Questions and Answers

QUESTION:   I purchased a Howdy Doody toy at my Grandma’s sale in 2003.  She was 91 years old when she died.  I have no idea when she acquired the toy.  Printed on the round, red, platform base is: “Howdy Doody / No. 180 / Patent No. 2,421,278 / A Kohner Product / © Bob Smith.”  Howdy Doody is standing in front of an NBC microphone.  When you push on the bottom of the toy, Howdy collapses.  When upright, the toy is six inches high.  The toy is wood with the exception of Howdy’s head which is plastic.  There is a spring in the mouth that causes it to open and shut.  What is my toy worth? – PE, Conestoga, PA

ANSWER:  You are a perfect example of my one generation theory—what is going to happen to the value of things when the generation who grows up with them dies.  If you knew who Howdy Doody was, you would know how old the toy is.

The Howdy Doody Show, a pioneering children’s television show, claims many firsts.  It was the first children’s television program to air five days a week, the first daytime network show when it first aired (previously only a test pattern was run during the day), the first show to broadcast in color, and the first television show to air more than 1,000 continuous episodes.  The show premiered on NBC on December 27, 1947.  At the time, only 20,000 American homes had television sets.  The NBC television network consisted of six affiliates.  When the show ended on December 30, 1960, the final show was episode number 2,543.

Here’s a Howdy Doody Quiz:  The Flub-a-Dub marionette consisted of parts of eight different animals.  Can you name them?  You will find the answer at the end of this question.

Howdy Doody was a freckle-faced boy marionette voiced by Bob Smith (November 17, 1917 / July 30, 1998).  Bob Smith, the show’s host, became “Buffalo Bob.”  The name came from the shortened western expression of “How Do You Do?.”  Heidi Doody (Howdy’s sister), May Phineas T. Bluster, Dilly Dally, and Princess Summerfall Winterspring (later a live actress) were other marionette characters.  Clarabell, first played by Bob Keeshan (later Captain Kangeroo) did not arrive on the scene until 1952.

Originally sixty minutes in length and aired once a week on Saturday, the show switched to thirty minutes in 1948 and broadcast Monday through Friday, 5:30 to 6:00 PM Eastern Standard Time.  It also returned to a Saturday morning time slot in 1956.

Howdy Doody was recorded in front of a live audience, known as the peanut gallery.  Forty children were in attendance.  Each show began by Buffalo Bob asking, “Say kids, what time is it?”  The response was “It’s Howdy Doody Time!”

The Howdy Doody Show was sponsored by some of the biggest brand names of the times: Colgate tooth powder, Ideal toys, Kellogg’s, Mars Candy, Marx toys, Nabisco, Poll-Parrot shoes, Ovaltine, Royal Pudding, Tootsie Rolls, Welch’s Grape Juice, and Wonder Bread.  Hundreds of license products were issued.  The copyright designation dates them: Bob Smith (1948-1951), Kagran Corp. (1951-1959, and NBC (1960 forward).  Your toy dates from the earliest period, 1948-1951.

Your push toy is fairly common.  Its value is around $50.00 in very fine to fine condition.  At the moment, the value is stable.  However, as the generation who remembers Howdy continues to go to the great Peanut Gallery in the sky, its value will lessen.

What eight animals contributed to Flub-a-Dub?  The answer is a duck’s bill, a cat’s whiskers, a spaniel’s ears, a giraffe’s neck, a dachshund’s body, a seal’s flippers, a pig’s tail, and an elephant’s memory.

QUESTION:  I am eighty-nine years young and am downsizing.  I have copies of the January, February, March, April, May, June, and August 1930 Needlecraft of the Home Arts magazine.  The front cover of the April issue features artwork by John Edwin Jackson entitled “The Bicycle Girl of 1900.”  Inside are full colored pages with advertisements for Lenten specials, e.g., Campbell Soup for 12¢ a can.  The May 1930 issue has a full color picture of Amelia Earhart and her aircraft on the cover.  Do these old magazines have any value? – EH, Evansville, WI

ANSWER:  In this day and age, we assume any information we want is on the Internet.  I spent a quarter of an hour running various search patterns to find a history of Needlecraft magazine. Unfortunately, I drew a blank.  Chances are the information is there.  The reason I did not find it most likely rests with my inability to create the proper search terms.

Further, eBay complicates the search.  When searching for historical information about antiques and collectibles on the Internet, eBay is not one’s friend.  EBay buys keywords from search engines so their listings rise to the top of search lists.  Needlecraft magazines are sold regularly on eBay.  As a result, one has to wade through all these listings before hopefully finding the information one is seeking.

Okay, I will put my soap box away and return to your question.  I did locate a reference to the Historical Textile Journal collection of the J. Gutman Library of Philadelphia University that contains a run of Needlecraft with the following notation: “Published in Augusta, Maine under various titles from 1909 to 1941.”  The Needlecraft Publishing Company was the publisher.

On eBay and at paper/ephemera shows, old copies of Needlecraft sell for as low as two to three dollars per issue to as high as ten dollars.  You are correct in assuming that the cover art and full page color advertisements (which are removed as tear sheets and sold separately) are keys to determining the final value.

Crossover collectors, i.e., specialty collectors, love magazine covers that illustrate their favorite collecting theme.  A bicycle collector may well spend $10.00 to $15.00, double to triple what a Needlecraft collector would pay, for your April issue.  The same holds true for the Amelia Earhart cover.  However, the other issues most likely fall in the $3.00 to $5.00 range.

QUESTION:  I am writing regarding a “Bild-a-Brik” set that came from my late father-in-law’s house.  The two enclosed photographs show the game, a Peter Gruhn creation, was manufactured by the Allied Toy Company of Valley Stream, New York, and has never been assembled.  The kit contains blocks and plaster that can be assembled into homes, farm buildings, bridges, etc.  My question is what to do with it and how much is it worth?  However, I want to complicate the problem.  I collect extensively pre-war Lionel items.  My alternatives are: (1) sell it for whatever it is worth and use the money for purchasing more Lionel items; (2) put it back on the shelf for another fifty years and hope it is worth more later; or (3) since the building in the set are O gauge, build several and use them on my train platform.  My guest is that the set is worth around $40.00, but please tell me it is rare, worth $5,000.00, and the Smithsonian will buy it.  What is your advice? – AP, Macungie, PA

ANSWER:  First impressions are generally the correct one.  The value of your “Bild-A-Brik” set is worth around $50.00 in the general marketplace.  The reason is simple.  There are few serious construction set collectors.  If you were lucky enough to find one who did not own an example, you might be able to ask a little more.

I tried to find out more information about your construction set.  I began by calling the Henry Waldinger Memorial Library in Valley Stream, New York.  I reached the reference librarian and asked if she had any information about the company.  Her answer was an emphatic and quite pointed “NO!”  Obviously, I caught her on a bad day.

I have a great deal of respect for reference librarians.  Normally, they love to sink their teeth into a research problem such as this.  If nothing else, they agree to look through the local city directories to see if they can establish a date when the company was in operation.  Unfortunately, the curiosity of the reference librarian at the Henry Waldinger Memorial Library appears to be nil when it comes to questions about local history.

I next placed a call to the Valley Stream Historical Society, a volunteer organization that maintains several historic properties in the area.  Jim Buckley kindly returned my call.  Although a long-time resident of the area, he was unable to provide any assistance.

You are correct in assuming that I have very fixed views on what to do with your construction toy.  First, leaving it on the shelf for another fifty years will not result in a spectacular value increase at the end of the period.  If it is worth then what it is today, I would be surprised.  Factor in inflation, and you will lose money.  Second, please, please do not use it to build buildings.  I am down on my knees begging you not to do this.  Value rests with the unassembled set.  Further, you said you collect pre-1940 Lionel.  The clothing on the children pictured on the cover suggest the set could date from the late 1940s, not the late 1930s.  Unfortunately, you only included a portion of the instruction sheet in your photograph.  I used a loupe, but could not see a date.  Third, if you have no interest in preserving your set, sell it to someone who will.  You have one of the biggest toy shows in the world in Macungie, held the first Saturday in August.  Admittedly, you missed this year’s show, but there is next year.  If all else fails, offer it for sale on eBay.  It should sell well.

QUESTION:  I recently acquired a gentleman’s or lady’s traveling case measuring approximately 16in square and 8in high.  The top and three of the sides are wicker.  The fourth side is black leather.  It is marked “LINZ BROS. / DALLAS.”  When open, one side drops down to reveal a silver bowl.  There is a water reservoir attached to a spigot located above the bowl.  In addition there is a brush, comb, and manicure set that has an ivory handled button hook.  What is it worth? – WH, Milan, MO, E-mail Question

ANSWER:  The pictures which accompanied your e-mail allow me to date the traveling case to the 1920s, give or take five years.  It could have been used by someone who was tent camping or working on the trail or in the field.

As to collectibility, it has more curiosity value than collecting value.  I am unaware of any serious collectors of traveling cases or kits.  Of course, having stated this, I suspect I will hear from one or more of my readers that I am incorrect.

The value of your traveling case is between $85.00 and $100.00.

Harry L. Rinker welcomes questions from readers about collectibles, those mass-produced items from the twentieth century.  Selected letters will be answered in this column.  Harry cannot provide personal answers.  Photos and other material submitted cannot be returned.  Send your questions to: Rinker on Collectibles, 5093 Vera Cruz Road, Emmaus, PA 18049.  You also can e-mail your questions to harrylrinker@aol.com. Only e-mails containing a full name and mailing address will be considered.

You can listen and participate in WHATCHA GOT?, Harry’s antiques and collectibles radio call-in show, on Sunday mornings between 8:00 AM and 10:00 AM Eastern Time.  If you cannot find it on a station in your area, WHATCHA GOT? streams live on the Internet at www.goldenbroadcasters.com.

SELL, KEEP OR TOSS?: HOW TO DOWNSIZE A HOME, SETTLE AN ESTATE, AND APPRAISE PERSONAL PROPERTY (House of Collectibles, an imprint of Random House Information Group, $16.95), Harry’s latest book, is available at your favorite bookstore and via www.harryrinker.com.