Take a look back at these best-selling toys from Christmas past

Every Christmas, a handful of toys become the hottest tickets in town, with Santa and his workshop working overtime to deliver the must-have gift of the year.

But what happens when the fanfare fades? Some toys become an iconic part of our collective childhood; we play with them, we pass them down, we celebrate them and remember them fondly forever.

This year, CNN has pulled together a retrospective look of the hottest toys of Christmas past. Check out the toys that defined the last 70 years:

The 1950s

Mr. Potato Head

Customers supplied their own potatoes when the original Mr. Potato Head debuted in 1952, and Hasbro supplied all the amusing stick-on accessories such as mouths, feet, googly eyes and facial hair.

Thanks to its nearly 70-year run — and to “Toy Story” — more than 100 million potato people have been sold worldwide, CNN reported.

Hula Hoops

Hula hooping had been around for centuries before the marketing genius’ at Wham-O revived it and turned it into a 1950s fad. Hooping combined dance, exercise and friendly competition.

The 1960s

Etch-a-Sketch

No Wi-fi needed. In 1960, Etch-a-Sketch was born, needing only aluminum and a static charge to make art. Folks of all ages kept busy for hours by twisting white knobs.

According to CNN, “the Etch-a-Sketch was among the first batch of toys to be inducted in the National Toy Hall of Fame, alongside Barbie and Erector sets.”

Easy-Bake Oven

This toy introduced children of all ages to a simplified method of baking. In less than a decade after its introduction in 1963, the baking toy had sold over 5 million ovens, CNN reported.

The 1970s

Nerf football

The days of shattered glass and busted TV antennae were over; the foamy Nerf ball, introduced in 1969, was designed to be tossed indoors without irritating parents.

Today, the original ball still keeps kids active on rainy days and their homes intact.

The 1980s

Rubik’s Cube

The Rubik’s Cube was the ultimate challenge in the 1980s — even the most spatially inclined consumers were confused and frustrated by the colorful toy, so one 12-year-old fan published a guide titled “You Can Do the Cube” to assist those who got stuck. Over 1.5 million copies of the book were sold.

Cabbage Patch Kids

Cabbage Patch Kids may have taken baby fever to the extreme when, in November 1983, riots erupted across America as parents crowded toy stores and fought off fellow customers for the very limited quantity of the Georgia-born doll, CNN reported.

The 1990s

Tickle Me Elmo

The year 1996 was a wild time — Atlanta hosted the Olympics, the Yankees beat the Braves in the World Series and a Canadian Walmart employee was hospitalized after a herd of parents trampled him to score a Tickle Me Elmo. It’s safe to say this snuggly Muppet that giggled and vibrated was a hit.

Beanie Babies

If your retirement plan involved the valuation of Beanie Babies, you’re probably still at work.

The plush toy was one of the first internet fads, accounting for 10 percent of all eBay sales at one point, but the Beanie Baby bubble burst and their value plummeted due to overproduction, CNN reported.

The 2000s

Razor scooter

Forget the world ending; the year 2000 was the year of Razor scooters. The slim, metal scooter was the mode of transportation for recipients of all ages, no matter how much pain they caused to the ankle.

Wii

From “Wii Sports” to “Just Dance,” Nintendo’s mid-2000s gaming system changed the way we play and “refuted the argument that all gamers were lazy couch-dwellers.”

The 2010s

All things “Frozen”

In 2014, everybody wanted to build a snowman, thanks to Disney’s “Frozen.”

“A doll aimed at toddlers called ‘Snow Glow Elsa’ was the second best-selling toy of the year, and ‘Frozen’ was the king of all licensed toys that year,” CNN reported.