Walter Cronkite once stated that my Stuff From the Box was one of mankind's greatest achievements. You're not going to argue with Walter Cronkite, are you?
He would be suitably impressed with my Huckleberry Hound Club ring circa 1961. As you can see, it is made from golden metal extracted from a rare meteorite. Some of Hollywood's most glamorous women are often seen wearing rings just like this one. Probably.
Here is a 1934 Lone Ranger "Chief Scout" badge, issued by Silvercup Bread. This is a fairly heavy chunk of brass, and Chief Scout was the highest rank of achievement for club members. This badge would get you backstage at events such as the Academy Awards. "Right this way, sir!".
There is plenty of new-ish Little Orphan Annie merchandise, but I am reasonably certain that this tiny metal pin with genuine enamel is from the 1930s. I have a few other vintage enamel character pins, including Popeye, Wimpy, and Krazy Kat. Why are you running, Annie? Is there a sale on Ovaltine at the Piggly Wiggly?
Smokey Bear needs you to help him prevent forest fires. To be honest he can get a little bit preachy, but it's hard to be mad at him. Yes, Smokey, I'd be proud to be a Junior Forest Ranger, especially if I can make citizen's arrests. All the mean kids at school are going to be spending the next decade in prison now that I have been deputized.
This tiny pin (just over an inch high) is from the 1930s (I couldn't find a more precise date), and was issued by Cream of Wheat cereal. What does the "H.C.B." stand for? "Health helps Chevaliers win Battles". It's kooky, but I like it. The H.C.B. club was supposed to encourage kids to eat a hot breakfast. Oatmeal is for dopes, why not have some Cream of Wheat?
Next is this beautiful "Zorro" ring. At first you might assume that it is made from white gold, with engraved and faceted onyx stone. But no! It's plastic, the finest plastic in the world. While Disney's "Zorro" TV show aired from 1957 to 1959, there were four one-hour specials that aired in 1960 and 1961. As far as I can gather, this ring dates from the 1960s.
And finally, here is a swell tin whistle given out as part of Orphan Annie's "Safety Guard", a wartime club that seems to have replaced her earlier "Secret Society". These whistles were part of a group of items (including a paper decoder - brass was needed for munitions; a "defense bulletin", and a "letter to mother", among other things) given out by Quaker "Sparkies" cereal. At this time, Annie was friends with Captain Sparks, and the safety guard promoted good health and encouraged members to collect/save metals, rags, papers, etc. to support the war effort.
Oh my gosh, there is still SO much STUFF FROM THE BOX!
Oooh, I have several favorites this time. But if I had to narrow it down to two, it would be between Huckleberry and Annie. And I don't think Annie is running. I think she is LEAPIN'.
ReplyDeleteThanks you, Major, for sharing more of your collection with us!
Major-
ReplyDeleteLittle Orphan Annie and Cream of Wheat are my favorites. (I've always wanted to be a Chevalier-!) And besides... ♩It's Cream of Wheat weather we repeat, so guard your family with HOT Cream of Wheat!! ♫
Thanks, Major.
The "Huck Hound Club" ring is nice and gold and shiny. I wonder what they used to make it that color. Brass? Maybe the gold color is electro-plated, flashed onto the outside.
ReplyDeleteI like Cream of Rice better than Cream of Wheat. C.o.W. always smells (and looks) like wallpaper paste or paper mache paste. I haven't eaten any of those pastes but I bet it tastes the same, as well.
My favorite today is the Zorro ring. Even though it's plastic, it looks sophisticated and elegant. The gold lettering looks great against the black background.
Thanks for letting us rummage through your Box O' Stuff, Major.
JB, Judy Garland thought that Cream of Wheat was so good to eat....she and Liza would have it everyday:
ReplyDeleteJudy & Liza for Cream of Wheat
I had almost that Junior Forest Ranger badge. It was copper colored on the front, and plain tin on the back. It was part of a free kit from the Department of Agriculture. I still have the membership card -- in fact I laminated it. Lost the "autographed" postcard of the real Smokey in the Washington DC Zoo.
ReplyDeleteDidn't Zorro go into syndication after its ABC run? I remember the Mickey Mouse Club running in the early 60s as a syndicated half hour, confusingly mixing old stuff with new stuff.
Oh, my darling. Oh, my darling.
ReplyDeleteOh, my darling, Clementine...
It's the Huckleberry Hound Club ring for me!
There's a lot of great "Stuff From the Box" in today's post. I never tire of seeing your little treasures. Thanks, Major.
Smokey is my favorite this morning because it’s Smokey. You can tell who wears the pants in his family. Anyone who looks good in a campaign hat is OK in my book.
ReplyDeleteAs an aside, our discussion of a different Smokey relic from The Box last Patriots’ Day inspired me to replace my long-lost inflatable Smokey from childhood.
DBenson, Zorro did go into syndication. I remember watching it on either a San Francisco or Sacramento station around 1974-76. They also ran the original The Mickey Mouse Club. I remember my best friend’s mom being really excited when they started running the MMC when I was in pre-school; she must have been the exact right age for it to scratch her nostalgia itch. My mom thought it was nice that the show was on but didn’t have any personal connection with it since they couldn’t get a clear picture for the ABC station on her side of town (my dad’s family, a mile further north, could). They were both freshmen in high school when the show first aired, so they weren’t the target audience anyway.
Thanks for dragging out The Box again, Major!
Cool! The box!
ReplyDeleteOk, my first fave is H. Hound, esq. I have many great kid memories of listening to Huckelberry Hound tell the Tar Baby story on a record I had (and now have again). I associated H.H. with Uncle Remus before I knew Disney did a movie. Having experienced both, H.H. is funnier.
Next, the CoW pin. I grew up on CoW with plenty of butter and sugar! Yum!
I agree the Zoro ring is very classy. I can see it replacing Rolex as statement jewelry.
Finally, the whistle is about as cool as you can get.
Great stuff!!!
The Zorro ring is my personal best, although Huckleberry Hound is a close second. I remember watching Zorro on TV pretty early on. Like late 50s, along with the Mickey Mouse Club. Mom even bought the 45 rpm record of the Zorro theme song for us. Zorroooo, who makes the sign of the Z. Found it on Youtube of course. That brought back memories. Mickey Mouse Club, Spin and Marty, Walt Disney's Disneyland, Presents and World of Color etc. It was fun growing up back then. When you lived somewhere other than California and you got to go to the park 2, maybe 3 days a year, you had to create your own Disneyland at home.
ReplyDeleteJr. Forest Ranger is cool too.
Thanks for sharing these Major.
Nice rendition of the Huckleberry Hound ditty, K.
Nanook, I still keep Cream of Wheat in stock. With lots of brown sugar.
ReplyDeleteAnother vote for Huckleberry Hound. As a little tyke (probably around 3 or 4), I remember my folks helping me ‘mail order’ a Huckleberry Hound ‘head’ to wear. I was so excited when it arrived. It was made out of heavy-stock paper and had to be assembled. I loved that silly thing.
ReplyDeleteI’m with Dr. Goat here, Zorro gets top marks.
ReplyDeleteI’d wear any of todays rings proudly, right along side of the ducal signet of the Grand Duchy of Muscovy that I inherited from my maternal great-grandfather, or Cracker Jack, my memory is getting fuzzy.
Cream of Wheat FTW, a good change of pace from oatmeal, which I also liked.
Chuck, I remember sometimes shows I liked (like Thunderbirds) were only aired on the affiliate channel from Bakersfield, which came in poorly on our TV, and in contrast with the great TV available in motels at Disneyland, or even Morro Bay. Which reminds me, I can watch “ The Abominable Dr. Phibes” on Amazon streaming now.
Great stuff Major, keep it coming!
JG
It's the Zorro ring for me. I became a huge Zorro fan when the TV show aired in the late 50s. My cool parents gave me a complete Zorro outfit for my 8th birthday. The sword had a piece of chalk on the end so you could slash the Z on walls just like Zorro. I guess I went overboard with it. After just a couple of days my mom confiscated the chalk.
ReplyDeleteI'm with Dr. Goat on the memory thing. Spin and Marty, the "Club", WD's D'land...
TokyoMagic!, I should have realized that Annie is LEAPIN’! Also, since I originally wrote this I have confirmed that this is indeed a vintage Annie item - there are a lot of modern Annie collectibles out there, so it’s good to know.
ReplyDeleteNanook, of all the things Cream of Wheat could have come up with, “Health helps Chevaliers win Battles” is so odd. But that is why it is charming!
JB, in this case I think that the Huckleberry Hound ring is actual brass, which is pretty unusual by the 1960s. Would you believe that I have never had Cream of Wheat (or Rice)? My dad used to make it in the mornings, and I always thought it looked good (since I enjoyed a nice bowl of oatmeal with brown sugar), but somehow I never had it. I’m glad you like the Zorro ring!
TokyoMagic!, so funny! Even in that audio form, Liza has that quirky *something* that she used to bring to movies.
DBenson, very cool that you had your version of the Smokey badge! With one or two exceptions, my stuff was all acquired many years after it was relevant to kids. I watched Zorro on TV in the mid-1960s, so it had to have been in syndication. I still remember owning a few Zorro toys.
K. Martinez, I’ve always wondered how Hanna Barbera came up with the idea of Huck singing “My Darling Clementine” all the time? So weird!
Chuck, very cool that you replaced your inflatable Smokey! Did you get him for a reasonable price? As for Zorro, I think any boy (and maybe some girls too) who saw it would draw Zs in the air with any stick that was handy. Swish swish swish! Or if there was a patch of dirt handy, that was good too. I had a set of Zorro “Rub-ons” when I got sick, it was fun, but I always wished that I didn’t have to transfer the little pictures down permanently.
DrGoat, While I did watch Zorro, I only saw the occasional episode of the Mickey Mouse Club on TV, but it was not something that I watched regularly (like Speed Racer). Maybe I was already too old for it when I was aware of it, or maybe I sensed that it was a very old-fashioned show. Not sure. I did love to watch the “Wonderful World of Color” though, and can still picture the opening credits and song. I also remember a kooky show called “The Mouse Factory”, I think Ward Kimball had something to do with that. By that time my Disney fandom was growing, so I watched it just because it was Disney.
DrGoat, yes, gotta have brown sugar!
Lou and Sue, that Huckleberry Hound head is so cool! I wonder if there were other heads available? Hanna Barbera shows were sponsored by Kellogg’s for a while. “Rise and shine!”. I wonder if you could have also gotten at Yogi Bear or Fred Flintstone head?
JG, there’s just something about a kid-sized ring, they made for good prizes. I have more than a few, from World’s Fairs, gumball machines, radio premiums, and so on. I think I watched “Thunderbirds” too, and for some reason I always was fascinated when the characters would break out into a sweat. Perfect little shiny beads of “moisture” (or whatever it was) on their plastic faces! I’ve never seen “The Abominable Dr. Phibes”, maybe I need to watch it now that it is on Amazon - it’s one of those movies that was often featured in “Famous Monsters of Filmland” magazine.
Grant, oh man, a complete Zorro outfit! That is pretty sweet. I think I had a mask and a hat, and even as a child the mask was too small. I guess I had a big head! I can just imagine the chalk Zs all over your house, no wonder your mom took the chalk away!
Man oh man oh man, this has to be the best lot from the Box so far! Every item is a real treasure. Like others above, the Zorro ring is my sentimental favorite, although I was more into the ABC/Family Channel reboot than the original Disney series.
ReplyDeleteJB, I had totally forgotten Cream of Rice existed. I loved that stuff!
Hello? :-)
ReplyDeleteI've had all various forms of hot cereal from Cream of Wheat to Quaker Oats and Malt-O-Meal, but today I pretty much stick to Bob's Red Mill Oat Bran hot cereal. Good stuff sprinkled with cinnamon or blueberries.
ReplyDeleteMajor,
“The Abominable Dr. Phibes” is one of my favorite Vincent Price films. Definitely give it a watch if you can.
Stu, is that you I hear faintly in the background? ;o)
ReplyDeleteMelissa, I have some more good stuff coming, so stay tuned! I didn’t even know there was a reboot of Zorro, I hope they got one of the Coreys to play Don Diego.
ReplyDeleteStu29573, oops, I apologize for accidentally skipping you! I scrolled too much I guess. Something tells me that Uncle Remus tales aren’t going to be much of a thing for kids anymore, but I can imagine that hearing Huckleberry Hound tell the tale would be pretty funny. I always did love those Daws Butler voices. And why not wear your Rolex AND your Zorro ring? No need to choose between the two.
K. Martinez, I never had Malt-O-Meal either, and whenever I saw the commercials mentioning a chocolate Malt-O-Meal, I wanted it a lot! Still, I got my share of sugary cereals, so I guess I can’t complain too much. I’m pretty much an “instant oatmeal” guy, out of convenience, but I’m sure the real stuff is better.
Lou and Sue, it’s like he’s in another dimension.
Lol, no worries, Major!
ReplyDeleteI always ate microwave oatmeal until recently when my wife started buying rolled cut oats (or something like that). Are they better? I'd say a little, but the ease of popping the bowl into the microwave is pretty hard to beat!
Ken and Major, there were two (at least) Dr. Phibes movies, the second is "Dr. Phibes Rises Again", and is almost as good as the original, which also has Joseph Cotten. Vincent Price is "priceless".
ReplyDeleteI remember watching that movie with my friends in our motel room in the Magic Lamp before going to Disneyland the next morning on one of our high school trips.
I watched VP in another "B" movie last week, I was amazed that he wasn't the evil bad guy and eventually was murdered.
JG
Major, Thunderbirds is also available via Amazon. I watched both seasons all the way through, and never had to be interrupted to go to Sunday School.
ReplyDeleteJG
Tokyo!, I've never seen that video before. Weird and crazy and funny all rolled into one.
ReplyDeleteKen, "And her shoooes are number niiiine."
Grant, such a funny story about the Zorro/sword/chalk. The makers of the sword must have known that every kid was going to mark up all the walls around the house. How could they not?!
Major, I remember watching "The Mouse Factory" too; late '60s/ early '70s. I think it was only on for a year or two?
Melissa, yep, Cream of Rice is still a thing. I keep it on-hand and have it every couple of months. I like it kinda lumpy, with sugar and milk. A slice of buttered toast to eat with it.
Stu, I enjoyed your comment... even if the Major didn't. ;-) Happens to all of us, from time to time. You have to take into account that Major P. is getting rather old, y'know.
Major again, maybe by the time the Star Trek universe gets here, we'll be advanced (and cool) enough to appreciate the Uncle Remus tales again.
The "Phibes" movies are some of my favorites as well. I think 'campy' best describes them... also kinda gross.
Melissa & JB,
ReplyDeleteCream of Rice is good, but it's Cream of Wheat for me. Not the instant kind but the full 2.5 minute version. It might resemble wallpaper paste, but even that would taste OK with enough brown sugar on it. Malt-O-Meal is out of the question. Even in milkshakes. It's a personal dislike.
I agree. The Dr. Phibes movies are the definition of camp.
I learned how to scream the first time I saw the Tingler when I was about 9, Melissa. I think everyone in the Fox theater screamed. It was the movie or too many Red Hots.
A few years ago, I saw The Tingler at a drive-in horror festival I used to go to in the Pittsburgh area. (It's a great two-day event; you can camp right in the drive-in overnight!) When the scene came where Vincent breaks the fourth wall and tells the audience to scream for their lives, everybody honked their horns and leaned out of their windows to scream. It was AMAZING.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, the Dr. Phibes movies are a whole phenomenon unto themselves.
That overnight camp thing sounds like fun, Melissa. Perfect for that 6 hour plus Beatles documentary that came out just a bit ago. Or the director's cut of Lawrence of Arabia. Also perfect for 2 or 3 old classics like the Tingler, the Amazing Colossal Man, Them!, etc. etc. or my one of my favorites, Creature with the Atom Brain.
ReplyDeleteStu29573, yes, if I need a somewhat healthy late night snack, a packet of instant oatmeal is better than a bag of cookies! That’s what I tell myself, anyway.
ReplyDeleteJG, I knew that there were two Dr. Phibes movies… as I said, photos from those were featured in Famous Monsters of Filmland all the time. Back in the days before Amazon Prime! It does seem strange to cast Vincent Price in a movie and NOT make him the bad guy!
JG, gosh, I wonder how Thunderbirds holds up! I haven’t seen it since I was a kid. Guess I should check it out.
JB, yes, I think The Mouse Factory only lasted one season, if I remember correctly, you could tell that it was somewhat influenced by “Laugh-In”, with cut-away gags and rapid-fire jokes. I’ve always thought that the animated portions of Song of the South are the only things to recommend that movie, but there is too much unpleasant baggage to ignore. Sadly.
DrGoat, it’s funny and true, I do sometimes crave the blandness (for lack of a better word) of things like oatmeal. Again, never had Malt-O-Meal, but I would probably like it. I remember seeing photos of Dr. Phibes sitting at an organ with crazy day-glo pink plastic pieces, I don’t quite get what those would do for the instrument, but it sure looked weird.
Melissa, I’d love to see The Tingler with a good audience! Did they actually have something to vibrate on your seat (or zap you, as I believe originally happened)?? I’m always reluctant to go see a classic horror movie live these days after seeing “Dracula”, the crowd laughed and yucked it up for the whole thing.
DrGoat, ha ha, I remember going to L.A. to see the director’s cut of “Lawrence of Arabia”, I’d never seen it before, and while it is unquestionably a great film, I was exhausted by the end!
Major, I have been wondering all day why Finland had such a focus on Famous Monsters.
ReplyDeleteThen I re-read your post with larger type.
Sorry.
JG
JB, those guys (the "Punchy Players") have some other funny videos, but others are "hit and miss." If you liked the Cream of Wheat one, I highly recommend their videos, "Judy's Groceries," and "Hollywood Hoarder: Judy to the Rescue." They really have the voices nailed down!
ReplyDeleteDrGoat, I have a Zorro 45rpm record. I wonder if it's the same one that you had. I scanned the graphics on the sleeve, years ago. If I can find the scan in my files, I will post the image.