My cousin was on a Romper Room-type show in the early 1960s. Every boy was given a toy gun and a toy mortar launcher as a gift. Nobody thought anything of it. (Amazingly there were no drive-by shootings or school shootings in the 1960s.)
My aunt verified my story: My cousin was on the Canadian version of Romper Room in the early 1960s. He was given a gun, a mortar launcher, and a camouflage helmet as a prize. My cousin loved it!