Orphan Annie Decoder Badges
Many months ago I shared some photos of my vintage Captain Midnight decoder badges. Now it's time for my Orphan Annie decoders badges! These must be among the most popular and widely-produced of all radio premiums, they are not hard to find these days. I bought all of mine in the pre-eBay era, at a local antiques store. The seller seemed so pleased to see that I was interested, and he gave me a deal. I wish I had been a little pickier about condition, but... live and learn. Most of these were Ovaltine premiums - just mail in a few metal seals from your Ovaltine lids, along with 10 cents, and one day you would receive your decoder in the mail!
The first Orphan Annie decoder is from 1935. It's pretty basic, with a row of letters on the outer right, and a spinning inner ring with numbers. Common Annie motifs include the crossed skeleton keys, and "Radio Orphan Annie", and the letters "SS" - "Secret Society".
The 1935 decoder must have been a hit, because the 1936 example is made of sturdy brass, and looks a lot more like an ersatz detective's badge. Note that the center portion is very similar to the previous pin. "Radio Orphan Annie" has been shortened to "ROA".
On the back there was an extra surprise... a hidden compartment! The genuine 1936 "Mercury" dime is there for scale. You could also hide microfilm.
1937 brought this striking badge to fans, with its art deco sunburst design. As much as I like a new-mint toy (or anything!), I sort of love the fact that many of these show signs of much handling.
The 1938 decoder is the largest of them, with a fancy 5-pointed star design, and a more complicated mechanism for moving the numbers and letters in each of those two tiny windows. Playing around with this one, I've found that it is sometimes difficult to make it work correctly.
The 1939 decoder badge is a return to a simpler, more fool-proof design. It's still very attractive.
The last of the heavy brass decoders is the 1940 version, with a bas-relief of an American eagle standing on a shield, with the Stars and Stripes waving behind it. While not terribly hard to find, this one can fetch higher prices than the others because it's the same type that Ralphie uses in the movie, "A Christmas Story". We all know how that went! You can buy an inexpensive repro that looks pretty good, and they are easily identified because they say "A Christmas Story" on the back.
Each decoder was stamped with a unique number. This one has the letter "C" on it, which I am guessing means that it was the third pressing (I have another one with the letter "B"). These must have been very popular! The letters and numbers are on the outer rim, which is why you can't seem them from the front or back.
By 1942, the U.S. was heavily involved in World War II. Brass was in short supply for such trivial uses, so they resorted to paper. Ovaltine was no longer the sponsor, either.
Here's the front and back of the paper decoder - happily this one was never cut out.
I hope you have enjoyed these fun old decoder badges. If you are interested, you can download and listen to 1930's episodes of the Orphan Annie radio program HERE.
13 comments:
Major-
Each one of these badges is a little treasure. How great to see them all at once. Gotta go now... I'm off to a Decoding Meeting with my fellow Safety Guards-! (Whirlomatic sounds like a special cycle on a washing machine).
Thanks, Major.
Hey, how come that soldier gets pupils in his eyes?
These are very cool. It's amazing how much treasure is out there from the past to had for a price.
Is the 1942 decoder the last one to be made or did they continue to offer them beyond that date?
Thanks, Major.
P.S. I'm listening to the LOA radio show right now. It reminds me of when my dad told me about the days of radio when he was a kid in the 1930's. He used to tell me that you used your imagination more with radio than TV.
Hey Major, I just dug deeper into that site you provided the link too and it's got a lot of great old-time radio content for download. Shows that I remember my father telling me about like "The Whistler" and a complete day broadcast of D-Day. Lots of good stuff. Thanks!
K. Martinez, I recently listened to all the episodes if the radio version of "The Saint," with Vincent Price as Simin Templar, at archive.org. Great stuff! The Jack Benny show is also gold.
Nanook, I love how each of these shows so much wear - kids really used these! There was a time I planned on giving an extra one to my young niece, and then I was going to send her coded message. But somehow I never got around to actually doing it. D’oh.
Melissa, he’s from Canada!
K. Martinez, it’s interesting how these decoders were sort of pricey, and then went through a period when you could get them for pretty cheap, and now they seem to have gone up again. Orphan Annie decoders are not rare, or so it seems to me. My mom used to talk about listening to radio shows when she was young, too.
K. Martinez, a local radio station used to air old-time radio shows on Saturday nights, and I was often in my car. I loved to listen to old episodes of “Gunsmoke”, “Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar”, “The Whistler”, and so many others! It’s great that people can now just download thousands of shows for free. I still get a kick out of the Orson Welles/Mercury Theater version of “War of the Worlds”.
Melissa, oh, I didn’t even know about Vincent Price and “The Saint”. I did listen to plenty of Jack Benny shows, though. My favorites are the wartime episodes that were performed in front of an audience of servicemen and women! Now I’m thinking of other shows I liked. “X Minus One” (science fiction), “The Shadow”, “The Black Museum”, “The Adventures of Sam Spade”, and… I’m sure I am forgetting a bunch.
I am constantly surprised at the number of of people who are still loving vintage radio. Many of the Golden Age Hollywood stars did radio, and many programs on radio made the transition to TV. You had to use your imagination listening to radio. During the second W W ll, radio was the package from home sorely needed by by our troops in the field. Hollywood stars would fulfill requests from GIs in the field, between shows, frying a steak or a message from Betty Grable. Even the enemy had Tokyo Rose and Lord Haw Haw giving advise and playing the likes of the music of the day. Great collection Major, but now I am jonesing for some Ovaltine.
10-8-8-6!
14-3
All these posts and no mention of the decoder's starring role in a certain 1980s Christmas movie?
Gorgeous badges, Major! I never realized they had such variety.
Oh, and Major, back in the late 1980s, when I was attending Moorpark College, I had a few night classes. I'd drive home listening to "the Great Gildersleeve" on that AM station!
When we were kids, if we asked a question Mom didn't know the answer to, she'd often reply, "Only the Shadow knows!"
Melissa, I'm now going to be on the lookout for that one. I love Vincent Price in just about anything! Wonderful actor and person. Thanks for calling our attention to it.
JC, a few days ago I was reading an old Marvel comic book story from Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commando's called "Lord Ha-Ha's Last Laugh". Of course it was based on Lord Haw-Haw aka William Joyce.
Jonathan, I think that, like vintage photos, vintage audio can help people connect to the era from which it came. It’s fascinating to hear what made people laugh, or thrilled them; I also liked listening to “Lux Radio Theater”, with radio dramatizations of hit movies of the time, featuring the biggest Hollywood stars. I can only imagine how comforting it would have been for a G.I. overseas to be able to hear American radio entertainment. My brother still buys Ovaltine sometimes!
David Zacher, oh no, which decoder are you using? And how did you have it set?
Steve DeGaetano, I mention “A Christmas Story” twice! A collector could spend many thousands of dollars on radio premiums - there are so many good ones. I have a relative few.
Steve DeGaetano, I forget, was it KUSC that aired the old time radiio? I listened to The Great Gildersleeves too!
Melissa, I love it.
K. Martinez, yeah, I had never heard of Vincent Price doing a radio drama. Gotta look for that one. “Lord Haw-Haw”, if it wasn’t real, I wouldn’t believe it.
Post a Comment