The
Invasion
As the Nineteenth
Century drew to a close, human beings busied
themselves about their various concerns, little
suspecting that they were being scrutinized by
other eyes, eyes that we would, one day, come to
know as "Pie-Cut Eyes"! And, so, it
came to pass that, our world was, soon, to be
Invaded by a strange new life form: "Comic
Characters"! It was a gentle invasion,
emanating, not from Outer Space, but rather, from
the space between the ears of man. And, it began
modestly, with a few isolated sightings, such as
The PALMER COX BROWNIES and THE YELLOW KID,
appearing, primarily, on the printed page. But,
other Comic Characters followed, and soon, this
amicable invasion Exploded in a great burst of
creative energy! Almost overnight, Comic
Characters began to mutate and multiply. They
filled the pages of our newspapers and populated
the shelves of toy stores. We welcomed them into
our homes and allowed our children to play with
them. Before long, they succeeded in infiltrating
every aspect of our society. Until, by the end of
the Twentieth Century, Comic Characters had not
only Transformed and "Conquered" the
World, but managed to steal our hearts, as well.
And, We Loved every minute of it! A Language All
Their Own
Comic
Characters invented and "spoke" a
unique "Visual Language" all their own.
And in the early 1900s, our world learned to
understand this new language, even as the Comic
Characters, themselves, were in the process of
creating it. By the term "Visual
Language," I don't mean the language of the
spoken or the written word, made
"Visual". Although, Comic Characters
did invent and introduce "The Talk
Balloon," a unique way of allowing us to
"see" what they are saying and even
"read" their thoughts. Nor, am I
referring to the new and revolutionary way that
the first Comic Characters told a story: Through
a series of Widows on a printed page, Windows,
into which, we could look, one after another, to
see the tale unfold.
I speak, instead, of a language, not
of words and thoughts, but rather, of Forms and
Shapes, a language of Abstractions and
Stylization, Simplification and Exaggeration. It
is a language that we "hear" with our
eyes. And Mankind learned, embraced, and
understood, this New Language, by peering through
those Windows on a printed page to discover,
enter, and behold, a Whole New World ...
The
World of Comic Characters
To appreciate How
dramatically "Different Looking" this
New World must have appeared, a hundred years, or
so, ago, one must, first, conjure up an image of
our world, "the Real World". At the
dawn of The Twentieth Century, ours was a world
in which, "Reality" ruled! And,
"Realism" was the model, upon which,
all things "Visual" were based!
"Fantasy", rarely, took
"form", but when it did, the most
Fantastic things were, inevitably, portrayed in
Realistic terms. For Fantasy had not, yet,
discovered a "Visual Language" of its
own! Thus, elves, fairies, dragons and the like,
when seen in books or paintings, were rendered in
the most realistic way, as if to look like they
were credibly, or incredibly, "Real".
Now step into The World of Comic Characters:
"We're not in Kansas any more!" In this
world, Realism has been Exaggerated and
Distorted, or replaced, altogether, by
"Abstraction". And, we meet Human
Beings and Animals alike, whose body parts are
pure abstraction. Hands might have, only, three
fingers and a thumb, and every manner of abstract
shape "will do", to represent an eye.
We find eyes that are, no more than just a dot,
or a dash, or a dot within a circle or an oval,
and even blank white ovals, without a dot at all,
[you all know who I mean]. There are eyes that
"Pop" and eyes that are
"Googley". And then, there are the most
"Characteristic" eyes of all: "Pie
Cut Eyes", black dots, with a white triangle
cut out! Imagine a "pie" with one
"slice" removed. The missing slice,
effectively, represents the
"Reflection" in a "Pie Cut
Eye", bringing, what might, otherwise, be, a
dull and lifeless dot, to Life!
And all the
Abstractions, be they subtle, or extreme, that we
encounter in the World of Comic Characters, do
just that: They Bring the Characters To Life! And
"come to life", they did! Right from
the start, the American public befriended and
embraced Comic Characters. And, every day, adults
and children, alike, eagerly, peered through
windows on a printed page, to follow the exploits
and adventures of these abstract entities.......
All the
Funny Folks
One can, perhaps, best appreciate the popularity
of "The Funny Papers", and the impact
that they had on our nation, in the early 1900s,
by equating them to their present day
counterpart: Television! Like CNN, today,
Newspapers supplied the news, But, Sitcoms,
Series and Soap Operas, were provided by the
Funny Papers. And, "Comic Strips" like:
ANDY GUMP, BUSTER BROWN, JIGGS AND MAGGIE, and
HAPPY HOOLIGAN, were the,
"Honeymooners", "I Love
Lucy's", and "Seinfelds" of their
day! To an adoring public, "Stars" like
LITTLE NEMO, ORPHAN ANNIE, and KRAZY KAT, and,
indeed, ALL The Funny Folks, even though, they
were, only, abstract symbols on a printed page,
appeared to be, not only, Alive, but Larger than
Life!
And, so it was, that in the first quarter of what
has been called: "The American
Century", Comic Characters were
"born" in the USA, and "Came to
Life" in the pages of the "Funny
Papers". Soon, Comic Characters of every
nationality began appearing, all around the
world. And, at the same time, very early on,
something Wonderful occurred, something that
would make children [and Collectors] happy, for
generations to come: It was discovered that those
windows on a printed page, through which we could
enter the World of Comic Characters, and join
them on their, daily, adventures, were, in fact,
portals, through which the Comic Characters,
themselves, could step, to leave their printed
world, and join us in our own! And, more often
than not, when Comic Characters entered The Real
World, they did so in the form of TOYS.......
Comic
Character Toys
In order to journey
from the printed page, into the Three dimensional
world, Comic Characters required a helping Hand.
And, thus, the hands of countless, Unknown
"Artists", mainly, working under the
umbrella of the manufacturing industry,
transformed the Comic Characters into toys,
dolls, and related objects, fashioned in their
Image.
And, in the process, the Original
Images were Interpreted and Reinterpreted,
Altered and Amplified. Sometimes, an image was
constricted by the needs and limitations of a
particular material or medium, be it wind-up toy
or wooden doll. But, other times, the image was
set free to soar, from the two dimensional
confines of the printed page, to become a full
fledged "Sculpture". And, always, these
anonymous craftsmen, who might never have thought
of themselves as "Artists", added their
own intuition and vision to the finished
"work". So, the objects and images they
created, especially, when viewed through modern
eyes, often, embody an "Intensity" and
"Life", that Transcends the original
subject matter, Elevating many of these Toys and
Dolls and Related Objects, to the elusive Realms
of "ART"!

Horsing
Around
Lets stop here, a minute, in
"1926", to witness this Phenomenon,
first hand. We begin By looking through a window
in the "Sunday Funnies" to see a
typical view of BARNEY GOOGLE "horsing
around" with his faithful nag, SPARK PLUG,
as drawn by their creator, Billy De Beck. The
draftsmanship is excellent, but highly
illustrative. The caption reads: "Zis will
be one Grand Work of Art". [Fig. A]
Now let's see what happens to these
Characters in another artist's hands. Here is a
panel from the incredible 1926 book "All The
Funny Folks",
illustrated by Louis Biedermann. This amazing
artist manages to incorporate all the popular
Comic Characters, of the day, between two hard
covers, rendering them all, in a style, faithful
to the originals. Yet, at the same time, he
transforms and unifies them, by imparting his own
"touch", the Touch of a Painter. Now,
the level has been raised. We see SPARK PLUG in
mid-race as BARNEY says the Magic Word, that will
spur him on to win! Here is a painterly,
"POP ART" image, 50 years ahead of its
time, as the word, "GLUE", bursts in
the air! De Beck would never have done this!
[Fig. B]
Next, let's look, anew, at a familiar
Wind-up toy. In this elegant object, BARNEY
GOOGLE and SPARKPLUG have been transformed into
an Exquisite sculpture, that, also, happens to
wind up. Their forms have become more Simplified
and Boldly Geometric.
Was this due to the keen vision of the artist who
designed the toy, or merely the restrictions,
that the "Wind-up" medium imposed? It
matters, Not! For, either way, the results are no
less Great! When I, first, saw this toy, some 35
years ago, it knocked me off my feet. To see what
I saw then, and still do, now, Look at this
Mini-Monument and visualize it twelve feet tall!
[Fig. C]
The objects we examine next, provide a
stunning contrast, to the stately formality of
the tin toy above. The artist who sculpted these
rare, and rather large, Store Display figures of
BARNEY and SPARK PLUG, has taken a completely
different, more Naturalistic, approach. Here we,
still, see SPARK PLUG'S simple shape, consisting
of an almost rectangular blanket from which,
only, a straight neck and cylindrical head
emerge, with the whole resting on four half
balls, representing feet. But the sculptor has
brought the figure to life, by twisting his neck,
turning his head, and subtly implying, through
voluptuous bulges and realistic wrinkles, that
there is a body beneath that blanket, shifting
and straining to bust out. And, we sense that
SPARK PLUG is not
only alive, but deep in thought, as he casts a,
very, wary eye on BARNEY! [Fig. D
By contrast, this sophisticated
perfume bottle is a Masterpiece of Stylization
and Abstract Design. It has pushed the Image of
BARNEY and SPARKY to the outer limits of
Recognition, and teeters on the brink of
Nonobjective Art. Yet the image holds! And, it
remains the familiar friends we met in the Funny
Papers. But, now, they have been transformed, by
the helping hand of an unknown artist, to become
an Elegant Sculpture, First, and a Comic
Character, Secondarily! Is it not, hard to
believe, that this Refined and Stylish Object D'
Art, was created three-quarters of a century ago?
[Fig. E] 
Last of all, here is a toy, so rare, I
never dared, hope, to see it in my lifetime. It
is "The BARNEY GOOGLE and SPARK PLUG Gallop
Toy". Manufactured by "Steiff" in
1926. Here the familiar Images are played with
Irreverently. SPARKY has shrunk in size, to
become, almost, a shaggy "Little
Doggie", while BARNEY towers above him,
wielding a rather menacing and furry club, and
urging him to "Get Along". It might be,
that the styling, here, was dictated, as much, by
the Steiff medium, as by the artist's whim. But,
the end result, is not only, quite, Surreal, but,
also, thanks to an interesting combination of
shapes and materials, quite, Beautiful, as well.
[Fig. F]
Image
Is Everything
As the "Gallop
Toy" is pulled along, a clever mechanism in
the base causes BARNEY and SPARKY to move back
and forth. But, that contributes little, to what
makes this, or, indeed, any Comic Character
related toy, Interesting and Collectible! For in
the World of Comic Toys and Related Objects,
"IMAGE" is Everything! What a Comic Toy
"does", and "how it does it",
is of secondary importance. One might, even,
state, that, in the World of Comic Character
Toys, "The 'Play' is Not the Thing!".
It's "How it Looks", that Counts! I
realize that, many a "Toy" Collector,
would dispute that opinion. But, as a Toy
Designer, I hasten to point out, that,
historically, in almost every early Comic Toy,
the mechanism, play pattern, or method of
construction, was already, in existence and
common use,before the Image of a Comic Character
was adapted to it!
A
Trolley Named Toonerville
Having stated that, I will wander,
once again, from my intended path, to pay homage
to an Amazing Exception to that "rule",
a toy that stands apart from all the Other Comic
Wind-ups, by virtue of its Unique and Original
Action! It is a fairly "common" toy, a
"Basic" in the Comic Tin Toy
repertoire, You can probably find one, right this
minute, on E-Bay. Just call up:
"Search" and type in: "TOONERVILLE
TROLLEY"! But Do Not bid on It, Unless, It
Works! ... The toy, itself, is relatively
attractive, and faithful to the original
two-dimensional image in Fontain Fox's Strip.
Some, might, at first glance, say, "a little
too faithful", for the SKIPPER here, like on
the printed page, is Flat! He is no more than a
small flat figure, cut
out of lithographed tin, and standing at the
front of the Trolley. His tiny arms, one resting
on the drive crank, that protrudes from the front
rail, while the other dangles by his side, are,
just, flat cutouts, too.
Now, Wind the Key and "Let the Magic
Begin!" ... The TOONERVILLE TROLLEY moves
forward, wobbling, most amusingly, on its crooked
axles and off-center wheels. Suddenly, it stalls,
shutters, and comes to a full stop! And, now, in
a moment of exquisite enchantment, the tiny
SKIPPER comes to Life! He begins to struggle with
the crank, turning it first one way, then, the
other. The Trolley shakes. He pauses. But, it
does not start. He tries again. And, although, he
is only a small flat piece of tin, with no
visible means of animation, he moves as if alive,
and we feel his frustration, and root for him as
he fumbles with that "Dang Blasted"
crank. All at once, Success! The Trolley shakes
again, and this time, hobbles forward, to enjoy
smooth sailing for a few more feet, until it
stalls once more. [Fig. G]
This
Is Just One of the Many Comic Toys!
Have You Got Them All?
There are several kinds of "Comic Toy
Collectors" and THE TOONERVILLE TROLLEY is
sure to please them All! One group consists of
"Toy Collectors" who collect Comic
Characters, only, when and if, they happen to be
Toys. Another group, consists of "Comic
Character Collectors" who collect the Art
and Imagery of Comic Characters in a variety of
forms, including Toys, but, only, when and if,
those toys happen to be Comic Characters. Art,
Imagery, and Graphics, matter most to them. Then,
there is, yet, another group who collect Comic
Characters, because they recall them, fondly,
from a distant time, when they, and All The Funny
Folks, as well, were young. Sadly, this group is
growing smaller every day, dwindling and
disappearing from the Earth, and with them, all
memory of the Funny Papers, and the Toys, and
Times, we've been discussing, up till now, is
fading too!
But,
now, lets get this trolley back on track! We
halted in our journey to discuss the Funny Papers
and some of the Toys and objects they inspired.
And, it would seem, we did so, at their moment of
Greatest Glory, For, by 1926 the Funny Papers,
were already beginning to fade. Their reign as
the "King [Features] of All Media", was
coming to a close. Mainly, because A Brand New
Window, was opening, a Window, Bigger and
Brighter, than any, the world had ever seen
before! And when the Comic Characters stepped
through it, the Art and Imagery Of Comic
Characters, took a Giant Leap forward! As,
overnight, a multitude of new Characters were
created, and sprang to Life....
Upon
The Silver Screen
Continue to Part II of
Reflections in a Pie-Cut Eye
Note, on
BUSTER BROWN Rolly Dolly:
Schoenhut Collectors, Beware! Ten years ago
an individual, without disclosing his
intentions, induced me to give him a Polaroid
photo of this rare toy. He then, used it to
create a Fake "BUSTER BROWN Rolly
Dolly", incorporating a "real"
Schoenhut bulldog in what is otherwise a
total "Fabrication". Fortunately
the photo was blurry and the craftsmanship
mediocre, so the resulting forgery is easy to
detect. Nevertheless, this has not deterred
the forger from publishing photos of this
bogus toy in recent magazines and price
guides, describing it as "Rare" and
thus implying it is "Real".
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