May 30
Once I identified my miniature model 500 as being a pen holder, I began keeping my eyes open for other miniature phones, pen holders and the like. Next thing I knew, I had won this dandy princess phone pen holder on eBay, complete with its original matching pen. (Is it just me, or is there something odd about eBay using the term won in regards to something purchased?) Even the cardboard box it came in appears to be original. The bottom of the box is stamped, 1206 BEIGE, while on the top is hand-written, Michigan Bell Telephone. (possibly written by the seller or a previous owner) Clearly a promotional piece released by Bell Telephone during (or before) the introduction of the princess phone, the number card features a tiara with the words “The Princess” below, and the underside bears the frequently used slogan:
The Princess phone . . .it’s little, it’s lovely, it lights!
And little it is. Proportionately smaller than my model 500 pen holder, the princess is just over four inches long…nearly an inch and a half shorter than the pen that accompanies it. 
Speaking of proportions, the accompanying photos show how accurate the form of the telephone really is. Though mine is light beige, I would be surprised if these pen holders weren’t also produced in the other four original Princess colors: white, pink, light blue and turquoise. Now just how and where these spiffy little phones were distributed is unknown to me, but it appears that a nearly identical miniature was given away at the 1962 World’s Fair in Seattle. That version is marked across the handset in gold, Bell System Exhibit, Seattle World’s Fair, and doesn’t have any provision for pen holding. Given that so many telephone collectors/historians are former Bell employees, I would expect that a number of people could probably shed some light on these miniatures.
May 27
You may have already read about a nifty phone that I picked up while on vacation in Reno (its identity is still a closely-guarded secret), but that wasn’t the only phone that followed me home. I also got an interesting toy phone/bank combo made by The Gong Bell Manufacturing Company of East Hampton, Connecticut. I’ve recently begun the study of toy phones and the companies that made them, and one of the most important of those companies was definitely The Gong Bell Manufacturing Company. Gong Bell was founded in 1866 as a manufacturer of door bells, with toys being added to the lineup in 1872. Toys, made of cast iron, wood or stamped steel, eventually became their primary product. The company was probably associated with, and possibly a subsidiary of, the N.N. Hill Brass Company. Among the numerous phone models produced by Gong Bell were the Speedphone, Dial Phone, Dial Pla Phone, Wall Phone, Ranch Phone, Pla Phone, Pla Pay Phone, TV Pay Phone, Jumbo Pay Phone, Country Phone, Pay Bank Phone, Voice Phone, Unitphone, Duchess Phone, Electric Dial Hand Phone, Future Phone, and the Disney-themed “mousekaphone”. Whew!
While they didn’t invent them, Gong Bell was almost certainly the first company to make extensive use of bells, gongs and chimes that were actuated mechanically during play, typically ringing with the turning of a wheel. Gong Bell made many types of toys, including hobby horses and other riding, pushing and pulling toys, but phones were always a major part of their production. Toy phones were in fact invented at Gong Bell, by Clifford M. Watrous in 1921. They made good use of an extraordinarily compact ringer, a clever design that was awarded several patents. With this simple technology they were in position to capitalize on the growth of an important household item, the telephone. Read the rest of this entry »
Apr 21
Peripheral collections are great aren’t they? When you’re out hunting for whatever it is that you collect and having no luck, you come across something that ties to it. I combed through the stuff at my favorite flea market yesterday in hopes of finding old phones, but instead I came home with an interesting telephone-related item. At first it appeared to be a toy telephone, but upon closer inspection I could see that this accurately rendered model 500 served another purpose, one that I’ve yet to determine with total confidence. The seller said it was an inkwell, but I found that highly unlikely. After all, how many inkwells were produced in the Model 500 era? In the center of the dial (where the number card would be) is a hole that does indeed look like the opening of an inkwell, complete with ink remnants. But before we go into full mystery-solving mode, let’s go over the details of this little beauty. Read the rest of this entry »
Once I identified my miniature model 500 as being a pen holder, I began keeping my eyes open for other miniature phones, pen holders and the like. Next thing I knew, I had won this dandy princess phone pen holder on eBay, complete with its original matching pen. (Is it just me, or is there something odd about eBay using the term won in regards to something purchased?) Even the cardboard box it came in appears to be original. The bottom of the box is stamped, 1206 BEIGE, while on the top is hand-written, Michigan Bell Telephone. (possibly written by the seller or a previous owner) Clearly a promotional piece released by Bell Telephone during (or before) the introduction of the princess phone, the number card features a tiara with the words “The Princess” below, and the underside bears the frequently used slogan:
Speaking of proportions, the accompanying photos show how accurate the form of the telephone really is. Though mine is light beige, I would be surprised if these pen holders weren’t also produced in the other four original Princess colors: white, pink, light blue and turquoise. Now just how and where these spiffy little phones were distributed is unknown to me, but it appears that a nearly identical miniature was given away at the 1962 World’s Fair in Seattle. That version is marked across the handset in gold, Bell System Exhibit, Seattle World’s Fair, and doesn’t have any provision for pen holding. Given that so many telephone collectors/historians are former Bell employees, I would expect that a number of people could probably shed some light on these miniatures.
