Vintage Fisher Price Precious Places
#5165 Twirling Melody Gazebo Play Set Complete
Near Mint
(C)
Back in the 1950's and 1960's, family reunions were quite popular. Every family would bring a couple of favorite dishes for a "pot luck dinner." Sometimes, a park gazebo was booked and all the cousins relished wolfing down their food and then scrambling onto the exciting play ground equipment in the park. Parents could watch the children from the gazebo, visit with one another, and play euchre. How I miss those days!!
In 1989, Fisher Price created a village of collectible houses, accessories, and people that could be manipulated via magnetic keys. They called this village Precious Places. The village was interconnected by special elevated sidewalks that animals, people, and accessories could traverse using the magnetic key. In addition, many of the buildings possessed special features that could be controlled utilizing these magnetic keys (e.g. turn on the lights, manipulate ceiling fans, rock cradles, open doors etc.). Each building and accessory set afforded its own unique key.
Here for your consideration is the oft-considered centerpiece of this "magic world," the HTF Precious Places #5165 Twirling Melody Gazebo. This set was only manufactured between 1989-1990. Amazingly, this set also includes its original instruction booklet and box.
Resembling one of the old "band stands" that were erected in city parks across the country around the turn of the century, this play set preserves all the innocence and ambiance from that time period. It features a wind-up music box (that really works!) and a girl figure (Brittany), who dances dreamingly around the gazebo with the music. Both the music and Brittany's movements are activated by a "magical" magnetic key. The child winds the music box by gripping the cupola and turning it; however, the music box doesn't play and the turn-table doesn't move until the child inserts her magnetic key and turns it. Similarly, the child can curtail the music and Brittany's dancing by moving the key in the opposite direction. Other novel features associated with this set include: 2 RARE white swans that "swim" on their pond when the key moves underneath the elevated platform, a key-activated clock, and a RARE purple swing that really swings (both by itself and when Brittany is aboard). The gazebo play set includes incredibly detailed lithos, a simulated "wrought iron fence," pathways, 3 RARE flower boxes, a flowered arbor, and 2 pieces of sidewalk. One of the sidewalk pieces is curved and the other is straight. Like the gazebo, the sidewalks are elevated so that the child can easily insert the purple magnetic key underneath them to make "Brittany" come to life. In my opinion, this play set and all of its accessories are in NEAR MINT-MINT condition.
The box demonstrates some wear. There are some remnants of the original price tags, some original sealing tape, some creasing, some corner edge wear on both the upper and lower portions of the box, a few minor tears on the top flap, and some smushing and a punch through on the lower front right hand corner of the box. On a rating scale of 1-10 with 10 being perfect, I would rate this box as being an 8.0/10.0. The instructions are completely intact with just a tad of yellowing from age.
Note: Due to the number of small parts and the presence of small magnets, these toys were designed for children ages 5 years and up. They DEFINITELY should not be given to children under age 3 as the parts are too small for them to easily manipulate and they pose a choking hazard.
I will be thoroughly Q-tip cleaning this set prior to sending it to its new owners. My sets are IMMACULATE!
This particular offering weighs 2 lbs. UNWRAPPED. My location is Lafayette, IN (47905). I will probably be sending this package via Fed Ex Home Delivery as it automatically includes FREE insurance. In order to ship via Fed Ex, I MUST have a residential address, not a P.O. Box, and a contact phone number (e.g. home, cell, work place) for the Fed Ex paperwork. I'm more than willing to combine auctions to save the buyer on shipping.
If you do elect to purchase multiple items, PLEASE do not send payment until I have a chance to manually combine your purchases onto one INVOICE. Otherwise, I get charged multiple PayPal transaction fees and it prevents me from printing out a shipping label using PayPal. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.
In 1989, Fisher Price created a village of collectible houses, accessories, and people that could be manipulated via magnetic keys. They called this village Precious Places. The village was interconnected by special elevated sidewalks that animals, people, and accessories could traverse using the magnetic key. In addition, many of the buildings possessed special features that could be controlled utilizing these magnetic keys (e.g. turn on the lights, manipulate ceiling fans, rock cradles, open doors etc.). Each building and accessory set afforded its own unique key.
Here for your consideration is the oft-considered centerpiece of this "magic world," the HTF Precious Places #5165 Twirling Melody Gazebo. This set was only manufactured between 1989-1990. Amazingly, this set also includes its original instruction booklet and box.
Resembling one of the old "band stands" that were erected in city parks across the country around the turn of the century, this play set preserves all the innocence and ambiance from that time period. It features a wind-up music box (that really works!) and a girl figure (Brittany), who dances dreamingly around the gazebo with the music. Both the music and Brittany's movements are activated by a "magical" magnetic key. The child winds the music box by gripping the cupola and turning it; however, the music box doesn't play and the turn-table doesn't move until the child inserts her magnetic key and turns it. Similarly, the child can curtail the music and Brittany's dancing by moving the key in the opposite direction. Other novel features associated with this set include: 2 RARE white swans that "swim" on their pond when the key moves underneath the elevated platform, a key-activated clock, and a RARE purple swing that really swings (both by itself and when Brittany is aboard). The gazebo play set includes incredibly detailed lithos, a simulated "wrought iron fence," pathways, 3 RARE flower boxes, a flowered arbor, and 2 pieces of sidewalk. One of the sidewalk pieces is curved and the other is straight. Like the gazebo, the sidewalks are elevated so that the child can easily insert the purple magnetic key underneath them to make "Brittany" come to life. In my opinion, this play set and all of its accessories are in NEAR MINT-MINT condition.
The box demonstrates some wear. There are some remnants of the original price tags, some original sealing tape, some creasing, some corner edge wear on both the upper and lower portions of the box, a few minor tears on the top flap, and some smushing and a punch through on the lower front right hand corner of the box. On a rating scale of 1-10 with 10 being perfect, I would rate this box as being an 8.0/10.0. The instructions are completely intact with just a tad of yellowing from age.
Note: Due to the number of small parts and the presence of small magnets, these toys were designed for children ages 5 years and up. They DEFINITELY should not be given to children under age 3 as the parts are too small for them to easily manipulate and they pose a choking hazard.
I will be thoroughly Q-tip cleaning this set prior to sending it to its new owners. My sets are IMMACULATE!
This particular offering weighs 2 lbs. UNWRAPPED. My location is Lafayette, IN (47905). I will probably be sending this package via Fed Ex Home Delivery as it automatically includes FREE insurance. In order to ship via Fed Ex, I MUST have a residential address, not a P.O. Box, and a contact phone number (e.g. home, cell, work place) for the Fed Ex paperwork. I'm more than willing to combine auctions to save the buyer on shipping.
If you do elect to purchase multiple items, PLEASE do not send payment until I have a chance to manually combine your purchases onto one INVOICE. Otherwise, I get charged multiple PayPal transaction fees and it prevents me from printing out a shipping label using PayPal. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.
Photo from Fisher Price's 1989 Toy Fair Catalog
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