some of the others could be polished up and turned into future Wackys. You definitely we well tuned in to what made a good Wacky! I really enjoy looking at these, and would love to see the rest! Keep 'em coming!

[bludevilok]

Here is my Series 4.  According to notes in this new "volume" of the "books" I made, we're now into early 1975, but I was still 12 at this point.  Here are a few notes about this series.  First, I did not even know about the die-cut series at the time, thus Moron Salt entered into my brain as an uncreated Wacky title.  Second, in "Dull Monte," I do realize now that I used the wrong desert/dessert...or maybe I intended it that way since deserts are usually boring to walk through...you be the judge...ha!  Finally, as you can see, I decided to throw some books in the mix.  (Notice "Star Trash" makes another appearance, modeled from the first James Blish adaptation; yes, I was/am quite the Star Trek fan!)  I'm not sure exactly when "Gums" came out as a Wacky.  A reference I found had it listed as 1975.  If it was early 1975, it could have been my inspiration to do other books.  If it was later 1975, my Wacky-fying books could have been my young mind breaking more barriers with products, as I did with the single record earlier.  In any case, I hope you enjoy this 4th series.

[RawGoo]

I am continually amazed at the variety of the titles you chose!!  Pieces was inspired!  The James Blish book is funny (yes, I have Volumes 1-12). 

[sco(o)t]

In Series 4, I like Mellow Pages, and the Guinea Pig Book of World Records. But my favorite, and winner of most politically incorrect Wacky of the modern era, is Fritz Crackers. I can say that. My last name is Leibacher. 

[Joe G.]

Paul, once again another great set!  My fav was Telephoni Book which made me laugh out loud.  Also very cool you made an M&M gag.  Those are always impossibly hard to write so it’s very impressive you did one at 12!

[bludevilok]

Pieces was inspired!  The James Blish book is funny (yes, I have Volumes 1-12).

Again, Topps did Pieces shortly after I drew that...within the same year.  And I, too, have all those Star Trek adaptations although we had to wait years for #12 and Mudd's Angels, finished by his widow.  Growing impatient with that as well, I wrote the final shows that needed to be adapted myself, listening carefully and writing from shows taped on cassette.  Those, too, were typed and made into a book that I made.  I even made and drew a picture for a cardboard cover.

[bludevilok]

But my favorite, and winner of most politically incorrect Wacky of the modern era, is Fritz Crackers. I can say that. My last name is Leibacher.

Yeah, I kinda winced at that as I read it again before I posted, but at least it made fun of Nazis in the vein of Hogan's Heroes and didn't celebrate them.  My background is German, too, if it makes anyone feel better.  My mother's whole side of the family is German!

[RawGoo]

Again, Topps did Pieces shortly after I drew that...within the same year.  And I, too, have all those Star Trek adaptations although we had to wait years for #12 and Mudd's Angels, finished by his widow.  Growing impatient with that as well, I wrote the final shows that needed to be adapted myself, listening carefully and writing from shows taped on cassette.  Those, too, were typed and made into a book that I made.  I even made and drew a picture for a cardboard cover.

Wow!  That's dedication.  I read some of those stories and wondered "just what episode was this guy watching when he wrote this?!"

[bludevilok]

Paul, once again another great set!  My fav was Telephoni Book which made me laugh out loud.  Also very cool you made an M&M gag.  Those are always impossibly hard to write so it’s very impressive you did one at 12!

Thanks, Joe (and all the rest of you)!  I used the (at the time) current Southwestern Bell Telephone Book as the model for Telephoni Book.  At 12, I didn't realize that Bell had different names for different regions of the country.  As for M&N, I knew that M&M must stand for something, so I took the next letter of the alphabet to go with M and Wacky-fied it.

I'm glad all you folks are getting a kick out of these!

[lucidjc]

Some of these made me laugh, good stuff. Some of the art for what they are aint bad either.

More please


Jim

[Gurgle]

These are really fun!

Wackys were really inspiring. I think half of us were huddled at home obsessively creating our own. These are so satisfying to look at and really bring me back to that age.

[bludevilok]

Thanks, ludidjc, gurgle, roughwriter and others for all your kind comments.  As I look back at these, I definitely could do the artwork better these days, but for 12 years old, it's not horrible.  It gave me practice.  Here'e my 5th series.  I was probably getting close to my 13th birthday by now, so they're still not professional level.  But you might get some nostalgia from some of the products along with some laughts.  Enjoy!

[sco(o)t]

Fifth series likes are Ben Goo, Murky Day, and A Hoy.

[Swiski]

They just keep coming! You gotta be a professional illustrator today with all that practice! Ever see Alex Ross' first super hero drawings when he was a kid?

[roughwriter]

I continue to be amazed at how many of the drawings you did that anticipated Wackys produced later! And I'm very tempted to pick some of the others and polish them up for future consideration as Wackys! If you look at some of the earliest roughs for actual Original Series cards, your art is on par with what was used back then. These are a fantastic time capsule from the 70s, so please keep them coming!

[bludevilok]

Fifth series likes are Ben Goo, Murky Day, and A Hoy.

Scot, I'm glad you're finding your favorites!  It's always interesting to me to know which ones people relate to.

[bludevilok]

They just keep coming! You gotta be a professional illustrator today with all that practice! Ever see Alex Ross' first super hero drawings when he was a kid?

I saw a couple of them, one Spidey at 4 years old and a Superman when he was 7.  I don't know if I drew that well when I was that age, maybe a couple of years later...ha!  I think I was still with coloring books at that age.  No, I'm not a professional illustrator, but I still draw.  I do the artwork for the cover and write a poem for my Christmas cards each year, which people I send them to seem to enjoy, so I still exercise my creative talents.

[bludevilok]

I continue to be amazed at how many of the drawings you did that anticipated Wackys produced later! And I'm very tempted to pick some of the others and polish them up for future consideration as Wackys! If you look at some of the earliest roughs for actual Original Series cards, your art is on par with what was used back then. These are a fantastic time capsule from the 70s, so please keep them coming!

Thanks for the kind words, Roughwriter.  Considering, though, that the original series roughs were probably done by professionals, those were probably slightly higher than this 12-year-old's par....ha!

Since so much delight is taken from the Old School series, I thought the Forum members would appreciate these amateur Wackys of products from that time period.  I know that re-reading these has brought back some memories of products that aren't around anymore, like the SSP cars I played with as a kid.

[roughwriter]

Nope. I'm not exaggerating at all! Do you have copies of either of the Wacky Packages books handy? Take a look at the introductions, which include reproductions of some early roughs like Playbug, Balding, Brandy Land, Sicrats, and View Monster. Yours are not that different at all! And if you'd learned the trick of drawing them at least twice the card size instead of to scale, I'm sure they would've been considered as is. I honestly think you have a handful that could be converted into modern Wackys. Let me know if you want me to work some up.

[bludevilok]

Of course, I have the Wacky Packages books.  So I just looked at those rough drafts, and I have to admit, the Playbug and Sicrats are pretty rough and comparable to my 12-year-old's art.  Roughwriter, if you really think some of my ideas are worthy of being worked up for a contemporary Wacky, sure, you have my blessing to work them up for a Wacky suitable for Topps.  Just remember, folks, if you see any of my ideas pop out of your order sets or, if Wackys ever make it back to the stores, your Wacky Pack, you saw the rough-rough draft here first! I will still claim bragging rights.     

[JasonLiebig]

Thanks, ludidjc, gurgle, roughwriter and others for all your kind comments.  As I look back at these, I definitely could do the artwork better these days, but for 12 years old, it's not horrible.  It gave me practice.  Here'e my 5th series.  I was probably getting close to my 13th birthday by now, so they're still not professional level.  But you might get some nostalgia from some of the products along with some laughts.  Enjoy!

These are fantastic!

[Swiski]

Hey gang! I found my amateur Wacky Packages from 1979, or maybe 1980.

I know I created them in Junior High School and drew them on ruled notebook paper.

A little sloppy and not as nice as bluedevilok's. I blurred a few out because I found those offensive.

[roughwriter]

This is great! It is so much fun to see other people's spin on Wackys! I noticed a number of ideas you drew that eventually became actual Wackys. That shows you are in the right groove. I also saw several that would make great modern Wackys (as long as the products are still in production!) This thread is the most enjoyable one I've seen pop up in quite some time! I hope that everyone else is encouraged to dig out their childhood drawings to share!

[bludevilok]

Yay!  Swiski found his teen Wacky Packages!  These are really fun!  You and I were right in sync with a few of these.  The artwork on the first page is pretty darn good; I'm guessing you spent more time on those.  The Tremmorex made me laugh out loud because those cassettes really did shake sometimes...ha!  I also really liked "The Umpire Strikes Out"; using an umpire mask to parody Darth Vader was really witty.  In fact, all of your gags are clever and fun.  Furthermore, as Roughwriter pointed out, some of these were also made into actual Wackys.  Thank you for sharing these!  I really enjoyed them, and they brought many smiles to my day!  If you have any more tucked away somewhere, I'd love to see them.

[koduck]

Hey gang! I found my amateur Wacky Packages from 1979, or maybe 1980.

I know I created them in Junior High School and drew them on ruled notebook paper.

A little sloppy and not as nice as bluedevilok's. I blurred a few out because I found those offensive.

Very cool! "Planeters" would make a great  Attacky Packages, LOL!

[sco(o)t]

Hey gang! I found my amateur Wacky Packages from 1979, or maybe 1980.

I know I created them in Junior High School and drew them on ruled notebook paper.

A little sloppy and not as nice as bluedevilok's. I blurred a few out because I found those offensive.

I like Spider graph, Funny Comb and Planatere a lot!  I did 30 or so back in the 70s but they are long gone. Like you, I did one called Crack-her Back but mine had kids jumping on sidewalk cracks singing the old, “step on a crack…” ditty.

[Swiski]

Very cool! "Planeters" would make a great  Attacky Packages, LOL!

Thanks! I would be honored if you use it for a future set!

[Swiski]

Thanks everyone for the nice comments! You're too kind...LOL! Coming up with parody ideas is fun. It's the execution that's hard and requires natural talent. That's why I leave it to the pros!

[dth1971]

"Mob Squad" would be perfect for a Wacky Packages Old School 1980's series.

[RawGoo]

Thanks everyone for the nice comments! You're too kind...LOL! Coming up with parody ideas is fun. It's the execution that's hard and requires natural talent. That's why I leave it to the pros!

Very nice!!

[bludevilok]

Okay, folks, here's my Series 6 to get you through the weekend.  Like Swiski, upon reviewing this series, though, I found a few that would be deemed inappropriate in the current social climate.  (It's amazing what was considered "okay" back in the '70s.)  They weren't horribly offensive, but probably too violent or non-PC.  In fact, one of my gags became an actual Wacky in Series 15; I just went further than Topps did.  So, I had to chop up the pages more, producing more images.  Also, you might notice that Swiski and I were on the same metaphorical page with a couple of these!  I hope you enjoy and get a laugh out of this series.

[drono]

Wow, I can't believe how dedicated you were to this.  How many series did you draw in total?  When I was into drawing my own, I think I only did about 10 titles total.

[roughwriter]

More good stuff! I see some that became Wackys, and one that became a Brand Buster. I also see one I've drawn previously. You've definitely got the right creative instincts! I also see some I may want to redo for potential future Wackys too. With future releases of Wackys so up in the air, this is the best show in town right now!