The Nostalgia of Molten Plastic

I came across something that caught my eye the other day. I was scrolling through Facebook, and saw an ad: "Mold-A-Rama Machines For Sale" I clicked on it. It was a business called "Moldville" that specialized in such things, and they listed a phone number with the caution in all caps: SERIOUS INQUIRIES ONLY. We have a small, townhouse-style condo, and a not unlimited amount of disposable income; as much as my nostalgia nerve would LOVE to own one, it's not only not practical, it's nearly impossible.

At one time in the early 1970s, Mold-A-Rama machines were ubiquitous in museums, zoos, and other attractions all over the US. They were injection molding machines, and the plexiglass bubble allowed you to see a limited part of the process - basically, the two halves of the mold coming together, and then, when they separated, you saw your molded statue in all it's shiny plastic glory, as a spatula-like device scraped the statue off the base underneath, dumping it into a slot for your convenient retrieval. There were dozens of different designs in a wide array of colors - some designs specific to the place - like Disney theme parks and Sea World - while others were more generic. There were animals, vehicles (including the Space Shuttle) and things like Santa, Christmas trees, and even the Houston Astrodome. I still have one, from the...

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