Children of Japan

Children of Japan
Courtesy, R. John Wright

Hinges and Hearts

Hinges and Hearts
An Exhibit of our Metal Dolls

Tuxedo and Bangles

Tuxedo and Bangles

A History of Metal Dolls

A History of Metal Dolls
Now on Alibris.com and In Print! The First Book of its Kind

Alice, Commemorative Edition

Alice, Commemorative Edition
Courtesy, R. John Wright

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Emma, aka, La Contessa Bathory

Emma, aka, La Contessa Bathory
Her Grace wishes us all a Merry Christmas!

Annabelle

Annabelle

Emma Emmeline

Emma Emmeline
Our New Addition/fond of stuffed toys

Cloth Clown

Cloth Clown

Native American Art

Native American Art

the triplets

the triplets

c. 1969 Greek Plastic Mini Baby

c. 1969 Greek Plastic Mini Baby
Bought Athens on the street

Iron Maiden; Middle Ages

Iron Maiden; Middle Ages

Sand Baby Swirls!

Sand Baby Swirls!
By Glenda Rolle, courtesy, the Artist

Glenda's Logo

Glenda's Logo
Also, a link to her site

Sand Baby Castaway

Sand Baby Castaway
By Glenda Rolle, Courtesy the Artist

A French Friend

A French Friend

Mickey

Mickey
From our friends at The Fennimore Museum

2000+ year old Roman Rag Doll

2000+ year old Roman Rag Doll
British Museum, Child's Tomb

Ancient Egypt Paddle Doll

Ancient Egypt Paddle Doll
Among first "Toys?"

ushabti

ushabti
Egyptian Tomb Doll 18th Dynasty

Ann Parker Doll of Anne Boleyn

Ann Parker Doll of Anne Boleyn

Popular Posts

Tin Head Brother and Sister, a Recent Purchase

Tin Head Brother and Sister, a Recent Purchase
Courtesy, Antique Daughter

Judge Peep

Judge Peep

Hakata Doll Artist at Work

Hakata Doll Artist at Work
From the Museum Collection

Japanese Costume Barbies

Japanese Costume Barbies
Samurai Ken

Etienne

Etienne
A Little Girl

Happy Heart Day

Happy Heart Day

From "Dolls"

From "Dolls"
A Favorite Doll Book

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Jenny Wren

Jenny Wren
Ultimate Doll Restorer

Our Friends at The Fennimore Doll and Toy Museum

Our Friends at The Fennimore Doll and Toy Museum

Baby Boo 1960s

Baby Boo 1960s
Reclaimed and Restored as a childhood Sabrina the Witch with Meow Meow

Dr. E's on Display with sign

Dr. E's on Display with sign

Dolls Restored ad New to the Museum

Dolls Restored ad New to the Museum
L to R: K*R /celluloid head, all bisque Artist Googly, 14 in. vinyl inuit sixties, early celluloid Skookum type.

Two More Rescued Dolls

Two More Rescued Dolls
Late Sixties Vinyl: L to R: Probably Horseman, all vinyl, jointed. New wig. R: Effanbee, probably Muffy, mid sixties. New wig and new clothing on both. About 12 inches high.

Restored Italian Baby Doll

Restored Italian Baby Doll
One of Dr. E's Rescued Residents

Dolls on Display

Dolls on Display
L to R: Nutcrackers, Danish Troll, HItty and her book, Patent Washable, Mechanical Minstrel, Creche figure, M. Alexander Swiss. Center is a German mechanical bear on the piano. Background is a bisque German costume doll.

A Few Friends

A Few Friends
These dolls are Old German and Nutcrackers from Dr. E's Museum. They are on loan to another local museum for the holidays.

Vintage Collage

Vintage Collage
Public Domain Art

The Merry Wanderer

The Merry Wanderer
Courtesy R. John Wright, The Hummel Collection

The Fennimore Doll Museum

The Fennimore Doll Museum

Robert

Robert
A Haunted Doll with a Story

Halloween Dolls Displayed in a Local Library

Halloween Dolls Displayed in a Local Library

The Cody Jumeau

The Cody Jumeau
Long-faced or Jumeau Triste

German Princesses

German Princesses
GAHC 2005

A Little PowerRanger

A Little PowerRanger
Halloween 2004

The Island of the Dolls

The Island of the Dolls
Shrine to Dolls in Mexico

Based on the Nutshell Series of Death

Based on the Nutshell Series of Death
Doll House murder

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A lovely dress

A lovely dress

Raggedy Ann

Raggedy Ann
A few friends in cloth!

Fennimore Doll and Toy Museum, WI

Fennimore Doll and Toy Museum, WI
Pixar Animator's Collection

Little PM sisters

Little PM sisters
Recent eBay finds

Dressed Mexican Fleas

Dressed Mexican Fleas

Really old Dolls!

Really old Dolls!

Saturday, July 26, 2014

My Collision with Inside Edition, Freeing the Talega 11, and an Editor who wants Lots of Dolls, "The More the Merrier!"

There I was Friday, about to go to lunch, and begin a short day at work. A good friend was holding an estate sale, and there was a large bear and doll collection. I never made it. There was an email message for me from "Inside Edition." One of it's reporters wanted to talk to me about doll making. So, O.K., I try to promote doll collecting where I can, but I had a suspicion something else was at hand. This whole creepy doll thing has become very popular, and worrisome to collectors. I'm just surprised the media supports it. To make a long day short, I spent hours trying to accomdoate this young lady. I talked to her at length, gave her sources of all types, tried to upload Skype onto my new laptop, ran all over two states to get ready. She emailed me Friday morning, and wanted this all set up by 2pm Friday afternoon. The story she was following turned out not to be about doll makers, but about a "creepy doll story" in San Clemente, California. See below the quote from our former guide's blog; she sums it up well. I talked at length with the reporter, and actually had a nice talk about doll makers and porcelain dolls, and she took some notes on The National Institute of American Doll Artists, N.I.A.D.A. The beautiful dolls in this photo are courtesy of our friends at Theriault's.com. From Denise Van Patten's Blog: So, evidently some little old lady in Talega, California, left some porcelain dolls on porches as gifts for little girls in her area. This created a media firestorm all the way to the United Kingdom. "Mystery 'do-gooder' causes panic by leaving sinister dolls resembling REAL young girls outside homes in gated California community" screams the Daily Mail. "10 ‘Creepy’ Porcelain Dolls Found On Doorsteps In OC Were Meant To Be Nice Gesture" says CBS Los Angeles. [PS; Denise and I can both tell you that lookalike dolls are innocent toys that have been popular for over 200 years. Mme. Tussaud's father made them for Tussaud and her friend, Princess Mathilde. American Girls has them, and My Twin dolls have been popular for some time. There was a company in the sixties that made rag dolls with faces that were photographs of the doll's owners. I have a one of a kind doll given to me that was made as a portrait. Annette Himstedt and other artists modeled their dolls after live children. Jumeau allegedly did the same when Bebe Triste was created. I was ecstatic when my mom bought me a Miss Chips that looked like me. I still have her, and she is called "The Ellen Doll."] I was interviewed on this great crisis this morning by Inside Edition. Before the interview, I said I wasn't interested in talking to them if they were just going to portray the whole episode as creepy. Oh no, they assured me. So, what was the first question the reporter asked me? "Isn't this whole thing just a little bit creepy?" Poor lady, she just wanted to give the little girls in her neighborhood her daughter's dolls. She probably thought she was going to surprise them. How could she expect anyone to overreact this way? Grow up, folks, is all I have to say. So, San Clemente's finest have "booked" the dolls into evidence. The dolls are all modern porcelains, apparently. When the reporter sent me the link and I saw what the dolls were, I told her they were generic; they look like everyone's kids. I told her which companies made them, how much they cost, where they were made, and I told her about the Seymour Mann Company, owned by novelist Erica Jong's parents. She even asked me where people could buy similar dolls. I pretty much paraphrased my own post on modern porcelain dolls and "Waldas." Apparently, this wasn't what they wanted to hear at Inside Edition. Oh, and they hadn't heard of Erica Jong ["Fear of Flying], either. They wanted to "see" me on Skype, and they wanted dolls in the background "like the one's in San Clemente." Guess why. "The more the merrier," the reporter's editor kept saying in the background. After I read the story on Denises' site, link above, my suspicions were correct. They wanted to make doll collectors look at best, stupid, at worst, sinister. I guess story made it to the UK, too. Too bad my friend Mary Hillier isn't still with us to laugh at such silliness. They didn't quote me, which is probably a good thing in light of what Denise experienced. I've turned down other requests to let the local media into my home to talk about dolls. I went on one local TV show once to promote a lecture about historical dolls that I did for AAUW, but that's the last time. it was a lot of work for people who appreciated nothing, and they cut off off in favor of some man who makes bowls out of rotten wood. As for my recent experience, alls well that ends well. You may all remember that San Clemente was the home of former President Richard Nixon. He and his wife collected dolls for their daughters, and at one point, they paid aorund $150.00 in the seventies to restore two Siamese dolls. Hmm, folks in the Media and in San Clemente PD, think about that. No charges were filed against the lady who gave the dolls as gifts, but the "Talega 11" are still in the evidence locker. Gee, officers, you can send them to me and to Dr. E's Doll Museum. We'll be happy to have them, and honor the lady's generosity. The police note no crime was committed, but they were keeping the dolls because the whole thing was well, "creepy." I think the local police said the same thing when someone found a doll in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692.

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