Posted 5 years ago
dhhirsch
(13 items)
Hi all,
Hoping some of the Mickey Mouse watch experts can help me out. I have a bit of a mystery.
I’ve just added a Mickey Mouse watch to my collection, but it is a gold toned watch in a Happy Birthday box. It has a $7.95 price tag on it. My understanding is that the Birthday series watches sold for $6.95 and came out in 1948, which was the 20th “Birthday” of Mickey. I also have a 1947 Mickey Mouse watch in a box with a $6.95 price tag on it. Also, this one has “Ingersoll” on the dial. I’ve found a few references online that say that U.S. Time removed “Ingersoll” from the face of the Mickey Mouse watches in 1948, so is this from 1947, predating the Birthday series watches?. It also has the original paperwork, and the box has the insert, so it’s complete and appears unused.
On page 86 of the reference book Character & Novelty Clocks & Watches by Collings, it has a 1947 Mickey Mouse watch in gold tone with a $7.95 price tag on it, and says “Gold-toned deluxe Mickey Mouse. Sold for $1.00 more.” That one is in a “maroon box” that has both Ingersoll and US Time on it.
So, is the gold tone version scarce? Were they offered in the Happy Birthday box in 1947 (or 1948?) and with gold tone as an option? I also tried looking for ads, hoping to find a listing that showed it as an option, but haven’t found anything so far. Otherwise, I can’t find any reference to the gold tone version other than the one in the Collings book, but my reference material is pretty limited.
I suppose someone could have just stuck the gold tone watch in the Birthday series box, but the set looks correct with the price tag and paperwork, and I’m not sure why someone would have done that.
Any thoughts or insights would be great!
Thanks,
David
Allow me to pose something for you to consider.
Lets say this watch was in fact made in 1947. It is not at all unusual to have unsold product at the end of the year. When the calendar year changed to 1948 they would use up the excess supply of watches made in 1947 before starting a new production run for 1948. When the new production run for the 1948 year began the dropped name wouldn't be there.
I have gone through this dilemma with other items made or sold in a production change over year. I actually went back to the maker for answers for answers when possible and the above was the answer I was given in every instance where there were records. Unfortunately many companies don't make their archives public.
I call it the transition period, from one type of goods to another.
Always glad to hear fhrjr2's experience about these types of situations and many more. You can't replace the value of someone who was slugging it for years with no internet and still accumulated a mountain of information.
Good thought and likely correct. I'm guessing it was offered in some fashion as an option in gold tone, for $1.00 more, in 1948 when the Birthday series boxes came out. After all, while the Birthday series is fun with all of the other Disney characters they offered, what they were selling were watches in boxes designed to be birthday presents for kids...
The Birthday box was for the Birthday series.... the gold tone would been in a brown box...
nice piece and nice box.... just doesn’t go together.
Not bashing, just sharing my thoughts and years of research
Thanks Kerry,
Nice to finally meet you. I've seen a lot of your posts and it looked like you haven't participated for a while. I guess I need to find an appropriate Birthday watch for the box.
Hello, glad to meet you also..... I bounce in every now and again.
These boxes were used in all the characters for the series.... on the end of box will denote which one of the 10 watches goes in this box.
Note these were used in both 1948 and 49 issues, the luminous dials have a different insert.
Have a great day and happy collecting
Thanks Kerry...