Bandersnatch Game

 

"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!

 The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!

Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun

The frumious Bandersnatch!"

                                          - Lewis Carroll 

No one but Lewis Carroll himself really knows what a Bandersnatch looks like, but Mattel's toy designers gave it a go in 1969 with their game of the same name. Players chose cards and spun trying to get all the parts needed to build a 4 1/2 inch tall Bandersnatch figure. This odd game is rarely found today, rather like the Bandersnatch himself.

The game box and components are all in bright, psychedelic '60s colors, and the spinner is a tiny little Bandersnatch. 

The giggling Bandersnatch spinner.

The completed figure is like a bizarre, nightmare version of Mr. Potato Head. Beware the Bandersnatch, indeed.

Funny Old Bear

This quirky antique teddy bear is 12 inches tall, made from an unusual cotton batting type fabric. His features include a very strange nose, tiny eyes, and one foot pad which appears to have been put on upside down. He's odd, but adorable.

I've never seen another like him, so I can only guess as to his age and nationality...maybe American or English circa one of the World Wars? I've seen the octagonal nose once on an old English bear, and (much smaller) upward stitches also on English teds, while the side-placed ears are found on American and English varieties. This type of fabric was typically used during wartime shortages of wool, which was being used for soldiers' uniforms and so couldn't be made into mohair for bears. If anyone has a similar ted, I'd love to see him (or her) and compare notes!

This is his original nose and mouth stitching. 

It gives him rather a distinctive look and funny expression, 

especially combined with the beady little eyes.

Itty Bitty Steiff Bear

This little Steiff has lots of wear,
but it just seems to have given him even more charm.
The white ted is just 5 1/2 inches tall, circa 1920-30.

He has a totally kissable nose, yes?

He came wearing an old plaid coat that had clearly
been with him a long time, and suits him perfectly.

 Going for a walk...

Antique Teddy Bear and Photo

The value of an antique teddy bear, both financial and sentimental, increases substantially when it comes with a photo of the original owner. If the photo is of the original owner and the bear, the value is even greater.
Such duos are difficult to find, as bears and photos tend to go their separate ways over time. I was very fortunate to find a pair that remained together for almost 90 years.

The hand-colored photo of the little girl, circa the 1920s, is 15 1/2 inches tall, and still in its original frame. 

 

Her 13 inch teddy bear companion wears a rather serious expression. As I look at him, I wonder what experiences he shared with his owner over their long life together.

The two came to me from a dealer who got them at the original family's estate sale. Astoundingly, she didn't get the little girl's name: that would have been a wonderful thing to know, and may have enabled genealogical research. Whoever she was, I hope she would be happy to know that her treasured teddy is now safely settled into my sanctuary for orphaned bears.

1968 Pie Face Game

Presenting one of the rarest vintage games of all time: Pie Face, made by Hassenfeld Bros (Hasbro) in 1968. Pie Face came with a spinner, score sheet, cardboard target with cut-out window, and a pie launcher. Basically, you placed a whipped cream "pie" on the launcher, then took turns spinning to find out how many times to crank the launcher's handles. It was randomly set to let the pie fly into the player's face, positioned within the target. Sort of a cream pie version of Russian Roulette.

It was billed as "the most fun-filled action game you've ever played!" If, of course, your idea of fun was getting a pie slammed into your face.

The 15 1/2" tall target was made of cardboard...which helps explain why this game is so rare. I can't imagine they survived many whipped cream pie hits. The target is designed to make the player look like a clown, further adding to the humiliation.

Here's the pie launcher in readiness:

 And post-slam: 


















I wonder how many players really bothered to keep score...if I'd had one as a child, I expect my friends and I would have simply used it to torture my little sister.

Click here to see the original Pie Face television commercial in all its awesomeness. The lyrics are quite catchy:

"Turn the handles, 

hear them click, 

you'll never know 

when you'll be hit!

It's Pie Face!

Ask your mom 

for some cream,

Pile it high,

It's a scream!

Now we spin, what's the score?

Never had such fun before!

It's Pie Face!"