What Are The Top Selling Toys Of All Time?

Every year, there seems to be that hot toy that the kids want - what was in last year may be out now. So, what are the top 10 best selling toys of all time? Check out the list, and you probably owned one when you were a kid.

According to livescience.com, here are the top selling toys of all time:

"Hula Hoop

In 1957, two American entrepreneurs decided to give a traditional Australian bamboo exercise a plastic makeover and a new moniker – the hula hoop. The meter-diameter hoops produced by the Wham-O toy company immediately took off: 25 million plastic hoops were sold in less than four months in 1958, and in two years, sales reached more than 100 million units.

View-Master

Reaching far back to the 1930s, the View-Master was the brainchild of piano tuner William Gruber. More than 1 billion View-Master units have been sold thus far.

Slinky

With more than 300 million Slinkys sold, the walking spring is still marching strong.

Pet Rock

By his own admission, ad executive Larry Dahl created the idea for a pet rock while having drinks with some buddies. The fad peaked during the 1975 Christmas season and it is estimated that Dahl earned more than $15 million during the six months that Pet Rocks were popular, with more than 5 million sold in just a few months.

Mr. Potato Head

When Mr. Potato Head debuted in stores in 1952, it was the very first toy to have a commercial on television – and was the first to be directly aimed at children. The toy made $4 million in the first year, and has gone on to be a best-seller for all time.

Barbie

No list of top toys would be complete without mentioning the grand dame of dolls, Barbie. Launched in 1959, the doll has gained worldwide fame in her 50-plus years. Two Barbies are sold every two seconds, making the Barbie-industrial complex a 1.5-billion per year operation."

For the complete list, go to livescience.com.