Many people are wondering what toys were popular in the 1950s, specifically when baby boomers were kids. Here's a list of some of them, along with a short history and a few interesting facts. All of these toys are still being made today.

Mr. Potato Head

Hasbro introduced Mr. Potato Head in 1952, with the idea that children like to play with their food. Originally, the toy included just parts--plastic eyes, ears, mouths and noses--and kids were instructed to use them to dress up real potatoes. Eight years later, the modern version of the toy was born when Hasbro included a hard plastic potato look-a-like body.

Pick Up sticks

Pick-up sticks (or pick-a-stick) is a game of physical and mental skill in which sticks have to be removed from a pile without disturbing the remaining ones.

Slinky

In 1943, a naval engineer named Richard James was trying to develop a meter designed to monitor horsepower on naval battleships. He was working with tension springs when one of them fell to the ground. It kept moving after it hit the ground and the concept for Slinky toys was conceived.

Ant Farm

In 1956, Milton Levine came up with the fun idea for the first Ant Farm, complete with live ants.

For those still curious about what toys were popular in the 1950s, read on:

Silly Putty

Silly Putty originated in a General Electric engineer�s laboratory in 1943 while he was trying to make a synthetic rubber compound with silicone oil and boric acid. By accident the inventor dropped some of the mixture on the floor and discovered bouncing putty! GE unsuccessfully tried to find a real use for it. In 1950, it was introduced in the Toy Fair in New York City. Seven years later, the first televised commercial for silly putty was aired during the Howdy Doody Show. It has sold more than 4,500 tons or 300 million units since its inception.

Here's a recipe so you can make your own Silly Putty.

Wooden Glider Toy

Balsa wood glider was popular in the 1950�s, and sold for fifteen cents. It came in a pack and was easy to assemble.

Gumby

Gumby was created by Art Clokey in Millington, MI, and he made his debut in a 1953 theatrical short called Gumbasia. It was a parody of Fantasia, and had moving and expanding lumps of clay set to music. Gumby first appeared on the Howdy Doody Show in 1956 and was given his own series in 1957on NBC.

Wooly Willy

Wooly Willy, a magnetic drawing game, was another toy popular in the 1950s. It originated in 1955 in Smethport, PA as a way to utilize dust from magnet grinding. In the beginning, it was really hard to market since not a single toy buyer would purchase Wooly Willy. Eventually a buyer tried six dozen and they sold out in a couple of days for 29 cents each! The next order for 12,000 sets sold out in a few weeks. Instantly Wooly Willy became the toy that everyone wanted! It went on to become one of the 40 most popular toys produced during the 1950s through the 1980s.

Sliding number puzzle

A traditional slide puzzle with the object being to rearrange the tiles in the correct number sequence. These toys became popular during the 1950s.

Match Box Cars

In 1954, Jack Odell created the first Matchbox car of a Road Roller and put in it a matchbox so his daughter could bring it to school. Today, 100 million Matchbox cars are sold each year.

Play-doh

In 1956, Play-doh came on the market as a non-toxic and less messy version of modeling clay. It was originally made as a wall paper cleaner, but subsequently discovered that it made an excellent toy. Originally Play-Doh came in only one color; off-white and came in a 1.5.lb cardboard can. To date, 700 million pounds, or 2 billion cans of Play-doh have been sold.

Barbie doll

1959 The Barbie doll was introduced at the American Toy Fair in NYC by Elliot and Ruth Handler of Mattel Toys. The doll was named after the inventor's daughter, Barbara. It became one of the best-known icons of American pop culture.

Hula-Hoop

This concept probably dates back to 1000 B.C. in Egypt, Greece and Rome. In 1958 the name Hula Hoop was trademarked and the hoop was "reinvented". In the first six months of production in the United States, twenty million Hula Hoops sold for $1.98.

Yo Yo

Yo Yo consists of two equally sized and weighted disks of plastic, wood, or metal, connected with an axle and a string tied around it. This toy first became popular in the 1920s, lasting well into the 1950s and is still popular today.