You know those claw machines, where kids put in their quarter and try to grab a stuffed toy? They were all fun and games until a little Sparks boy became famous…by getting trapped inside one. Alex Estabrook was only four years old when he gained viral video fame. Like a moth attracted to the flame, he was trapped in the claw machine at the Smiths in Sparks.
Twenty-four years later, Alex told us today, "I remember just trying to go after a toy of some sort, just looking at the toy machine. I was a little climber back then. I just crawled on in, and then I couldn't get out, and just was trying to think, 'How am I going to get out of this situation?'"
Alex came with his mom into the Smith's, and when she wasn’t looking somehow ended up trapped in the claw machine. Once Alex was stuck inside, mom called for the babysitter who had a video camera. Alex said the call went something like this: "'Hey Debby, you got that camera?' And she's like, 'Yeah?' 'Well, bring it down to Smith's, I got something to show you.'”
Once inside, he was like a kid in a toy store…for a while. He did get to play with an Urkel doll, but the fun slowly turned to panic. Alex remembers the shocked looks he was getting from adults. Trapped for over a half hour, Sparks firefighters had to use an axe to get him out. He remembers, “They cracked something open, the glass cracked in a couple of places and it opened up the door."
Finally, it was smiles all around with cheers from the crowd. Alex got to keep one toy for his game busting efforts: “The white tiger with the stripes. And I kept it for a pretty long time."
But folks were puzzled all over the country when it hit the news. Everybody was asking, “How did he get in there?" Alex told us, "Back then, the doors were a lot bigger. So I guess I was one of the first kids that put two-and-two together and that's big enough for me to get inside. Why not go inside and try to get a free toy?"
They're not that big now...probably due to Alex. He told us, "Shortly after that they started making the doors a lot smaller. You know, the last thing those companies want is another kid stuck in those machines."
Mom kept a closer eye on her little climber after that, and was never once judged on her supervision: "No no, not at all. They know how kids are at that age. One minute they're with you, and the next second they're gone."
Today, Alex took a trip down memory lane, walking into that Smith's and recalling just where that claw machine was. And to his surprise, found another one, a newer claw machine in the same spot.
He has no plans to bust inside that one. Been there...done that.
