I feel that with everyone carrying a Android or iPhone home pictures have died. Nobody takes pictures at family BBQs anymore and maybe cousin Jess might upload a perfect selfie to Facebook. I don't have family photos from the past 10 years..

Lugging a camera will make me use it.

A friend of mine had pictures he took with a disposable camera. They strongly reminded me of my 90s childhood.

Am I a fool for wanting a vintage pocket sized 35mm camera? I don't need perfection but I want to take mostly not blurry pictures at BBQs, Christmases, trips with friends, etc.

Can you make recommendations? I'd like to keep this low cost in case I don't use it. Prefer American manufacture but any is OK. Also, I see Soviet cameras on eBay and wouldn't mind one as well. So long as it is reliable and not a collectors piece.

Edit: I also don't know a damn thing about photo quality. I don't want hot garbage photo quality, but something on par with the cameras of my childhood. I plan on using cheap Kodak film.

Double edit: I am not set on 35mm film, but I just want common availability. The Kodak Instamatics seem interesting. I love the clunky looks.

If you want semi pro, I would suggest checking B&H photo used dept for a vintage Olympus OM4 and a good 28-80 lense by Tokina or Sigma.
If you want point and shoot, I can't help much except to say that I had a Yashica T4 zoom film camera for a few years before I went digital. It was a good small camera and listed as 28-70mm zoom. My only serious complaint was the wide/tele zoom function was NOT continuous. It had a bout 6 preset positions for wide/tele zoom and you could not make the lense go in between those positions.

HTH

I do not want semi pro or high quality. I'd honestly use disposable cameras if the price were the same.

I'm looking into a Smena 8M which is a Soviet design, but it's all manual which I'll screw up.

I really just want a 35mm Instamatic but they don't exist.

I very much prefer old and clunky.

You ain't goona find those cheap Instamatic cameras, not in a store anyways; back in the days, they were pretty much "throw-aways." I am just guessing, but you may find them at old people's estate sales or yard sales etc, but probably not at a business that is not a collector's item. IIRC those Instamatics use 126 cartridge film, are they even still being made, I have no idea? Personally I think it would be a waste of time to seek them out as for a picture taker.

Olympus XA series is probably what you are looking for.
Small, excellent pic quality and easy to use.
Wiki info on the series
XA-1 is manual, no battery
2 and three have some electronics.
All can use the detachable flash.

I've had all three collecting dust on my desk for years.
IM me if you want one.

Early 80's Canon AE-1P

Are you meaning you actually want to take film photos so you can have pictures to put in a photo album?  Hell, I have a Minolta X370 and a bunch of lenses I'll sell you cheap. (My old camera rig from high school photojournalism.  It's all late 80's-early 90's stuff.) (I'll keep my 1968 SRT200 though.  Lots of memories with that camera.)

Your next quest is going to be actually finding a place that will develop and print the pictures.

Now, if you're just not wanting to use a phone and want a 'camera' to haul around, there's tons of really good digitals, and of course you can go whole hog and go with a DSLR.  I love my Canon HS50X for that.  Nice big 50x optical zoom.  Does good video and stereo sound, and you can get them now for probably less than $200.

Well if you use the old two stops up and two stops down bracketing your settings you’ll get the shot usually.

I heard that Kodak is dropping film manufacturing in a short while.

They're re-releasing Ektachrome and other companies are expanding film lineups, film use is growing.

Yeah, this....or some variation of the Olympus compact cameras.

I had an Olympus Stylus Epic, and it was a great camera.  I carried it in my kit bag when I was flying for a living.  I say had, because I can't seem to find the damn thing.  I mean, it's just gone.

The only thing I didn't like, was that it had an "active" autofocus system.  Not a big deal, unless you wanted to take a picture through glass (like a window).   Then it would always focus on the glass.  Still, it's a great little camera. I think it was around $90 new.

THIS>>>>>>>>>

This was the pocket camera professional photographers carried in the day.

I found my dad's Olympus 35 ECR. It seems simple enough but I'm still on the lookout. I'd prefer no batteries

Thank you for the kind offers everyone

I have an XA I bought so long ago I don't even remember when I bought it. Flash died years ago but the camera just keeps on going. I used to carry it with me everywhere. There about a fool proof a camera as you can have.

ETA: I only shoot B&W film these days. Color is much easier with a digital camera. Just not worth shooting color with a 35mm any more.

Is an Argus c four user friendly?

Look at thrift shops they have all kinds of point and shoot 35's and midrange to upper range if you are lucky. But why not just print digital files.

Just FYI, KEH currently has 18 percent off all film cameras until midnight tonight.

Those Smenas are old and clunky, but they can be good fun if you get a decent example. I bought a few of them years ago for a couple bucks each, well worth it.

My first camera was  a Minolta Hi-Matic G.  Used that up to 1991 or thereabouts.  Point and shoot, minimal controls, but it worked.  Some negative scans...

DSC_0057-Coast Sunset by FredMan, on Flickr

DSC_0047-Beach Raccoon by FredMan, on Flickr

This is 11 years after the eruption

DSC_0031-St Helens Damage by FredMan, on Flickr

126 film, no.  Instamatic and all things that use 126 film?  YES!  Nostalgic following.  I have mine.  I'm waiting on ordering old 126 film so I can reload 35mm into it.  My 6 year old cant want to take pics with daddys first camera.  There is even a guy who is 3d printing the cartridges.  https://www.lomography.com/magazine/327923-3d-printed-adapter-allows-old-instamatic-cameras-to-turn-into-35mm

OP:  Go fo it.  Tons of 35mm compacts to be had for under $50.  35mm is easy to find and developing is easy to find as well, its just not as easy as driving down to the drug store or costco anymore. I love shooting film at family parties because I got fed up with the "let me see the picture right now" attitude.  You snap that pic and everyone comes over to see.  Its great with my 35mm SLR.  People still come over and I show them the back of the camera, then they want to look in the view finder.  Its amazing how even people who grew up with film cameras dont know that they are looking at one.

Lion: One of the huge criticisms of 126 film is that there is no pressure plate to keep the film flat while in the film plane I guess for an amateur photographer a little lost sharpness is not a big problem. IIRC Kodak make a highly refined Retina with Zeiss lens etc but was a failure because of the lack of sharpness.

302w: Personally if you want some cheap cameras, I think you would be better served if you get a modern cheap P&S digital camera. The processing and the printing of the phtoos will be a killer, ie really expensive. I remember back >30 years ago, it cost like $10 for processing a roll of 20 35mm film with 20 4xx5 prints. Remember if it is worth taking.... At the rate your are going, the film & process will easily exceed the price of your camera.