vintage merchandising

[MF TOON]

Prior to the 1960s, did such a thing as promotional apparel exist for theatrical cartoons? I've been curious for some time about this topic as I've yet to come across so much as a photo still of an authentic article from the golden age of the studios or newspaper funnies. How rare would an original Sullivan, Fleischer, Lantz, Schlesinger, etc. piece of clothing be for instance and in what context if any were something like t-shirts produced for theatrical short franchises? I constantly search eBay and auction sites for this stuff and have never to date seen evidence of its existence. Was it just in the post-TV era of the late 50s that this stuff became available through network marketing and promotion, fan clubs, mail-ins, etc for kids? Or was it strictly homemade curios and weird foreign bootleg stuff? On a similar topic, is there some sort of resource or specialty site or dealer out there where one could find say original Hanna Barbera or Jay Ward apparel or is this stuff as rare as hen's teeth?

[Tom Stathes]

There were Popeye pants for kids in the 1930s. They were more or less heavily exaggerated bell-bottoms and I'm not sure if the character actually appeared on them.

[Matthew Hunter]

I know there were Bosko pins that could be worn ON ones clothing or as a hair accessory.

I doubt there were promotional t-shirts or anything like that in the "golden Age", as I don't think the technology to make them was around, and the clothing styles of the times didn't lend themselves to such things.

[Tom Stathes]

As far as pins go, there were MANY dating back to the 20s if not earlier...first featuring comic strip characters and then various obscure and popular cartoon characters.

As far as branding character images onto actual clothing articles...probably not. Logos, graphics and that sort of thing on clothing were not popularized until the 70s or so.

[mulroz]

In Leslie Carbaga's book the Fleischer Story on page 74 is an old advertisement for Betty Boop merchandise including sweatshirts etc

[CartoonCrazy]

Well, on that "The MGM Orchestra" bonus feature on the first :tomcat: & :jerry: set, there's a clip from a movie with someone singing in a Mickey Mouse sweater. So I guess that counts.

[Studio Toledo]

There were Popeye pants for kids in the 1930s. They were more or less heavily exaggerated bell-bottoms and I'm not sure if the character actually appeared on them.
Woo, Popeye bell-bottoms! Not that that's the best marketing decision ever made, but I can't help but be amused! :D

[Studio Toledo]

As far as branding character images onto actual clothing articles...probably not. Logos, graphics and that sort of thing on clothing were not popularized until the 70s or so.
Seemed like the 70's was when it all started to take shape, sooner or later we were wearing advertisements on our shirts like it was nothing!

[Ray Pointer]

In Leslie Carbaga's book the Fleischer Story on page 74 is an old advertisement for Betty Boop merchandise including sweatshirts etc

There were BETTY BOOP dolls, tops, various toys, as well as cards, handkerchiefs, soap, sweaters, scarfs, and nail polish, and candy among others.

[mulroz]

I remember seeing a picture of an old shop window filled with Felix dolls.

[Paul Penna]

Here's a kid wearing a Three Little Pigs shirt photographed by Dorothea Lange in 1938. Click here (http://www.shorpy.com/node/6663) for the original post, comments and a link to a larger view.

http://www.shorpy.com/files/images/8b32567u.preview.jpg

[Tom Stathes]

It's nice to see an early example of a graphic sweater...I'm sure though that it wasn't common. Clothing certainly wasn't visually branded in the same way it is today.

[MF TOON]

I guess I got lucky with my original copyright 1967 Ward ringer t-shirt of Bullwinkle in indian headdress that I scored on eBay last summer. I would think there'd be tons of Dineyland and Mickey Mouse Club original stuff floating around out there from the late 50s but I've surprisingly come across very few. It again mostly seems to originate in the 70s which is too bad because at that point, both theatrical and tv animation were basically dead in the water and the cheapo companies licensing (or not) these designs turned out some scary looking product that most self-respecting fans wouldnt touch. I wish I could find some original "of its era" Hanna Barbera articles; I wonder if any Top Cat, Flintstones, Jetsons, Yogi, etc. clothing exists from the early production years and where one would dig for this gold? I've surprisingly seen quite a few articles licensed from Terrytoons (spelled Terry Tunes) and CBS for Mighty Mouse in circulation, though not exactly common find.

[MF TOON]

PS - That Three Little Pigs sweater is too cool; I'd kill for that!

I bet it'd sell for some insane 5k in auction if it ever turned up though...

[Paul Penna]

PS - That Three Little Pigs sweater is too cool; I'd kill for that!

Makes you wonder if the kid is smiling because of the shirt or because he's dirty.

[mulroz]

I found this one:

http://www.cartooncat.com/index.cfm/fa/items.main/parentcat/10636/subcatid/0/id/162479

Not sure however if it is really Felix or just a bottle based on a cartoon type cat (remember how all cartoon cats used to look like Felix/Julius)

[Famously]

In one of my late father's grade school class photos, circa 1937-38, one of the boys is clearly wearing a Mickey Mouse sweater/shirt, IIRC with the classic image of Mickey -- hand extended. Disney merchandise was ever-present, so I suppose seeing apparel as well is to be expected.

[MF TOON]

I wish there were known collectors/traders or outlets for this stuff, its kinda like digging for needles in haystacks. eBay is full of retro reproduction garbage, but I am most interested in seeing or learning about original Hanna Barbera merchandising and apparel from the early 60s.

[nickramer]

I wish there were known collectors/traders or outlets for this stuff, its kinda like digging for needles in haystacks. eBay is full of retro reproduction garbage, but I am most interested in seeing or learning about original Hanna Barbera merchandising and apparel from the early 60s.
Do you have Jerry Beck's Hanna-Barbera book? That has some pictures of early H-B items.

[MF TOON]

Yes, I collect and have many of those items too but I meant specifically clothing.

[Nelson]

There was also Aeosp's Fables stuffed dolls made in the late 20s.I think I might have a pic of those.

[nickramer]

There was a whole bunch of Disney merchandise (or Disneyana as it's called today) in the 1930's. This was thanks to a large part to licensing representitive Kay Kamen.

[cartoonfan4ever]

Sorry to be bumping such an old thread, but I found this cool Popeye mechanical pencil on eBay. It's from 1929 and the pencil still has the original box.

Here is the link: 1929 Popeye Mechanical Pencil, Eagle, NY, Giant ! MIB (http://cgi.ebay.com/1929-Popeye-Mechanical-Pencil-Eagle-NY-Giant-MIB_W0QQitemZ390122151010QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_Def aultDomain_0?hash=item5ad5179c62)

[BloodyChamp]

I'd sure like to find this Chilly Willy shirt that I saw a long time ago. It had him reeling in a big one and it said GONE FISHIN!

[drmark7]

I guess I got lucky with my original copyright 1967 Ward ringer t-shirt of Bullwinkle in indian headdress that I scored on eBay last summer. I would think there'd be tons of Disneyland and Mickey Mouse Club original stuff floating around out there from the late 50s but I've surprisingly come across very few. It again mostly seems to originate in the 70s which is too bad because at that point, both theatrical and tv animation were basically dead in the water and the cheapo companies licensing (or not) these designs turned out some scary looking product that most self-respecting fans wouldn't touch. I wish I could find some original "of its era" Hanna Barbera articles; I wonder if any Top Cat, Flintstones, Jetsons, Yogi, etc. clothing exists from the early production years and where one would dig for this gold? I've surprisingly seen quite a few articles licensed from Terrytoons (spelled Terry Tunes) and CBS for Mighty Mouse in circulation, though not exactly common find.

From my own research and personal knowledge, trust me, there are TONS of cartoon-related toys, figural statues, clothing and items from every era since the dawn of animation. It didn't start in the 70s!

There have been various types of toy movie projectors and viewers featuring cartoon characters- since the silents!

There's Popeye and Betty Boop stuff in every shape and size. I've seen FLIP THE FROG dolls on eBay. Heck, I'll bet there were GERTIE THE DINOSAUR toys!

I've got my mothers original rubber "Doc" figure from Disney's SNOW WHITE and her hardback PINOCCHIO book well-illustrated from the film.

In my own youth, at about age 6 (c.1965), I had two little Hanna-Barbera white sweat shirts. One with Huck and Yogi and the other with Magilla Gorilla. The graphics were two-tone approximations of the little "cast line-up" boxes that you see in the corners/ margins of H-B products of the time. (Do those have an official name/purpose? Copyright?) Those shirts are now long gone. My mom thinks she handed them down to another relative when I outgrew them.

There was tons of early FLINTSTONES merchandise. My sister had the very first PEBBLES doll (in a plastic stone cave) that a recent YOWP post noted was the start of heavier toon-related merchandise.

I think we don't see some vintage cartoon items, because people hang onto them as family heirlooms. At one of my relatives house on a bookshelf, there sits a FROGGY THE GREMLIN doll on a music box (Not animation, but a 1950s TV puppet sidekick to Andy Devine) and a teddy bear wearing a set of 1950s Mickey Mouse Club ears, that I'll bet have been in the same spot for over 50 years! I've asked many times if they'd part with them. ("No!")

Or in the case of clothing, I bet much was TOSSED AWAY as it wore out!

[Cartman]

Sorry to be bumping such an old thread, but I found this cool Popeye mechanical pencil on eBay. It's from 1929 and the pencil still has the original box.

Here is the link: 1929 Popeye Mechanical Pencil, Eagle, NY, Giant ! MIB (http://cgi.ebay.com/1929-Popeye-Mechanical-Pencil-Eagle-NY-Giant-MIB_W0QQitemZ390122151010QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_Def aultDomain_0?hash=item5ad5179c62)
Less than a year old and Popeye was already making merchandise.:sailor: