Toy Industry

Goo Goo Dolls singer talks new album, ahead of Black-Eyed Susan Day concert

2013-05-17 07:08:00

John Rzeznik, lead singer of the Goo Goo Dolls, should know a thing or two about wedding songs. He wrote the inescapable hit "Iris" in 1998, which plenty of newly married couples have played for their first dance, including, most famously, singer Avril...

Ask the Pet Expert | Adopting a cat

2013-05-11 06:21:00

We are getting ready to adopt a cat but have never had one before. Besides a litter box and food and water bowls, what should we buy ahead of time to be ready for our new family member? Now that you have the basics covered, it's time to think about...

Sol Kramer, wholesale hobby business owner

2013-05-02 14:26:09

Sol Kramer, who turned a Depression-era 15-cent balsa toy airplane business into a leading wholesale hobby empire, died of pneumonia April 24 at Hospice by the Sea in Pompano Beach, Fla. The former Pikesville resident was 96. Born in Baltimore, he was...

Cornhusk doll-making tradition lives on at historic Harford mill

2013-04-26 03:10:00

A volunteer at a historic Harford County mill that once ground corn into meal is teaching today's visitors an old-fashioned craft of making dolls from cornhusks. Many years ago, stone-ground corn meal was an integral part of a family's sustenance, and...

Man, 64, beaten with walking stick in Glen Burnie robbery

2013-04-17 06:07:00

A 64-year-old man was robbed and beaten with his own walking stick after a group of six teenagers and young men attacked him in a parking lot at the Glen Burnie Towne Center late Tuesday night, according to Anne Arundel County Police. The incident was...

Goo Goo Dolls to headline Preakness Eve concert at Pimlico

2013-03-08 09:31:00

Rockers the Goo Goo Dolls will headline a concert the day before Preakness at Pimlico Race Course, organizers announced Friday. The show is part of the People's Pink Party, a partnership between Pimlico and Susan G. Komen for the Cure, and takes place...

Black and white

2013-03-29 13:09:03

Editor's note: Freelance writer Diedre A. Ware grew up in Havre de Grace and graduated from Havre de Grace High School. Her recollections of what it was like growing up black in an era when children's dolls were white was published recently in Dolls...

MT means empty, figot is spigot, pew butta is pure butter. Cornfused? Read on

2013-03-19 07:24:47

Whenever my sister calls me Doll or Doll Baby, eyebrows go up. They also go up when we call a blond, middle-aged man, who is like a brother, Precious. Much of the language of families and friends comes from what others have called us, from words coined by...

EEOC claims Toys 'R' Us discriminated against deaf job applicant

2013-03-19 15:20:00

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued Toys "R" Us, alleging the company broke the law when staff at its Columbia store refused to provide a sign-language interpreter for a job applicant who is deaf. The lawsuit, filed last week in U.S....

Second-grader donates toys to local homeless children

2013-03-04 08:04:58

Grace Callwood, a second-grader at William S. James Elementary School in Abingdon, donated many new and gently used toys and books to the homeless children at Harford Family House, a shelter for homeless families with children in Aberdeen. Grace has...

Retailers test new formats during holidays

2012-12-03 17:33:00

At GameStop Kids at White Marsh Mall, shoppers will find plush Mario book bags and Angry Birds hats mixed in with the Lego Star Wars and other kid-friendly video games, a mix meant to attract both serious "gamers" as well as those who've never played...

Small toy shops expect bright holiday

2012-11-25 00:00:00

Just as Tom and Claudia Towles were opening their second Baltimore toy shop four years ago, the recession hit. The owners of aMuse Toys decided to cut back — not on staff or selling space — but on the number of manufacturers whose products...

David W. Paul, left, and Michael A. Walker display farm toys for Hillcrest Grange's March 13 program, which was "Toys for All Ages." Forty years ago in 1973 both men displayed favorite farm toys for two special displays while they attended elementary schools.

2013-04-02 11:33:00

After trying to keep it afloat, the owners of iconic toy store Toy Boat Toy Boat Toy Boat were forced to close their last location in Corona Del Mar recently.

2013-03-19 00:00:00

Volunteers Christopher Leatherman, left, and Ryan Bingaman carry boxes and bags of Christmas stockings on Dec. 14 in preparation for the Salvation Army Toys for Tots give-away Thursday.

2012-12-18 04:22:00