The Stuff Of Yesteryear: Discontinued Products (Non-Food) You Miss

[GreekGeek]

Since the Discontinued Foods thread at the Food forums digressed briefly onto shampoos, I thought I would start a new thread to discuss the non-food products you used and enjoyed in the past but can't find anymore.

Several of my own were shampoos, too. For a time I was able to buy Gee Your Hair Smells Terrific and Beer on Tap at the Vermont Country Store, which specializes in nostalgia products, but even they don't offer these shampoos anymore. 

[Sandman87]

Remember  lawn darts, with the metal tips? I miss those. I used to be able to stick one through a 1/8" piece of plywood if I threw it hard enough. Naturally, some little twit had to spoil it for everyone by killing a sibling with one. And that's why we can't have nice things.

A couple of years ago I read about a company that sold the old-style metal tips, so one could turn the modern "safety" version into the classic, more lethal Lawn Darts. "Get off my lawn...or else!"

 

Can I miss something that I never had a chance to use? I regret that I never had a chance to have the most awesome kids' science kit ever made: the Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Lab. Sounds scary, but the ore samples were similar to the ones used in undergraduate physics labs which are safe to handle with bare hands.

[Whimsy]

1 hour ago, Sandman87 said:

Remember  lawn darts, with the metal tips?

We have an unopened package of these in my basement that my husband refuses to get rid of! 

[BookWoman56]

I don't know if this product has actually been discontinued, but it's been at least 15 years since I saw it while shopping, so I'm going to assume it's gone. There used to be a cleaning item just for microwaves. It was apparently made by Easy-Off, and was a heat-activated cleaning towelette in a pouch. You threw it in the microwave, turned it on, and the pouch would pop open to release the cleaning ingredients, essentially splattering the cleanser all over the interior of the microwave. You let it sit for a few minutes, and then used the towelette to wipe off the cleanser and the stuff it had loosened from the sides, top, and bottom of the microwave.  I know you can supposedly do something similar by putting vinegar or lemon into water and steaming the interior so it smells better, but those cleaning towelettes worked wonderfully for me. Obviously, I can still clean the microwave by using a regular spray cleaner and either a sponge or paper towels, but the cleaning towelettes were convenient, damn it.

[BooksRule]

Quote

Several of my own were shampoos, too. For a time I was able to buy Gee Your Hair Smells Terrific and Beer on Tap at the Vermont Country Store, which specializes in nostalgia products, but even they don't offer these shampoos anymore. 

I splurged and bought some 'Gee Your Hair Smells Terrific' and 'Lemon Up' shampoo from them a few years ago.  I made those two expensive bottles last a long, long time.  I see that they still offer Lemon Up.  I think that the 'Gee Your...' one comes and goes.  Maybe it'll come back.  You would think that somewhere there would be a 'spicy' scented shampoo that would be close to 'Gee...', but I've never found one.  I'm still looking for a good lemon-scented one that I don't have to pay $14.95 (plus shipping) for one bottle.

[Petunia13]

Naturistics flavored lip balms in that came tins in coconut or peach or vanilla y'all know what I'm talking about

Max Factor is discontinued in the US for years and I am curious about their products. I remember some heavy coverage foundations. 

Loves brand Rain Scent body splash. 

Revlon Street Wear  ? 

[Blergh]

Elastic shoe laces! I liked the kind in which one could tie them a single time then never have to bother with untying/retying but I haven't seen any in the last fifteen years.

[glowlights]

2 hours ago, Blergh said:

Elastic shoe laces! I liked the kind in which one could tie them a single time then never have to bother with untying/retying but I haven't seen any in the last fifteen years.

They have them at Dr. Leonard's:

http://www.drleonards.com/elastic-shoe-laces/75094.cfm?clicksource=search&criteria=shoe lace

I miss a cookie from my childhood and I can't even remember the name of them. They were basically sugar cookies with faces painted on them in icing, possibly from Peek Freans. Haven't seen them in decades and they are my holy grail of cookies.

[Blergh]

Thanks for letting me know, glowlights.

 

Now could someone let me know if  anyone still produces photo albums with those easy peel transparent sheets that one could put any number of photos/ souvenirs adhere securely to the  page? Yes, I [AKA Captain 20th Century] have NOT gotten a Smartphone and like seeing individual conventional-sized photos to remember the trip.

Edited November 11, 2016 by Blergh
addition

[glowlights]

I saw a photo album like that at the zHallmark store a couple of years ago. Have you checked Amazon or target?

[Petunia13]

Those albums are cool! 

[editorgrrl]

19 hours ago, Blergh said:

Could someone let me know if  anyone still produces photo albums with those easy peel transparent sheets that one could put any number of photos/souvenirs adhered securely to the  page?

Google says yes—and they're called "magnetic page albums." Available at Wal-Mart, Jo-Ann, Amazon, Michaels, Target, Sears…

[Blergh]

Thanks, editorgrrl. Luckily two of those stores are within easy driving distance. I'll have to check them out! :)

[theredhead77]

I miss Natural Wonders and Topkapi (even though I'd be way too old for it).

The Water Wiggle never really worked how it should but it was still a fun summer toy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4D_WdavMuKs

And risking welts from this was always a good time https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GxVGxFyxxU

@Bookwoman

Just now, theredhead77 said:

I miss Natural Wonders and Topkapi (even though I'd be way too old for it).

The Water Wiggle never really worked how it should but it was still a fun summer toy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4D_WdavMuKs

And risking welts from this was always a good time https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GxVGxFyxxU

@BookWoman56 - I did some Googling and the cleaner was by Easy Off and it has been discontinued.

[Maharincess]

@Blergh, I recently found a lot of those kinds of photo albums at my local Dollar Tree. They're the only kind of photo album I use so I bought a bunch of them.  Maybe try some local dollar stores. 

When my kids were babies I cut babies out of magazines and different places and put them in one of those albums.  My kids LOVED them. They would flip through and look at the babies and imitate what the babies in the pictures were doing. They could sit for the longest time looking at the babies. 

[theredhead77]

On 11/7/2016 at 5:20 PM, BookWoman56 said:

I don't know if this product has actually been discontinued, but it's been at least 15 years since I saw it while shopping, so I'm going to assume it's gone. There used to be a cleaning item just for microwaves. It was apparently made by Easy-Off, and was a heat-activated cleaning towelette in a pouch. You threw it in the microwave, turned it on, and the pouch would pop open to release the cleaning ingredients, essentially splattering the cleanser all over the interior of the microwave. You let it sit for a few minutes, and then used the towelette to wipe off the cleanser and the stuff it had loosened from the sides, top, and bottom of the microwave.  I know you can supposedly do something similar by putting vinegar or lemon into water and steaming the interior so it smells better, but those cleaning towelettes worked wonderfully for me. Obviously, I can still clean the microwave by using a regular spray cleaner and either a sponge or paper towels, but the cleaning towelettes were convenient, damn it.

I don't know why it didn't post before, but this is indeed discontinued.

[ari333]

I miss the green Herbal Essence shampoo from the 70s in the green bottle. I know theyhave those shampoos now, but they don't smell the same.

[Jaded]

Wrong Thread.  Oops!

Edited February 8, 2017 by Jaded

[ratgirlagogo]

Original, Made In England Dr Marten's boots.  I've never, never found any boots I liked as much.  Once they moved production to China and Thailand the quality went down the toilet - not the fault of the criminally underpaid Asian workers, mostly that the materials turned into complete shit. That cheap hard leather that never quite breaks in - this on the shoes that NEVER required breaking in!  Even the high-priced (overpriced) Vintage Made in UK line are not made out of the same original soft leather.  I went to the Dr Marten's store on Union Square in NYC and would happily have overpaid for a pair of  retro-styled 1490s (the ten-grommet ones, my all time favorites) but the leather was so cheap and stiff I could barely get my feet into them.  What the actual fuck. They were no better than the Chinese shoes, and more than twice the price.  It was hard not to take it out on the salepeople, I was so disappointed.  Of course I didn't, but I did frown and grump a lot.

Edited February 8, 2017 by ratgirlagogo

[ParadoxLost]

5 hours ago, ari333 said:

I miss the green Herbal Essence shampoo from the 70s in the green bottle. I know theyhave those shampoos now, but they don't smell the same.

I loved Revlon Flex.  That worked really well with my hair.

[zxy556575]

23 hours ago, ari333 said:

I miss the green Herbal Essence shampoo from the 70s in the green bottle. I know they have those shampoos now, but they don't smell the same.

I loved that! The shampoo itself wasn't a stand out but the scent kept me coming back for years. Ah, the teenage years when boys really do smell a girl's hair. ;)

I kind of miss the old Parke-Davis throat "discs". They contained a smidge of chloroform so were later discontinued. They were flavored with licorice and my sister and I used to eat 10-12 of them at a time. Like Marie Barone and the Sucrets, my mother took to hiding them.

[AndreaK1041]

The only product I have ever hoarded and still miss sounds gross but was heavenly: Crest Vanilla Mint toothpaste. I got a free sample of it on our honeymoon in 2005 and by 2009 it was gone. So sad. 

[ari333]

On ‎2‎/‎9‎/‎2017 at 1:35 PM, Lord Donia said:

I loved that! The shampoo itself wasn't a stand out but the scent kept me coming back for years. Ah, the teenage years when boys really do smell a girl's hair. ;)

I kind of miss the old Parke-Davis throat "discs". They contained a smidge of chloroform so were later discontinued. They were flavored with licorice and my sister and I used to eat 10-12 of them at a time. Like Marie Barone and the Sucrets, my mother took to hiding them.

I wish I had hoarded that shampoo, but didn't know they'd discontinue it. Poof it was gone. I miss that fragrance so much... like in a weird way. I loved it.

Marie Barone hehehehehe  locking up the Sucrets in the kitchen drawer. :-)

Way back in the day there used to be some medicine called, "Paregoric." It was over-the -counter and my mother used to give it to me. It used to knock me on my ass. I'm pretty sure it had opium in it.

[MargeGunderson]

5 hours ago, ari333 said:

Way back in the day there used to be some medicine called, "Paregoric." It was over-the -counter and my mother used to give it to me. It used to knock me on my ass. I'm pretty sure it had opium in it.

Paregoric definitely had opium in it.

Edited February 18, 2017 by MargeGunderson
Bad, Autocorrect, bad!

[ari333]

5 minutes ago, MargeGunderson said:

Parabolic definitely had opium in it.

I think your auto correct typed in "parabolic."

Speaking of techy stuff that fills in words for us. Here's one. It's not a discontinued product, but maybe it should be. I was trying to type. "I have a c...o....u...." and the word I was trying to type was going to be COUGH.  Instead it typed in  " I have a COUGAR."

[ratgirlagogo]

5 hours ago, ari333 said:

I wish I had hoarded that shampoo, but didn't know they'd discontinue it. Poof it was gone. I miss that fragrance so much... like in a weird way. I loved it.

We all used to wonder in junior high why in god's name they didn't market Herbal Essence as a fragrance.  I still wonder to this day.  It would have been more popular than Charlie and Tabu and Jovan Musk put together.  

[ari333]

1 hour ago, ratgirlagogo said:

We all used to wonder in junior high why in god's name they didn't market Herbal Essence as a fragrance.  I still wonder to this day.  It would have been more popular than Charlie and Tabu and Jovan Musk put together.  

Charlie! And "White Shoulders" (sounds kind of racist) and "Heaven Scent." ah.... the 70s. There was another one . The name escapes me at the moment.

I was crazy for that shampoo dammit.

[MrSmith]

On 11/7/2016 at 5:27 AM, Sandman87 said:

Remember  lawn darts, with the metal tips? I miss those. I used to be able to stick one through a 1/8" piece of plywood if I threw it hard enough. Naturally, some little twit had to spoil it for everyone by killing a sibling with one. And that's why we can't have nice things.

A couple of years ago I read about a company that sold the old-style metal tips, so one could turn the modern "safety" version into the classic, more lethal Lawn Darts. "Get off my lawn...or else!"

 

Can I miss something that I never had a chance to use? I regret that I never had a chance to have the most awesome kids' science kit ever made: the Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Lab. Sounds scary, but the ore samples were similar to the ones used in undergraduate physics labs which are safe to handle with bare hands.

I remember lawn darts. In fact, I can never forget them. When I was about 8 and my younger brother was about 5, a neighbor loaned her set to us. We'd never seen them before, she gave us no precautions, and - boys  being boys ("Instructions? What are those?") - we didn't read the instructions and  precautions  printed on the box. So we played with them, with one of us standing at each end. My brother threw one high (into the sun) and I got it in the inner corner of my left eye. Fortunately, someone up there likes me because I didn't lose my sight or even the ability to control my left eye; I just still have a nasty scar almost 40 years later. I'm personally glad that lawn darts are gone. In fact, I'd love to see snowmobiles and ATV's join them on the scrap heap of history.

[Demented Daisy]

While not technically discontinued, Bath and Body Works changed the formulation of their Sleep (lavender and vanilla) products.  I used to bathe in them, spray it on my pillow, use it for air freshener, everything I could.  It never made me sleep, but it did work for me as aromatherapy.  It literally made me feel happy when I smelled it.

But a few years back, they changed it so it smells less sweet and more floral.  Now I can't stand it.  :-(

[ari333]

19 minutes ago, MrSmith said:

I remember lawn darts. In fact, I can never forget them. When I was about 8 and my younger brother was about 5, a neighbor loaned her set to us. We'd never seen them before, she gave us no precautions, and - boys  being boys ("Instructions? What are those?") - we didn't read the instructions and  precautions  printed on the box. So we played with them, with one of us standing at each end. My brother threw one high (into the sun) and I got it in the inner corner of my left eye. Fortunately, someone up there likes me because I didn't lose my sight or even the ability to control my left eye; I just still have a nasty scar almost 40 years later. I'm personally glad that lawn darts are gone. In fact, I'd love to see snowmobiles and ATV's join them on the scrap heap of history.

Omg you are so lucky to have your sight. I was always scared of those things.  

8 minutes ago, Demented Daisy said:

While not technically discontinued, Bath and Body Works changed the formulation of their Sleep (lavender and vanilla) products.  I used to bathe in them, spray it on my pillow, use it for air freshener, everything I could.  It never made me sleep, but it did work for me as aromatherapy.  It literally made me feel happy when I smelled it.

But a few years back, they changed it so it smells less sweet and more floral.  Now I can't stand it.  :-(

Exactly! That is the way I feel about the Herbal Essences shampoos. Not the same as before - 70s. Boo.

[Isle Of Why]

Lawn darts/javelin darts were so obviously dangerous, yet so many* couldn't see it! Even young kids can readily understand that it's not wise to stand and toss horseshoes to each other.

From wiki: "In the previous eight years, 6,100 people had been sent to the emergency room due to lawn darts in the USA. Out of that total, 81% were 15 or younger, and half of them were 10 or younger. On the week the commission voted to ban the product, an 11-year-old girl in Tennessee was hit by a lawn dart and sent into a coma,"

[ari333]

1 minute ago, Isle Of Why said:

Lawn darts/javelin darts were so obviously dangerous, yet so many* couldn't see it! Even young kids can readily understand that it's not wise to stand and toss horseshoes to each other.

From wiki: "In the previous eight years, 6,100 people had been sent to the emergency room due to lawn darts in the USA. Out of that total, 81% were 15 or younger, and half of them were 10 or younger. On the week the commission voted to ban the product, an 11-year-old girl in Tennessee was hit by a lawn dart and sent into a coma,"

Arent you supposed to throw them at a dart board and not at PEOPLE?  That seems insane to me.

[Moose135]

2 hours ago, ari333 said:

Arent you supposed to throw them at a dart board and not at PEOPLE?  That seems insane to me.

Lawn darts were much larger than the darts you throw at a dart board - would throw them up into the air, the heavy, sharp, metal tip would cause it to come down like a missile, with the goal being to have it land in a target (usually a plastic hoop) on the grass.  If you stand near the target, you can get hit.  And yes, that's insane.

 

Edited March 1, 2017 by Moose135

[DeLurker]

Having four older brothers, almost any game could be made lethal with enough effort.

They created one where two players stood face to face in the lawn and took turns throwing a pocket knife into the ground close to the other person's foot.  whoever flinched first lost.  They let me play too, but only using a screw driver cause explaining why they threw a screw driver into their little sister's foot would have been so much better than explaining the pocket knife.

They also played Butts Up and British Bulldog 1-2-3 which was basically full contact tackle red rover.

[auntlada]

Mumblety-peg, @DeLurker. Although Wikipedia says you are supposed to try to stick the knife as close as possible to your own foot. That's not the way my dad explained it. i think he said sometimes they played with nails because they didn't have knives.

[Quof]

Imagine today's kids playing British bulldog.   I don't think they're even allowed to play tag.

[DeLurker]

One of those things you look back on and go Damn! We were lucky none of those games went south. Odds were not in our favor.

Edited March 2, 2017 by DeLurker

[Qoass]

Along with bike riding without helmets and sitting in the station wagon "way back" with the window open and no seat belts!

[Quof]

How about driving half way across the country sitting in the open box of a 1/2 ton truck?  Officially sanctioned by my parents, since they were the ones doing the driving.  

[DeLurker]

When we'd visit my Dad's family in NH, our Grandma would load up the kids in the back of her truck to take us to go swimming at the lake.  The younger kids had to sit closest to the cab and the older ones sat on the open gate.  Granny's flicking the ashes off her cigarette added an additional element of potential danger to the outings.

@auntlada - hmmm...I wonder if my brothers heard about it or saw some guys playing mumblety-peg?  It could be they independently thought up a bad idea on their own, but it was one that already existed. 

Interesting how wide spread and normal these "things" were that most of us would freak out if we saw it happening today.

[JTMacc99]

I just heard an entire bit by Jeff Foxworthy on this topic. It was hysterical. In addition to riding the whole way to Florida in the lying in the back window of his dad's car, lawn darts, and being left in a hot car while his mom ran into the grocery store, he also mentioned that when he was nine, his parents bought him a wood burning kit.  Heh. Mine too.

He starts talking about it at the 3:00 mark.

Edited March 2, 2017 by JTMacc99

[Qoass]

I had one of those kits where you squeezed the liquid plastic into a heated mold to create your own toys.  Creepy Crawlers?  Something like that.

[JTMacc99]

I didn't have that, but I did also have the chemistry kit. I'm sure that wasn't exactly safe either.

[MrSmith]

5 hours ago, Quof said:

How about driving half way across the country sitting in the open box of a 1/2 ton truck?  Officially sanctioned by my parents, since they were the ones doing the driving.  

LOL. I remember something like this. When I was little, my parents owned a Buick (I don't know the year for certain, but I'd guess around 1970 or 1972). Anyway, it had this enormous rear window and when we would drive across the country on a trip or because we were moving, my brother and I would take turns sleeping in the back window. Great memories. It was always nice to look up and watch the night sky when you're in the middle of nowhere while you drift off to sleep.

[ari333]

Hee I did all those things too!. It's a wonder we're all alive. :-)

Do we need a thread with discontinued habits? or can we slip them in here? I ask bc there's a discontinued thing (frowned upon and maybe illegal in some places) in which an adult driver isn't supposed to smoke in the car with kids in the car.  I know smoking has not been entirely "discontinued," but my aunt used to drive us around, roll up the windows of the car, and chain smoke. I remember choking in the backseat. But there were kids in the front seat with no seatbelts. Actually you had to "call" the front seat in order to sit there.  It was considered the prime spot/ To stay on topic, I think cars with no seatbelts have been discontinued and car seats   are mandatory for the little ones in the back seat

[Quof]

We were allowed into the cab of the truck when it rained. Although the 'rents were worried it wasn't safe to have 4 people squeezed in there.

[ari333]

17 minutes ago, forumfish said:

I just started a new topic, thanks to ari333's suggestion.

Great idea!. See you there. :-)

[Sandman87]

10 hours ago, JTMacc99 said:

I didn't have that, but I did also have the chemistry kit. I'm sure that wasn't exactly safe either.

Chemistry sets are excellent. The one I had included an "experiment" where you mix solutions of two chemicals to get a rotten-eggs stinky smell. I discovered that a few drops of that stuff sprinkled in the garden kept the dog from digging holes there.

[walnutqueen]

Dang, I could swear I posted this already, but my brain cells & vision are fried, so here goes: Jergens Soft Shimmer body lotion.  It had little flecks of gold that would sparkle in the sunlight, and I LIVED for it.  Now I can't find a single affordable body butter or lotion with the "golden touch".  :-(

[rcc]

44 minutes ago, walnutqueen said:

Dang, I could swear I posted this already, but my brain cells & vision are fried, so here goes: Jergens Soft Shimmer body lotion.  It had little flecks of gold that would sparkle in the sunlight, and I LIVED for it.  Now I can't find a single affordable body butter or lotion with the "golden touch".  :-(

I remembered that. I just looked this up over at Amazon and they are selling it for $89.00 for 7.5 oz. Wow! That is way too expensive IMO.