This 1939 Pinocchio figure was made by the Ideal Novelty & Toy Co. and has all the wonderfully odd character you want from an early Disney toy. Constructed from a mix of composition and wood, he has jointed arms and legs, oversized hands and feet, a molded head with big blue eyes and that unmistakable long nose, plus his red-painted outfit, fabric bow, and felt hat with feather. The hat is especially nice to see, since it is often missing on surviving examples.
There is plenty of honest age throughout, including crazing, paint loss, surface wear, small cracks, and general handling marks. Rather than hurting the piece, it gives him the right kind of lived-in look for a toy that is now well over 80 years old. The partial Ideal Novelty & Toy Co. label is still visible on the body.
Pinocchio was already a well-known literary character long before Disney got hold of him. Carlo Collodi’s story first appeared in serialized form in Italy in the early 1880s, but Walt Disney’s animated adaptation, released in 1940, is what turned Pinocchio into a permanent pop-culture figure. Production on the film had been underway for years, and licensed toys began appearing around the time of its release.
Ideal Novelty & Toy Co., founded in New York in the early 20th century, became one of America’s major toy manufacturers. The company was particularly important in the development of character dolls and licensed figures, using materials such as composition, wood, cloth, and later plastics.
Early Disney character toys like this sit right at the intersection of animation history and American toy making. They were produced before character merchandising became the enormous industry it is today, and their handmade-looking construction gives them a personality later mass-produced toys rarely have. Pinocchio feels especially fitting in this form, being a wooden puppet translated back into an actual jointed toy.
This 1939 Pinocchio figure was made by the Ideal Novelty & Toy Co. and has all the wonderfully odd character you want from an early Disney toy. Constructed from a mix of composition and wood, he has jointed arms and legs, oversized hands and feet, a molded head with big blue eyes and that unmistakable long nose, plus his red-painted outfit, fabric bow, and felt hat with feather. The hat is especially nice to see, since it is often missing on surviving examples.
There is plenty of honest age throughout, including crazing, paint loss, surface wear, small cracks, and general handling marks. Rather than hurting the piece, it gives him the right kind of lived-in look for a toy that is now well over 80 years old. The partial Ideal Novelty & Toy Co. label is still visible on the body.
Pinocchio was already a well-known literary character long before Disney got hold of him. Carlo Collodi’s story first appeared in serialized form in Italy in the early 1880s, but Walt Disney’s animated adaptation, released in 1940, is what turned Pinocchio into a permanent pop-culture figure. Production on the film had been underway for years, and licensed toys began appearing around the time of its release.
Ideal Novelty & Toy Co., founded in New York in the early 20th century, became one of America’s major toy manufacturers. The company was particularly important in the development of character dolls and licensed figures, using materials such as composition, wood, cloth, and later plastics.
Early Disney character toys like this sit right at the intersection of animation history and American toy making. They were produced before character merchandising became the enormous industry it is today, and their handmade-looking construction gives them a personality later mass-produced toys rarely have. Pinocchio feels especially fitting in this form, being a wooden puppet translated back into an actual jointed toy.
