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In the Bag…

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Pam’s Pictorama Post: This Felix bag was new old stock and offered with several other identical ones. The Felix is a jolly round slightly off-model version and, with oversized mitts for hands, he holds a sign bearing tidings from Felix’s Viroqua, Wis. He stands in what appears to be a puddle and the black mid-century token design is reminiscent of my 1960’s era childhood.

It is the sort of small flat bag that cards, a bit of stationary or bauble might have gone into when purchased. These ubiquitous paper bags eventually gave way to a plastic version. Now that we live in a bag eliminating society perhaps they will disappear altogether although, as a frequent buyer of cards I am still often offered one at the point of sale. It is perhaps too small to have converted to a lunch bag. (In a sea of precisely purchased lunch bags, my mother was an early adopter of the random bag for our lunches as children. I speculate that the waste of purchasing lunch bags once we grew out of lunch boxes must have annoyed her.)

Much to my surprise, when I ran the name on Google this morning the story of Felix’s poured out of the computer. It turns out that Viroqua, Wisconsin is a small town of perhaps declining fortune which is home to about 4,500. (I checked and the small town in NJ we call second home clocks in at a population of about 2,000 more.)

And they had a great neon sign!

Felix’s closed its doors in 2007 after 101 years of being a local mainstay. The eponymous enterprise was founded by Max Felix who arrived in Wisconsin in 1905 and joined a wave of Jewish immigrants, like my own grandfather, who carved out a mercantile living with what was called dry goods or general store, in this case across the midwest. These stores sold everything from stationary to socks and catered broadly to the needs of their community.

Over the decades Felix’s was evidently handed from Max to his brothers, then to their children and to a final generation. The general store model morphed into a clothing store over time and that is what it is remembered for in the community.

The story of its closure seems to be inevitably wrapped in the broader tale of a town with a shrinking local economy, big box stores pushing out the long-standing, smaller and privately owned retail. There are articles and online posts about the demise of numerous other local retail establishments at the same time and concern for the future of the town.

Viroqua is described online as sparsely suburban which could certainly be viewed as damning with faint praise in several different ways. However, the schools are noted to be above average and the community heavily populated with retirees; it runs conservative politically. The town was founded with the name Bad Axe (certainly evocative) and did a stint as Farwell before the settled on Viroqua.

Beautiful indeed!

Viroqua appears to be known for something called the Driftless Region. For a description of what that seems to be, I share directly from the internet and close with this topological tidbit: The area is one of the only parts of America consistently missed by advancing glaciers over the millennia, hence the name “Driftless or Unglaciated Region”. This has preserved the unique topography of the region. The famous bluffs, coulees and small winding streams are mesmerizing. Fascinating!

And It’s Spark Plug

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Pam’s Pictorama Photo Post: Possibly one of the strangest sub-genres here at Pictorama are a clutch of photos of people posing on Spark Plug who in 1922 made his way into comics fame when he made his entrance into the Barney Google strip. The patched together equine captured the reader’s heart in that initial episode and he joined the ongoing cast of characters. His distinctive appearance made him a picture perfect photo foil and evidently photos posing with him proliferated in addition to sheet music, Halloween costumes, games, candy containers and toys ranging from wind-up’s to more cuddly soft versions.

Not in Pictorama Collection. This sheet music is widely available.

I stumbled on the first photo in a Hake’s catalogue years ago and bid on it. That photo went very high and much to my disappointment I didn’t acquire it. It stayed with me however as these things sometimes do and I started to look for them.

I manage to acquire my first one back in 2018 and it is similar to the one I lost at the Hake’s auction. (That post can be found here.) It is a pro photo, much along the same lines as the concept of people posing with Felix, although the Spark Plug photos are not postcards and are generally regular prints which are 5×7 or larger. If you read that post you will find an interesting exchange with the descendent of the fellow identified in the picture who found the post while doing genealogy research on his family.

Pricey Chien litho toy for sale at the time of writing.

The next photo didn’t show up until ’21 and it is a postcard where Spark Plug is an almost abstract design. Lodged as he was in the public consciousness however you merely had to make a nod to his appearance and label him and you were good to go. (That odd little gem can be found here.) This acquisition marks the third in the series.

Today’s entry into the archive is what appears to be a very competently homemade version of the pasted together pony. Junior, in comic splendor complete with glasses, nose and mustache all of a piece under his topper of a hat, must be concealing his legs under Spark Plug’s body and stubby faux limbs are astride the horse. Spark Plug’s identifying patch is evident on the side and, as is always helpful, he is clearly labeled on one side. His head, while a tad small for his body, is a credible reproduction.

Next to him is another kid, in blackface, with a faux banjo. Something about him reminds the viewer of the jockey statues that used to be in evidence as outdoor decor. Behind them are adults who do not appear to be in costume – the maid notwithstanding but after some consideration I have decided that she is just working in uniform, not in fancy dress. She is pushing a cart of something fluffy and like the other adults she is in somewhat soft focus. They form a distracting blur behind the costumed kids.

Another pricey item for sale as I write – interesting that a somewhat forgotten cartoon character still fetches thousands for toys today!

This photo is approximately 5×7 and printed on a super light paper which is curling with age. The back is entirely blank and there’s no evidence that it was in a photo album at any time, perhaps it was framed. While the pictorial quality is somewhat lacking this photo nevertheless is another interesting entry into the Pictorama archive.

Frank’s

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Pam’s Pictorama Post: When I purchased this tray last summer in New Jersey I bought it assuming it was for beer without really looking – Pale Ale is what I was thinking. Although I really just liked the bold red and green of it and what great shape it is in. However, ginger ale is what it is actually advertising.

I think Kim may have spotted it first. I was looking for a serving tray for the deck, but I think we realized almost immediately that although I should buy it, it would be unfortunate to use and potentially scratch it when it is relatively pristine.

We had found our way to an enclave of antiques dealers in Red Bank, New Jersey during our summer hiatus there and whiled away an afternoon or two. We had visited them before but not been in many years and although at least one of the storefronts closed, we still managed to make a number of scores, most of which are residing and decorating the house there. (A few of those posts about acquisitions there can be found here and here.)

Brief research shows that Frank’s Beverages was founded in 1895 by Jacob Frank in South Philadelphia. He was a Russian immigrant who made lemon soda from freshly squeezed lemons and hawked it on the streets of the city. It was in its day and for much of the latter part of the 20th century, the largest privately owned beverage bottling company in the Philly area. It evidently prospered on the slogan, If it’s Frank’s, thanks!, one that perhaps seems a bit bland by today’s standards. Youtube houses some Frank’s sponsored puppet films from early television however which are a bit more memorable.

Thanks for Frank’s commercials!

While Frank bottled everything from Yoo-hoo to Nestle’s Ice Tea, Frank’s Beverages was best known for something called black cherry wishniak, described as a fruity, dark-red soda that accompanied cheesesteaks, soft pretzels and other famous Philadelphia fare. Evidently the Polish word for cherry is wisnia and wishniak refers to a cherry liqueur from Poland, hence the name. (I am not a cherry soda fan so this sounds wretched to me actually!)

The company was bought out in 1990 and the locally famous cherry soda disappeared from the Philadelphia shelves. It was briefly brought back by a company in Delaware which sold it as a pricey novelty item – try $80 a bottle. I guess not surprising that it was not a success – especially as I can’t figure out why people in Delaware would be nostalgic for a soda that was only popular in Philadelphia.

Further reading about the ginger ale leads me to the conclusion that it was a hard ginger ale – more akin to beer than soda and I guess like a hard lemonade or cider. The cherry soda may have been the favorite, but the green bottle on a red background was popular advertising and my tray is very available as a result today.

Getting out the (Woman’s) Vote

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Pam’s Pictorama Post: While I try never to get political here at Pictorama (we get enough of that in the world without my two cents), I have been known to occasional opine on the importance of voting in general. Therefore, the women’s suffrage movement and the right of women to vote both in this country and others, has long interested me. In particular the struggle of the women of Britain is an interesting parallel to the one in this country, bolder and bloodier with brutal hunger strikes and violence done to the protesting women.

Pams-Pictorama.com Collection.

While reading the juvenile series, The Ranch Girls, I realized for the first time that here in the United States women gained the right to vote ad hoc one state at a time in the beginning. (Find that 2021 post about The Ranch Girls here.) The west, where the strictures of society in general were less in evidence, enabled it first. Eventually, in 1920, it became a federal mandate when the 19th amendment was passed.

Of course any good movement needs ways to get its point across and to identify its participants, declared through political buttons and pins. Those, which I find endlessly fascinating in general, seem to go back to the very beginning of politics and voting in this country. I was just looking at a Hake’s catalogue which boasted buttons having to do with George Washington! Today we are handed stickers that declare that we have voted as a way of reminding others that they should do the same.

Washington inaugural buttons
Later Washington items, these for curtains.

The Women’s Suffrage movement produced some distinctive items. Again, mostly in Britain, there were pieces of jewelry with telltale stones of green, purple and white. Wealthy women adopted brooches of emerald or peridot, amethyst, and pearl or diamond in a sly form of support, but in addition to those rarified items, paste stone versions also survive aplenty today.

On my last trip to the London markets, before Covid, there was an abundance of these items available at all levels – also some discussion around which were truly a part of this history. Of course inexpensive and vibrant ribbons and buttons were also boasted, but nothing demur about those. This country favored those buttons (yellow for pro) and also the wearing of a yellow rose in favor of the vote or a red against it. Another perhaps sly symbol was the wearing of all white by women to support the movement.

In learning about this I was of course interested to find that cats, often black cats, were the face of the movement. I wrote about this at some length in another 2021 post when I acquired my first ceramic, I Want My Vote black cat statue. Purchased from a Hake’s auction, I stumbled upon it and its history. (That post can be found here.) There was a double edge sword to the symbolism – those against suffrage meaning if you let women vote men will be stuck home with the home with the family cat, that women would wear the pants in the family.

Not in my collection but I wouldn’t mind finding it!

However, women took back the symbol of the cat in 1916 and made it their own, often turning this symbol of the domestic to a meowing sometimes even snarling feline. The cat might be beat up and bedraggled to show the wear and tear of the fight over time, or it might, like mine today mew in obstinate favor.

Driving across country (employing the still nascent automobile) Nell Richardson and Alice Burke, campaigned for women’s rights. Along the way they adopted a black kitten, dubbed him Saxon after the maker of the car, and made him their mascot. He became a living incarnation of the movement.

My item came via a Hake’s auction. It was another occasion when I put in a lowball bid and discovered weeks later that I had won it. I knew about this statue from my prior post and was pleased to add it to my collection. I keep an eye on suffrage items, although often they are a bit rarified and go quite high.

Alas, poor men will be left home with the kids and kits.

She’s about three inches high and Votes for Women is across the bottom. Some entries seem to find the mewing expression as a negative although in general she seems to be accepted as a pro-vote item. I have seen her in two colors, this blue and a brown. (I will note that on Worthpoint there was a two color version, the brown, but with green eyes and the mouth and ribbon in red!)

Advertisement for The Suffragette newsletter.

It was made commercially by cast ceramic mold. There are vague numbers on the bottom, but I cannot transcribe them and no other maker’s information. I cannot find maker’s information online, although this is not an uncommon item both in Britain and the US and I assume was sold in both places.

All this to remind us of the sacrifice and struggle women (and others) made in gaining the vote. So regardless of the size or contention of the elections in your area on Tuesday exercise that right and cast your vote.

Quack

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Pam’s Pictorama Toy Post: A few weeks ago I mentioned that Kim and I were off to Cold Spring for our anniversary and of course I did manage to find a few toy treats while we were there. That post was devoted to Kim’s anniversary gift to me which was a large Oswald Rabbit issued in a limited edition by Steiff. (That post can be found here.)

Interestingly, today’s post is also a Steiff fellow. I don’t buy too much Steiff. While they are certainly quality toys the prices often seem inflated to me and their selection of cats is limited. (Some other bits of Steiff in my collection can be found here and here.) Early Steiff teddies can be compelling and have almost human expression and look in their eye. Those are largely of course the ones that will set you back a mint however. (Upon some reflection though, quite a few have sneaked into Deitch Studio however!)

For all of that, on occasion, a vintage Steiff toy crosses my path. As I sit here writing about this new fellow, there is a rooster that can be wound up to hop around, right next to me as well. Clearly their birds have attitude that appeals.

Pams-Pictorama.com Collection.

I was a bit surprised that this fellow called to me, but I left the store and went back for him. (I purchased a few other bits including some random pieces of Bakelite silverware and some Mickey musicians for a future post.) I think he reminded me of my mom who rescued and rehabbed water fowl. She was especially devoted to swans, but some geese and ducks also did time in the Butler yard.

I remember that she had a pair of what she called puddle ducks, mallards. This little quacking couple stayed close to the house and did splash about in puddles and the small water garden mom had out there. The mom had ducklings she showed off. My mom was quite convinced, probably correctly, that they would have happily marched into the house to hang with us. They were quite fond of sitting in the driveway as I remember.

From our trip to Cold Spring in October – a perfect fall day there!

Of course what helps make this fellow jolly is his one wing raised as if in greeting. I find his oversized ducky paddle feet very endearing as well. For those who care he has both his tag and his button which is on the back of said wing. There is something especially endearing about the little indication of a feathered tail on his bottom and the detail on his beak, painted in.

Duck butt! Pams-Pictorama.com Collection.

I had a moment of wonder if he was a signet (baby swan) rather than a duck, looking at his longish neck. However a quick bit of research and I confirmed his duckling identity. It turns out that Steiff did make both geese and swans in addition to ducks – not surprisingly. The early felt swans are wonderful and the one on wheels would be irresistible – although I think it would live in New Jersey in tribute to mom. Meanwhile, given what they go for, it is perhaps an unlikely addition to Pictorama in the near future.

A Happy Halloween

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Pam’s Pictorama Post: Halloween is on the horizon and I have been saving this scary pumpkin creature guy for quite awhile – so long in fact that I don’t actually remember when or from who I acquired it. Pumpkin people do frighten me a bit and this fellow no exception.

Oddly, he seems to sport a small Santa hat atop his head. I guess once you hit Halloween, Christmas isn’t far off? The sparkles make him a bit more cheerful and I very much like the black cat head above the Happy Halloween. His sideways glance does not contribute to a friendly look. Can’t exactly figure out why he’s on a tree swing. A owl perches in the tree and a bat flies among a scattering of gold stars. A black cat peers around a tree.

Bonus New Jersey Halloween decoration photo tour from my run today, as promised yesterday.

This card was used although there is no postage on the back so maybe it was popped into an envelope. It is addressed to Miss Lillian Garrett, Bedford Sty, Trimbule, CO Route 2 however so it is odd that it has an address but no stamp. Also, reading the message is entirely beyond me. I usually have trouble but unlock it after a few tries, however this one continues to frustrate me. I have photographed it and perhaps a reader can make it past the first sentence.

Back of card.

The card is undated and at first I thought there was no reference to Halloween, however I managed to decode part of the message where she says, am…downtown and just got these cards to your you all. Want to get…a false face to wear to the party. Write soon. Can’t read the signature either!

Although I will be back in the city on Tuesday, I will leave treats for the kids here in New Jersey to be appropriately distributed. I have a pair of cat ears to sport however and will give at least a passing nod to the day in New York this week as well.

Halloween Approaching

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Pam’s Pictorama Post: Boo! October has zipped right on by us this year here at Pictorama and before I know it I find Halloween is upon us. I am heading down to NJ this morning as the cat caretaker has a brief trip out of town and I will play cat mom to those kitties this weekend.

I haven’t had much chance to enjoy October in Jersey (I did post about one weekend out there recently and that can be found here), but I will soak up the last of it over the next few days. I especially look forward to a run where I can tour the Halloween decorations, soon to morph into Thanksgiving. These are the very best months out there, before the cold makes it less hospitable.

Doorstep in NJ, proud with pumpkins!

You might think I would go in heavily for my own Halloween decorations for the house, but no. My nascent collection of decorations run to the delicate and vintage, like this one above. I really shouldn’t purchase such fragile things as Deitch Studio can be a rough and tumble place sometimes. Both of today’s items were found on Instagram and were deals I decided I couldn’t ignore.

From a 2015 post. Pams-Pictorama.com Collection.

The paper globe (held by a helpful Kim above) has wonderful black cats on both sides and I imagine parties where a dozen of these hung somewhere, or perhaps were gracing a table laden with Halloween treats and fare – to be enjoyed between rounds of bobbing for apples? I have devoted a few posts to collected Halloween Dennison paper decoration books – how-to manuals of parties from the teens in a different era of DIY. (One of those posts can be found here.) I lack the not inconsiderable skill for the elaborate costumes and decorations of those days although I would say the bar was pretty high.

Although I don’t purchase cardboard Halloween decorations deeply (having said that another recent purchase post can be found here), I can’t resist a well designed kitty and this one was offered to me a few months ago. Only about 10 inches high he isn’t large and if I was inclined he would indeed make a tasteful apartment door decoration.

Pams-Pictorama.com Collection.

I like all his pointiness! He is a cat poised for action and maybe a bit of trouble, as much trick as treat. Claw paws and a mischievous grin. The back of this cardboard figure shows that it was much taped up over time, but otherwise he survives in very good shape. Other than a bit of a folding on the ears, he is in amazingly pristine condition.

I pledge another Halloween treat for tomorrow so stay tuned!

Enlightening

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Pam’s Pictorama Post: Yes, it appears to be a lamp post today! I have been on what might best be called a lamp acquisition binge. In part, it has been to fill a need for lighting in New Jersey at the house where we pretty much only had overhead lights and needed additional standing lamps and table lights. Here in New York we have an on-going need for lamps in the living room where we have two contemporary standing lamps which seem to both take very expensive bulbs and die after a few years.

As a result of the lamp death rate I have begun purchasing lamps, mostly old ones. They end up being rewired so I don’t really understand why they last better but they do. It started with a desk lamp for myself here in New York while working at home. After some frustration I bought an old one on Instagram which, while a bit tatty and odd looking, seems to be dedicated to staying on the job. It came from Washington State.

Odd little desk lamp from Washington State, among the detritus of wires and stuff on my home desk.

Before I go on I should add that I came from a family that seemed to be unable to pass up a good antique chair, lamp or clock. The lamps collected by my family have sadly mostly passed out of our hands, and those that remain are somewhat unsuited to my current needs although one graces Kim’s desk at the moment – Pictorama readers see it often in desk shots. (See below.) It may have started life as a vase, vaguely Asian in design and covered in flowers, which was converted into a lamp. Nonetheless, it did hatch forth from the Butler holdings many years ago, before Kim and Deitch Studio arrived on the scene.

A brief digression about clocks. The Butler clocks, mostly antique, are very much gone I’m afraid. As a kid I learned to sleep through a constant chiming throughout the day and night, although it was hard to readjust visiting as an adult. If there’s one I miss it is a ship’s clock with those bells. I am tempted to find one, but am afraid it could result in divorce. Dad was dedicated to winding those that needed winding every Sunday in his retirement. (There was also a cuckoo clock at my grandmother’s I loved as a child, but I knew we couldn’t absorb that into Deitch Studio when it became available. It was both large and noisy.) At one point my mom had one that made bird noises on the hour – that was a rare modern one – and it drove me nuts. However, I will say I saw a good antique wall clock for sale the other day and unbidden my father rose up in me and I twitched with the urge to buy it. Evidently it is in the blood.

Desk lamp purchased for my New Jersey desk, but shown here in the eBay photo I purchased it from.

For New Jersey I acquired a lovely old standing lamp from a friend, rewired it and popped a shade on after some negotiation on the internet – who knew there would be so many variations of standard lamp shade sizes. I am tempted to buy another if I see it and am constantly prowling. A good number, strangely, seem to come in pairs which doesn’t really work for me – or appear at a time when figuring out shipping seems beyond me.

After the acquisition of the standing lamp I purchased a gooseneck desk lamp on eBay to replace a lamp on my desk in Fair Haven which has a tendency to randomly turn itself off. (Seems like a bad sign, right?) That lamp was never designed as a desk light anyway and I will either have it rewired and move it elsewhere or let it loose back into the world. Frankly it is not an especially compelling item.

Inexpensive blue and white lamp which I have hooked up to a smart plug to do my Alexa bidding.

I also purchased an inexpensive, pretty, new blue and white lamp for the living room there. More notably I installed an Alexa and set this living room lamp to light morning and evening. It took me and Alexa (I call her Miss A. when I don’t want her listening; she does listen) awhile to come to an agreement, but she seems able to fulfill her simple task. I find myself saying please and thank you to her which I can’t seem to discontinue. She, additionally, supplies me with NPR news while I make coffee and feed the cats in the morning and will also turn the light on if asked, as I pad through the room in the middle of the night in search of water in the kitchen or to investigate and moderate a cat disagreement. I may try the headlines of the New York Times next, but I usually switch to classical music after NPR. (I recently also purchased a Wink video doorbell and cameras and I’m sure more to come once I have that installed. I am slowly turning the Fair Haven house into a smart house – at least sorta smart.)

Our current status in NYC is one floor lamp down and has been for awhile. It ate one of its expensive bulbs aways back and we seem unable to make a decision to offer up another bulb or get rid of said light. I decided to work around that and while upstate for work in July (see a post about that weekend of work adventure here) I purchased a very pretty little lamp in an antique store. It is a variation on what is called slag glass, but instead of it being all about the glass design it has a wonderful lacy metal shade over it.

Lacy metal side table lamp which is waiting for a place to be plugged in! Pluto seems to like it…

I will take a moment to opine that many years ago there was someone doing wonderful reproduction lamps with painted scenes on glass shades. I didn’t have the cash to invest in one then and have always regretted it. I have never been able to find the really nice ones subsequently now that I have a chance to invest. Alas. I also have an appetite for a heat motion activated lamp – these lamps from the 1950’s have brightly colored scenes and the heat of the bulb activates them to slowly turn the scene. Unfortunately many of the scenes are sort of pedantic – a lot of fires and trains – but I am waiting for the right one to cross my path.

Lastly and truly in no way least, perhaps more best of all – on a true whim I purchased a painted metal Popeye lamp in an auction recently. I was leafing through I think a Milestone online catalogue and Popeye caught my eye. I put a nominal bid in on him almost without thinking and really did forget about it until an email showed up telling me I had purchased him. While his paint is in bad shape I do love him. I am currently deciding if he will reside here in New York or go to New Jersey which is easily still absorbing lighting fixtures.

Another shot of Popeye, but this time showing Kim’s lamp more or less in its full glory.

Meanwhile, I am trying to decide what kind of a shade goes on Popeye and how best to purchase it. I saw some online but the shade lamp calculus would be better in person. Another option might be a bare Edison bulb – any thoughts? I am taking all comers and suggestions on this.

Kim twitches with the desire to repaint him someday and I would say he could be a good candidate for it. Other more pressing projects await however. For now though, I say, let there be lots of light.

Kitty Savings

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Pam’s Pictorama Post: This plastic bank crossed my path recently and although it is a bit newer than most of my collection he wasn’t expensive and I recently purchased him on eBay. There are no markings on him save an almost indecipherable Made in Hong Kong on the bottom on the removable black plug which allows for coins to go out as well as be saved within.

My guess is that he is a premium of some sort, however the lack of markings make him a sort of poor one in that regard. Perhaps at one time he sported a missing piece of advertising. He is unusual as far as I can tell. I have not seen another nor can I find another searching for identification so the survival rate seems low. Perhaps if we knew where he came from more would pop up.

I have a few other banks in my collection, all of which display their commercial ties better. A rather wonderful one can be found here. There are a few non-feline entries and a few of those can be found here and here.

Yet another wonderful (non-kitty) bank at Pams-Pictorama.com. From an October 2021 post.

This bank is made of plastic and while it isn’t incredibly fragile it isn’t really sturdy either. I have seen more ephemeral things survive, but I assume that’s why there not more of his brethern around. This would be even more true if you started filling him up with coins I think. My guess he is of the vintage when I myself could have had him as a child, the 1960’s. The seller described him as made from a plastic blow mold which is a term I was not familiar with, but is pretty much what it sounds like.

Eyebrow holes above the eyes. Wonder what went in there?

Unarguably he has a jolly smile and his red bow tie really adds something. There are tiny holes above each of his eyes and I somehow think he must have sported eyebrows – red maybe? That would change his look quite a bit and I am having trouble imagining it. There are impressed indications for legs, feet, whiskers and a button nose. Coins can be inserted at the back of his big round head.

He is modeled on a certain kind of cartoon kitty of the time I think. He is more Top Cat than Felix, both in design and in vintage. Kitty is very perky, big eyes and pointy ears. His tail curls around into a snail shape.

I can’t help but wonder if small children today still take joy in banks and pressing a few precious coins in now and again. I am not sure what intriguing things the few dollars you might fit in such a toy bank would buy these days. I wonder if the appeal remains and banks seem somewhat fewer as I look around – not to mention interesting premiums. And I wonder if those days of piggy banks lead to a life of savings accounts and retirement funds. Those of you with small children let me know if they still enjoy them. I am curious.

Lucky in Love with Oswald Rabbit

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Pam’s Pictorama Post: A couple of weeks ago I was meeting a friend for a drink on Madison Avenue after work. She had selected an interesting place which turned out to show me to my table via a sliding bookcase door for a speakeasy feel. However, I was early and she was going to be a bit late so before crossing the street I did a bit of window shopping.

The store on Madison from a few years back. Looks pretty much the same now.

I haven’t been to this stretch of upper Madison in a long time. I made it up more frequently when I worked at the Met, but usually a trip to a museum would have triggered a stroll through, but hasn’t in awhile. There’s a wonderful but overpriced store I tend to stop by, Blue Tree, usually to purchase some greeting cards. It is a mash up of clothes, jewelry, toys and baby gifts among other curios. Occasionally I have bought something other than cards, but as already stated and I cannot emphasize enough, it is expensive. Rumor has it that it is owned by the actress Phoebe Cates.

I snatched this quick nighttime pic of the store window more for reference than anything else – in case he was gone before I could come back.

Anyway, the store was closed but there in the window and much to my surprise, was this rather incredibly resplendent Oswald Rabbit doll. Almost the size of an infant, Oswald was perched among some modish clothing and some other gee gaws, atop on a small bench. The incongruity stopped me in my tracks. The store was closed so I took a quick photo and figured I would attempt to find it online or double back when the store was open.

A NEW Oswald short made by Disney to celebrate his anniversary.

Of course the weekend came and it was another sodden mess like the one before. Undaunted Kim and I traipsed out to Madison Avenue between cloud bursts. It is a very expensive store so I girded my loins before entering – how much could Oswald be? There were a lot of eye ball kicks for the likes of me there – a very nice Minnie Mouse baby blanket that I would love if I could figure out what to do with it. (I thought picnic blanket which is an ongoing need for the park, but it’s white!)

However, I stuck to my mission. Although there was a display of (beautiful) stuffed toys in back, the only Oswald was in the window. I found a salesperson and asked and indeed, he was the only one and had just come into stock and been put in the window. I would like to just take a moment to recognize whoever had the wherewithal to purchase him for their stock – I really can’t imagine that many stores would have purchased him and plunked him in the window. It seems they were rewarded for their ambition, by the likes of collector me coming along.

A beauty shot of Oswald! Pams-Pictorama.com.

This Oswald is made by Steiff in collaboration with Disney and is being sold this year as a 100th birthday tribute to the hard luck rabbit who was hounded into obscurity by legal dispute, shortly after his popular debut. He is about 30% larger than I ideally might have made him actually and practically speaking. His high price tag is somewhat justified by his fine mohair outer layer, just what a good toy should boast. However the days of excelsior stuffing are (sadly) gone so he is stuffed with a weighty synthetic something. He is a nicely made item and when I later found him on their website they emphasized that he is not a toy for children, but a collector’s item for adults. (Huh. Go figure.)

A bit of Oswald history via Wikipedia reveals that the first Oswald cartoon hit theaters in 1927 so not exactly sure where the 100 years comes in. Disney and Ub Iwerks took the idea to Universal Pictures after ending the Alice Comedies and Julius the Cat. Too many cats on the market so they went for a rabbit it is said. Also read that the first cartoon submitted was rejected for subpar production although it was slipped into the releases later.

Ultimately 27 cartoons were made at the Disney studio and the income allowed them to grow their staff to 20 animators, their future now secure. Mickey Mouse was created as a replacement after the rights to Oswald were lost in a switch of studios when Disney realized that Universal was quietly hiring his animators away.

This is the link to a slew of original Oswald cartoons.

Kim whipped out his credit card (he is a very good husband indeed) and Oswald was mine, an early anniversary gift. (If all has gone as planned you are reading this as Kim and I travel to Cold Spring for a day of poking around and foliage viewing in order to celebrate the 23rd year of our nuptials. More rain could delay this celebratory event however.)

Side view of the box. Below is the money shot of the top of the box.

Heavy is a theme because Oswald is a solid citizen of a toy. He stands at about 30 inches in height and weighs considerably more than our cat Blackie. As you can see, he travels in a very decorative box. I hesitated to take the box (small apartment and all of that) and I did consider just having him shipped to New Jersey, but I was worried he’s be exposed to the elements before someone could grab him inside. The box is fun even if I don’t know that I have an eventual place to keep it – since I rarely buy new toys the box question doesn’t come up often. With the weather and all we took him, wrapped copiously if a bit ham handedly, and headed home in sloppy triumph with the next downpour just commencing as we got home.

I have written about Oswald previously and have one beloved tatty one in my collection. That post can be found here. He is in some ways (condition!) the exact opposite but he was acquired for a pittance on eBay while no one was looking one day. I think the new fellow will head to Jersey where he can be among the first notable toys as I open the collecting front there.

Pams-Pictorama.com Collection.

Kim and I are heading off to Cold Spring shortly to enjoy an anniversary jaunt. More about that later and I hope you enjoyed this very Oswald morning!