Metal 1920s prizes...? Maybe?

The place to ask your Cracker Jack Prize questions. (Open to All)
ronson
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Joined: Tue Oct 09, 2012 4:44 pm

Metal 1920s prizes...? Maybe?

Post by ronson »

Howdy folks!

This is a really neat site, and a very generous forum. I recently found all my CJ prizes I collected as a child in the 1970s, but what I'd like to inquire about are some little metal fellas I purchased off eBay, each of which claimed to be CJ prizes from the 1920s.

Can any of you good folks confirm?
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Donovan
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Re: Metal 1920s prizes...? Maybe?

Post by Donovan »

I found everything except the frog and skull listed in the CJ reference book. They're from the 1920's. None of these are worth more than a dollar or two though.

The frog looks consistent with the animal charm series from the 20's, so I'd say it probably CJ also. Not all prizes are necessarily listed.

Not sure about the skull. That wasn't exactly a popular CJ subject. I'd lean toward it not being a CJ prize.
dianep2
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Re: Metal 1920s prizes...? Maybe?

Post by dianep2 »

:hiya: Hi Ronson and Donovan,

Yes, I agree. I think they could all be Cracker Jack except for the skull. The skull is kind of neat and appropriate for this time of year but I just don't think he is CJ. But I'm not an expert. Ok, all you experts out there in Cracker Jack Land. What do you think?

Thank you for showing us your metal prizes, Ronson. Come and see us again soon.
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ronson
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Re: Metal 1920s prizes...? Maybe?

Post by ronson »

Donovan, Sister Diane, thanks for the replies!

I prolly overpaid for these, on average $3-4 each, but at the moment, I'm not collecting for value and will only be keeping a couple of these for myself... others will go to friends and family, etc.

I just get such a kick out of the early pot metal charms... especially given the (cough) prizes that are now to be found in boxes of CJ... my kiddos were a little disappointed, a few weeks ago, when they opened their first CJ prizes... and they didn't even have older prizes to mentally reference! Ah, well.

As I mentioned above, I do have many of my CJ prizes from the 1970s, kept when I was a boy, maybe 30+ or so... would this be the place to post a photo, just to share with other enthusiasts?

Thanks again!
Ronson
dianep2
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Re: Metal 1920s prizes...? Maybe?

Post by dianep2 »

:( I can certainly understand the disappointment your children felt when they opened their first CJ prizes recently. They sure aren't much to brag about, are they? A good portion of my collection is from my growing-up years in the late 40's and 50's. That was the heyday for beautifully detailed and brightly colored plastic figures. You'll never see those gems in a box of Cracker Jack again.

Sure, you could post a photo of your collection here. Or you could do it on the "General Discussion" forum. We shall look forward to seeing what you have.

Thank you for sharing your interest in CJ prizes with us.
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Luke
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Re: Metal 1920s prizes...? Maybe?

Post by Luke »

Hiya Ronson,

I've overpaid for many of my Cracker Jack prizes, but I've never regretted it.

I'm glad Don and Diane commented on them, as I know next to nothing about prizes from the 20's.
ronson
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Childhood collection, 1970s

Post by ronson »

Diane, I do like those 1940s/1950s plastic toys, also, but I have yet to add any to my fledgling collection. I'm fascinated by the prizes from that time period, stuff that CJ would not/could not include today, like the tiny Shiva I've seen some members share photos of. Really interesting!

Luke, I was raised by a collector of various antiques, who instilled in me the idea that there's book value, and there's personal value... so no regrets from me, either, as of yet.

And here's a pic of my little childhood collection... I think these are 70s, but maybe they are 80s... I can't remember for sure, truth be told.

Thanks for letting me share!
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Donovan
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Re: Metal 1920s prizes...? Maybe?

Post by Donovan »

Hi Ronson

Don't feel bad. I don't think you overpaid for those. Stuff like that can easily go for $5 each, especially if you buy them individually. Besides, an extra dollar or two is like drinking an extra coffee or coke at work, but in this case you get to keep a neat collectible. It's almost impossible to overpay for CJ prizes. Buy what you like and don't give it a second thought.

Don
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Donovan
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Re: Metal 1920s prizes...? Maybe?

Post by Donovan »

By the way, that charm series has over 40 different identified charms. It's a neat series. I don't collect them but it would be neat if someone here attempted it and tried to find as many different as possible. None of them are rare, and you could easily find additional unlisted charms, like your frog, which I think belongs in the series. (This is the C-2000 series in Larry White's book, which places them at 1922)

There's also scarcer japanned variations of the charms, they aren't rare either but they are quite a bit scarcer than the bare pot metal versions and those probably go for $5-$10 each. A specialized collection of these could easily end up being a couple hundred different charms, not to mention the discoveries that could be made.
dianep2
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Re: Metal 1920s prizes...? Maybe?

Post by dianep2 »

Ronson, I so agree with Luke and Donavan. I have also paid too much for some prizes but I had the money in my pocket and I "needed" the prize so, I paid the price. On the other hand, I have also found some great deals on occasion. About two years ago I was in a small town antique shop when I found a canning jar full of the 50's plastic prizes. When I asked the dealer how much they were, she replied, "Oh, I don't know. Does 25 cents a piece sound OK?" I quickly replied that yeah, I guess that was reasonable and bought all of them, of course. If you see a prize you want and you have some money in your pocket, buy it!!! You never know when you'll come across that prize again.

I loved seeing the photo of your collection. I have several of those prizes but not all. I especially like the slide cards you have. I am still missing 4 in that series. I am a retired teacher and often used those cards as little quizzes with my students. They loved drilling each other on the information on the cards.

Thanks for sharing! :banana:
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