BENJI It’s hard to concentrate on Pre-Calc homework, because you’re in that class with me, and college and differential equations just can’t compete.
— Budgeting Better
For Kenny and Benji, hours studying pre-calc and trig turn the boys from “study buddies” to boyfriends. And tonight in rehearsal, a practical question about how to get their piles of math homework offstage turned into a moment of ’90s nostalgia when we discovered that some of the under-30s in the room didn’t know what a Trapper Keeper was.
Vintage Trapper Keepers
The Trapper Keeper was the rare school supply that was both functional and expressional. A three-ring binder that contained “trapper folders,” this all-in-one notebook, binder, and folder allowed students to travel light to class by switching out folders and then take everything home at night in one easy-to-carry package. But best of all, Trapper Keepers came in loads of funky colors with all sorts of designs, from dogs and cats to space aliens to Ninja Turtles. I imagine a Trapper Keeper with George Michael on it would be the height of ’90s cool.
According to propsmistress Molly, there’s something of a “cult” of Trapper Keeper collectors and fanatics, and a vintage Trapper Keeper in good condition can go for over $50 on Ebay. For the uninitiated, Mental Floss has a surprisingly extensive case study of the history and nostalgia factor of Trappers here. One aficianado compared Trapper Keepers to Smartphones: they were “the greatest three-ring binder ever created … Trapper Keepers—the way they combined all of one’s desktop tools—were an early incarnation of the smartphone.”
It was fun to be able to show your personality through the binder that you had. You don’t really remember a notebook or the pens and pencils you used. But maybe you remember your [Trapper Keeper]. The binder wasn’t a regular school product. When you got it, it was almost like a Christmas present. You were excited to have it.
— Peter Bartlett, Director of Product Innovation for AACO Brands, a producer of Trapper Keepers
This one’s cool no matter what decade.
EDITH CAN SHOOT THINGS & HIT THEM at C1 