The American Character Doll Company was an American toy company specializing in

dolls A doll is a model typically of a human or humanoid character, often used as a toy for children. Dolls have also been used in traditional religious rituals throughout the world. Traditional dolls made of materials such as clay and wood are found ...

. Their most popular dolls included "

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," " Tressy," "Butterball Doll", "Sweet Sue," and "Toodles." Founded in 1919, the company's fortunes peaked in the mid-20th century, as they sold millions of dolls exclusively to retailers and mail order houses such as

Sears Sears, Roebuck and Co. ( ), commonly known as Sears, is an American chain of department stores founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosenwald, with what began a ...

and

Montgomery Ward Montgomery Ward is the name of two successive U.S. retail corporations. The original Montgomery Ward & Co. was a world-pioneering mail-order business and later also a leading department store chain that operated between 1872 and 2001. The curr ...

. The company was the first to produce mass-marketed rubber dolls in the United States. American Character Dolls went bankrupt in 1968, with their assets acquired by the Ideal Toy Company.

History

Corporate history

The American Doll and Toy Corporation was established in 1919 by

Russian Jewish The history of the Jews in Russia and areas historically connected with it goes back at least 1,500 years. Jews in Russia have historically constituted a large religious and ethnic diaspora; the Russian Empire at one time hosted the largest pop ...

immigrant brothers Jacob and Max Brock, and their partner Ed Schaefaer, with many of the Brock relatives occupying key positions at the company. The company used the trade names "Aceedeecee" and "ACDC". American Character Dolls' factory was in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

; the company operated a store on East 17th Street in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in the late 1920s. By the late 1930s, the company's manufacturing plant, comprising 130,000 square feet, was in Easthampton, Massachusetts. The company made the news in 1937 when it was ordered by the

Federal Trade Commission The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. The FTC shares jurisdiction o ...

to stop claiming that its patented "paratex" (a hard rubber made from a "secret formula") was superior to

composition doll A composition doll is a doll made partially or wholly out of composition, a composite material composed of sawdust, glue, and other materials such as cornstarch, resin and wood flour. The first composition dolls were made in the 19th century. C ...

s (popularly made by American Character's competitor the Ideal Toy Company). In 1951, American Character partnered with competitors the Ideal Toy Company and the Alexander Doll Company to establish the United States-Israeli Toy and Plastic Corporation, designed to produce material for toys in Israel and the U.S. The new corporation's offices shared space with American Character."PLANT IN TEL AVIV TO MAKE PLASTICS: New $1,000,000 Concern Plans Range of Products From Toys to Building Items To Make Plastic Parts,"
''New York Times'' (November 8, 1951), p. 49. In 1954, American Character Dolls established a $2,000 annual fellowship at

Teachers College, Columbia University Teachers College, Columbia University (TC), is the graduate school of education, health, and psychology of Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. Founded in 1887, it has served as one of the official faculties and ...

, known as the

Frances Horwich Frances Rappaport Horwich (born Frances Rappaport, July 16, 1907 – July 22, 2001) was an American educator, television personality and television executive. As Miss Frances, she was the host of the children's television program '' Ding Don ...

Graduate Fellowship in Early Childhood Education. In 1954 the company was awarded a patent for a doll that "breathes, sheds tears, drinks from a bottle, blows bubbles, and even smokes."Jones, Stacy V
"Mouth Organ With a Slide Valve Patented by Hoosier Video Star,"
''New York Times'' (April 24, 1954), p. 29. By 1967 the company's fortunes were in decline, with unsecured claims said to be approximately $1.4 million. Settlements were arranged in March and June 1967, and the company continued to operate on a limited scale. Shortly thereafter, in 1968, American Character Dolls filed for bankruptcy and went out of business. Molds for some toys were sold to

Mattel Mattel, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment company founded in January 1945 and headquartered in El Segundo, California. The company has presence in 35 countries and territories and sells products in mor ...

and Ideal Toy Company, which acquired the defunct company's dyes, patents, and trademarks."American Character Dolls 1919-1968,"
DollReference.com. Accessed Dec. 26, 2014.

Product history

American Character dolls were thought to be well-made, with good quality costumes. Early dolls were made of composition; one of their first lines of mother and character dolls were introduced in 1923 and called "Petite;" they remained popular into the 1930s. The Puggy and Sally Campbell Kids children dolls were introduced in 1928; they were based on the cartoon characters designed by Grace Drayton. American Character released a limited number of

celebrity doll A celebrity doll is a doll modeled after a celebrity. Celebrity dolls have been in production for a very long time. In the 1840s, several famous ballerinas were featured as paper dolls. Also in the 19th century, various military heroes were port ...

s over the years, beginning with "Lucky Aviation Kid" in 1927, a

Charles Lindbergh Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...

doll wearing a brown aviator suit and flight cap, with a '' Spirit of St. Louis'' model plane ribbon, white socks and brown shoes. In the 1930s, the company released the celebrity doll "Carol Ann Beery," based on the child actress of the same name. The Kathryn Grayson autographed celebrity doll was produced in the late 1940s. American Character switched their formula from composition to their branded "Paratex" in the mid-1930s. Celebrity dolls released in the 1950s included ''

Alice In Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (commonly ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll. It details the story of a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creatur ...

'' (1952), " Annie Oakley" (1954), " Eloise," and a series of '' I Love Lucy'' dolls (1952), the most popular of which was the baby doll later known as " Little Ricky." The 14" vinyl doll came dressed in a flannel gown and cried "real tears." (In 1952 stars

Lucille Ball Lucille Désirée Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an American actress, comedienne and producer. She was nominated for 13 Primetime Emmy Awards, winning five times, and was the recipient of several other accolades, such as the Gold ...

and husband

Desi Arnaz Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III (March 2, 1917 – December 2, 1986) was a Cuban-born American actor, bandleader, and film and television producer. He played Ricky Ricardo on the American television sitcom '' I Love Lucy'', in which he c ...

were expecting a

child A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person young ...

.) American Character's most popular doll was

, introduced in 1950 and remaining in production through the rest of the company's existence. The baby doll's distinguishing feature was her ability to shed tears from two tiny holes on either side of her nose when her stomach was pressed after being filled with water from her baby bottle. Tiny Tears became one of the most popular dolls of the 1950s, due in part to television ads featuring a young

Patty Duke Anna Marie "Patty" Duke (December 14, 1946 – March 29, 2016) was an American actress and mental health advocate. Over the course of her acting career, she was the recipient of an Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, three Primetime Emmy Awa ...

that aired on popular children's shows such as the highly influential ''

Ding Dong School ''Ding Dong School'', billed as "the nursery school of the air", was a half-hour children's TV show which began on WNBQ-TV (now WMAQ-TV) in Chicago, Illinois a few months before its four-year run on NBC (albeit still produced in the WNBQ studios). ...

'' with

. "Sweet Sue," introduced in 1951, was popular through the decade into the early 1960s. A pre-teen plastic doll, she came in a variety of sizes. In 1957, American Character marketed "Sweet Sue Sophisticate," a 14" or 20" fashion doll. The "Toodles" multi-jointed plastic doll — able to "kneel, sit, play and assume 1,000 different positions" — was introduced in 1955 and became a big seller for American Character, including its associated products like "Toodles Toddler" (1955-1959), "Teeny Toodles" (1959-1960), and "Tommy Toodles" (1959-1960). "Toni," released in 1958, was a

fashion doll Fashion dolls are dolls primarily designed to be dressed to reflect fashion trends. They are manufactured both as toys for children to play with and as collectibles for adults. The dolls are usually modeled after teen girls or adult women, thou ...

for Toni hair products, sold by

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. Toni, also marketed as "Cha Cha" or "High Society," was popular into the 1960s. Tressy, introduced in 1963, was a

with a feature to adjust the length of its hair. The doll was invented and patented by modern furniture designer Jesse Dean and his wife, Diana. It was first sold as an 11½" fashion doll similar to

Barbie Barbie is a fashion doll manufactured by American toy company Mattel, Inc. and launched on March 9, 1959. American businesswoman Ruth Handler is credited with the creation of the doll using a German doll called Bild Lilli as her inspiration. ...

. Tressy featured a long swatch of hair that could be pulled out of the top of the doll's head by pushing a button on the doll's midriff; that mechanism allowed children the ability to comb the hair in a variety of styles. American Character clearly intended that Tressy's "growing" hair feature would give the doll a marketing edge over its blockbuster competitor, Barbie. Tressy was popular from the outset, selling into its retirement in 1965. Unlike

, which maintained sole manufacturing and global distribution rights on its bestselling Barbie doll, American Character allowed the Regal Toy Company of Canada to manufacture and sell its own version of Tressy, which had heavier eye and facial makeup. There was also a Palitoy Tressy sold in the United Kingdom and a Bella Tressy made and marketed by Societe Bella in France. "Cricket" was marketed by the American Character Doll Co. in 1964 as Tressy's cousin. American Character focused on talking dolls in the early 1960s, with such models as "Little Miss Echo" (1962-1964), "Baby Babbles" (1963), and "Baby Says," (1963). The only celebrity dolls American Character released in the 1960s were the Cartwright Family (1966), based on ''

Bonanza ''Bonanza'' is an American Western television series that ran on NBC from September 13, 1959, to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 432 episodes, ''Bonanza'' is NBC's longest-running western, the second-longest-running western series on ...

''. The company's final big product launches were "Whimsies" (1960–1961), a line of dolls with names like Bashful Bride, Dixie the Pixie, Fanny (an angel), Hedda Get Bedda (a multi-face doll, with three faces), Hilda the Hillbilly, Lena the Cleaner, Miss Take, Monk, Polly the Lady Raggie, Simon, Strong Man, Suzie the Snoozie, Tillie the Talker, Wheeler Dealer, Zack the Sack, and Zero the Hero (a

football player A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

); and "Tiny Whimsies" (1966), a line of 7-1/2" dolls with names like Lites Out (nightgown), I'm Yours (bride), Fly with Me (witch), Swing It (dancer), Love Me (red pantsuit), and I'm Hooked (groom); and a line of 6" dolls with names like Pixie, Swinger, Granny, Lites out, Minnie Mod, Jump'n, and Go-Go.

Dolls manufactured by American Character

1920s

* Baby Petite/Teenie Weenie (1925) — 11"-15" baby doll also known as "Bye-Lo" or "Tynie Baby" * Bottletot (1926) — 14" baby doll, also marketed as "Happy Tot," "Marvel Tot," and "Toddle Tot" * Campbell Kids (1928–1929) — 12" dolls designed by Grace Drayton, sometimes called "Dolly Dingle" after the paper dolls also designed by Drayton. Came in two versions: "Sally" and "Puggy" * Lucky Aviation Kid (1927) — 14"

doll * Mama / Petite (1922–1930s) — line of mother and character dolls varying in size from 12"-24"; also known as "Wonder Baby"

1930s

* Smiling Sally (1930s) — came in 12," 15," or 16" versions * Sally Joy (1930s) — 18-24" doll * Carol Ann Beery (1935) — 13-1/2" or 16" doll * Sally Jane (1936-1938) —15," 17," 19," and 22"-tall

Shirley Temple Shirley Temple Black (born Shirley Jane Temple;While Temple occasionally used "Jane" as a middle name, her birth certificate reads "Shirley Temple". Her birth certificate was altered to prolong her babyhood shortly after she signed with Fox in ...

look-a-like doll made from "Paratex"

1940s

* Little Love (1942-1947) — 15", 18" Bye-Lo Baby or Tynie Baby look-a-like * Pre Sweet Sue (1947) — 17-18" doll; later made into Kathryn Grayson autographed celebrity doll

1950s

* ''

'' (1952) — 18" doll; essentially Sweet Sue in a blue dress with white pinafore * Annie Oakley (1954) — 15-25" doll; essentially Sweet Sue in an outfit of green denim culottes, matching bolero, satin blouse and scarf, felt hat, holster with two guns and cowboy boots * Baby Sue (1957) — 17" or 23" hard plastic doll * Betsy McCall (1957-1959) — 8"-36" hard plastic doll;Anderton, Johana Gast. ''Twentieth Century Dolls From Bisque to Vinyl'' (Trojan Press, 1971). also marketed as her "cousin" Sandy McCall * Chuckles (1952-1961) — 18-19, 22" vinyl doll * Eloise (1958-1959) — 21" cloth doll named after the series of children's books by Kay Thompson and Hilary Knight * Life Size Sweet Sue (1955-1956) — 24" and 31" doll * '' I Love Lucy'' Baby (1952–1956) — baby doll later known as " Little Ricky" * ''I Love Lucy''

(1952) — 28" cloth doll with a hard plastic painted face, red bangs showing beneath her kerchief, big blue eyes, wearing her red and white striped blouse, an apron with "I Love Lucy" printed on it, with two heart shaped pockets and red peddle pusher pants * ''I Love Lucy'' Ricky (1953–1955) — vinyl doll with molded hair and sleep eyes in various outfits * Jimmy John (1954) — 18" "magic skin" doll that cooed when the tummy was pressed * Sweet Sue (1951-1961) — 14," 15," 18"-21", 24," and 31" pre-teen plastic doll * Sweet Sue Sophisticate (1957) — 14" or 20" fashion doll * Teeny Toodles (1959-1960) — 11" vinyl five-piece-jointed doll *

(1950–1968) — "crying" baby doll in 11-1/2," 13 1/2," 16," and 20" sizes * Tommy Toodles (1959-1960) — 22-23" doll marketed as Toodles' brother * Toni (1958–1960s) — 10," 14," 20," and 25" fashion doll for Toni hair products (

) made from the same face mold as Sweet Sue Sophisticate; also marketed as "Cha Cha" or "High Society" * Toodles (1955-1960s) — 19-30" plastic multi-jointed doll * Toodles Toddler (1955-1959) — 19-1/2", 21," and 24" vinyl multi-jointed doll also known as "Toodles The Action Doll"

1960s

* Baby Babbles (1963) — 23" doll with a foam-covered voice box that says phrases * Baby Says (1963) — 17" speaking doll with eleven different phrases (battery-operated) * Butterball (1961) — 19" or 23" soft vinyl Magi-form doll * Cartwright Family (1966) — 8" celebrity dolls from ''

'': Ben, Hoss, Little Joe, and Adam * Chuckles (1961) — big girl doll * Cricket (1964) — fashion with growing hair feature; Tressy's "cousin" also known as "Toots" * Little Miss Echo (1962-1964) — 30" hard plastic talker doll with battery operated tape recorder * Mary Makeup (1964) — Tressy's friend without the grow-hair feature * Mini-Whimsies (1966) — 6- 7 1/2" molded vinyl line of dolls; successor to Whimsies * Popi (1963) — 11" pop-apart fashion doll with three separate wigs and a cut-and-drape non-sew dress * Pouty Penny (1966) — 13," 20," or 22" baby doll also marketed as "Freckles" * Pre-Teen (1963) — 14" grow-hair vinyl doll with a button on the tummy that enabled the doll's hair to grow or retract; only made in 1963, then was discontinued to make way for Tressy * Sally Says (1963-1965) — 18"-19" vinyl toddler doll with a battery operated talker * Snip n' Tuck (1966) — mannequin Popi doll in a frame, with fabric and accessories for children to design and make their own non-sew clothing * Suzie the Snoozie (1960) — 22" sleeping doll * Teenie

(1964) — 12" doll * Tiny Whimsies (1966) * Toodle-Loo (1961) — 17-18" magic foam fully jointed vinyl doll * Tressy (1963–1967) — fashion doll with growing hair feature; also marketed as "Magic Makeup Tressy" and "Black Magic Makeup Tressy" * Whimsies (1960–1961)

References

External links

Website devoted to Whimsies line of dolls
{{Authority control Doll manufacturing companies Toy companies of the United States Defunct toy manufacturers Defunct manufacturing companies based in New York City American companies established in 1919 Manufacturing companies disestablished in 1968 Ideal Toy Company Toy companies established in 1919