Saturday, November 29, 2014

Why I Love My Marx Trains


image credit Gary


I am a Marxist.  

No, no, not that type of Marxist.  I am a Marx Train enthusiast, dating back to my early childhood when my brother got a Marx toy train for Christmas.  Those days were magical: the Christmas tree, the lights, the presents, the Marx train...our family didn't have much but we as kids didn't know that and were quite happy.  Think Ralphie in A Christmas Story and you kinda get the picture of that time in America.

I'll do a Marx post today then another on Monday, as I think about things Christmas....

On Fri, Oct 24, 2014 at 9:32 PM, Pete M, one of my as-yet-unmet-in-person friends from my Marx train group on Yahoo, wrote the following.  It exactly captures my sentiments:
If it wasn't for Louis Marx, a whole lot of Kids would not have had the chance to have a train set.  Truth be told...Marx trains were TOYS.  Marx trains were never manufactured to compete with "The big boys".  The niche that Marx sold to was the affordable, lower cost, market where any boy (or girl hypothetically) could own their own train set and have fun with it at a cost that their parents could afford.  Marx built tough, durable, and great running trains for every young "set it up and run it" child. That legacy alone, is the one thing we, who as children, who had nothing, will always remember and appreciate.  

And, by the way, that very Marx train from our youth still runs like a champ around my Christmas tree today, some 60 years later.  They truly were virtually bulletproof.


No comments:

Post a Comment