Dorri Partain
Contributor

The sales ladies that displayed plasticwares to homemakers during in-home parties had a new product to share in time for Christmas in 1965.
TupperToys joined the array of Tupperware’s durable products; the first toys offered were an animal building toy (Zoo-it-Yourself), the Build-O-Fun set, a mosaic art set (SnaPics) and the Shape-O.

Advertised as “the toy that grows with the child” this multi-functional toy could be used as a rattle ball for babies, while toddlers would learn shapes and manual dexterity by inserting the shapes into the proper shaped opening. Preschoolers could learn counting and number recognition, as each of the 10 distinctive shapes are numbered.

The original offerings were joined by other TupperToys: Busy Blocks opened to reveal a corresponding toy, Amphibio could be used as a train, car, or boat, and TupperTots went to school in a bus or floated along in a canoe.

While some of the original toys were phased out for new offerings, parents and children alike have found TupperToys to be durable, colorful and educational.

The Shape-O has changed little from its original design of two halves – one red, one blue – that pull apart to dispense the yellow shaped pieces, over and over again. A limited-edition Easter promotion introduced a pink and purple ball with white pieces, but the primary-colored Shape-O remains the classic toy found in toy boxes and church nurseries around the world.

Still available in the 2020 Tupperware catalog, the Shape-O is priced at $30.