1 00:00:01,480 --> 00:00:04,280 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff you should know, a production of I 2 00:00:04,360 --> 00:00:13,880 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hey, and welcome to the podcast. I'm Josh Clark, 3 00:00:13,960 --> 00:00:17,960 Speaker 1: and there's Charles w Chuck Bryant over there, and Jerry's 4 00:00:18,079 --> 00:00:21,640 Speaker 1: lingering somewhere out there, and this is the stuff you 5 00:00:21,640 --> 00:00:27,639 Speaker 1: should know. It's POGs. It's POGs. That's right. That's other 6 00:00:27,680 --> 00:00:30,000 Speaker 1: theme song. Way. Actually, I think it's a little more 7 00:00:30,040 --> 00:00:34,519 Speaker 1: extreme and in your face than that. Yeah. You know 8 00:00:34,640 --> 00:00:38,560 Speaker 1: who is a big pog enthusiast is friend of the show, 9 00:00:39,479 --> 00:00:42,559 Speaker 1: Jesse Thorne of the Maximum Fund Network. I did not 10 00:00:42,720 --> 00:00:44,960 Speaker 1: know that. I've heard him talk about it. I mean 11 00:00:45,000 --> 00:00:49,160 Speaker 1: he's he's the right age for that wheelhouse and uh, 12 00:00:49,960 --> 00:00:52,879 Speaker 1: I've heard him talk about it on Judge John Hodgman 13 00:00:52,960 --> 00:00:57,120 Speaker 1: and with great enthusiasm. And Mom always like, what are POGs? 14 00:00:57,120 --> 00:01:00,560 Speaker 1: I've never even heard of these? Because I'm an old Yeah, 15 00:01:00,760 --> 00:01:03,000 Speaker 1: I mean i'd heard the word before, but I had 16 00:01:03,040 --> 00:01:06,920 Speaker 1: no idea what really they were, what you did with 17 00:01:06,959 --> 00:01:10,399 Speaker 1: them or anything. Okay, so a little before your time too, then, 18 00:01:10,600 --> 00:01:13,240 Speaker 1: oh yeah, a lot after my time. I mean you 19 00:01:13,280 --> 00:01:18,160 Speaker 1: had to basically be ten eleven, maybe twelve, I'll give 20 00:01:18,160 --> 00:01:26,400 Speaker 1: you thirteen between and nine four very specific niche window. 21 00:01:26,480 --> 00:01:28,400 Speaker 1: But these things were so big that it's just like 22 00:01:28,440 --> 00:01:30,399 Speaker 1: if you were a kid in the nineties kind of thing, 23 00:01:30,520 --> 00:01:34,600 Speaker 1: like you played POGs, Like everybody was playing with POGs 24 00:01:34,600 --> 00:01:37,200 Speaker 1: for like two years, and it was kind of like 25 00:01:37,319 --> 00:01:40,640 Speaker 1: the definition of a flash in the Pan fad. Yeah, 26 00:01:40,680 --> 00:01:45,559 Speaker 1: and we should think how stuffworks dot Com mental floss. Uh, 27 00:01:45,760 --> 00:01:49,240 Speaker 1: first we feast dot com. That was a good article. 28 00:01:49,880 --> 00:01:52,480 Speaker 1: It was pretty good. And then military dot Com for 29 00:01:52,520 --> 00:01:57,520 Speaker 1: a little cherry on top at the end. That's great. 30 00:01:57,760 --> 00:02:00,560 Speaker 1: We'd like to thank the military industrial Complex for the 31 00:02:00,640 --> 00:02:05,240 Speaker 1: cherry on top as a whole. So, Um, you're a 32 00:02:05,320 --> 00:02:07,480 Speaker 1: child of seventies. I'm a child the eighties. We had 33 00:02:07,480 --> 00:02:09,720 Speaker 1: our own thing. But again, this is a thing of 34 00:02:09,760 --> 00:02:14,720 Speaker 1: the nineties. And with POGs, um, it's like if you 35 00:02:14,800 --> 00:02:16,720 Speaker 1: I'm trying to think of a fad that was like 36 00:02:17,000 --> 00:02:20,160 Speaker 1: big when when we were young, and I really honestly 37 00:02:20,240 --> 00:02:24,639 Speaker 1: can't think of anything, not nothing akin to this. I mean, 38 00:02:24,680 --> 00:02:27,919 Speaker 1: like I want to say Nintendo maybe the original any yes, 39 00:02:27,960 --> 00:02:30,520 Speaker 1: but I would hardly call that a flash in the Pan, 40 00:02:30,680 --> 00:02:33,440 Speaker 1: you know what I mean? Yeah, I mean, POGs to 41 00:02:33,520 --> 00:02:37,720 Speaker 1: me represent something different because they were they had two functions. 42 00:02:37,760 --> 00:02:41,640 Speaker 1: They functioned as kind of trading cards of sorts, but 43 00:02:41,680 --> 00:02:45,880 Speaker 1: it was also a game. Uh. And if you're listening 44 00:02:45,880 --> 00:02:48,960 Speaker 1: and frustrated already, we should say very quickly that POGs 45 00:02:49,720 --> 00:02:54,600 Speaker 1: these little circular discs, and we'll get into, you know, 46 00:02:54,720 --> 00:02:57,240 Speaker 1: the ins and outs of them, and this is our 47 00:02:57,320 --> 00:02:59,720 Speaker 1: one shot at explaining it right here. And there was 48 00:02:59,760 --> 00:03:01,799 Speaker 1: a played around them, which we will get into as well, 49 00:03:01,840 --> 00:03:04,280 Speaker 1: but they also functioned as things that kids would were 50 00:03:04,320 --> 00:03:07,800 Speaker 1: just obsessive about trading, like you have a a Pope 51 00:03:07,840 --> 00:03:09,680 Speaker 1: John Paul Park and I really want it, so I'm 52 00:03:09,680 --> 00:03:13,880 Speaker 1: gonna trade you my McDonald's pug and my I don't 53 00:03:13,919 --> 00:03:18,919 Speaker 1: even know what was popular in the nineties, but yeah, 54 00:03:18,919 --> 00:03:21,720 Speaker 1: that was probably be about it. There definitely were I've 55 00:03:21,760 --> 00:03:24,600 Speaker 1: seen pictures of them on the internet. Sure that means 56 00:03:24,639 --> 00:03:27,520 Speaker 1: it's real. I don't know if anybody went to the 57 00:03:27,520 --> 00:03:30,520 Speaker 1: trouble of photos shopping that, but I guess it's possible. 58 00:03:30,919 --> 00:03:33,640 Speaker 1: We should question everything we see on the internet, I guess. 59 00:03:33,960 --> 00:03:38,119 Speaker 1: And this also crosses over with The Simpsons because very 60 00:03:38,120 --> 00:03:42,640 Speaker 1: famously Millhouse traded Bart's soul away for a set of 61 00:03:42,680 --> 00:03:45,960 Speaker 1: POGs in one episode. That's right, and it comes full circle, Chuck, 62 00:03:46,080 --> 00:03:50,360 Speaker 1: because there were a lot of Simpsons POGs as well. Oh, 63 00:03:50,440 --> 00:03:54,040 Speaker 1: I'm sure can you name the character of um that 64 00:03:54,080 --> 00:03:59,600 Speaker 1: were on the POGs that Millhouse traded for? Do you know? Yes? 65 00:04:00,080 --> 00:04:06,000 Speaker 1: What alf h there were Alpha's back and pog form. 66 00:04:06,720 --> 00:04:10,080 Speaker 1: That's pretty funny. Yeah. So what I was trying to 67 00:04:10,080 --> 00:04:13,360 Speaker 1: get out earlier was like there was like this, um 68 00:04:13,760 --> 00:04:16,120 Speaker 1: the POGs were like a huge, huge flash in the 69 00:04:16,160 --> 00:04:18,719 Speaker 1: pan fad that just burned white hot and then just 70 00:04:18,760 --> 00:04:22,360 Speaker 1: went away very quickly. But the thing that makes them 71 00:04:22,360 --> 00:04:24,480 Speaker 1: interesting is not so much that there were some you know, 72 00:04:24,720 --> 00:04:27,320 Speaker 1: neat to year trend in the nineties, but that they 73 00:04:27,320 --> 00:04:32,080 Speaker 1: were actually based on a much older game, and that 74 00:04:32,080 --> 00:04:34,599 Speaker 1: that was actually based on a much older game as well, 75 00:04:34,680 --> 00:04:37,440 Speaker 1: and that it was just almost like this the most 76 00:04:37,560 --> 00:04:41,320 Speaker 1: recent iteration of this idea for a game that just 77 00:04:41,480 --> 00:04:44,080 Speaker 1: keeps popping up every few hundred years and makes you 78 00:04:44,080 --> 00:04:47,159 Speaker 1: wonder when it's going to pop up again in the future. Yeah, 79 00:04:47,160 --> 00:04:49,560 Speaker 1: which I think make is a good distinction that makes 80 00:04:49,560 --> 00:04:52,520 Speaker 1: it kind of cooler and more interesting then Definitely your 81 00:04:52,560 --> 00:04:56,240 Speaker 1: average Furby or unless there were ancient Furbies that we 82 00:04:56,279 --> 00:04:59,239 Speaker 1: don't know about, they've yet to be discovered. A kettle 83 00:04:59,320 --> 00:05:03,920 Speaker 1: hy Yeah, that's a movie you have. Furbie was discovered 84 00:05:04,279 --> 00:05:07,120 Speaker 1: ancient Furbies. Those things were kind of nineties too, right, 85 00:05:07,120 --> 00:05:09,920 Speaker 1: They were after our time, I think, so. I don't 86 00:05:09,960 --> 00:05:11,800 Speaker 1: know much about Furbies, but this is, you know, this 87 00:05:11,880 --> 00:05:14,200 Speaker 1: is in a long line of our sort of pop 88 00:05:14,200 --> 00:05:19,040 Speaker 1: culture toys Forgotten Toys episodes. Yeah, now that you mentioned it, 89 00:05:19,120 --> 00:05:21,960 Speaker 1: we probably should have saved this one for Christmas. Yeah, 90 00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:26,360 Speaker 1: we'll find something else. So we were talking about how POGs, 91 00:05:26,400 --> 00:05:29,520 Speaker 1: this game, these little discs that you you play with, 92 00:05:29,600 --> 00:05:32,680 Speaker 1: were based on a much older game. And uh, it 93 00:05:32,720 --> 00:05:36,360 Speaker 1: turns out that there was a person, a woman who 94 00:05:36,480 --> 00:05:40,560 Speaker 1: was a teacher and a guidance counselor in Hawaii at 95 00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:45,320 Speaker 1: um Way, a Lua elementary school in Oahu who in 96 00:05:46,360 --> 00:05:49,480 Speaker 1: to gather around children. I noticed that you guys are 97 00:05:49,480 --> 00:05:52,760 Speaker 1: playing a little rough on the playground. That dodgeball has 98 00:05:52,800 --> 00:05:56,560 Speaker 1: been coated with um tar and broken glass, and I'm 99 00:05:56,560 --> 00:05:58,359 Speaker 1: not very happy about that. I want you guys to 100 00:05:58,400 --> 00:06:02,560 Speaker 1: try something different. Let's try something that my grandparents used 101 00:06:02,560 --> 00:06:04,520 Speaker 1: to play and that I played when I was a 102 00:06:04,520 --> 00:06:07,560 Speaker 1: little kid your age, and it's called milk caps. I'm 103 00:06:07,560 --> 00:06:10,160 Speaker 1: gonna show you how to do it. And she introduced 104 00:06:10,160 --> 00:06:13,280 Speaker 1: these kids to this game of milk caps, and you 105 00:06:13,320 --> 00:06:15,159 Speaker 1: would think it would be kind of snoozy, but I 106 00:06:15,200 --> 00:06:20,400 Speaker 1: think this demonstrates just how engrossing but also simple the 107 00:06:20,480 --> 00:06:24,440 Speaker 1: game of poggs actually is that this old timey game 108 00:06:24,839 --> 00:06:31,160 Speaker 1: captured these school kids attention and then just spread like wildfires. 109 00:06:31,200 --> 00:06:33,920 Speaker 1: It's been put. Yeah, her name was She's got a 110 00:06:33,960 --> 00:06:38,600 Speaker 1: great name. Her name was Blossom Galbiso, fantastic name. And 111 00:06:39,480 --> 00:06:42,159 Speaker 1: this is like you said in and sadly she passed 112 00:06:42,160 --> 00:06:47,279 Speaker 1: away in so she, I guess got to see some 113 00:06:47,480 --> 00:06:51,400 Speaker 1: of the light, bright burning of kind of what she 114 00:06:51,480 --> 00:06:54,960 Speaker 1: brought to the forefront of the children's She did playgrounds, 115 00:06:55,120 --> 00:06:57,640 Speaker 1: she did. I've seen interviews with her, and um, there 116 00:06:57,640 --> 00:07:00,400 Speaker 1: were plenty of photos of her, like people knew where 117 00:07:00,440 --> 00:07:03,039 Speaker 1: this came from as it was going on to maybe 118 00:07:03,120 --> 00:07:04,920 Speaker 1: she didn't see it die off, which would be kind 119 00:07:04,960 --> 00:07:11,720 Speaker 1: of really nice. Oh, yes, last to live. It would 120 00:07:11,720 --> 00:07:15,200 Speaker 1: be really nice, actually, it would be. Yeah, she burned 121 00:07:15,240 --> 00:07:19,280 Speaker 1: bright and hot and short like her creation. Should we 122 00:07:20,080 --> 00:07:22,840 Speaker 1: do we go back to Japan or should we talk 123 00:07:22,960 --> 00:07:25,360 Speaker 1: more about this? And then? Yeah, I think we should 124 00:07:25,400 --> 00:07:27,480 Speaker 1: talk more about milk caps and then take it back 125 00:07:27,520 --> 00:07:30,000 Speaker 1: from there, because um, she used to play this as 126 00:07:30,040 --> 00:07:32,800 Speaker 1: a kid, and I think she was born in nine 127 00:07:32,800 --> 00:07:34,840 Speaker 1: and so say she was playing this in late fifties, 128 00:07:34,840 --> 00:07:38,800 Speaker 1: early sixties. But like I said, her grandparents. I guess, 129 00:07:38,840 --> 00:07:42,240 Speaker 1: like she said through me, her grandparents had played it 130 00:07:42,280 --> 00:07:45,360 Speaker 1: as well. So this game of milk caps was just 131 00:07:45,400 --> 00:07:48,120 Speaker 1: like POGs. They were, um, you would use these little 132 00:07:48,160 --> 00:07:50,920 Speaker 1: cardboard discs, and they were called milk caps because they 133 00:07:50,960 --> 00:07:54,200 Speaker 1: were actually the caps that you would get on a 134 00:07:54,280 --> 00:07:58,280 Speaker 1: bottle of milk. They would use a cardboard cap to 135 00:07:58,480 --> 00:08:00,440 Speaker 1: seal the bottle of milk, and and I think they 136 00:08:00,440 --> 00:08:02,640 Speaker 1: would put like a rubber thing around it to hold 137 00:08:02,680 --> 00:08:05,960 Speaker 1: the cardboard cap on. But for all intents and purposes, 138 00:08:06,040 --> 00:08:08,800 Speaker 1: the cap was this little cardboard disc and it would 139 00:08:08,800 --> 00:08:11,160 Speaker 1: have like the dairy's name on it and the information 140 00:08:11,200 --> 00:08:14,480 Speaker 1: and probably like you know, the latest day. It could 141 00:08:14,520 --> 00:08:17,320 Speaker 1: be sold by that kind of thing. Um. But when 142 00:08:17,360 --> 00:08:19,440 Speaker 1: you took these things off and you stacked them up 143 00:08:19,440 --> 00:08:22,000 Speaker 1: into a pile, you could make a pretty good game 144 00:08:22,040 --> 00:08:25,520 Speaker 1: out of them, a game called milk caps, right, And 145 00:08:26,040 --> 00:08:28,120 Speaker 1: we'll get to the exact game play in a second. 146 00:08:28,160 --> 00:08:31,480 Speaker 1: But they were playing with milk caps mainly. Uh. They're 147 00:08:31,560 --> 00:08:34,600 Speaker 1: on MAUI from or I'm sorry in a wahu from 148 00:08:34,640 --> 00:08:40,160 Speaker 1: these milk caps from Maui, the Leia Khala Dairy who um, 149 00:08:40,200 --> 00:08:42,000 Speaker 1: you know they were they were sending this milk all 150 00:08:42,000 --> 00:08:46,200 Speaker 1: over the place. They were actually packaged by a or 151 00:08:46,280 --> 00:08:49,280 Speaker 1: getting packaging from a Canadian company that were actually manufacturing 152 00:08:49,320 --> 00:08:53,120 Speaker 1: these caps, and they were making the milk. It was 153 00:08:53,320 --> 00:08:56,600 Speaker 1: just fine. Sure, they did a great business. But then 154 00:08:56,760 --> 00:09:01,200 Speaker 1: they decided to make a new drink called Passion Orange 155 00:09:01,240 --> 00:09:05,520 Speaker 1: Guaba or Passion Fruit orange guava p o G. And 156 00:09:05,559 --> 00:09:08,319 Speaker 1: it was like, it sounds it's a little mixed juice drink. 157 00:09:09,320 --> 00:09:12,840 Speaker 1: It sounds amazing. It does, doesn't it. Yeah, I can't 158 00:09:12,840 --> 00:09:15,200 Speaker 1: wait to try it one day. I bet it's good. 159 00:09:15,880 --> 00:09:18,079 Speaker 1: So those little caps, you know, that's where they got 160 00:09:18,080 --> 00:09:20,240 Speaker 1: the name. It was Passion food orange guaba. So they 161 00:09:20,320 --> 00:09:24,640 Speaker 1: became known as pog caps. And even though you know, 162 00:09:24,800 --> 00:09:27,839 Speaker 1: as the years trickled on the very few years that 163 00:09:27,920 --> 00:09:32,000 Speaker 1: it burned white hot, there were many other caps. It 164 00:09:32,120 --> 00:09:34,679 Speaker 1: was sort of like the Kleenex, Like, everyone called him poggs, 165 00:09:34,760 --> 00:09:37,320 Speaker 1: regardless of where they came from. Right, I'm sure there's 166 00:09:37,320 --> 00:09:39,560 Speaker 1: plenty of people who played with POGs as kids and 167 00:09:39,640 --> 00:09:42,520 Speaker 1: had no idea that it was an acronym for passion fruit, 168 00:09:42,600 --> 00:09:45,320 Speaker 1: orange and guava. You know, I bet most kids didn't 169 00:09:45,360 --> 00:09:48,560 Speaker 1: know that. But because it was that dairy, Um, what 170 00:09:48,720 --> 00:09:50,920 Speaker 1: is it? Uh? I practiced saying it a bunch of 171 00:09:50,960 --> 00:09:53,200 Speaker 1: times because we just screwed up so badly on our 172 00:09:53,240 --> 00:09:57,840 Speaker 1: Hawaiian Overthrow episode. I would say cola, I think it is, 173 00:09:57,960 --> 00:10:03,400 Speaker 1: but I think the accents actually on the last syllable. Yeah. 174 00:10:03,440 --> 00:10:06,160 Speaker 1: But so this because it was a dairy, they were 175 00:10:06,200 --> 00:10:10,200 Speaker 1: just using milk caps for their pog juice as well, 176 00:10:10,240 --> 00:10:15,040 Speaker 1: because they're packaging it very similarly. But because people didn't 177 00:10:15,080 --> 00:10:19,600 Speaker 1: really buy milk and bottles anymore, the pog caps were 178 00:10:19,679 --> 00:10:22,880 Speaker 1: much easier to come by because everybody was drinking pog 179 00:10:22,960 --> 00:10:26,880 Speaker 1: because ostensibly it was just this delicious drink, so so 180 00:10:27,120 --> 00:10:33,199 Speaker 1: um exactly. So Blossom Galbiso and her Young Awards started 181 00:10:33,240 --> 00:10:35,720 Speaker 1: like bringing these caps in from school and then eventually 182 00:10:35,720 --> 00:10:38,960 Speaker 1: writing to Um the dairy and asking for them, and 183 00:10:38,960 --> 00:10:42,000 Speaker 1: then eventually writing to stand pack like you were saying, 184 00:10:42,040 --> 00:10:44,320 Speaker 1: and saying, do you have any more of these caps 185 00:10:44,360 --> 00:10:46,760 Speaker 1: that we can get? Because we're we we could use them, 186 00:10:46,840 --> 00:10:48,720 Speaker 1: and we don't. We drank so much pog we all 187 00:10:48,760 --> 00:10:51,800 Speaker 1: have diabetes now, but um, we still want to play, 188 00:10:51,880 --> 00:10:54,640 Speaker 1: but we just can't drink anymore. Pog that's right. And 189 00:10:54,679 --> 00:10:56,440 Speaker 1: Stampac I don't think I named it. That was the 190 00:10:56,480 --> 00:10:59,720 Speaker 1: Canadian packaging company, Yes, yeah, which is still around today. 191 00:11:00,080 --> 00:11:03,640 Speaker 1: Yeah yeah, I looked him up. You can buy all 192 00:11:03,640 --> 00:11:07,160 Speaker 1: sorts of lids. I cannot find those cardboard Paul inserts 193 00:11:07,160 --> 00:11:10,080 Speaker 1: any longer. But if you want some um to go 194 00:11:10,280 --> 00:11:14,000 Speaker 1: coffee lids, STAYM pack is your company to This episode, 195 00:11:14,000 --> 00:11:17,800 Speaker 1: by the way, is brought to you by Stampa. Uh. 196 00:11:17,960 --> 00:11:20,280 Speaker 1: Do they still have the pod juice? You can still 197 00:11:20,280 --> 00:11:23,400 Speaker 1: get that, right? I think it's like in a carton now. Yes, Um, 198 00:11:23,640 --> 00:11:26,280 Speaker 1: I could not find it anywhere. I don't know if 199 00:11:26,320 --> 00:11:28,160 Speaker 1: you have to be on the West coast to find it, 200 00:11:28,640 --> 00:11:31,439 Speaker 1: but you can make your own. It's just equal parts 201 00:11:31,440 --> 00:11:34,960 Speaker 1: passion fruit, quava, and orange. I've also seen that's best 202 00:11:34,960 --> 00:11:39,319 Speaker 1: served ice cold, and um, I bet it's good with 203 00:11:39,720 --> 00:11:44,120 Speaker 1: the vodka. I saw a recipe with vodka, yes, and 204 00:11:44,160 --> 00:11:48,360 Speaker 1: then also one with aquavite and rum, which sounds pretty great. 205 00:11:48,600 --> 00:11:51,320 Speaker 1: It does, And now I'm seeing it's on a big 206 00:11:51,360 --> 00:11:56,880 Speaker 1: box website that we dare not name. Okay, that is 207 00:11:56,920 --> 00:12:01,319 Speaker 1: not I don't think that that is Jlakla Dairy's version. 208 00:12:01,360 --> 00:12:03,440 Speaker 1: I think that's another company's because I saw that on 209 00:12:03,480 --> 00:12:06,240 Speaker 1: the same big box website and they can call it 210 00:12:06,320 --> 00:12:12,560 Speaker 1: pog Yes, and we'll get to y well, gosh, good point. Yes, 211 00:12:13,880 --> 00:12:17,520 Speaker 1: we see it full circle on this big box website. 212 00:12:18,240 --> 00:12:19,960 Speaker 1: All right, I think we should take a break. This 213 00:12:20,040 --> 00:12:22,880 Speaker 1: is too much intrigue even for me to take. Uh. 214 00:12:22,920 --> 00:12:24,880 Speaker 1: And then we'll come back after this and talk about 215 00:12:24,960 --> 00:12:47,480 Speaker 1: it's more ancient traditions. Right after this. Boo, yeah, all right, 216 00:12:48,040 --> 00:12:51,720 Speaker 1: so we're back. We got Bloss. It's early nineties. Blossom 217 00:12:51,840 --> 00:12:57,440 Speaker 1: Galbiso is worried about violence on the playground, introduces these 218 00:12:57,520 --> 00:13:01,520 Speaker 1: kids to this sort of antiquated silly game and they 219 00:13:01,600 --> 00:13:05,040 Speaker 1: love it, they do. But how did this thing get 220 00:13:05,080 --> 00:13:08,760 Speaker 1: to Hawaii to begin with? I can I can tell 221 00:13:08,840 --> 00:13:10,920 Speaker 1: you how it got there. I can actually tell you 222 00:13:10,960 --> 00:13:17,959 Speaker 1: the date, Chuck. Let's hear it. February a ship called 223 00:13:18,000 --> 00:13:22,400 Speaker 1: the City of Tokyo spelled t ok Io arrived in 224 00:13:22,480 --> 00:13:27,240 Speaker 1: Hawaii um with nine hundred Japanese immigrants aboard looking for 225 00:13:27,320 --> 00:13:30,640 Speaker 1: work in the sugarcane fields of Hawaii. And that was 226 00:13:30,679 --> 00:13:34,280 Speaker 1: the first Japanese immigrants in the modern age who showed 227 00:13:34,320 --> 00:13:37,000 Speaker 1: up in the late nineteenth century and began this huge 228 00:13:37,040 --> 00:13:40,160 Speaker 1: influx of Japanese immigrants. And you might say, well, what 229 00:13:40,200 --> 00:13:41,839 Speaker 1: the heck does that have to do with milk caps? 230 00:13:41,840 --> 00:13:44,839 Speaker 1: And I would say, calm down, subtle down, I can 231 00:13:44,840 --> 00:13:47,640 Speaker 1: tell that, uh, And then I'd I'd wait a little 232 00:13:47,640 --> 00:13:50,760 Speaker 1: while until I had gotten to the to the point 233 00:13:50,840 --> 00:13:52,520 Speaker 1: where I feel like you have calmed down, and then 234 00:13:52,520 --> 00:13:56,319 Speaker 1: I would proceed with It's actually based Milk Caps is 235 00:13:56,360 --> 00:14:01,600 Speaker 1: based on a Japanese game that these Japanese immigrants presumably 236 00:14:01,679 --> 00:14:04,240 Speaker 1: brought with them because it was that popular in Japan. 237 00:14:04,800 --> 00:14:07,600 Speaker 1: That's right. It was called Manko, Emmy and Ko, and 238 00:14:07,640 --> 00:14:11,320 Speaker 1: it was a card game in Japan that came about 239 00:14:11,400 --> 00:14:16,240 Speaker 1: in the Kamakura period from about five three b c e. 240 00:14:17,840 --> 00:14:20,720 Speaker 1: That's pretty old. And so what happens in that game 241 00:14:20,760 --> 00:14:23,840 Speaker 1: as a player puts down a card and then their 242 00:14:23,880 --> 00:14:27,120 Speaker 1: opponent tries to flip that card over by throwing their card. 243 00:14:27,600 --> 00:14:30,520 Speaker 1: It sounds really difficult because it sounds like it's just 244 00:14:30,600 --> 00:14:34,280 Speaker 1: one card that you're throwing it another single card. It's 245 00:14:34,440 --> 00:14:37,840 Speaker 1: way harder than pog and if you flip the card over, 246 00:14:37,960 --> 00:14:42,440 Speaker 1: you get both of those cards again. Not like POGs 247 00:14:42,600 --> 00:14:44,960 Speaker 1: in in one way in the gameplayway, which we'll get to, 248 00:14:45,040 --> 00:14:48,800 Speaker 1: but Minko was very much like Pog and that these 249 00:14:49,040 --> 00:14:54,080 Speaker 1: little uh cards actually had symbols of cultural icons in Japan. 250 00:14:54,160 --> 00:14:58,200 Speaker 1: They had warriors on there and wrestlers. They were not uh, 251 00:14:58,760 --> 00:15:00,880 Speaker 1: they were cardboard later on by I think they were 252 00:15:00,920 --> 00:15:04,160 Speaker 1: like wood or ceramic or clay earlier on. Yeah, and 253 00:15:04,160 --> 00:15:08,360 Speaker 1: when they were a game called I think mang Ghetto, Uh, 254 00:15:08,440 --> 00:15:11,320 Speaker 1: they were made of clay. And they actually more resembled 255 00:15:11,360 --> 00:15:15,280 Speaker 1: pog chips um or disks before than they did than 256 00:15:15,400 --> 00:15:19,160 Speaker 1: Manko did, because Manko turned them into like what looked 257 00:15:19,160 --> 00:15:23,560 Speaker 1: like I think they are considered the predecessor of trading cards. Um, 258 00:15:23,560 --> 00:15:26,920 Speaker 1: these Manko cards, right, So, but before that, when they 259 00:15:26,960 --> 00:15:29,840 Speaker 1: were little clay tablets, they were little disc shapes and 260 00:15:29,880 --> 00:15:32,160 Speaker 1: they had like pictures and everything on them, so they 261 00:15:32,160 --> 00:15:34,480 Speaker 1: seemed more like POGs then than they did by the 262 00:15:34,520 --> 00:15:38,080 Speaker 1: time they arrived in Hawaii. But again, just trying to 263 00:15:38,160 --> 00:15:41,680 Speaker 1: flip over a disc by throwing another disc at it, 264 00:15:41,680 --> 00:15:45,880 Speaker 1: it seems really difficult to accomplish to me. It definitely does. So. 265 00:15:46,280 --> 00:15:48,960 Speaker 1: Um what the kids in Hawaii did with this game 266 00:15:48,960 --> 00:15:52,840 Speaker 1: of Manko was they They turned it into this milk 267 00:15:52,880 --> 00:15:55,760 Speaker 1: cap game using milk caps, which were widely available to them, 268 00:15:56,040 --> 00:15:59,800 Speaker 1: and rather than one milk cap trying to overturned another 269 00:16:00,000 --> 00:16:02,240 Speaker 1: old cap, you just stack a bunch of them together 270 00:16:02,360 --> 00:16:05,920 Speaker 1: and try to overturn as many as you could. Blood easier, 271 00:16:06,760 --> 00:16:09,520 Speaker 1: way easier, so much easier that like you could really 272 00:16:09,560 --> 00:16:15,400 Speaker 1: get the interests of some like six twelve thirteen again 273 00:16:15,520 --> 00:16:18,680 Speaker 1: is as high as I'm going to um year old 274 00:16:18,760 --> 00:16:22,600 Speaker 1: kids attention, you know, Yeah, And it probably matters about 275 00:16:22,920 --> 00:16:25,680 Speaker 1: your family and birth order, because if you're I could 276 00:16:25,680 --> 00:16:27,920 Speaker 1: see maybe if you're a fourteen year old only child 277 00:16:27,960 --> 00:16:30,640 Speaker 1: getting into it, But if you're fourteen and you've got 278 00:16:30,680 --> 00:16:34,280 Speaker 1: a nine year old little brother or sister, you're gonna 279 00:16:34,280 --> 00:16:36,920 Speaker 1: make fun of their POGs. Yeah, if you're a what 280 00:16:36,960 --> 00:16:43,320 Speaker 1: was it a Juliet, right, you're allowed to play POGs 281 00:16:43,320 --> 00:16:49,120 Speaker 1: at fourteen? No? No, no, that's what child, Poor little Juliet. 282 00:16:50,480 --> 00:16:53,560 Speaker 1: So she's got this game going, Blossom has got this 283 00:16:53,600 --> 00:16:57,080 Speaker 1: game going, or I guess they called her Miss Albiso. 284 00:16:58,240 --> 00:17:01,760 Speaker 1: And there was a man named al In Rapinsky who 285 00:17:01,800 --> 00:17:06,280 Speaker 1: saw dollar signs. It is crazy because, like we said, 286 00:17:06,280 --> 00:17:09,840 Speaker 1: stand Pack was making these bottle caps in Canada and 287 00:17:10,480 --> 00:17:13,000 Speaker 1: he said, you know what kids are really like in 288 00:17:13,040 --> 00:17:15,679 Speaker 1: this game. I'm really curious how he had his fingers 289 00:17:15,680 --> 00:17:17,800 Speaker 1: so on the pulse. That's what I'm saying. He was 290 00:17:17,840 --> 00:17:20,960 Speaker 1: in California and this is just going on in Hawaii, 291 00:17:20,960 --> 00:17:24,359 Speaker 1: and it's not like Hawaii and California don't communicate at all, 292 00:17:24,600 --> 00:17:26,600 Speaker 1: or didn't in the eighties or early nine. Well, it's 293 00:17:26,680 --> 00:17:28,520 Speaker 1: it started to come over. And when it did start 294 00:17:28,520 --> 00:17:30,480 Speaker 1: to come over to the mainland, it definitely started in 295 00:17:30,520 --> 00:17:33,359 Speaker 1: California first, so right, but I have the impression that 296 00:17:33,440 --> 00:17:35,680 Speaker 1: he brought it over to the main land, that he 297 00:17:35,720 --> 00:17:39,040 Speaker 1: found out about some hot trend that had just started 298 00:17:39,040 --> 00:17:41,560 Speaker 1: in Hawaii and got in on it from California. That's 299 00:17:41,600 --> 00:17:43,920 Speaker 1: my take on it. Well, you know, it doesn't help 300 00:17:44,000 --> 00:17:47,680 Speaker 1: is every article I read says he somehow caught wind 301 00:17:48,160 --> 00:17:50,879 Speaker 1: right exactly. He might have gone over their own business 302 00:17:50,960 --> 00:17:54,560 Speaker 1: or something. Who knows, what's what all these kids doing 303 00:17:54,600 --> 00:17:58,000 Speaker 1: throwing these bottle caps all around? That's yeah, either that 304 00:17:58,240 --> 00:18:01,320 Speaker 1: or else somebody told them about it and he was like, wait, 305 00:18:01,320 --> 00:18:02,560 Speaker 1: what are you what are you talking about? I want 306 00:18:02,560 --> 00:18:04,160 Speaker 1: to know more about it. He was a guy who 307 00:18:04,200 --> 00:18:07,600 Speaker 1: had a real nose for potential. Like he was the 308 00:18:07,600 --> 00:18:11,159 Speaker 1: man who bought the patent for a little leather protectant 309 00:18:11,720 --> 00:18:15,080 Speaker 1: um that was called trying on I think at the time, 310 00:18:15,080 --> 00:18:17,480 Speaker 1: but he turned it into arm all. He was the 311 00:18:17,480 --> 00:18:19,720 Speaker 1: guy that brought the world armor all. He didn't invent it, 312 00:18:19,760 --> 00:18:21,880 Speaker 1: but he figured out how to market it and turn 313 00:18:21,920 --> 00:18:25,879 Speaker 1: it into something huge. Um. Remember that non wrinkle spray 314 00:18:26,280 --> 00:18:27,760 Speaker 1: you could spray your clothes and it would get the 315 00:18:27,760 --> 00:18:30,760 Speaker 1: wrinkles out. I think it was called wrinkle Free or 316 00:18:30,800 --> 00:18:35,159 Speaker 1: something like that in the eighties. He marketed that just 317 00:18:35,280 --> 00:18:37,920 Speaker 1: a bunch of like interesting stuff. So he found out 318 00:18:37,960 --> 00:18:40,720 Speaker 1: about POGs. He caught wind of it one way or another. 319 00:18:41,359 --> 00:18:43,800 Speaker 1: I bet I know how it happened how. I bet 320 00:18:43,840 --> 00:18:47,680 Speaker 1: he went to Hawaiian business is always kind of keen 321 00:18:47,760 --> 00:18:50,760 Speaker 1: to his you know, goings on around him because he's 322 00:18:50,760 --> 00:18:53,359 Speaker 1: always looking for that next million dollar idea. And he 323 00:18:53,400 --> 00:18:57,440 Speaker 1: saw the first fist fight breakout with these kids over 324 00:18:57,520 --> 00:19:00,280 Speaker 1: a set of POGs that they wanted to trade or 325 00:19:00,440 --> 00:19:02,919 Speaker 1: or a winner take all game. And he saw this 326 00:19:03,160 --> 00:19:06,359 Speaker 1: bloodthirst and was like, I can make money off of that. Yeah. That, 327 00:19:06,520 --> 00:19:08,120 Speaker 1: And then he did the other thing he was well 328 00:19:08,160 --> 00:19:10,200 Speaker 1: known for. He ran over and broke up the fight 329 00:19:10,240 --> 00:19:12,960 Speaker 1: by spraying both of the combatants with armor all and 330 00:19:12,960 --> 00:19:15,359 Speaker 1: they just slipped right off of one another and couldn't 331 00:19:15,400 --> 00:19:18,040 Speaker 1: land a single punch, And when they got wrinkled up, 332 00:19:18,040 --> 00:19:23,200 Speaker 1: he sprayed then with Wrinkle's great story. So, yeah, you're 333 00:19:23,200 --> 00:19:25,680 Speaker 1: probably right, because that is kind of what the ultimate 334 00:19:25,720 --> 00:19:28,520 Speaker 1: destiny of poggs was, and he was largely responsible for 335 00:19:28,520 --> 00:19:32,800 Speaker 1: that because um if if blossom Galbiso was the mother 336 00:19:32,880 --> 00:19:35,679 Speaker 1: of poggs. This guy was the father of pos. He 337 00:19:35,760 --> 00:19:37,600 Speaker 1: was the guy who and as far as I know, 338 00:19:37,960 --> 00:19:40,600 Speaker 1: you know, they were not in any way meritally related 339 00:19:40,720 --> 00:19:44,080 Speaker 1: or anything like that. They were just related by POGs. 340 00:19:44,080 --> 00:19:47,560 Speaker 1: But he took it and just introduced the world to it, 341 00:19:48,040 --> 00:19:52,120 Speaker 1: um just as this marketing guy. And he actually formed 342 00:19:52,520 --> 00:19:57,280 Speaker 1: a group called the World Pog Federation within I think 343 00:19:57,320 --> 00:20:01,679 Speaker 1: a year of Blossom gal Beasts introducing this for the 344 00:20:01,680 --> 00:20:04,880 Speaker 1: first time to her students in Hawaii. The World Pog 345 00:20:04,960 --> 00:20:09,879 Speaker 1: Federation had been created by Alan Rapinski and his his company. Yeah, 346 00:20:09,920 --> 00:20:12,479 Speaker 1: and he did something very very key to this story 347 00:20:12,960 --> 00:20:15,600 Speaker 1: or in this story, uh kind of when you mentioned 348 00:20:15,640 --> 00:20:19,720 Speaker 1: about Jakala and the fact that they did not have 349 00:20:19,840 --> 00:20:23,399 Speaker 1: great financial gain from this, it's because Rapinsky saw the 350 00:20:23,440 --> 00:20:26,320 Speaker 1: writing on the wall and said, hey, why don't you 351 00:20:26,359 --> 00:20:29,840 Speaker 1: sell me that brand name, that Pog brand name, because 352 00:20:29,880 --> 00:20:32,399 Speaker 1: like who cares? Like you don't care, right, you're just 353 00:20:32,440 --> 00:20:35,040 Speaker 1: pumping out this juice. You can still pump out that juice. 354 00:20:35,680 --> 00:20:38,680 Speaker 1: And they said sure, and they sold them the Pog 355 00:20:38,760 --> 00:20:42,080 Speaker 1: brand name, and that was it. They were sort of 356 00:20:42,119 --> 00:20:45,480 Speaker 1: cut out of. Uh. I mean, I guess for a 357 00:20:45,480 --> 00:20:48,400 Speaker 1: little while they still people were maybe buying their stuff 358 00:20:48,400 --> 00:20:50,840 Speaker 1: a little more than usual to get these Pog caps, 359 00:20:51,840 --> 00:20:55,440 Speaker 1: but that they weren't like getting juice. Uh No pun 360 00:20:55,440 --> 00:20:58,640 Speaker 1: intended from you know, from like the rights to sell 361 00:20:58,680 --> 00:21:01,000 Speaker 1: these things. They were as a matter of fact, from 362 00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:02,960 Speaker 1: what I from what I can tell, I think I 363 00:21:03,000 --> 00:21:06,280 Speaker 1: saw in like an l A Times article or something 364 00:21:06,320 --> 00:21:14,000 Speaker 1: from the nineties that they got Yes, so it wasn't 365 00:21:14,000 --> 00:21:17,280 Speaker 1: like entirely like you know, this l A businessman fleeced 366 00:21:17,359 --> 00:21:20,840 Speaker 1: some Hawaiian dairy farmers entirely like they were cut in. 367 00:21:21,440 --> 00:21:24,960 Speaker 1: But I think the big thing is like that as 368 00:21:25,000 --> 00:21:28,720 Speaker 1: far as the dairy was concerned, they had no real 369 00:21:28,960 --> 00:21:32,399 Speaker 1: role in this other than accepting, you know, some money 370 00:21:32,720 --> 00:21:35,879 Speaker 1: and that for a few years. I guess, sure, yeah, sure, 371 00:21:36,160 --> 00:21:38,720 Speaker 1: And that's a bit of a it was ultimately a 372 00:21:38,760 --> 00:21:42,920 Speaker 1: misstep on their part. But Rapinsky, you know, he's very 373 00:21:42,960 --> 00:21:45,760 Speaker 1: much credited with, you know, introducing this to the world, 374 00:21:45,760 --> 00:21:49,000 Speaker 1: but he's also credited with making this thing burned so 375 00:21:49,080 --> 00:21:52,320 Speaker 1: hot that it was just inevitable that it was going 376 00:21:52,359 --> 00:21:54,879 Speaker 1: to last a very very short time. And a lot 377 00:21:54,920 --> 00:21:57,000 Speaker 1: of people kind of say, you know, that was a 378 00:21:57,040 --> 00:21:58,880 Speaker 1: screw up. He shouldn't have done it like that. But 379 00:21:59,200 --> 00:22:01,119 Speaker 1: I also had the quesssion that he knew that this 380 00:22:01,200 --> 00:22:03,600 Speaker 1: thing no matter what he did. It's not like POGs 381 00:22:03,600 --> 00:22:05,480 Speaker 1: were always going to be around, that they were the 382 00:22:05,520 --> 00:22:08,120 Speaker 1: new baseball cards or anything. So I think he came 383 00:22:08,119 --> 00:22:10,040 Speaker 1: along I was like, we need to get as much 384 00:22:10,080 --> 00:22:12,720 Speaker 1: money as we possibly came out of this because it's 385 00:22:12,720 --> 00:22:15,640 Speaker 1: not going to last for very long. And he proceeded 386 00:22:15,680 --> 00:22:19,080 Speaker 1: to do that. Yeah, So he created the pog man, 387 00:22:19,119 --> 00:22:24,320 Speaker 1: the mascot. Like he said, they started having these tournaments everybody. 388 00:22:24,440 --> 00:22:26,840 Speaker 1: I mean, I was not kidding about Pope John Paul. 389 00:22:26,880 --> 00:22:30,080 Speaker 1: I think they bought like fifty thousand the Catholic Church 390 00:22:30,240 --> 00:22:33,639 Speaker 1: POGs when the Pope came to New Jersey to give 391 00:22:33,680 --> 00:22:37,440 Speaker 1: them out. Um Bill Clinton was on one. They had 392 00:22:38,600 --> 00:22:41,800 Speaker 1: altruistic campaigns had that Dare the Dare Not to Do 393 00:22:41,880 --> 00:22:46,240 Speaker 1: Drugs campaign started making POGs, and of course the major 394 00:22:46,320 --> 00:22:48,760 Speaker 1: chain restaurants got involved in Del Taco and Taco Bell 395 00:22:48,800 --> 00:22:53,159 Speaker 1: and McDonald's, Disneyland, everybody, anything that you could put on 396 00:22:53,200 --> 00:22:56,080 Speaker 1: a pog because you know, these kids are holding these 397 00:22:56,080 --> 00:22:58,840 Speaker 1: things and tradeings these these things. It was like liquid 398 00:22:58,880 --> 00:23:03,240 Speaker 1: gold to an advertiser because they were everywhere and kids 399 00:23:03,240 --> 00:23:06,239 Speaker 1: were fighting, like literally fighting over them. So anyone and 400 00:23:06,280 --> 00:23:10,160 Speaker 1: everyone tried to get an image on a pog cap, 401 00:23:10,200 --> 00:23:13,120 Speaker 1: even if it wasn't the official, like licensed one. Yeah. 402 00:23:13,160 --> 00:23:15,280 Speaker 1: I mean like if you released a movie during the 403 00:23:15,320 --> 00:23:19,520 Speaker 1: pog era, you probably made POGs for especially if I 404 00:23:19,760 --> 00:23:23,800 Speaker 1: was a alph. Yeah. Um, there's there's a set of 405 00:23:23,840 --> 00:23:27,439 Speaker 1: pulp fiction ones that are pretty cool. Yes, there are. 406 00:23:27,440 --> 00:23:29,399 Speaker 1: I would think that would be just on a bubble. 407 00:23:29,880 --> 00:23:32,240 Speaker 1: I would think so too, but nope, it was they. 408 00:23:32,280 --> 00:23:35,399 Speaker 1: I've seen it with my own eyes. Well that somebody 409 00:23:35,400 --> 00:23:39,520 Speaker 1: could have photoshopped him, but um, Jurassic Park had a 410 00:23:39,560 --> 00:23:43,880 Speaker 1: set of hologram ones that were pretty cool. I think 411 00:23:43,920 --> 00:23:46,760 Speaker 1: somebody tried to sell them for a million million dollars 412 00:23:46,840 --> 00:23:49,359 Speaker 1: on EVA, and I don't believe they actually got a 413 00:23:49,359 --> 00:23:54,200 Speaker 1: million dollars for him people. I think that's probably about 414 00:23:54,200 --> 00:23:57,240 Speaker 1: how it went, because you know, people want POGs to 415 00:23:57,240 --> 00:23:59,240 Speaker 1: be worth a lot more than they are, and they're 416 00:23:59,280 --> 00:24:01,720 Speaker 1: just not. I mean, it's too recent, there's too many 417 00:24:01,800 --> 00:24:05,080 Speaker 1: of them. Um. When I saw that seemed legitimately like 418 00:24:05,119 --> 00:24:08,560 Speaker 1: about a hundred dollars was a Stucy one, which was 419 00:24:08,600 --> 00:24:14,400 Speaker 1: super cool. It's like silver shine, Yeah, and then it's 420 00:24:14,440 --> 00:24:16,800 Speaker 1: got like the reggae colors on it and everything. It's 421 00:24:16,800 --> 00:24:19,440 Speaker 1: a pretty cool pog, to tell you the truth. Yeah, 422 00:24:19,480 --> 00:24:21,080 Speaker 1: I don't even know if I would have been in 423 00:24:21,080 --> 00:24:23,600 Speaker 1: the wheelhouse. Like I think a lot of this depends 424 00:24:23,680 --> 00:24:26,159 Speaker 1: on and we'll get to this in a second, like 425 00:24:26,160 --> 00:24:28,000 Speaker 1: you're you're playing at school some but then the schools 426 00:24:28,000 --> 00:24:30,920 Speaker 1: try and shut it down because it's very disruptive. So 427 00:24:30,960 --> 00:24:33,080 Speaker 1: then you have to live in one of those great 428 00:24:33,359 --> 00:24:36,439 Speaker 1: neighborhoods where there's thousands of houses and kids are just 429 00:24:36,480 --> 00:24:38,920 Speaker 1: all over the place. And you know, as I've said before, 430 00:24:38,960 --> 00:24:41,200 Speaker 1: I grew up in the woods on two acres of 431 00:24:41,280 --> 00:24:44,480 Speaker 1: land with nary another child in sight except for my brother. 432 00:24:45,119 --> 00:24:47,000 Speaker 1: So I think it kind of depended on that kind 433 00:24:47,040 --> 00:24:50,360 Speaker 1: of after school trading in the cul De sact thing 434 00:24:50,400 --> 00:24:53,400 Speaker 1: that I never got a piece of. No, you had 435 00:24:53,440 --> 00:24:55,720 Speaker 1: to play POGs with dirt friend, the pile of dirt 436 00:24:55,760 --> 00:25:02,040 Speaker 1: you named your friend. I did have dirt friends. Funny. 437 00:25:02,080 --> 00:25:04,920 Speaker 1: I wasn't trying to be funny. Okay, there is nothing 438 00:25:04,920 --> 00:25:08,679 Speaker 1: funny about that, chuck um mighty more from power rangements 439 00:25:08,680 --> 00:25:11,800 Speaker 1: were another big one. Oh of course, I'm sure those. Yeah, 440 00:25:11,960 --> 00:25:14,000 Speaker 1: that was a big deal at the time, very huge. 441 00:25:14,040 --> 00:25:16,119 Speaker 1: And then like so yeah, if you if you wanted 442 00:25:16,119 --> 00:25:18,520 Speaker 1: to brand the kids, this was a great opportunity to 443 00:25:18,560 --> 00:25:21,879 Speaker 1: do it. Now, legitimately you had to go through the 444 00:25:21,880 --> 00:25:25,720 Speaker 1: World Pog Federation because all these things were supposedly POGs, 445 00:25:26,080 --> 00:25:28,199 Speaker 1: and if you wanted to print your own pog it 446 00:25:28,200 --> 00:25:30,560 Speaker 1: didn't matter who you were. You had to go license 447 00:25:30,680 --> 00:25:34,199 Speaker 1: the ability to do this from Alan Rapinski and the 448 00:25:34,240 --> 00:25:38,720 Speaker 1: World Pog Federation. The problem is if you own the 449 00:25:38,920 --> 00:25:43,600 Speaker 1: license the trademark to a little cardboard disc that anybody 450 00:25:43,800 --> 00:25:47,320 Speaker 1: could make if they wanted to. Like, the technology is 451 00:25:47,680 --> 00:25:50,480 Speaker 1: really easy and low hanging to make these kind of 452 00:25:50,520 --> 00:25:53,280 Speaker 1: things that yes, it's going to be like a large 453 00:25:53,359 --> 00:25:56,040 Speaker 1: business like Taco Bell, who's just not going to be 454 00:25:56,080 --> 00:25:59,240 Speaker 1: bothered with a major lawsuit that will cost them more 455 00:25:59,240 --> 00:26:02,080 Speaker 1: than it would to license the rights to make POGs 456 00:26:02,080 --> 00:26:05,480 Speaker 1: and give them out as like, you know, some promotional tool. Um. 457 00:26:05,720 --> 00:26:09,000 Speaker 1: But any like, anybody who's even remotely interested in the 458 00:26:09,080 --> 00:26:14,320 Speaker 1: knockoff market just doving head first into POGs, and the 459 00:26:14,359 --> 00:26:18,280 Speaker 1: market became saturated really fast, not just with Rapinski's officially 460 00:26:18,320 --> 00:26:20,879 Speaker 1: licensed POGs, there are plenty of those, but also just 461 00:26:20,960 --> 00:26:26,640 Speaker 1: knockoffs galore. Yeah. There there's a couple of staggering statistics here. Uh. 462 00:26:26,640 --> 00:26:30,359 Speaker 1: It says here in California alone, at one point, POGs 463 00:26:30,359 --> 00:26:34,159 Speaker 1: we're selling ten million dollars a week in one state 464 00:26:34,359 --> 00:26:37,360 Speaker 1: and then uh and of course Jesse thorns from California, 465 00:26:37,400 --> 00:26:39,199 Speaker 1: so it may have been I mean, I know they 466 00:26:39,200 --> 00:26:41,679 Speaker 1: were nationwide and then worldwide, but I get the feeling 467 00:26:41,680 --> 00:26:44,480 Speaker 1: that California was a real pog hot spot. That's my 468 00:26:44,520 --> 00:26:48,120 Speaker 1: impression as well. But in nineteen well, I guess there 469 00:26:48,200 --> 00:26:52,320 Speaker 1: is pulp fiction year, um, three hundred and fifty million 470 00:26:52,359 --> 00:26:56,399 Speaker 1: POGs sold, so it was yeah, it was still going strong. 471 00:26:56,400 --> 00:26:59,919 Speaker 1: And ninety four yeah, yeah, so kids were trading gimp 472 00:27:00,640 --> 00:27:07,160 Speaker 1: uh gift boggs. That's exactly one that say like I'm 473 00:27:07,160 --> 00:27:11,360 Speaker 1: about to give medieval on. Yeah. So we we can 474 00:27:11,359 --> 00:27:15,720 Speaker 1: conclude then, Chuck. Since they were still going strong in Blossom, 475 00:27:15,720 --> 00:27:19,359 Speaker 1: Galbiso died. She did not have to see the end 476 00:27:19,359 --> 00:27:21,720 Speaker 1: of the pog trend. She she went out on top, 477 00:27:21,960 --> 00:27:24,480 Speaker 1: look at that detective work. Isn't that great? And they 478 00:27:24,520 --> 00:27:28,000 Speaker 1: buried her with a pog of the back of thing 479 00:27:28,080 --> 00:27:31,440 Speaker 1: Raimes's head. That's right, with a band aid on it. 480 00:27:33,200 --> 00:27:36,359 Speaker 1: You want to take another break, sure quickly, that one 481 00:27:36,400 --> 00:27:38,720 Speaker 1: of plug. Since we're talking pulp fiction, I had Jack 482 00:27:38,800 --> 00:27:41,720 Speaker 1: O'Briens e guist on and we talked to pulp fiction 483 00:27:41,760 --> 00:27:43,040 Speaker 1: and it's out in the world and it was a 484 00:27:43,040 --> 00:27:47,360 Speaker 1: great discussion. So if you like pulp fiction and movie conversations, 485 00:27:47,560 --> 00:27:51,119 Speaker 1: check it out. And Jack O'Brien too. Jack's the best. 486 00:27:51,560 --> 00:28:11,600 Speaker 1: We'll be right back. Okay, so we're back. POGs have 487 00:28:11,760 --> 00:28:16,960 Speaker 1: burned bright. They've started to kind of fizzle though, right yeah, 488 00:28:17,040 --> 00:28:20,359 Speaker 1: And you know I kind of hinted at it. One 489 00:28:20,400 --> 00:28:23,960 Speaker 1: of the reasons was that schools they had to clamp 490 00:28:24,040 --> 00:28:26,320 Speaker 1: down on the scene because there were fights over POGs. 491 00:28:26,359 --> 00:28:31,679 Speaker 1: Because if you play, uh, if you played playing for keeps, 492 00:28:32,520 --> 00:28:34,920 Speaker 1: that meant and we'll go over the full I guess 493 00:28:34,920 --> 00:28:36,480 Speaker 1: we kind of went over the game play. But should 494 00:28:36,480 --> 00:28:39,440 Speaker 1: we Yeah, you want to now? Yeah, I guess. So 495 00:28:39,800 --> 00:28:41,400 Speaker 1: the first thing you decide is are you playing for 496 00:28:41,480 --> 00:28:44,920 Speaker 1: keeps or not? Playing for keeps means that you go 497 00:28:45,040 --> 00:28:47,640 Speaker 1: home with the POGs that you collect from your friends 498 00:28:48,280 --> 00:28:51,280 Speaker 1: and you don't there's no gives these back ses, uh, 499 00:28:51,320 --> 00:28:53,560 Speaker 1: and those are those are serious games if you're ten 500 00:28:53,640 --> 00:28:55,600 Speaker 1: years old. You know, you know what's funny is you 501 00:28:55,720 --> 00:28:58,240 Speaker 1: just used two terms used for marbles, which bears a 502 00:28:58,280 --> 00:29:00,880 Speaker 1: striking resemblance to POGs as well, or at least the 503 00:29:00,880 --> 00:29:03,840 Speaker 1: way you play marbles and some of the rules involved. Yeah, 504 00:29:03,880 --> 00:29:05,680 Speaker 1: because you collect these things as a kid, and you 505 00:29:05,760 --> 00:29:09,400 Speaker 1: really if you have to give up that gimpo, Yeah, 506 00:29:09,480 --> 00:29:11,959 Speaker 1: you're really upset that you've you've lost that thing. So 507 00:29:12,000 --> 00:29:14,760 Speaker 1: fights would break out and schools start to have to 508 00:29:14,760 --> 00:29:17,720 Speaker 1: clamp down and literally banned it in quite a few 509 00:29:17,760 --> 00:29:20,840 Speaker 1: countries at one point. Yeah, because I mean, also, this 510 00:29:20,920 --> 00:29:22,800 Speaker 1: is a game of chance. We're going to tell you 511 00:29:22,840 --> 00:29:24,840 Speaker 1: how to play. In a second, it will become very 512 00:29:24,880 --> 00:29:30,000 Speaker 1: clear that's almost entirely luck. Um. And so it's gambling. 513 00:29:30,040 --> 00:29:32,280 Speaker 1: There's you know, if you're playing for chips and these things, 514 00:29:32,320 --> 00:29:34,640 Speaker 1: are you're playing for POGs? I mean, and these things 515 00:29:34,640 --> 00:29:39,600 Speaker 1: are coveted. Um. Yeah, little little kids don't necessarily deal 516 00:29:39,760 --> 00:29:44,000 Speaker 1: with loss like that, especially sudden, unexpected loss that they 517 00:29:44,000 --> 00:29:47,520 Speaker 1: hadn't really anticipated the consequences of. Um. And yeah, you 518 00:29:47,560 --> 00:29:50,280 Speaker 1: can get and fight to accuse people of stealing. It's 519 00:29:50,880 --> 00:29:54,280 Speaker 1: it was. POGs became problematic very quickly. But this was 520 00:29:54,320 --> 00:29:58,479 Speaker 1: also during the same era where Bart Simpson, you know, 521 00:29:58,600 --> 00:30:02,120 Speaker 1: touting that he was an under achiever, got t shirts 522 00:30:02,320 --> 00:30:06,480 Speaker 1: of Bart Simpson banned in schools. So schools were seemingly 523 00:30:06,480 --> 00:30:09,400 Speaker 1: a little stricter back then in the early nineties than 524 00:30:09,440 --> 00:30:11,600 Speaker 1: they are today, although I can't say that they are today. 525 00:30:11,920 --> 00:30:16,200 Speaker 1: It just seems strict now in retrospect. Yeah, I think 526 00:30:16,200 --> 00:30:18,840 Speaker 1: that's right. Um, And I'm gonna stop the people from 527 00:30:18,840 --> 00:30:21,800 Speaker 1: emailing you right now. Do you a favor, my friend, 528 00:30:22,720 --> 00:30:25,760 Speaker 1: because you said that it's basically luck and I guarantee 529 00:30:25,800 --> 00:30:30,160 Speaker 1: you there are some thirty something to early forty something 530 00:30:30,200 --> 00:30:33,880 Speaker 1: Paul enthusiasts they're really mad at you right now that 531 00:30:34,040 --> 00:30:38,040 Speaker 1: had their POG technique down that they claim was like 532 00:30:38,640 --> 00:30:43,600 Speaker 1: superior to their friends and that there was skill involved. Well, 533 00:30:43,760 --> 00:30:47,200 Speaker 1: I appreciate emails. You're saving me a bunch of time 534 00:30:47,280 --> 00:30:50,600 Speaker 1: replying to all those emails saying you are wrong, wrong, wrong, 535 00:30:51,240 --> 00:30:53,800 Speaker 1: because yeah, it is luck. So yeah, so let's talk 536 00:30:53,840 --> 00:30:56,239 Speaker 1: about how to play this right. So, um, when you 537 00:30:56,320 --> 00:30:58,760 Speaker 1: play pog, you need basically a flat surface and a 538 00:30:58,760 --> 00:31:02,000 Speaker 1: bunch of POGs. You need at least one other person, 539 00:31:02,160 --> 00:31:04,080 Speaker 1: and from what I was reading on the internet, it 540 00:31:04,120 --> 00:31:07,240 Speaker 1: seemed that that was usually how many people were in 541 00:31:07,280 --> 00:31:11,680 Speaker 1: a pog match. There's two on one right, each person 542 00:31:12,000 --> 00:31:15,440 Speaker 1: puts up the same number of POGs, and apparently the 543 00:31:15,880 --> 00:31:19,280 Speaker 1: ideal stack of POGs is twelve. So each person is 544 00:31:19,320 --> 00:31:23,440 Speaker 1: ponying up six POGs. Whether you coveted or not, I 545 00:31:23,480 --> 00:31:25,840 Speaker 1: don't know. That's only if you want to follow the 546 00:31:25,880 --> 00:31:29,400 Speaker 1: unofficial Pog and Cat Player's Handbook written by Jason Page exactly, 547 00:31:29,760 --> 00:31:31,840 Speaker 1: who probably knows what he's talking about, at least more 548 00:31:31,880 --> 00:31:34,440 Speaker 1: than I do. So I'm going with his number. So 549 00:31:34,520 --> 00:31:39,600 Speaker 1: you form a stack of POGs and um, you get 550 00:31:39,680 --> 00:31:42,920 Speaker 1: what your hands on. What's called a slammer up. You 551 00:31:42,960 --> 00:31:45,000 Speaker 1: got to say that part? Oh thanks man. So yeah, 552 00:31:45,000 --> 00:31:47,040 Speaker 1: if you look at a pog on one side, is 553 00:31:47,080 --> 00:31:49,719 Speaker 1: basically what you like is the design on the other 554 00:31:49,720 --> 00:31:52,239 Speaker 1: side through the blank or there's minimal design on it. 555 00:31:52,320 --> 00:31:54,719 Speaker 1: It's very clear that there's one side that's like the 556 00:31:54,760 --> 00:31:58,720 Speaker 1: face and you said their face up or down. You 557 00:31:58,760 --> 00:32:01,880 Speaker 1: put him face up. So you've got your stack with 558 00:32:01,960 --> 00:32:03,920 Speaker 1: Bill Clinton on top and the other stack with the 559 00:32:03,920 --> 00:32:07,280 Speaker 1: gamp on top, going head to head, and that is 560 00:32:07,320 --> 00:32:09,600 Speaker 1: how you start the game. Oh is it okay? So 561 00:32:09,680 --> 00:32:11,800 Speaker 1: my understanding was that they were all in one stack. 562 00:32:12,080 --> 00:32:14,400 Speaker 1: Oh no, no no, no, yeah, yeah, sorry chee okay, okay, 563 00:32:14,440 --> 00:32:16,120 Speaker 1: people are so mad at me right now. So then 564 00:32:16,600 --> 00:32:18,320 Speaker 1: so they put them up against each other. Then you'd 565 00:32:18,360 --> 00:32:21,040 Speaker 1: stack them on like all all on one. Yeah, okay, 566 00:32:21,040 --> 00:32:23,360 Speaker 1: so you've got a stack of twelve POGs. We should 567 00:32:23,360 --> 00:32:26,560 Speaker 1: probably edit and reduce this whole thing. I think this 568 00:32:26,600 --> 00:32:29,560 Speaker 1: is good. And then you take a slammer, and slammer 569 00:32:29,640 --> 00:32:32,920 Speaker 1: is basically a pog shaped object that it's almost like 570 00:32:32,960 --> 00:32:36,680 Speaker 1: a mini hockey puck. It's made of um, heavier material 571 00:32:36,720 --> 00:32:41,480 Speaker 1: than pog than like cardboard, so it's like um like glass, 572 00:32:41,480 --> 00:32:44,200 Speaker 1: like a heavy glass kind of thing, or rubber or 573 00:32:44,280 --> 00:32:46,479 Speaker 1: metal or something like that. I wonder if there are 574 00:32:46,480 --> 00:32:50,000 Speaker 1: restrictions on that. No, this is a free f all. 575 00:32:50,120 --> 00:32:51,880 Speaker 1: Man Pog was a free fall, which is why the 576 00:32:51,920 --> 00:32:54,160 Speaker 1: parents just didn't get it. You know why they couldn't 577 00:32:54,160 --> 00:32:56,160 Speaker 1: stand it. You could so you could bring in like 578 00:32:56,160 --> 00:32:59,120 Speaker 1: an iron slammer. I think so I saw that somewhere 579 00:32:59,160 --> 00:33:02,160 Speaker 1: that that it was frowned upon among players because the 580 00:33:02,240 --> 00:33:06,080 Speaker 1: metal would often dent at least the top pog, and 581 00:33:06,120 --> 00:33:07,840 Speaker 1: if that was your pog, you might be like, man, 582 00:33:07,880 --> 00:33:10,040 Speaker 1: that was what you do in my po right. Other 583 00:33:10,080 --> 00:33:12,880 Speaker 1: than that, I don't think that there were restrictions on 584 00:33:13,040 --> 00:33:16,600 Speaker 1: although you know, I'm sure informally there were a N 585 00:33:16,720 --> 00:33:20,480 Speaker 1: and zipper. But you you would take the slammer and 586 00:33:20,520 --> 00:33:22,720 Speaker 1: you would toss it down. Now here's the part where 587 00:33:22,720 --> 00:33:25,040 Speaker 1: you're referring to earlier that people were going to email 588 00:33:25,080 --> 00:33:28,840 Speaker 1: in about, because it does take some technique to slam 589 00:33:28,880 --> 00:33:31,920 Speaker 1: this thing down. Because if you miss, or if you 590 00:33:32,240 --> 00:33:35,080 Speaker 1: if you actually don't move the stack at all, that's 591 00:33:35,120 --> 00:33:38,120 Speaker 1: your turn. The other person gets their turn next. Um, 592 00:33:38,160 --> 00:33:40,280 Speaker 1: So it does take some technique to hit the stack 593 00:33:40,320 --> 00:33:42,640 Speaker 1: in the first place, but then also to scatter him 594 00:33:42,640 --> 00:33:44,960 Speaker 1: in a certain way, right, And it's the scattering that's 595 00:33:45,000 --> 00:33:48,360 Speaker 1: the most important part of playing pog. Yeah, and you 596 00:33:48,360 --> 00:33:50,760 Speaker 1: know what, I know we're gonna get emails. I guarantee you. 597 00:33:50,840 --> 00:33:54,320 Speaker 1: This is a game that had regional variations. It's just 598 00:33:54,360 --> 00:33:57,160 Speaker 1: got to be. It's one of those kids games where 599 00:33:57,800 --> 00:34:00,120 Speaker 1: one playground might play it slightly different than another their 600 00:34:00,120 --> 00:34:04,120 Speaker 1: playground as far as the rules go, absolutely, and that's 601 00:34:04,120 --> 00:34:06,040 Speaker 1: I'm gonna stand by that because I know we're gonna 602 00:34:06,040 --> 00:34:08,600 Speaker 1: get people that are going to contradict one another and 603 00:34:08,680 --> 00:34:10,840 Speaker 1: say that their version was like how they played it 604 00:34:10,880 --> 00:34:13,839 Speaker 1: was the right way. But until I read that book 605 00:34:13,840 --> 00:34:17,239 Speaker 1: by Jason Page, which I'm never gonna do. Oh, I 606 00:34:17,280 --> 00:34:20,120 Speaker 1: don't know, maybe somebody will mail it to you. So, yeah, 607 00:34:20,120 --> 00:34:23,760 Speaker 1: you slam this thing down and these, uh, this stack 608 00:34:23,800 --> 00:34:26,359 Speaker 1: of POGs, if you hit it right, is gonna kind 609 00:34:26,360 --> 00:34:31,000 Speaker 1: of scatter everywhere, like you said, And then some of 610 00:34:31,040 --> 00:34:34,520 Speaker 1: them will have flipped over with the face side down. 611 00:34:34,680 --> 00:34:37,359 Speaker 1: Some will remain face side up, and that is sort 612 00:34:37,400 --> 00:34:40,319 Speaker 1: of the key to the whole game. Yes, So the 613 00:34:40,360 --> 00:34:43,040 Speaker 1: ones you've the ones that have landed face side up, 614 00:34:43,200 --> 00:34:45,960 Speaker 1: you get to keep. If it was your turn. Now, 615 00:34:46,000 --> 00:34:49,320 Speaker 1: those might be your buddies POGs, they might be your POGs, 616 00:34:49,719 --> 00:34:51,920 Speaker 1: it doesn't matter. Then you take the ones that are 617 00:34:51,960 --> 00:34:55,480 Speaker 1: still face side however they were stacked up, I think 618 00:34:55,560 --> 00:34:57,879 Speaker 1: you're saying, and then you put them back into another stack, 619 00:34:57,920 --> 00:34:59,759 Speaker 1: and now it's the other player's turn, and you keep 620 00:34:59,800 --> 00:35:03,239 Speaker 1: going back and forth until all of the POGs have 621 00:35:03,320 --> 00:35:06,960 Speaker 1: been turned over and kept. And however many POGs you 622 00:35:07,080 --> 00:35:09,880 Speaker 1: turned over, that's how many you get to keep. And 623 00:35:10,080 --> 00:35:12,160 Speaker 1: you know, again whether it's your POGs or the other 624 00:35:12,160 --> 00:35:15,400 Speaker 1: person's POGs. Ideally it's everybody's pots. And then there was 625 00:35:15,440 --> 00:35:18,239 Speaker 1: another there's another variation I saw that seems to have 626 00:35:18,280 --> 00:35:22,480 Speaker 1: been pretty widespread. It was the poison pog. And these 627 00:35:22,480 --> 00:35:26,160 Speaker 1: were usually like kind of a Memento moriy kind of thing, 628 00:35:26,239 --> 00:35:29,960 Speaker 1: like scary skulls on fire and you know, like an 629 00:35:30,000 --> 00:35:32,879 Speaker 1: eight ball kind of thing um, and it would say 630 00:35:32,920 --> 00:35:35,480 Speaker 1: poison pog and the poison pog if you put one 631 00:35:35,480 --> 00:35:37,719 Speaker 1: of those in the stack, if you flip that one over, 632 00:35:38,920 --> 00:35:40,840 Speaker 1: then you got all the all the POGs in that 633 00:35:40,920 --> 00:35:44,719 Speaker 1: stack on that one turn. Okay, I didn't see that. 634 00:35:44,800 --> 00:35:47,440 Speaker 1: And this is another frustration, because I went to some 635 00:35:47,560 --> 00:35:52,040 Speaker 1: YouTube videos of like gameplay videos, and I saw several 636 00:35:52,200 --> 00:35:55,280 Speaker 1: that had described the game played differently than the others, 637 00:35:56,280 --> 00:35:59,120 Speaker 1: which leads me to think that there were variations. Because 638 00:35:59,120 --> 00:36:01,399 Speaker 1: I saw one person say that you get to keep 639 00:36:01,440 --> 00:36:04,319 Speaker 1: the POGs that are faced down, and that flies in 640 00:36:04,360 --> 00:36:07,600 Speaker 1: the face of everything I had heard from everyone else, right, Yeah, 641 00:36:07,680 --> 00:36:10,719 Speaker 1: and I think it just it's flipping it over from 642 00:36:10,760 --> 00:36:13,440 Speaker 1: the way it was before. I don't think it actually matters, 643 00:36:13,480 --> 00:36:15,960 Speaker 1: but but yes, you would want to you keep the 644 00:36:16,000 --> 00:36:18,560 Speaker 1: ones that you flip over, whether now they're face up 645 00:36:18,680 --> 00:36:22,400 Speaker 1: or down. Who cares, right? And then I saw another 646 00:36:22,680 --> 00:36:25,719 Speaker 1: where they said that you stack them every other one 647 00:36:25,960 --> 00:36:28,719 Speaker 1: is face up or down. But I didn't see that 648 00:36:28,840 --> 00:36:31,520 Speaker 1: verified anywhere else either, So yeah, I didn't run into 649 00:36:31,560 --> 00:36:33,839 Speaker 1: that one. Yeah, I just you know, people should say 650 00:36:33,920 --> 00:36:36,480 Speaker 1: like these were Michigan rules, you know, or something, right, 651 00:36:37,400 --> 00:36:40,200 Speaker 1: So you know that slammer the heavier object that you 652 00:36:40,239 --> 00:36:45,279 Speaker 1: throw onto the pog stack. Um, you can make them 653 00:36:45,280 --> 00:36:47,160 Speaker 1: out of all sorts of things, and they have different 654 00:36:47,360 --> 00:36:50,600 Speaker 1: They often had different like imagery on them as well. 655 00:36:50,840 --> 00:36:52,960 Speaker 1: But I saw one. I saw this in multiple places. 656 00:36:53,320 --> 00:36:55,319 Speaker 1: There was an O. J. Simpson one where it had 657 00:36:55,320 --> 00:36:59,360 Speaker 1: a picture of Jimpson's behind behind bars, so he was 658 00:36:59,400 --> 00:37:02,080 Speaker 1: in the slam so he was on the slammer as well. 659 00:37:02,960 --> 00:37:05,279 Speaker 1: That must have been a legendary slammer, because I did. 660 00:37:05,320 --> 00:37:10,000 Speaker 1: I saw that in a couple of plays. Slammer. I 661 00:37:10,080 --> 00:37:12,239 Speaker 1: wonder if he got a piece of that. I don't 662 00:37:12,239 --> 00:37:14,880 Speaker 1: think so, man, And I don't think he's legally allowed 663 00:37:14,920 --> 00:37:18,120 Speaker 1: to keep it even if he did. And then one 664 00:37:18,160 --> 00:37:20,000 Speaker 1: day he would break into a hotel room and steal 665 00:37:20,000 --> 00:37:22,680 Speaker 1: those slammers. That's where I'd give you the slammers. Get 666 00:37:22,760 --> 00:37:25,800 Speaker 1: him back, man. I saw a documentary on that robbery. 667 00:37:25,840 --> 00:37:30,319 Speaker 1: It was nuts. Oh really, yeah, I guess it was no, no, no, 668 00:37:30,520 --> 00:37:34,120 Speaker 1: I'm sorry it was that. Um what was that like 669 00:37:34,280 --> 00:37:37,520 Speaker 1: five part series on O J and the murders and 670 00:37:37,560 --> 00:37:42,719 Speaker 1: everything that did it? I don't remember. I know it 671 00:37:42,800 --> 00:37:45,800 Speaker 1: was just a documentary, I think, yeah, but the documentary series, 672 00:37:45,920 --> 00:37:48,200 Speaker 1: but yeah, they covered that robbery too, and it was 673 00:37:48,280 --> 00:37:53,800 Speaker 1: just just so casual and dumb and so casually dumb too, 674 00:37:53,880 --> 00:38:00,759 Speaker 1: you know, it really wasn't. So let's see. I think 675 00:38:00,800 --> 00:38:03,400 Speaker 1: we've explained how to play POGs about as thoroughly as 676 00:38:03,440 --> 00:38:06,560 Speaker 1: you possibly can, don't you think, So let's talk about 677 00:38:06,600 --> 00:38:10,000 Speaker 1: how they finally fizzled out. Well, you know, like I 678 00:38:10,000 --> 00:38:12,680 Speaker 1: said earlier that I think the banning on the playgrounds 679 00:38:12,800 --> 00:38:16,440 Speaker 1: and then the banning or or at school, and then um, 680 00:38:16,480 --> 00:38:19,799 Speaker 1: I think the US, Canada, Sweden, Iceland, Germany, the UK 681 00:38:19,880 --> 00:38:25,160 Speaker 1: and Australia all banned these pieces in schools, and so 682 00:38:25,280 --> 00:38:28,640 Speaker 1: that's gonna put a damper on something. If you're stuck 683 00:38:28,640 --> 00:38:30,719 Speaker 1: at dumb school all day and you can't have your 684 00:38:30,760 --> 00:38:34,200 Speaker 1: POGs and you're just limited to the hours between three 685 00:38:34,200 --> 00:38:36,640 Speaker 1: and six when mom and dad call you back to 686 00:38:36,640 --> 00:38:39,560 Speaker 1: eat dinner. Okay, on the one hand, but I also 687 00:38:39,600 --> 00:38:44,440 Speaker 1: saw a contemporary piece of journalism in the interviewed the 688 00:38:44,480 --> 00:38:48,080 Speaker 1: founder of um Trove USA, which was a big pog 689 00:38:48,160 --> 00:38:52,479 Speaker 1: maker at the time, and uh, he speculated that those 690 00:38:52,480 --> 00:38:58,640 Speaker 1: school bands actually increased pog sales and pro that, but 691 00:38:58,760 --> 00:39:01,520 Speaker 1: also probably prolonged interest because if kids have been free 692 00:39:01,520 --> 00:39:04,120 Speaker 1: to play these all the time, they would have lost 693 00:39:04,160 --> 00:39:07,480 Speaker 1: interest that much, that much faster. I mean, I think 694 00:39:07,520 --> 00:39:11,399 Speaker 1: ultimately that's what happened. It's it's like any or It's 695 00:39:11,440 --> 00:39:15,399 Speaker 1: like many kid fads that it just it becomes not cool. 696 00:39:15,440 --> 00:39:17,960 Speaker 1: You age out of it a little bit, and maybe 697 00:39:17,960 --> 00:39:21,440 Speaker 1: the kids below you weren't interested, and it just goes away. 698 00:39:21,560 --> 00:39:23,200 Speaker 1: I mean, I don't I don't think there's a smoking 699 00:39:23,200 --> 00:39:30,359 Speaker 1: gun here to you besides o j um. Uh. Yeah, 700 00:39:30,440 --> 00:39:32,799 Speaker 1: I would say, oh j is probably the culprit for 701 00:39:32,880 --> 00:39:38,160 Speaker 1: why bogs went away. Yeah, I think they said in 702 00:39:38,280 --> 00:39:45,279 Speaker 1: Boys Life Magazine. In the issue of Boys Life Magazine, 703 00:39:45,719 --> 00:39:48,360 Speaker 1: they basically said it was it was done and not 704 00:39:48,480 --> 00:39:52,120 Speaker 1: cool anymore. So, yeah, they compared it to things like, um, 705 00:39:52,480 --> 00:39:56,560 Speaker 1: what's that one where you chase a hoop with a stick? Yeah, 706 00:39:57,200 --> 00:39:59,680 Speaker 1: like that, and playing marbles and all these old time 707 00:39:59,719 --> 00:40:04,640 Speaker 1: he's fads. They included pog among them already. Boys I said, 708 00:40:05,600 --> 00:40:09,000 Speaker 1: then it probably meant it went out by exactly, it 709 00:40:09,160 --> 00:40:12,040 Speaker 1: was super out by then. So we kind of mentioned 710 00:40:12,120 --> 00:40:17,680 Speaker 1: Chuck that Holla Kala dairy um did not really benefit 711 00:40:17,719 --> 00:40:20,600 Speaker 1: from this, and they did financially, I'm sure cut of 712 00:40:20,640 --> 00:40:23,319 Speaker 1: all of that hundreds of millions of dollars that was 713 00:40:23,360 --> 00:40:25,600 Speaker 1: flowing to the World Pog Federation for a couple of 714 00:40:25,719 --> 00:40:32,360 Speaker 1: years definitely boosted their annual revenue, I'm sure. But if you, 715 00:40:32,360 --> 00:40:34,399 Speaker 1: you know, talk to most people and say what does 716 00:40:34,560 --> 00:40:37,560 Speaker 1: what does paug actually mean, they probably couldn't tell you. 717 00:40:38,000 --> 00:40:40,640 Speaker 1: And so in that respect, a lot of the articles 718 00:40:40,680 --> 00:40:42,200 Speaker 1: that I think both of us have seen about this 719 00:40:42,280 --> 00:40:44,880 Speaker 1: have pointed out quite rightly that you know that the 720 00:40:45,000 --> 00:40:49,640 Speaker 1: dairy really missed an opportunity to become like legendary or 721 00:40:49,719 --> 00:40:52,239 Speaker 1: become a part of the trend, and they were very 722 00:40:52,320 --> 00:40:57,840 Speaker 1: quickly separated. Poggs became their own thing in isolation with 723 00:40:57,840 --> 00:41:01,200 Speaker 1: with no boost whatsoever to the dairy. Now there's kind 724 00:41:01,200 --> 00:41:03,640 Speaker 1: of like this kind of retro nod to it that 725 00:41:03,640 --> 00:41:05,880 Speaker 1: that enough time has passed, enough people have written and 726 00:41:05,920 --> 00:41:08,399 Speaker 1: talked about it, that the dairy has been identified as 727 00:41:08,440 --> 00:41:12,000 Speaker 1: the source of of POGs originally, but it didn't happen 728 00:41:12,040 --> 00:41:15,240 Speaker 1: at the time, and in this kind of retrospective about 729 00:41:15,280 --> 00:41:17,560 Speaker 1: it is not really probably going to help the dairy 730 00:41:17,640 --> 00:41:20,440 Speaker 1: very much. It was just sad, yeah, and you know 731 00:41:20,480 --> 00:41:24,000 Speaker 1: why because they were a dairy, right, Like in this 732 00:41:24,040 --> 00:41:27,520 Speaker 1: one article that they spoke with this creative director at 733 00:41:27,520 --> 00:41:29,520 Speaker 1: a New York ad agency that was like, you know, 734 00:41:29,640 --> 00:41:31,279 Speaker 1: this is why you really need to pay attention to 735 00:41:31,320 --> 00:41:34,040 Speaker 1: what your consumers doing with your brand, Like if they 736 00:41:34,080 --> 00:41:36,000 Speaker 1: have off brand uses going on, you need to know 737 00:41:36,040 --> 00:41:39,040 Speaker 1: about to capitalize on it. And look at McDonald's and 738 00:41:39,560 --> 00:41:42,120 Speaker 1: like they're the perfect company with this stuff. And it's 739 00:41:42,160 --> 00:41:43,880 Speaker 1: just like, man, they were a dairy that in Hawaii. 740 00:41:44,000 --> 00:41:46,719 Speaker 1: It didn't they didn't. They weren't paying attention to that, 741 00:41:46,760 --> 00:41:49,799 Speaker 1: and they shouldn't have been expected to. I don't think sure, no, no, 742 00:41:49,880 --> 00:41:51,680 Speaker 1: and certainly not. And I think also it's one of 743 00:41:51,680 --> 00:41:54,439 Speaker 1: those things where the only way that they possibly could 744 00:41:54,480 --> 00:41:58,120 Speaker 1: have capitalized as if they had taken the gamble that 745 00:41:58,239 --> 00:42:00,640 Speaker 1: this is going to be an enormous bad which would 746 00:42:00,640 --> 00:42:03,439 Speaker 1: take a tremendous amount of foresight, and then also would 747 00:42:03,480 --> 00:42:05,560 Speaker 1: have had to have hired like a publicist like the 748 00:42:05,600 --> 00:42:09,280 Speaker 1: guy that was um interviewed or quoted in that article. 749 00:42:09,880 --> 00:42:11,719 Speaker 1: Like they would have had to have figured it out, 750 00:42:11,719 --> 00:42:13,719 Speaker 1: and then they could have possibly bungled it. It It would 751 00:42:13,719 --> 00:42:16,759 Speaker 1: have been a big, a big deal. But also, yeah, 752 00:42:16,880 --> 00:42:19,360 Speaker 1: they're they're like you said, they're just they're a dairy 753 00:42:19,440 --> 00:42:22,319 Speaker 1: and and that's not the way that they're thinking. But yeah, 754 00:42:22,360 --> 00:42:26,080 Speaker 1: and in hindsight, it's very easy to blame him. But regardless, 755 00:42:26,120 --> 00:42:27,719 Speaker 1: I mean it is it is a little sad that 756 00:42:27,760 --> 00:42:30,399 Speaker 1: they got kind of left behind, but I don't think 757 00:42:30,440 --> 00:42:32,759 Speaker 1: that they were any like worse for the wear from 758 00:42:32,800 --> 00:42:35,640 Speaker 1: not having been on the pog crest along with the 759 00:42:35,680 --> 00:42:39,480 Speaker 1: little caps a little mill. Uh, should we go to 760 00:42:39,520 --> 00:42:41,760 Speaker 1: our cherry on top here at the end. Yeah, thanks 761 00:42:41,800 --> 00:42:45,279 Speaker 1: to the U. S. Military for this cherry on top. Again. Yeah, 762 00:42:45,360 --> 00:42:47,719 Speaker 1: this is interesting because I had no idea about this, 763 00:42:47,960 --> 00:42:50,040 Speaker 1: and uh, I should talk to my brother in law 764 00:42:50,080 --> 00:42:54,319 Speaker 1: because he's certainly been stationed overseas. But um, so, the 765 00:42:54,440 --> 00:42:58,560 Speaker 1: Army and Air Force exchange service stores. These are you know, 766 00:42:58,640 --> 00:43:00,480 Speaker 1: let's say, if the military is a seas in the 767 00:43:00,480 --> 00:43:03,319 Speaker 1: Middle East or whatever, they're in Afghanistan and they set 768 00:43:03,360 --> 00:43:08,000 Speaker 1: up these sort of temporary on base stores. They started 769 00:43:08,040 --> 00:43:13,799 Speaker 1: issuing POGs, these little cardboard coins in November two thousand one. 770 00:43:13,960 --> 00:43:16,919 Speaker 1: Because they were lighter than metal coins, you could ship 771 00:43:16,960 --> 00:43:19,920 Speaker 1: them a lot cheaper overseas, and it was supposed to 772 00:43:19,920 --> 00:43:22,560 Speaker 1: be like a temporary thing, and you know, it said 773 00:43:22,560 --> 00:43:25,560 Speaker 1: how much it was worth, basically, but then they started 774 00:43:25,600 --> 00:43:29,200 Speaker 1: having uh, pictures on it and and comic book characters 775 00:43:29,200 --> 00:43:33,360 Speaker 1: and NASCAR drivers and stuff like that. People just can't resist. No, 776 00:43:34,160 --> 00:43:36,080 Speaker 1: But they were essentially POGs, and you know, I don't 777 00:43:36,080 --> 00:43:38,799 Speaker 1: see anything that they actually played the game, but they 778 00:43:38,840 --> 00:43:43,640 Speaker 1: functioned as currency for American service people in Afghanistan since 779 00:43:43,920 --> 00:43:47,279 Speaker 1: two thousand one until just recently. Yeah, and then this 780 00:43:47,520 --> 00:43:51,359 Speaker 1: um was it military dot com article, Yeah, where they 781 00:43:51,400 --> 00:43:53,800 Speaker 1: were basically you know, they interviewed a few people who 782 00:43:54,239 --> 00:43:56,440 Speaker 1: seemed a little like ver Clemp that these things are 783 00:43:56,840 --> 00:43:59,560 Speaker 1: phased out, because they were like this kind of weird 784 00:43:59,600 --> 00:44:02,759 Speaker 1: little part of their their tour that had that you 785 00:44:02,840 --> 00:44:05,080 Speaker 1: just wouldn't find anywhere else in the world. And the 786 00:44:05,080 --> 00:44:09,240 Speaker 1: whole reason the military adopted POGs overseas, at least an Afghanistan, 787 00:44:09,640 --> 00:44:12,800 Speaker 1: is because it's just so much easier to chip um 788 00:44:12,840 --> 00:44:17,320 Speaker 1: to ship them and to chip in. Using them requires 789 00:44:17,360 --> 00:44:19,960 Speaker 1: less effort to toss them into the pot. But the 790 00:44:20,600 --> 00:44:22,720 Speaker 1: like if you I think a hundred dollars and quarters, 791 00:44:22,719 --> 00:44:26,760 Speaker 1: I saw ways almost six pounds and a hundred dollars 792 00:44:26,800 --> 00:44:30,640 Speaker 1: in these little POGs. Ways, you know, a fraction of that. 793 00:44:30,760 --> 00:44:33,319 Speaker 1: So just in shipping costs alone, it made sense. But 794 00:44:33,560 --> 00:44:37,960 Speaker 1: apparently these these pog coins worm their ways into the 795 00:44:38,000 --> 00:44:43,000 Speaker 1: hearts of the U. S. Soldiers in Afghanistan. I love it. Yeah, well, 796 00:44:43,040 --> 00:44:47,560 Speaker 1: so long POGs, and so long the to the military 797 00:44:47,600 --> 00:44:51,359 Speaker 1: reincarnation of POGs. There are no POGs anywhere now in 798 00:44:51,440 --> 00:44:55,279 Speaker 1: the world at all. If you want to know more 799 00:44:55,280 --> 00:44:57,760 Speaker 1: about POGs, just start looking them up on the internet 800 00:44:57,880 --> 00:44:59,800 Speaker 1: and see what you think. And since I said that's 801 00:45:00,080 --> 00:45:06,600 Speaker 1: for a listener mail, I'm gonna call this slime Mold enthusiasts. 802 00:45:07,719 --> 00:45:10,760 Speaker 1: And it's not from you. I know there's a fellow 803 00:45:10,800 --> 00:45:14,640 Speaker 1: slime Old Enthusiasts I'm one of them. Do now, Hey, guys, 804 00:45:14,760 --> 00:45:16,680 Speaker 1: loved your slime Old episode. To figure it, I should 805 00:45:16,680 --> 00:45:20,400 Speaker 1: crawl out from under the leaf litter and get in touch. Uh. 806 00:45:20,920 --> 00:45:23,880 Speaker 1: It's pretty good, Huh. I got slime Olds about ten 807 00:45:23,960 --> 00:45:25,759 Speaker 1: years ago for a kid's lecture and started giving it 808 00:45:25,800 --> 00:45:28,560 Speaker 1: away so other people could play with these funky, chilled 809 00:45:28,560 --> 00:45:31,840 Speaker 1: out beings without having to fork over hard to earn cash. 810 00:45:32,320 --> 00:45:33,919 Speaker 1: You can drive them out on paper, cut them into 811 00:45:33,920 --> 00:45:37,520 Speaker 1: portions and pop them in the post, which makes things 812 00:45:37,760 --> 00:45:41,120 Speaker 1: very easy. Things kind of snowball quickly. I've now posted 813 00:45:41,120 --> 00:45:45,799 Speaker 1: it to this means mailed for our American listeners. Very nice. 814 00:45:46,600 --> 00:45:49,479 Speaker 1: I've now posted it to around twenty five countries. RAND 815 00:45:49,640 --> 00:45:52,520 Speaker 1: stands at the UK's biggest science fair, giving out thousands 816 00:45:52,560 --> 00:45:55,719 Speaker 1: of cultures, and I've gotten and I've got three thousand 817 00:45:56,160 --> 00:45:59,600 Speaker 1: about to go to Milan for an art exhibition. I 818 00:45:59,640 --> 00:46:04,719 Speaker 1: am been selectively breeding them. That's very awesome. He calls 819 00:46:04,760 --> 00:46:07,040 Speaker 1: them his pets. He said they're they're much better travel 820 00:46:07,080 --> 00:46:09,880 Speaker 1: than I am. He said, they're fantastic things for children 821 00:46:09,920 --> 00:46:12,319 Speaker 1: and adults to play with. Giving it a selection of 822 00:46:12,320 --> 00:46:15,279 Speaker 1: different foods, seeing what will go for as as a 823 00:46:15,320 --> 00:46:18,719 Speaker 1: firm favorite with school classes of all ages. Would you 824 00:46:18,760 --> 00:46:22,520 Speaker 1: like some guys? Yes, please, they're easy to keep the 825 00:46:22,640 --> 00:46:26,120 Speaker 1: same deal as everyone else. It's free and uh there's 826 00:46:26,160 --> 00:46:29,400 Speaker 1: a there's a website here. I don't know if this 827 00:46:29,480 --> 00:46:32,040 Speaker 1: is just for us or if it's for everyone. Well 828 00:46:32,120 --> 00:46:35,040 Speaker 1: let's say it and then um we can edit it 829 00:46:35,080 --> 00:46:39,400 Speaker 1: out if if he's like, no, please don't really say that. Okay, 830 00:46:40,280 --> 00:46:43,400 Speaker 1: it's either you're either gonna hear a long beep. Okay, 831 00:46:45,080 --> 00:46:49,160 Speaker 1: that censorship www dot tiny u r l dot com 832 00:46:49,239 --> 00:46:54,200 Speaker 1: slash slime manifesto and this has instructions in the backstory. 833 00:46:54,600 --> 00:46:57,520 Speaker 1: I bet that's for everyone. The only thing you got wrong, 834 00:46:57,600 --> 00:47:01,799 Speaker 1: Chuck is that it's www period. Oh yeah, that's right, 835 00:47:04,239 --> 00:47:08,360 Speaker 1: and we get mad at pet ants. Are you taking 836 00:47:08,360 --> 00:47:10,879 Speaker 1: a passive aggressive shot at me right now? No, it's 837 00:47:10,920 --> 00:47:14,680 Speaker 1: it's fully aggressive. Thanks to everyone on your team for 838 00:47:14,719 --> 00:47:19,520 Speaker 1: your brilliant episodes. My job as a microscopist means I'm 839 00:47:19,600 --> 00:47:21,640 Speaker 1: usually alone in the dark. Your podcast goes along way 840 00:47:21,680 --> 00:47:24,799 Speaker 1: to keeping me sane ish cheers. That is from Ian 841 00:47:25,000 --> 00:47:28,560 Speaker 1: hands Portman, and then he adds this little PostScript. I've 842 00:47:28,560 --> 00:47:32,720 Speaker 1: accidentally tasted uh fist a room several times. It's easy 843 00:47:32,760 --> 00:47:35,200 Speaker 1: to do when a half square meter of it is 844 00:47:35,360 --> 00:47:38,400 Speaker 1: hungry and gets loose in your bag. It tastes like 845 00:47:38,400 --> 00:47:41,719 Speaker 1: a compost heap smells, but with the added bonus of 846 00:47:41,719 --> 00:47:45,839 Speaker 1: being incredibly bitter. Wow, this is a great email, Ian, 847 00:47:45,920 --> 00:47:47,880 Speaker 1: Thank you for this. Yeah, and this is one of 848 00:47:47,920 --> 00:47:51,600 Speaker 1: the tops of all time. Frankly, has it all? It 849 00:47:51,640 --> 00:47:55,560 Speaker 1: hasn't something that we're already interested in as an offer 850 00:47:55,600 --> 00:47:59,319 Speaker 1: to give us something we're already interested for free. It's 851 00:47:59,360 --> 00:48:05,000 Speaker 1: British and includes accidentally tasting a live organism. Yeah. That 852 00:48:05,000 --> 00:48:08,720 Speaker 1: that could you know, creepily take over your household? Yeah, 853 00:48:08,920 --> 00:48:13,239 Speaker 1: or your body now that you've eaten it. That's right. Well, um. 854 00:48:13,280 --> 00:48:17,400 Speaker 1: Good luck to Ian surviving the slime Old tasting encounter. 855 00:48:17,600 --> 00:48:19,400 Speaker 1: I hope that you live long enough to send us 856 00:48:19,400 --> 00:48:21,520 Speaker 1: some free slime old because I will definitely take you 857 00:48:21,640 --> 00:48:24,759 Speaker 1: upon that for sure, for sure. Thanks again, Ian, And 858 00:48:24,760 --> 00:48:26,719 Speaker 1: if you want to be like Ian and be super cool, 859 00:48:26,760 --> 00:48:29,080 Speaker 1: you can send us an email to send it off 860 00:48:29,080 --> 00:48:35,080 Speaker 1: to Stuff Podcasts at iHeart radio dot com. Stuff you 861 00:48:35,080 --> 00:48:37,560 Speaker 1: Should Know is a production of I heart Radio. For 862 00:48:37,640 --> 00:48:40,640 Speaker 1: more podcasts my heart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app, 863 00:48:40,880 --> 00:48:43,760 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows,