Her Royal Spyness paper doll by Pat O'Rourke

What better way to mark New Year's Eve than with a Pat O'Rourke paper doll? Pat loved paper dolls, couture and glitter. 

We lost Pat this year, but her energy and enthusiasm are remembered fondly.

I probably bought this paper doll at the 2019 convention that Pat organized in Kansas City, MO, with the theme of "Mystery, Murder & Mayhem."

Pat loved a good mystery. "Her Royal Spyness" is Lady Victoria Georgiana Charlotte Eugenie, daughter to the Duke of Atholt and Rannoch. She is the featured character in a series of mysteries by Rhys Bowen.  Click here to read more about the series and author.

 

Buster Brown by Outcault, 1906

 

"Resolved: That Nothing Can Stop Us."

A Joyous Christmas and a glad New Year, 1908

"Loving wishes for a bright and happy Xmas and a prosperous New Year"

To: Mr. and Mrs. Harry Thomas

c/o Mrs. E. Leschbov

346 E. 58th St.

New York City, N.Y.

From: Ecuelie and Albert 

Philadelphia

 

Cinderella Stamps and Sister's Cutout, 1932

A Cinderella stamp is something that looks like a stamp but is not issued by the U.S. Post Office or any other postal service and has no monetary value for mailing. It's usually issued by a nonprofit organization for fundraising purposes and to raise awareness about an issue. These 1932 Cinderella stamps have the logo of the American Lung Association.

Here is the stamp as featured in Sister's Cutout:

Your Christmas, 1916

"May it be so bright and gay

Its happiness will last

for many a day"

Posted Dec. 22, 1916
To: Mrs Chas Wheeler of Taft, Calif.
From: Mr and Mrs McDonald of Santa Barbara, Calif.

Christmas Greetings Paper Doll Card, ca. 1930s

Jane and Betty and their dog Snowball

The dolls have heads that are inserted into the costume, similar to paper dolls from an earlier era. 

(I'm thinking of paper dolls I've seen from the late 19th-century, including advertising paper dolls.

I love the little bits of doggerel verse on the back of the dolls and their dresses and hats.

 

Philadelphia Paper Doll Luncheon, May 26-27, 2023

Save the Dates!
Friday, May 26--Saturday, May 27, 2023

We've added a day to the Morgantown Paper Doll Luncheon and moved it to the Embassy Suites at the Philadelphia Airport. 

We hope you'll join us for Programs and Show-and-Share on Friday, and the Luncheon/Salesroom/Raffles/Freebies on Saturday.

Look for a postcard with more details in January!*

Happy Holidays and we look forward to seeing you in 2023!

Valerie Keller

Linda Ocasio

*If you're not on our list, or your address has changed, you can leave a comment on this blog post with your information, including an email address if you have one. 

I moderate all comments, so your information will not be published on the blog and will only be entered into our mailing database. --Linda

 

Santa's Punch Outs, ca. 1960

UPDATED with all pages of the book!

"The Night Before Christmas Fun," a six-page punch-out book of activities 

published circa1960 by Saalfield/Artcraft.

These stencils make up the centerfold of the book.

 back cover of book

 

A Family Theater: Amahl and the Night Visitors, 1956

This is one of seven pages that ran in the December 1956 issue of Woman's Home Companion, depicting scenes from the Gian-Carlo Menotti opera.  

According to wikipedia, Amahl and the Night Visitors was the first opera specifically composed for television and first aired on NBC in 1951 as the debut production of the Hallmark Hall of Fame. Menotti had trouble settling on a subject for the opera, but took his inspiration from Hieronymus Bosch's The Adoration of the Magi hanging in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.

Here is the back of the page, identifying the characters in the opera.

 

Theresa Borelli

Borelli is one of my favorite paper doll artists; I don't have many things by her in my collection, but this one is a treasure: the 2004 Martha Pullen calendar.

I found this page on Greeting Card Universe for more by Theresa Borelli.

  You can read more about Martha Pullen here.

 

Comptoir Général de la Bimbeloterie, 1949-1950

from Royal Books:

The Comptoir general de la bimbeloterie ("supplier of trinkets"), managed by the mysterious J. du Serre, sold toys and goods since the early 1900s, and would continue until around 1975. Various catalogues featured color illustrations and included prices and descriptions directly on the page, as seen in examples from the 1940s and 1950s, or highlight certain items on price sheets bound-in, as seen in this example. This catalogue represents the company at what was a considerably successful point, judging by the lush color photographs on the wrapper showcasing their sales floors and massive inventory. The supplemental catalogues are simple, pulpy black-and-white, text only, with a map of the neighborhood surrounding the "C.G.B." on the rear wrapper. In light of recent toy distributors closing many locations, this catalogue breathes nostalgia and familiarity, from a period of France's new establishment after WWII. The only institutional holdings (2) are at France's Bibliotheque Nationale, and an exhibition catalogue from the "Exposition franco-britannique de Londres, 1908... Classe 100 [bimbeloterie]," crediting du Serre, is held at the Bibliotheque and at California State University, Fresno.

 

Happy Thanksgiving

 

King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla paper dolls

"Fits for a King," by David Parkins

Literary Review of Canada, November 2022 issue

 

Veterans Day

 

I first posted this poem 14 years ago.

Vote and the choice is yours, ca. 1980s

 

I bought this card (blank on the back) sometime in the 1980s, most likely at the St. Marks Bookstore. It's a deeply cynical piece of political art, expressing a viewpoint I thought preposterous back then. 

Betsey Johnson paper dolls and fashion illustrations

Betsey Johnson's wonderful illustrations for the  Aug. 4, 1974 issue of the Los Angeles Times Home section. Her Alley Cat paper dolls were usually black and white in newspapers and magazines. This was a special assignment, however. 

Dot-to-Dot! Loved doing those as a kid. 

Her fabulous fashion illustrations.

She was a Mademoiselle guest editor! How I miss that magazine. 

Surely a Betsey self-portrait! Wonderful.

 

Halloween Frolic

One of my favorites, found on the internets: Dot's "Halloween Frolic."

 

High School Senior Handbook, 1945

I enjoy all kinds of ephemera, but this--a recent gift from a friend--is one of my favorites. It sheds light on what people were experiencing as World War II was drawing to a close. This particular handbook belonged to Martha Zomack of Dayton, Ohio.

The advice for 1945 graduates is very specific: The war is winding down and the job market will be tight as war industries shut down and GIs return home. Grab a part-time job, enroll in a training program, business school or college. 

The advice for choosing a career is sound, and stands the test of time. It makes you wonder if anyone poses these questions today when pursuing a career. 

Two standouts:

"What is the effect of this type of work on the health of those engaged in it?"

"Does this occupation contribute to the welfare of the community?"

The illustrations are sweet. 

Good ol' Dale Carnegie. So emblematic of the American approach to life for the better part of the 20th century, especially the optimism that was so much a part of the postwar era. 

Was there anything we couldn't do? 

Sigh.

 

Brenda Starr: More Fall Fashions, 1941

 

Brenda Starr's First New Fall Outfits, 1941

 Professor Squell's underground cave? Brenda always had interesting adventures.