I got the recently (finally) released “Inspector Gadget Megaset” for Christmas, and I noticed a familiar number on the box…
Don Adams’ “Get Smart” character Maxwell Smart was Agent 86.
Don Adams’ voiced the goofy 1980s cartoon character Inspector Gadget in a total of 86 episodes.
I just thought that was an amusing and random coincidence.
Also, I love Don Adams. He was great.
“Would you believe…”
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A few months ago one of my coworkers at Redfin unearthed a long-lost treasure lurking in his garage: The Fall 1983 Markline Catalog. This amazing book contains a cornucopia of cutting edge technology from the early 1980s. I was able to borrow the catalog for a day to take it home and scan the entire thing in glorious high resolution.
Here are just a few of the amazing ’80s tech gems in the Markline catalog…
If you like calculators, Markline has you covered. Is it a credit card, or is it a calculator?!? Who can say?!?
Or maybe you don’t carry a wallet? No problem, strap a calculator to your wrist!
Or perhaps you’d prefer not to flaunt your calculating prowess to the world… how about a calculator in your checkbook?
Maybe you need a calculator that can print tiny color charts? NO PROBLEM!
Sometimes after a hard day of calculating, you need to take a break. Behold: Mr. Disc!
Gotta keep in shape, ’80s style, in the holodeck!
The fun goes on and on and on… for over 40 pages. Just a few more examples:
At last!
When this was brought into the office, another of my coworkers tried calling the toll-free ordering phone numbers mentioned throughout the Markline catalog. Unfortunately, one number was disconnected and the other went to some other company who had never heard of Markline.
So what happened to Markline? I dug around online a bit and was able to find this article, published about 10 years after this particular catalog hit the presses.
Catalog Age | October 1993: Markline ‘disappears.’ (Markline International goes out of business)
WEYMOUNT, MA—By all indications, gifts cataloger Markline International is out of business. Markline’s phone lines are either out of order or they go unanswered. Sources close to the company say it has ceased doing business, and “disappeared off the face of the earth,” according to founder and former owner Herb Klein. Klein still runs a business called Markline Business Products in Weymouth, MA, where Markline International had been based.
Gene Bellotti, whose direct marketing agency Harper Bellotti produced catalogs for Markline, says owner Robert D. Montague has “stopped mailing [the catalog], and he’s trying to sell it.”
Sad times.
But fear not! You can still enjoy the entire Fall 1983 Markline Catalog in convenient pdf format by downloading below or simply browsing the embedded version below.
January 2015 Update
I had the good fortune this month to receive the following email, reproduced with permission of the sender.
My daughter found your posting of the Markline catalog online. I was the vice-president of catalog planning (77-85) which included merchandising the catalog. I left the company before they were sold.
It probably was the most fun job I had during my career. Finding new and unusual items. In fact, we introduced the Sony Walkman in the U.S. We imported it from Hong Kong because Sony U.S. didn’t think it would be a hit. They changed their mind after they saw how many we sold. I’ve kept several different catalogs including the one you posted.
Thanks for the memories,
Ray
A few weeks ago I attended my eighth consecutive PAX Prime. While there are many things to love about PAX, one of my personal favorites has become the PAX medals. All weekend long there are various tournaments and contests you can participate in to win a medal.
I have won a PAX medal at each of the last three PAX Prime events that I have had the pleasure of attending. In 2011 I got one for placing second in a Pac-Man Championship Edition DX tournament. In 2012 I won one for having the second-best pitch at the Pitch Your Game Idea panel. This year I won a high score contest for the Super Nintendo game Tin Star, using the SuperScope.
As I was enjoying my PAX medals, I noticed something odd. Each year, the PAX medals are getting slightly smaller.
Time to break out some measuring tools.
First up, length of the ribbons:
That’s 4cm of ribbon loss in just two years. At this rate, PAX medals will be a 15cm choker by 2020.
Let’s check the height.
The shrinkage of the medals is even more dramatic than the ribbon shrinkage. If it keeps up at the same rate they’ll disappear completely by 2020.
Finally, let’s weigh these suckers on my kitchen scale.
The loss of mass is the most extreme, with an average loss of 3.5g per year putting the medals on a path to vanish entirely by 2018. Also, apparently PAX medals are not very nutritious.
Here’s a summary of my findings:
| Year | Length | Height | Mass |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 33.0cm | 0.76″ | 25g |
| 2012 | 30.5cm | 0.66″ | 20g |
| 2013 | 29.0cm | 0.58″ | 18g |
There is one category in which PAX medals are getting measurably better: back-side engraving. The 2011 medal just had a generic number. The 2012 medal still had the number, but they added a bit about what the medal was for. In 2013 the number was dropped entirely and the font got a sweet upgrade.
Anyway, this is all apparently interesting enough for me to write a 333-word blog post, but despite the shrinkage, I still enjoy my PAX medals.
