The Brookfield Zoo is an amazing place, with world-class exhibits, hundreds of acres of beautiful landscaped property and state-of-the art facilities. We enjoyed all of that.
But, the souvenir the kids wanted the most was a low-tech blast from the past. A hot plastic molded toy...from the Mold-A-Rama machine!! And the 2018 molds that Lilly and Warren took home are exactly the same as the 1987 hot plastic souvenirs that Ross and Elliott got when they were little boys.
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| There are 13 Mold-A-Rama machines still operating at the Brookfield Zoo. |
The Mold-A-Rama machines look like juke boxes from the 60's. At one time, there were over 100,000 of these machines in existence -- in zoos and museums all over the world.
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| When you put in your money ($3)...they heat up, and you can see the gauges moving...then, the mold closes, and the hot plastic is pumped in....within a minute, your souvenir animal is cut form the form and drops through the slot. |
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| You have to be careful to hold it from the bottom while it's still hot. |
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| The blue dolphin is the most popular Mold-a-Rama at Brookfield. |
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| Both kids wanted the gorilla. |
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| Warren got a hippo, and Lilly got a Polar Bear. |
There are only 126 Mold-a-Rama machines left in the country. Ross said this may be his new motorcycle trip next summer...with his goal to collect 126 Mold-A-Ramas...
I think that's a worth-while adventure!!
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