Turning 50 is my favorite souvenir from the zoos and museums in Chicago.

I think most people collect at least one thing. Through the years I have had several different collections. Some of them were beer cans, banks, buttons, and keychains to just name a few. Nowadays, It is music-related like CD's, vinyl records, and concert t-shirts.

The cool thing about a collection is it can easily become a passion and hobby. You can spend your free time searching out other similar but unique items to add on. Plus, if people know what you collect, there is a good chance they will pick some up for you as a souvenir from a vacation or a present for the holidays.

One of my favorite things of all time that I collected was the wax figures from the Mold-A-Rama machines. What I really liked about them is the machine created them right in front of you. When they came out, it was still warm and had a weird smell. They were pretty cheap, so my parents did not have a problem getting them for me, so I had a bunch. Some of my friends got the smashed pennies but I went Mold-A-Rama.

Unfortunately, when I got older I pretty much melted them all. It was fun at the time but I wish I had them now. My daughter started collecting them when she was little, so I got excited about that. Here is one from her collection. It is actually on my desk at the radio station.

Mold-A-Rama Gorilla
Mold-A-Rama Gorilla
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The cool thing about Mold-A-Rama is that the machines were at many attractions in and around the Chicago area. My family would hit most of them at least once a year. That meant more wax figures for me. I would plan ahead which one I could get on that visit.

Luckily, there are still some Mold-A-Rama machines out there. You can find them at Brookfield Zoo, Lincoln Park Zoo, Museum of Science and Industry, Field Museum, Milwaukee County Zoo, Kalahari Resort in the Wisconsin Dells, and a few other spots.

I can not believe it but this month they are celebrating their 50th anniversary.

From the Mold-A-Rama Facebook page...

If you are a fan of the wax figures but do not have the opportunity to get one in person, they now sell them on their website, HERE.

To find out more information about Mold-A-Rama, HERE.

SEE: 30 Toys That Defined the '70s

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