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Blame it on the Blog 2: Bonzo Dog Edition

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Pam’s Pictorama Toy Post: A few weeks back while I was doing some research for my post Going to the Dogs – Bonzo I discovered that the fine British toy makers of Chad Valley made a vast variety of delightful Bonzo dog stuffed toys! And me being me, I had to have one.  I also found out pretty quickly that Bonzo toys are rarefied items and do not go cheap! As I have noticed in some early Felix toys, there seems to be a lot of variation in these toys, many sizes, but their expression as well, so not just any one would entirely do.(For more on my ode to the Chad Valley fine makers of Hygienic Toys, see Felix for a Cause.)  All this has culminated in this wonderful Christmas gift from Kim – welcome to our home Bonzo! Thank you Kim – you’re the very best husband!

As you can see, Bonzo has a bit of sleep sand in his eyes – this seems to be on most of them. Bonzo was, after all, a sleepy fellow. He still has his great little Chad Valley identification button and his Hygienic Toy Made in England Chad Valley Co Ltd tag.  This fellow came from a lovely eBay seller in Belgium who took excellent care to ensure that he reached our shores safely.

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Bonzo is now enjoying a special spot on a shelf with his earlier shown Bonzo brethren. In the interest of further Bonzo education I offer one of the great color full-page spreads snatched from the Google image file and a cartoon below. Ho, ho, ho!

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Felix for a Cause

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Pam’s Pictorama Photo Post: Let us return once again to Felix, one of my favorite subjects. These two outstandingly unusual and interesting photo postcards capitalized on Felix’s appeal to attract an audience for their respective hospital fundraisers (Something in my role as a professional fundraiser I can really get behind.) One can only imagine they did brilliantly – after all, who could resist Felix?

The top card, and the first I acquired, was postally used, but has lost its stamp and postmark. The following (some writing faded or rubbed away) was written on the back in pencil, addressed to Mrs. J. W. Stoodley, Folly Farm, Crewkerne, Som (which appears to be short for Somerset):

Dear Mother, ….. am glad it is much cooler now but our place is cooler inside than out. The children had their carnival yesterday, but this is the one. Will

One can’t help but wonder if you got to ride with Felix in that nifty sidecar motorcycle if you attended?  I cannot answer that question, but much to my great surprise, I found a few minutes of footage of this very Carnival in June of 1925 to support Coventry Hospital and I offer it here:

 

While it is minus Felix, if you watched you did see that motorcycles seem to play an interesting role. The other pressing question – is that an enormous stuffed Felix (like someday I might find for sale on eBay and mortgage my house to purchase?) or a rather excellent Felix costume? (Which I would, of course, also be willing to go into hock to acquire.)

Then, just when I thought I would never see another postcard that was comparable, the second one showed up on eBay. While it is hard to see, if you look carefully you find out that each Felix is a tiny photo of a stuffed Felix toy, collaged on. I have supplied a photo of one of my beloved Felixes of the same type, an early addition to my collection, below. I adore this particular style of Felix and much to my surprise I came across someone with an entire basket of them at the Atlantic City antique toy show. That person told me that they were prizes at fairs in the twenties and thirties. They seem too well made for that, and I remain curious but have never heard anything more on the subject.

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I cannot find any reference to this event – no idea what the ladder is about or what the 250 (bps) refers to – a prize of some sort.  This one is unused postally and there is nothing to indicate a date. The person I bought it from said he had no idea what it referred to nor had he ever seen anything like it. (He was entertained by the image of the other one I emailed him however.) All this to say, call in Felix when you want to attract a crowd.

 

 

Pluto

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Pam’s Pictorama Post: I never understood the importance of Pluto until we got a very nice disk of early Mickey Mouse cartoons issued a few years ago. (In fact I think I had Pluto and Goofy somewhat merged in my mind – what was Goofy all about anyway?) As Kim says, Pluto appears in the series and there is a whole new life to it. Suddenly I became a Pluto fan! Still, that doesn’t mean I meant to go out and start collecting Pluto toys. However, not long after, when I saw this hot Dean’s Rag Company Pluto go on auction (Morphys I think, maybe Hake’s) a few years ago I decided that I would scoop it up if I could get it for the right price – and here we are. Pluto, a lesser Disney character, was a bargain and now mine.

In the second photo I wanted to show his wonderful label on the bottom side – Dean’s Rag Company always does a nice job with that – and you get to see his paw pads and the nice leather collar he wears this way. He is a very well constructed toy and there is something very Pluto about him – the magic of the folks at Deans, in my opinion one of the greatest toy makers ever. Founded in 1903 Dean’s has been in continuous operation ever since, although they make only teddy bears today.  Their first product was cloth books, marketed with a hygienic toy label. I scooped the following quote from wanderingbooknut.weebly.com talking about Dean’s:

Pollocks Dictionary of English Dolls, The colours were fast, the produce certified as hygienic. The pages could be washed without damage, and sucked with impunity: perfect, in fact, for children who, in the words of the rag book’s originator, “wear their food and eat their clothes”.

The other Pluto came into my collection in an interesting way. I was watching American Pickers and Frank found one on a pick. As I occasionally do when there’s a really cool toy on their show, I looked it up on eBay and that night there was this nice, if slightly battered, example. Bam! On a whim, he was mine. He does rollover – somewhat laboriously in his case, and I do like to return to my wind-up toy roots occasionally.

Last, but not least, I have included an example of a 1931 Pluto and Mickey cartoon.  Enjoy!

Me and My Felix

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Pam’s Pictorama Photo Post:  It doesn’t surprise me that, if you had a wonderful Felix the Cat doll, you would want your photo taken with it. As many of you already know, my collection in this area is fairly deep.  (Some of it was already immortalized and shared in an early posts, Felix Makes the Picture Better and more so in Ugly Children Good Toys.)  Shown here is a little girl dressed in her finest, holding a delightfully large Felix doll and looking mighty pleased with herself.  It is a photo postcard and nothing has been written on the back. Her Felix is a more pristine example of one I own – I am sparing you a photograph of me holding it!

The other card has a small holiday riff and I will use it as a tip of the cap to the newly launched 2014 holiday season. It is hard to see, but the tinfoil greetings has an impression of holly around it.  This little fellow had to pose in his winter clothes (and hat) in front of a very soft focus bit of outdoor scenery.  Note those snappy buttons on his trousers though! He’s dressed up too.  His Felix on the other hand is an absolutely whacky pop-eyed fellow.  Love those ears standing straight up – part bunny! This also unused and perfectly preserved.

I have wondered if these toys were just props at the photo studio. For some reason the little girl has always struck me as the owner of that Felix, the little boy perhaps not. Maybe because it is a bit less clear that the girl is in a photo studio – the portrait could have been made at home.

Those of you on Facebook know that I can’t resist posting a photo of me with new toy acquisitions. A natural impulse I think – representing a long tradition of proud ownership. On the other hand, who wouldn’t smile in a photo studio if they handed you a huge Felix doll?  I would!

Going to the Dogs – Bonzo

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Pam’s Pictorama Dog Post: Like mice, I guess if you collect cats, some dogs slip into the collection over time. While this is far from all my dogs (future dog posts to follow – particularly Pluto who I have a soft spot for) it is a little enclave of Bonzo and related pieces.

The Bonzo with the fly on his tummy (my favorite) was purchased at an absolutely delightful toy fair that is held in Atlantic City a few times a year. I have been lucky enough to persuade my long-suffering husband to attend with me several times (roundtrip in a single day on the gambling bus – um, interesting) and this was found there.  I couldn’t remember if the bulldog with the fly on his nose was purchased with Bonzo, but Kim reminded me this morning that he was not. He may have been an eBay purchase, but he has a price mark on his bottom which makes me think I found him elsewhere. Bonzo has a mark I cannot read, but it appears European and the other dog is unmarked. Both insects are metal and attached with little wires through a hole for that purpose. Wonderful because it allows them to tremor a bit and the texture difference creates a strange sense of reality.

The other two dog pieces were bought at a flea market (I think with a Donald Duck which I can’t find…) and they are marked from Japan. Not my usual taste but they seemed to need a home with a shelf where they would be appreciated.

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The Valentine is a canny reprint with a copyright of 2000. There’s a tab on his head and his eyes go cock-eyed. I found it somewhere and gave it to Kim one year. (Frankly, I had forgotten the origin, but is inscribed on the back.) Having spent years looking for great stuffed cats, I can tell you, there are a lot of great dog toys out there. So far I have resisted them for the most part, but there’s something about Bonzo and his compatriot look-alikes that I will stretch a point for. And Norakuro too, of course – but he looks like a wonderful fat cat.

As a bonus, here is a link to a Bonzo cartoon – duped to the point of almost invisible, but it does give you a sense of his spirit!

Mine, all mine…at long last

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Pam’s Pictorama Photo Post:  Sometimes as a collector there is something that eludes you over a period of time. And sometimes as a spouse there is something from your partner’s former life that scratches at the back of your brain. This wonderful photograph managed to embody both for me. While I have used this photo in a previous blog post (Van Buerens Aesop Fables, the Toys) it was pulled off the internet, not my very own copy.  It is the only publicity photo of these fairly rarified toys that I am aware of. (As you may know, I do have that rather sharp photo of Jane Withers holding one.) This one, for the record, is ever so slightly cropped, the serial number gone, probably the most notable difference. One of the important features of this photo is that each toy wears their name on a tag around their neck so those names are not lost to the sands of time: Milton (mouse), Don (dog), Mike (monkey), Raffles (or is it Waffles?) and The Countess. All except the wolf toy.  What on earth could his name have been? I must research that.

Meanwhile, years ago, as the story goes Kim was visiting a film collector (along with Leonard Maltin no less – this was of course in the days when film collector meant piles of film cans for those of you born in the post-DVD, streaming online era) and the fellow gave each of them a copy of this photo! Amazing!  He evidently had a pile of them. So far so good, except my husband (who is a lovely and very unselfish fellow) gave it to his then girlfriend Sally. Now this was bound to stick in my craw both on the spouse side as well as irritate the heck out of me on the wife side even all these years later – it happened in 1980. Obviously I understand – I wasn’t even a twinkle in his eye for another fourteen years, and I was in fact, still quite underage and yet to embark on my years of toy collecting. Still, in my jealous wife and toy collectors brain this has remained a wrong that needed to be set right.

Enter eBay last week – on a day when I had decided I really needed to rein in spending and behave for a while, but was having a little look nonetheless. There it was, mis-listed under Mickey Mouse photos and set as a buy-it-now for $25. Just in time for our wedding anniversary and our 20 year anniversary of our very first date. Bam! Mine!  Oh bliss! The universe set right at long last.

A Rare Little Felix

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Pam’s Pictorama Toy Post: By now you probably realize that I spend a lot of time looking at (and, yes, acquiring) Felix the Cat toys from the 20’s and 30’s.  The above Felix is one I purchase years ago on eBay, there was this one and an even smaller version for sale at the same time, and I have never seen the likes of them since. (I could only afford the one – they went high!) He’s about five inches, seated, but is fully jointed.

He has, as you can see, the Felix hunchback that the Brits almost always give their Felix toys. (This came from Felix in his leaning over walking and thinking position.) This Felix is fluffier than most, a real long-hair. I like the expression on his face – he’d wink if he could! He has all the charm of these off-model numbers I love yet is entirely different from my others. His joints are a bit loose and I try to keep him away from much activity, on the cat shelf at the foot of the bed, but low enough where I can admire him every single day.

 

The Strangeness of French Betty and Felix

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Pam’s Pictoram Toy (?) Post: Don’t know why, but this item has been on my mind lately so I thought I would write about it. Those of you who followed my purchases in the flea markets of Paris a couple of years ago (heaven!) might remember this. Never saw anything like it when I bought it, nor have I seen anything that was a kissing cousin to it since.  It is a lightweight wood and decorated on all other sides with the sort of alligator print you see on the edges. Too flimsy for a lunch box – a purse perhaps? I guess the French really are different from us, yes? I mean, to think they live in a country where women once walked down the street carrying accessories such as this. Really a very civilized place.

Aside from its use (and practicality, or lack thereof) what in the name of goodness is going on in that image?  Betty, complete with beauty mark (but maybe minus a mouth?) seems to be getting a come hither look from that goose – and Felix is playing some nefarious role peeking out from that tree.  All playing out in front of a castle-esque building in the background – I like to imagine that Betty has an apartment in that building – like the cartoon Betty’s Penthouse:

Although that was a more urban setting. Still, her place with a turret or a balcony?

Betty looks worried here – and I think she’s got good reason. Felix and the goose are up to no good. (Really, I hate to see an evil Felix.) This appears to be an unlicensed piece. Absolutely no manufacturing information.  Needless to say the moment I saw it I knew I had to have it.  While the owner of the stall did politely allow me to bargain a bit (as I said, very civilized place) my memory of it was that I was holding it possessively the entire time, and did a very bad job of hiding the fact that I absolutely was not leaving without it. (As I remember, Kim kicked in a bit to help make the transaction happen.) I know I paid a lot for it, but like many a really fine purchase, I don’t remember how much, even roughly.  Just that it is mine – oh happy toy lust!

 

Flip and Froggy

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Pam’s Pictorama Toy Post: The Frogs have it! Let me start with this – I don’t collect frogs. (Not that there’s anything wrong with collecting frogs.) However, as a toy collector these three have found their way into our home. Starting with Flip who I purchased on eBay. He is made by Dean’s Rag Company and I consider him an undervalued toy. Mine isn’t in pristine condition (he’s an old, old frog after all) but I bought him, unchallenged, for very little. No one needed Flip that day, but me I guess.  I am a fan of the Flip the Frog cartoons, although it wasn’t until well into adulthood that I caught up with them. (Kim introduced me to them. He saw them on tv as a child – says it was big news in their house when they went on tv. I’ve already discussed how impoverished my childhood was compared to his.) I can’t resist including a specimen cartoon – I don’t remember seeing this one before.  Flip really is one strange looking frog – even when he isn’t playing a dentist.

Next up is Froggy. This toy came to us as a wedding gift – thank you Monty! Smilin’ Ed and Andy’s Gang did not make it into the rerun tv packages of my childhood either, and I was introduced to Froggy and company while Kim was working on his book Smilin’ Ed.  (Brief commercial for the family product: you can find Smilin’ Ed here.) Kim worked on the story through our early years together so Froggy has endeared himself to me, despite being absolutely evil in the book. Here is a clip of Froggy in action (Incidentally, I have always wondered why there don’t seem to be any Midnight the Cat toys, but they’d probably be sort of scary anyway.)

So you can imagine my great surprise when a few years ago I wandered into the mall at Columbus Circle just before Christmas and there in a pop-up shop I found the new Froggy shown here! That’s right, someone found one of the variations on the Froggy toy and recreated him….as a dog toy. I bought up the few they had in stock and later found the company online. Needless to say, several people received Froggy toys that year! Should you wish to order a rather expensive, lead-free dog toy for you or someone else who appreciates vintage tv you can do so at Roll Over Red Rover. Perhaps given his misdeeds it is Froggy’s karma to end up reincarnated as a dog toy.

The Mysteries of Felix

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Pam’s Pictorama Photo Post:  Today’s post is of one of my favorite series of photos.  All three were purchased on Ebay, tiny photos – sort of 3 inches, smaller than reproduced here. The first two I purchased together, the third considerably later and from a different seller. They all came from Portland (which, as some of you know already, is emerging in my mind as the el dorado for whacky old photo finds) and are so similar – I have to wonder what the story might be.

They are on photo paper, but poorly printed. How can they be so similar and unrelated?  If they were some sort of multiple prints what on earth was the reason or the origin? That the first two show the Felix person holding a white cat – and that old car! – well, what more could I ask for? (Love those white Felix cat tummies too!) If memory serves I lost out on a second image of Felix on the car. These didn’t come cheap and I think I was just out of money. I have posted them on FB in the past and the image on the car either circled back to me on the internet, or there are other copies out there. I haven’t ever seen the other two any place else. These photos were the first in my acquisition of strange photos of people wearing Felix masks, and still among the ones I like very best!