these machines as a means of advertisement. By the mid-1990s, the machines' popularity had made such establishments as Safeway, Fry's Supermarkets, K-Mart, and Wal-Mart a staple of their locations. Some hotels also acquired them to satisfy their younger guests, as did sports venues that would stuff them with collectibles related to their home teams. In the 1995 Disney/Pixar computer-animated film Toy Story, Buzz Lightyear and Sheriff Woody climb into a claw vending machine filled with claw-worshipping aliens. In the SpongeBob SquarePants season 4 episode "Skill Crane", Mr. Krabs introduces the skill crane machine to SpongeBob and Squidward in the Krusty Krab. References External links "Claw machines are rigged—here's why it's so hard to grab that stuffed animal" by Phil Edwards, Vox Arcade games Merchandisers