Hobbies And Interests
History
The plastic charms from Japan were made beginning in the early 1920s. They were made in the city of Kobe and are often referred to as Kobe charms. Not only were they the early favorite to be placed in gumball machines, they were also found on cigar boxes and sewn on clothing for decoration. The Kobe charms made from the 1920s until the beginning of World War II are considered to be very collectible. In the 1950s celluloid was considered to be dangerous because of its flammable nature and its use in the charms was discontinued.
Vanilla Charms
The earliest charms were a simple white or transparent plastic. These are known as the "vanilla" charms and came in the shape of cars, animals, flowers and all manner of every day objects. Charms were also fashioned to resemble sports figures of that era. Some of these early charms are quite valuable. Collectors are always on the lookout for those that are shaped like a trolley car, the Eiffel Tower or a Japanese pagoda.
Painted Charms
Soon, colored charms started showing up in those gumball machines. Hand painting likenesses of cartoon characters of the times such as Popeye were popular, as were hand painted Japanese Geisha charms. The Popeye character was such a hit that four different versions were produced. Another favorite was Tweety Pie, based on the cartoon character that was the perpetual intended snack for Sylvester the cat.
Quality
Some of the charms were painted so delicately that they were true miniature works of art. In some cases, the charms had gold accents or lines that seemed to be made by a single brush hair. The more detail oriented the painting, the higher the value. Unusual charms, such as odd-shaped dogs, ostriches or dragons, or finely painted cats in delicate poses are difficult to find and considered highly collectible.
Cracker Jack
Some of these charms from Japan also made their way into Cracker Jack boxes in the 1950s. Cracker Jack was and still is a treat made with caramel coated popcorn and peanuts that also promises a toy inside the box. Other companies also contributed to the "toy surprise inside" but the hand-painted charms from Japan were the first.