Crazy for You

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Interesting headline in the L.A. Times yesterday: “Teddy Bear Chief Quits Board of Vt. Hospital.” It appears the Vermont Teddy Bear Co. produced a Valentine’s Day bear, dressed in a straitjacket and marketed under the name "Crazy for You”. This fact would have passed unnoticed, or with only slightly raised eyebrows had not the head of the company been a member of the board of Vermont’s largest hospital.

Advocates for the mentally ill and the Governor (not Howard Dean) deemed the product ‘insensitive’. While Elizabeth Robert resigned from the hospital’s board, the company did not take the product off the market…and it sold out last week at $69.95 a pop! (Look for them on E-bay soon and buy one to donate to our collection…)

- OH MY! Crazy Alert! I just checked E-bay and see that the ursine character in question is already being touted for as high as $15,000.00!!! Never mind…only donate one to us if you get one as a gift and don’t want it.

This reminds me of the time I produced a calendar made of 3” high felt bears as an art piece. I made a bear that somehow expressed or encapsulated each day of my life for a year. The piece appeared in progress at the Barnsdall Municipal Art Gallery in December 1978 as part of that year’s A Magical Mystery Tour Show – a long defunct and much missed L.A. tradition. Art critic Suzanne Muchnic drew the short straw and had to cover it for the L.A.Times. She called me for an interview and seemed much annoyed at having to ask me about the piece at all. She wanted to know why… and I answered that I was a toy artist (nomenclature that apparently means something in the current art toys movement, but was gibberish in 1978) and that the bears sort of were my personal art icon. The piece was my way of taking it a step further by having the bears stand in for a year of my life. (I could tell I wasn’t convincing her.) She asked me what kinds of events were represented -- like how did I represent the Jonestown Massacre? I told her that I tried not to censor myself, but that most of the incidents were personal, so that particular event wasn’t an issue. But I did admit to copping out on Easter and making a bear with bunny ears rather than on a crucifix. She didn’t laugh.

In fact I am seriously considering putting her description of my work on my tombstone: “It all looks too cute for a real live person.”

Urban Toy Show

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Earlier this month I attended my first Urban Toy Collectors Show and Sale in Pasadena. I was looking forward to finally talking to people who might be able to educate me on the whole urban toy phenomenon. (I have since received my copy of Vinyl Will Kill and hope to become more enlightened soon) Imagine my disappointment when, after hiking around a labyrinth of elevators and parking structures (tersely redirected by Chinese entrepreneurs having a convention in the same building) the show amounted to a mere six 8 ft. tables placed around a small room and sparsely covered with mostly toys by one manufacturer, Toy2R.

Slim though the pickings were, I got the feeling that I was seeing the beginning of something that will soon be bigger and more mainstream in the not too distant future. These are the first defectors from Comic-Con. The Blue Fairy has endowed these comic book/graphic novel figures with life, and they have run away, like Collodi’s Pinocchio.

From what I could gather, the word ‘toy’ in urban toy is kind of misleading. It is definitely more art than toy, although by the nature of materials and manufacturing (vinyl, plastic, and mass production) these objects could really serve as toys. (Although I don’t see someone paying $60 for a vinyl figure and then handing it over to a toddler to gnaw on – well, maybe $10.)

The coordinator of this show was a young Asian American woman who goes by the name “Mochi”. I was impressed by her knowledge of self-promotion. I think that’s why I expected so much of the show. The ads were professional and large and in all the local papers. Expecting that Mochi was a very savvy retailer, I asked her where her store was. As it turns out she is just a devoted fan of the Urban Toy Movement and organized the show to attract people to buy from and trade with.

Urban (or Designer)Toys are like a dimensional response to video/computer games. To me at least, there is still something missing. The future of toys lies somewhere between these two. There is a tactile quality that urban toys provide – the secret pocket companionship that is missing from the world of gaming. But the graphics reflect the same image world of computer and video games. There is a lot of violence and darkness here. And some of it seems to have form over substance – it looks cool but refers to nothing with which I can identify(is this user failure on my part?) Not that toys need to be Sanrio-cute to be ‘good’ toys – but much of what I saw lacked soul. The best of what I’ve seen in this genre is able to evoke a good hearty laugh or at least a smile. It will be interesting to watch the evolution of these toys…

Cabaret Mechanical Theatre

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They’re back! I think the last time I visited the Cabaret Mechanical Theatre web site was just before my last trip to the UK in 2001. I was hoping to see their museum in person and was devastated to see that they had moved out of London. For one reason or another, I guess I haven't visited the web site in awhile. I am amazed to see the activity they are involved in here in the U.S.! It has always been my dream to see the CMT to some place in America. In fact, when we started the LATDA Museum, it was with the long-range desire to partner with them in the future.

Morris Museum

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Another great contribution from one of our members! Nance in New Mexico sent us news about the opening of a great exhibition at the Morris Museum in Morristown, New Jersey. The museum recently received a bequest from Murtogh D. Guinness (yes, that Guinness) of over 700 mechanical automata and musical instruments and has begun to exhibit selections from the collection. They have also mounted a WONDERFUL online exhibit complete with live-action and sound of selected pieces. (It requires some sort of media player on your computer but is really worth it!)

I spent a long time poring over every section of the exhibition. (‘The Magic Cupboard ‘was one of my favorites). But as great as it was to see everything on the computer, I now have a burning desire to see these objects in person. And I hope that others feel the same way too, because that is what makes a museum important. Plato’s cave analogy in the Republic applies here… the internet provides us the shadows and images of objects but we should desire to know the objects and the stories, people, beyond them.

The Morris Museum’s handling of the Guinness Collection is something to aspire to. We hope to be a venue by the time the Morris Museum starts thinking about traveling some of its collection!

Toy manufacturing (continued)

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Speaking of “slow toys” (as in ‘slow food’ – look it up!) I received a wonderful drumming monkey for my 23rd wedding anniversary. The box was delightfully rendered in retro-graphics, but had a discreet URL printed on the top, just under the “Made in Mexico” tagline. Naturally I jumped on the internet and visited the Cositas Brand web site to learn more about this particular Jacko and his friends.

Bomba means ‘pump’ in Spanish, and refers to the rubber bulb that, when squeezed, provides the low-tech action power of these rubber toys. The same family workshop has been producing the Bomba toys since 1945. Eight people produce 500 pieces a week, all by hand. This has made the company very selective about its distribution, offering their goods only to select retailers. We hope that in the spring, the LATDA Museum store will be one of the chosen ones.

“I should taste bitterness while I’m young.”

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This is a quotation from a Chinese worker in a Mattel contractor toy factory in Guangzhou. (from Sweat, Fear and Resignation Amid All the Toys, Los Angeles Times, November 26, 2004). Being prone to magical thinking, I found it interesting that a.) the article appeared on my brother’s 50th birthday, b.) that my brother used to work for Mattel, and c.) that my brother is in China for a visit. (We magical thinkers like to string together unrelated events and see deeper meaning…)

Manufacturing - the dark side of toys…as if the marketing of toys wasn’t dark enough. Reading this article by Abigail Goldman I was torn as to what to think about this world that LATDA hopes to explore and celebrate. As with politics, religion, and all social ethics, the world is in a dizzying stage of chaos. Since one of LATDA’s precepts is that toys reflect the world at large, I guess it is no surprise that the toy industry partakes in the ugliness of the world even as it proposes to provide enjoyment and mental nourishment for our most vulnerable and valuable members of society.

Li Xiao Hong is 20 years old and works on an assembly line for 5½, ten-hour days a week at $65 a month. Did she ever play with toys when she was a child? Is she able to look at toys without a feeling of profound exhaustion? Will she have children and buy toys for them?

The article says that sincere attempts are being made to reform the manufacturing process in the many third world countries that are providing the largest toy companies with their products. Mattel has established ‘humane campuses’ in China and Indonesia, but they account for a fraction of the world’s toy manufacturing facilities. And that’s only Mattel. Poor ventilation, toxic environments, and grueling work shifts are the norm in many other factories.

Every time I stop and admire a finely painted plastic toy or marvel at the complex and fine construction of a plush toy priced at a mere $4.95 or less, my guilt meter is triggered. Words like ‘slavery’, ‘political prisoners’, and ‘sweatshops’ bombard my mind and stay my hand from my credit card. But as pointed out in the article, if the manufacturer goes out of business, the workers lose their jobs – or conditions become even more intolerable as the race for a better bottom line demands more hours from less workers.

So what about ‘sustainable’ toy manufacturing? Or ‘slow toys’? What if we actually valued their products and paid more for them so the people who made them could be paid more? One might own fewer toys, but that wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing.

There have always been toy makers who work steadily at their craft and make an actual living pursuing that which they love. Of course some occasionally have to supplement their income with other jobs – even Geppetto had to make clocks on the side.

There is a wonderful book called “Goldie the Dollmaker” by M.B.Goffstein (regretfully out-of-print) that evokes a wildly un-industrial revolution attitude towards toy manufacturing. It takes Goldie three months to produce 18 of her simple wooden dolls. (Li Xiao Hong can assemble a Mini Touch ‘n Crawl doll in 21 seconds.) Goldie trades three months worth of dolls for a beautiful Chinese lamp and her friend calls her crazy. She falls asleep fretting over her foolishness and plans to return the impractical lamp in the morning. The spirit of the unknown artisan who made the lamp visits her in a dream. He tells her that he made the lamp for her, because she ‘understands’. The implication is that Goldie understands its beauty because she understands the love or passion that was put into it, just as she puts her love into her dolls to be recognized and released by the right recipient.

How much of yourself can you put into something that you make in 21 seconds? Why is it necessary to make something in 21 seconds except to meet manufacturing quotas? I don’t think that it is unheard of for people who make toys on an assembly line to feel proud of their work. But it is if you are being abused in other ways.


Not only love can break your heart

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Another Chapter 11 in the toy world was announced as Lionel filed for bankruptcy after losing a court ruling for allegedly ‘misappropriating’ designs from a competitor. This is the second time the company has filed for bankruptcy – the first occurring in 1991 when it was rescued by iconic rocker, Neil Young.

Now somewhere in the back of my head I filed this information about Neil Young owning a stake in Lionel Trains, thinking that this would be good material for LATDA. Being somewhat hampered by my stereotypical gender inclinations, I figured we’d wait until someone with true train passion and expertise came along to frame an exceptional and provocative train exhibition.

What I didn’t follow over the years is how much Neil Young has put into Lionel – he has been busy inventing and shaping product development. No dilettante ownership here. My outdated perception was that he had invested in Lionel because of the connection it gave him with his two young sons. I had no idea that he was a serious train hobbyist who has helped develop wireless controllers that would enable his son Ben, who has cerebral palsy, to operate complex train systems that don’t rely on fine motor skills.

Young is also responsible for a limited edition train set based on his music. The Greendale Train,with its devil chasing a political activist around one of the cars, has stirred up some of Young’s fellow hobbyists. Apparently politics and trains shouldn’t mix company according to the blogs. The Greendale Train sounds good fun to me and quite refreshing – if LATDA had the budget, we would definitely invest in Greendale and help out Lionel.

One day I found myself in a train store in West LA. I think I was looking for the stuff to make the little trees you see on train layouts. Eavesdropping on a conversation, I heard a man talk about a train layout he had been working on. He was a screenwriter (what else in L.A.?) trying to weather out the writers’ strike in the 80’s. His wife had suggested that he find a hobby to keep busy. He was in the process of creating a layout inside of a glass-topped coffee table. The landscape was based on scenes from a plague-ridden Europe, littered with piles of diseased corpses and feasting carrion. I couldn’t imagine what kind of trains he had running through his 14th century creation, but I hope it was Lionel.