The Rise and Fall of Beanie Babies

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  • Опубліковано 16 січ 2025

КОМЕНТАРІ • 108

  • @ellodica
    @ellodica Місяць тому +3

    i know this is an old video now but i really enjoyed watching it today. i just discovered this channel and i love the topics you pick. they’re so different than the same old stuff i see on other channels and ive really learned a lot! gonna binge all these videos now, but i just wanted to stop and comment to say how much i appreciate the work and thought you put into finding neat things to cover and you do it so nicely!!

    • @ArmchairInvestigator
      @ArmchairInvestigator  Місяць тому

      Oh my gosh, what a kind comment! I can’t tell you how much it means to me that you enjoy my videos and the topics I cover. 🥺

  • @nachoslayer2113
    @nachoslayer2113 Рік тому +31

    This channel is fantastic, definitely deserves more recognition

  • @cam20118
    @cam20118 Рік тому +13

    Loved this episode Brooke! Needed something lighthearted and obscurely mysterious… thank you for your variety or content and consistently excellent delivery.

  • @justinandbobbie
    @justinandbobbie 2 місяці тому +2

    My 17 year old asked for some beanie babies for Christmas, and all because of that Zack Galifianakis movie. It was such a fun movie! She remembered playing with my old beanie babies that I received for my 9th and 10th birthdays. They used to be a part of my Barbies. Then sat in a Barbie tub until she was three.

  • @BarkTheGoblin
    @BarkTheGoblin Рік тому +20

    Ironically, I’m sitting here listening to this video while making necklaces/bracelets for my beanies. I’m almost 18 years old and I’ve recently gotten so attached to my beanies. I have Princess, Millenium, Goochy, Swirly, Pinchers, Patti the 2nd, and Inch. As of writing this, I’m waiting for Scorch and Magic to arrive. They have grabbed me by the neurodivergence and have a chokehold on me

    • @ArmchairInvestigator
      @ArmchairInvestigator  Рік тому +4

      Loved reading this! Put a huge smile on my face. 😊

    • @BarkTheGoblin
      @BarkTheGoblin Рік тому +1

      @@ArmchairInvestigator thank you!! Funny enough, a few minutes after I commented that, I found my Millennium beanie baby!! It was hiding behind other stuffed animals on my shelf. I’m pretty sure my Princess one is in the attic, but I can’t go up there.

    • @kristinazubic9669
      @kristinazubic9669 6 місяців тому +2

      Love those dragons

  • @EricaMariah
    @EricaMariah Рік тому +18

    Goodwill for $1 now. beanie baby bears are my 5 year olds favorite toy. She says she has an army of bears 😂

  • @TheKELLOSO
    @TheKELLOSO Рік тому +5

    I personally started collecting Beanie Babies around 2020 or 2021 I believe. The main reason was because of my early childhood, my uncle (who was 12-15 at the time) had a Scorch the Dragon Beanie Babie.
    And I had absolutely loved everything about it, but I was so young to the point I had no idea where it even came from, or what series it was part of.
    Many years later I had already learned about Beanie Babies and their existence, one day me and my mom go to a thrift store, as my grandma would take me sometimes as a little gift that was affordable and something I would love!
    I stumbled across a bag of many toys, but what caught my eye was the beanie babies inside of it. I don’t remember it too clearly, but I believe there was Pinky, Chocolate, The End, and more.
    Thus starting my collection, but however I didn’t add too much. I got the occasional bday or Christmas gift, as I remember the earliest adding on I did to this reasonably sized collection was Trumpet and Bongo.
    But when it truly picked up the pace was sometime in 2022, I had found multiple Beanie Babies at thrift stores, bought them online recently as of 2023.
    And now I’m at about 23, when it all started at 5-8.
    But anyways, I truly love these things. Even if I’ll only be able to make 50 cents off of them if I ever decide to, it’s just very nice to have them.
    And shout out to my uncle for starting one of my many loves in life.
    Edit: 25 with the addition of Crunch The Shark and Jolly The Walrus, Lumberjack The Beaver expected to come soon.

    • @ArmchairInvestigator
      @ArmchairInvestigator  Рік тому

      Oh my gosh, this was so sweet and lovely to read! Thank you for sharing! Is Scorch the Dragon still your favorite?

    • @TheKELLOSO
      @TheKELLOSO Рік тому

      @@ArmchairInvestigator Yes I actually got him around March - October of this year.

    • @brendatomlinson
      @brendatomlinson 6 місяців тому

      I wish there was a way to reach you!! I would sell you my tub of Beanies for pennies on the dollar! I need them gone.
      I’m a pet sitter in OKC. I have a web*site for my business called citimutts (you know how to fill in the rest) where I can be reached. I hope writing this comment is allowed. If it gets deleted, so be it.

  • @MoriMementa
    @MoriMementa Рік тому +8

    As someone who lived through the Beanie Baby craze, I see a lot of similarity with the Squishmallow collecting world. I'll gladly tell anyone who will listen that the secondhand Squishmallow market will eventually crash and then the resellers can say goodbye to the days of sticking hundred dollar price tags on their twelve dollar stock. Don't plan your retirement around reselling plush toys and think carefully before you shell out three hundred bucks for a hard to find Squish. Like Beanie Babies, Squishmallows are meant to be enjoyed, not profited from.

  • @anniet.poetry601
    @anniet.poetry601 Рік тому +6

    I still sleep with my carebear I got when I was 5. It’s good to know I’m not the only one! My boyfriend would get so offended but my carebear is the only one that has given constant comfort throughout my life and I will never give him up ❤it’s funny because it’s true! Oh and we have since broken up lol for other reasons… and my bear is still with me ❤

  • @lizd.8655
    @lizd.8655 Рік тому +14

    Yes, I had about 50 of these cuties and I took them to college with me 😁. Fun fact: $115k for that domain name would be more than $230k in today's dollars 💸

  • @joannlovespapillons
    @joannlovespapillons Рік тому +8

    Oh yes, I remember the craze. My sister’s good friend owned a tiny shop who got a very limited amt of babies We were on cloud 9 when she gave us the scoop on the purple Princess Di one. I was hoping to hear the history of that 1.

  • @johnfritz7222
    @johnfritz7222 9 місяців тому +4

    You answered a question that I always wanted to know with saying Maple was the first draft pick from the beanie baby divorce. And the lady who contracted polio, and waa wheelchair bound and only had limited use of her right arm, only to end up creating the most iconic stuffed bear line, is a very inspirational story

  • @bRabbitHabit
    @bRabbitHabit Рік тому +2

    Ahh this brings me back to my childhood. I’m still a collector and beanie babies had a lot to do with instilling in me the thrill of the hunt, especially as a kid. This is the most informative video on beanie babies I’ve seen on UA-cam, thank you for being so thorough!
    Edit: I’ve collected several different things over the years, but now, I mainly collect vinyl records and Citizen Brick custom minifigures (sometimes I grab minifigures from other companies but CB is definitely the best), just to clarify lol. Although, I could see it being fun trying to track down some of the beanies that were well beyond my price range as a kid

  • @Therese_M
    @Therese_M Рік тому +2

    Ty really worked hard to keep the integrity of beanie babies. He tried to keep the focus on kids and affordability.
    We’ll always love him for that ❤️

    • @ryanf8780
      @ryanf8780 Рік тому

      The only reason this scam worked was the illusion of scarcity. People want what they can't have. Ty artificially surpressed the supply at first to make them seen scarce, and then flooded the market when demand peaked.

  • @LISA.R.2112
    @LISA.R.2112 Рік тому +3

    There you are !!! Have missed you dear. Diving right in now. Hope you have a wonderful day ❤️👍

  • @SquirrellyFries
    @SquirrellyFries 13 днів тому

    Im a 90s kid who collected them back in the day when i was 5-9ish. Not my parents, just me. I ripped off the tags and played with them like you're supposed to! I did like the collectability of them, but was under no illusions that they'd be worth lots of money one day. The dumb adults speculating on them were just getting in the way of me buying the beanies I wanted.
    I still have my collection, and sometimes add to it when im feeling nostalgic. They represent lots of happy times for me.

  • @kirstywhyte3496
    @kirstywhyte3496 Рік тому +3

    I have 4 cats and the moose and my mum had some others. I got rid of a lot but kept my cats and my daughter is not allowed to touch them on pain of death! Mine.....all mine....
    Oh I also have two x Fraidy as well.
    This is a great episode - my 9 year old is beyond excited to see Fraidy on screen!

  • @justinlayton
    @justinlayton 17 днів тому

    This is the first video I’ve seen of yours. I have a feeling I’m about to start binge watching your other videos. You have a way about you that I really like. ❤ You have a subscription from me 😁

  • @NancyAnneMartin
    @NancyAnneMartin Рік тому +3

    I never understood how anyone could draw the conclusion they would become valuable since there were so many manufactured. 🤷‍♀️

  • @Lee-wg7en
    @Lee-wg7en Рік тому

    Outstandingly clear narration. Very easy to follow. Excellent story compilation. Interesting and varied presentation. Very good overall. I will share this.

  • @Guigley
    @Guigley 11 місяців тому

    A truly fantastic documentary! This brought back so many memories.

  • @Kicks_Clothing
    @Kicks_Clothing 3 місяці тому

    These will make a come back, just wait for a few mega influencers to wear one around their next at a big event LOL

  • @SirMogwaiDaBearlin
    @SirMogwaiDaBearlin 7 місяців тому +1

    R.i.p princess diana,TY made a beatiful beanie baby for her

  • @kwaddamage8286
    @kwaddamage8286 Рік тому +1

    we mostly joke about beanie babies and the 90s craze. my mom bought us a few but never got super into it. definitely nostalgia tho.
    what i really learned and love about this video is the genius behind Ty and that girl he brought on though

  • @portablepulpit
    @portablepulpit Рік тому +1

    Great job as always Brooke! ❤ But I do miss that signature background music 😢

    • @ArmchairInvestigator
      @ArmchairInvestigator  Рік тому +1

      Hey you! Thanks for watching! 💛

    • @portablepulpit
      @portablepulpit Рік тому

      @@ArmchairInvestigator Enjoyed the last one too of Padre Pio. Good to see you changed it up. Miss that Armchair soundtrack tho lmbo

  • @Bobbi-the-Croz
    @Bobbi-the-Croz Рік тому +7

    I did not get into the Beanie Baby craze and was always stunned by the amount people would collect. I have a family member who just couldn’t handle her husband’s obsession with them and she ended up leaving him and his beanies. Evidently, he kept them in giant garbage bags and wouldn’t let her touch them…. sounds like a character from a movie… “precious…” 😳 I still cringe a bit when I see one of those little things with the Ty tag. I figured the “discontinuations” were purely for market strategy. I remember the Cabbage Patch dolls were a similar fad. It’s always something. 😅

    • @ArmchairInvestigator
      @ArmchairInvestigator  Рік тому +3

      You’re cracking me up! “She ended up leaving him and his beanies…” 💀
      You’re right tho, it’s always something.

  • @sammy9360
    @sammy9360 Рік тому +1

    Omg I still have mine! How about the Cabbage Patch doll craze remember that one? I love your channel ❤

    • @ArmchairInvestigator
      @ArmchairInvestigator  Рік тому

      Yes!! I had cabbage patch kids too. You have to look up their nursery experience - it’s very interesting!

    • @sammy9360
      @sammy9360 Рік тому

      You have to do a story on them, I remember being in line at the store a women had her Cabbage Patch Doll ripped right out of the box that was crazy!

  • @alicianason-yf8sc
    @alicianason-yf8sc Рік тому

    I was 7 when Bennie babies came out I loved them! So did adults ! Adults liked them just as much at children and teens

  • @katie3657
    @katie3657 Рік тому +2

    Omg I had so many as a kid. I have no idea what happened to them

  • @Therese_M
    @Therese_M Рік тому +1

    I’d like to see a video on the Trolls craze!

  • @bodean137
    @bodean137 Рік тому +1

    My dad tried getting into the craze back then and he came home with a garbage bag full of them and a price guide book he spent like 200$ on from ebay (this was in Canada btw & ironically i seen that same book years later at a thrift store for 50 cents. you cant give something like that away now. lol) I remember watching an epsiode of 3rd Rock from the Sun with my mom that was dedicated to the insanity surrounding the craze and they refered to them as "Fuzzy Buddies." My dad at the time had an obsessive Mr. Toad personality and would jump on fads like he did with the comic book boom and action figure crazes of the 90s and ebay did not help matters. my mom got the invoice for the price guide before he did and as soon as she seen the garbage bag she was like: "Nope, Not Happening!!"and she took the bag and gave the beanies to a local kids toy charity; i was proud of her then but now in retrospect I highly doubt those beanies made it to a single child due to the sad and terrible greed surrounding them.

    • @ArmchairInvestigator
      @ArmchairInvestigator  Рік тому +1

      I got a chuckle reading this! Thank you for sharing your(brief) encounter with the craze! 😆

  • @pikachuphotobomb2482
    @pikachuphotobomb2482 7 місяців тому +2

    I was not born yet but I collect them now

  • @kristinazubic9669
    @kristinazubic9669 Рік тому +1

    I sleep with two real animals and one stuffed one. One of my real animals eats stuffed animals (and blankets and sheets and towels and…) but the one we sleep with is the one he’s never tried to eat.

  • @Catanya9
    @Catanya9 Рік тому +2

    I have enjoyed all of your investigations so much. I am fascinated by the Sherman murders (billionaires Barry and Honey Sherman, in Canada). I'd love to hear your take, if you're looking for topics to cover.

    • @brendatomlinson
      @brendatomlinson 6 місяців тому

      I just watched her video on the Sherman’s. It affected me so strongly I dreamed about them last night. Such a sad, but fascinating tale.

  • @jennyrx13
    @jennyrx13 Рік тому +4

    I still have Stinger the Scorpion 😊

  • @wqrthamillion
    @wqrthamillion 9 місяців тому +1

    I prefer beanie boos but I like beanie babies too

  • @kariann430
    @kariann430 Рік тому +1

    i had some beanie babies, but stopped when the store i got them from did a promation that you had to buy 12 beanies at once to get the princess diana bear and it made me so mad that no place else here had that bear

  • @PokeGrillz
    @PokeGrillz 9 місяців тому

    what a time, i swear me and my nan and a couple friends of mine and their grandmas would go every weekend beanie baby hunting, hitting up Hallmark stores, flea markets, and the beanie baby stores, i can still remember it like it was yesterday, i was around 11 12 years old. We moved to fl in 1998 and my nan just had a feeling these were gonna go belly up soon, we sold all of ours for about 5k, this was in August of 1998. Believe the market fell about 2 months later, all my friends and their grandparents still have those damn beanie babies to this day, just gathering dust lol.

    • @PokeGrillz
      @PokeGrillz 9 місяців тому +1

      and those mcdonalds beanie babies, omg what a hit those were, we would go buy 30 happy meals, take the beanie, then go to the football and baseball fields and give the food to the kids playing, we knew most of them. it was so wild its hard to get people to understand just how big it was, Pokemon only thing could compare.

  • @angelsbum
    @angelsbum Рік тому

    I love how you tell these stories. But i do love watching you. You are so beautiful. Thanjs.

  • @cinderellaashtray6165
    @cinderellaashtray6165 Місяць тому

    So I was here for a deep dive on what I always considered to be an absolutely ridiculous craze and then 15 minutes in I got what I had coming to me because OH GOD I collect steiff 😂😅

  • @vickiedennison5197
    @vickiedennison5197 Рік тому

    I was there when they first came out my youngest daughter still has her original collection that she started with plus a whole lot more

  • @claudiabothma
    @claudiabothma Рік тому +2

    I didn't collect fad toys as I am self employed and to me food etc was more important. However, in the 1970's, I had some Star Wars figurines, Han Solo, Luke Skywalker and Chewbecca. Unfortunately through the years, moving houses and so on, they dissapeared.
    Apparently they are valuable now...

  • @TechnetiumTheDragon
    @TechnetiumTheDragon 5 місяців тому

    Now I can find them for dirt cheap if i look in the right places. I love my dragon beanies Scorch and Magic and there is no way I would part with them. I just collect the ones I personally like such as the snail and the worm.

  • @mirrorcatz
    @mirrorcatz Рік тому +1

    I love your voice, it's a beautiful voice in my opinion

  • @Victoriaghh
    @Victoriaghh 5 місяців тому

    Oh wow. I used to put beanie babies in my car. They'd get so sun bleached and damaged. I wonder how much money I had thrown away LOL

  • @maryamdear2122
    @maryamdear2122 3 місяці тому

    I'm a married, 30 something year old woman and I still sleep with a stuffed animal, it's so comfy!

  • @robertsides3626
    @robertsides3626 Рік тому

    I was in elementary school when these things where everywhere. Never really understood the draw or why everyone thought people would buy them at ridiculous prices. The pieces didn't fit together, but I just figured I was just too dumb to understand it. Kept away from them. I still don't get collecting for profit. Got into Pokemon cards for a time though, but still never understood why people thought there would be this magic pool of rich people that would spend crazy sums on the things if everyone was trying to sell. Collectors that gave a damn would already be in the process of buying them when they were new, so what's the point? The repeated phenomena just made me resent people for being so easily swept up in something without even considering how it made little sense. The backstabbing.. the scalping... literally stealing from children. Worst of all nothing has changed. The lessons learned aren't inherited from generation to generation.

  • @jazzandtapioca1
    @jazzandtapioca1 3 місяці тому

    Im 27 and i still sleep every night with my favourite childhood teddy Ewey the lamb although i never knew she was a beanie baby. When i was little as she was a gift from my brother and had all her tags cut off. To me her name is Lamby

  • @Septer_Sever
    @Septer_Sever Рік тому +1

    Speculators and market manipulators seem to ruin every hobby 😒

  • @monikabauer7219
    @monikabauer7219 9 місяців тому

    I had bought a lots of those Beanie Babys also some German ones,still have a lots of them

  • @chevyforever4420
    @chevyforever4420 Рік тому +1

    Now you find them in goodwill piles and thrown away

  • @Venialbartender
    @Venialbartender 9 місяців тому +2

    To think my childhood was ruined cuz everything was satanic . But this obsession was ok lol

  • @susanfit47
    @susanfit47 Рік тому

    I have 3 comprehensive books on Beanie Babies. I have Inky the Pink Octopus, and other ones I haven't got yet.

  • @diegolaradiaz8948
    @diegolaradiaz8948 Рік тому +1

    Will Funko Pops eventually fall the same way with how things are going for them?

    • @fluorite1965
      @fluorite1965 Рік тому +1

      I am so tired of seeing Funko Pops.

  • @RavageNightmare
    @RavageNightmare Місяць тому

    This is the psychosis dancing plague in marketing consumer format

  • @shawnntea
    @shawnntea Рік тому

    can you do one about webkinz and one about polly pocket please??

  • @cramegg
    @cramegg Місяць тому

    I still sleep with a stuffy animal, makes me feel like shit

  • @chevyforever4420
    @chevyforever4420 Рік тому +1

    I had a pog collection. What a waste of money. The new phase was fidgets. I know I bought my kids hundreds of them. In about a year they will be worthless too

  • @alicianason-yf8sc
    @alicianason-yf8sc Рік тому +1

    I still sleep with my teddy bear 🧸

  • @joekirkwood
    @joekirkwood 3 місяці тому

    Those baseball cards that were featured.......1988-1989.......I have them. Baltimore Orioles!

  • @theeternalslayer
    @theeternalslayer Рік тому

    1.99 meals at McDonald's.... man inflation sucks

  • @LarryLegend3923
    @LarryLegend3923 Рік тому

    I do

  • @hdmccluskey
    @hdmccluskey 13 днів тому

    I need 100 of beani babies because it's my goal

  • @karrieschmidt3817
    @karrieschmidt3817 7 місяців тому

    I have oitso and clubby iv

  • @hdmccluskey
    @hdmccluskey 13 днів тому

    I have 63 put 18 are coming

  • @RanchuRanch
    @RanchuRanch Рік тому

    Ist Dir kein eigener Name eingefallen ? Du siehst besser aus, als das Original und Dein Kanal ist auch besser. Schade drum. Ich glaube, es würde besser kommen, einen anderen Namen zu nehmen, ohne den bitteren Beigeschmack, Du kannst viel mehr . Das war ein durchaus positiv gemeinter Kommentar.

  • @Toxicjay24
    @Toxicjay24 Рік тому

    You are so stunning.