Countdown to Christmas: Store Commercials

[BrandonDaCollector]

Hills once again, boy that little guy really had the stuff. I always wanted that huge Joe plane, never seen it at a store. That was very a cool commercial PB

[packerbacker180]

Hills was where the toys were. But in the mid-90s Hills went out of business and many of their locations were replaced by a discount store called Ames...

[BrandonDaCollector]

Yeah, I figured they did long ago. You've been showing Me their vids off & on for the past year or so but I never recalled you saying when their time ended but now I know when Boy Ames didn't wasted no time did they I mean they got a big budget commercial with Scotty from Star Trek and the voice of the guy you heard all the time adverting movies, TV shows and the like back then too Are they still in business and do you have any stories about them PB other than this

[packerbacker180]

No, Ames went out of business around 2001 or so. I know this because I was dating my wife at the time and we'd drive around to all the Ames to see if they had any good items during their going out of business sale. They were around for years, though. I think taking over Hills was a mistake for them, as a lot of Hills stores were kind of dumpy by then. Plus, by the mid-90s Target and Walmart started creeping into the Buffalo area, and they're like the Vince McMahon's of retail, know what I mean?

I don't have too many Ames stories. Like I said, when they were closing we drove around looking for deals, especially on a desk for me to do my writing at. We wound up getting a good deal a really big desk that had storage towers on both ends and lot's of table space. But it was a bit too big, so I had to store it in my parents basement for the time, and I didn't really like it down there because it was musty, so rather than use it for writing, I made a large scale ToyBiz Marvel Legends scene on it, like my own little Battleworld, lol. Sadly, my parents basement would sometimes flood if the weather was really bad, not often, maybe 3 time in the 15 years I lived at that house, but one of those times was when my desk was down there, and the water ruined the base of the desk, so it was a loss.

Other than that, in the 90s I got back into Kenner Starting Lineups, mostly buying Brett Favres, but I'd also pick up "rookie" figures of guys I thought might be worth money down the line like Peyton Manning, Randy Moss, Edgerrin James, etc. And Ames had a rookie variant exclusive I searched weeks for until I finally found one. Who was this valuable figure? Well, Tim Couch.



Exactly. He was a QB taken first pick overall by the Cleveland Browns and turned out to be a very Browns-y player in that he never amounted to much. But at least he didn't sexually assault dozens of masseuses like the current scumbag QB-ing for the Browns. I used to root for them as a Lake Erie brother, but I hope they fall into obscurity now because of Deshaun Watson.

The last story is more recent. Back when Covid hit originally everyone was so panicked nobody even wanted to get together for Easter. So on Easter Sunday, after feeling like we'd been couped up for so long, we decided to just take a ride into the country. We used to do that a lot when we were younger and gas was a hell of a lot cheaper, but not so much these days. Anyway, we wound up driving for a while on backgrounds until we wound up in Springville where I go to a Walmart frequently. While we'd intended to have dinner at home, the kids were kind of hungry and the McDonald's there was opened so we had drive thru Mickey D's for Easter, lol. After that we kept driving on into Gowanda, NY which I wasn't to familiar with and we passed an old Ames store I never knew existed. I was a sad, lonely old decrepit sight. I thought I knew where every Ames was, but I never knew of this one. This was the only picture I could find of the building, though it just shows the storefront. There wasn't really anything else in the vicinity, so it didn't seem like the best place for a store, but who knows what it looked like 30 years ago.



Anyway, that's my memories of Ames. When I was younger I think they were on the lower side of retail, and by the time they took over Hills I was a teen and didn't really frequent retail stores much since I wasn't into toys so much as comics and movies, I'd more likely be in a music/video store than a department store.

[BrandonDaCollector]

I see. Oh yes I know what you mean That's funny, whenever I see a celeb, athlete, YT/Tik-Tok personality or whoever of a headline or a story or whatever is on the news page and I don't know'em I think of Korath in the GOTG when he says "Who?" with that look on his face cause I feel why I am supposed to know these people That has happen to Me countless times

Well, that is some story even though it was brief PB That is good you recall still dating your wife at this time I couldn't tell much about Football but cool you got some of them Kenner Starting Lineups. Oh there is no prob getting McDonalds or anybody like that for a Holiday dinner IMO, if I had the chance I'd do that anytime I could believe you Me. At least you made some good out of it, it sounds really fun that it was for MLs. I used to have a huge display of them on My desk & chest of drawers back in the day so I know what your saying PB That Ames looked like it could have been a great store! Oh yes, if it wasn't toys, comics, movies & video games was it too. That was a good commercial there, dang...8 AM to Midnight...I wonder how many people recall their times there during that sale

Thanks for that trivia PB

[packerbacker180]

[BrandonDaCollector]

Man, I'm really not familiar with the Piggly Wiggly Kids, that was cute PB

[packerbacker180]

I'd really only heard of the Piggly Wiggly on shows that took place in the south. I finally saw one this past summer in Myrtle Beach. It was a watershed moment.



So much ham....

[AcidDragon]

Nice. Love that Piggly Wiggly's commercial.

[BrandonDaCollector]

How about that, that's cool PB

Ah, Schnucks. I was going to post special ones when we got closer to Christmas but here we go. I have talked and talked about them countless times here (only PB acknowledged them) For those that missed My showcases or didn't read them they are the Nation's largest Grocery chain (some could say Walmart is but I never considered them an actual grocery store) which their HQ is located right here in MO. In My showcases I have expressed many things about them such as all of My awesome Belt Buckles from the vending machines and I really, REALLY talked about National in My Cowboys & Indians presentation and I had explained that Schnucks took them over in the 90s and many of the great times I went with My Grandma when I was a youngster with her at National and all of the good times We had when I'd shop with her at Our many locations of Scnhucks through the decades on Iron Street, Loughborough, Gravois & Hampton, Grand and especially on Arsenal (that's where she got Me My WWF LJN Iron Sheik at!). Thanks to the p!amDemic, SHOP 'n SAVE was going under (We shopped there tons of times throughout the decades as well) and Schnucks took them over too and like National, they never rebranded them or anything, just took their stock & business and now their falling into oblivion I may one day make a showcase about this cause I went to these places several times a month for decades and had some good times there

Here is more recent Schnucks commercial