 | |
| Formerly |
|
|---|---|
| Company type | Private (1908–82) Subsidiary (1982–97) |
| Industry | Entertainment |
| Founded | 1908 |
| Founders | Morris Michtom Rose Michtom |
| Defunct | 1997; 28 years ago (1997) |
| Fate | Merged withMattel in 1997, becoming a brand |
| Headquarters | , |
Key people | Abraham Katz, Lionel A. Weintraub, Joseph C. Winkler |
| Products | |
| Brands | |
| Parent | |
Ideal Toy Company was an American toy company founded byMorris Michtom and his wife, Rose. During thepost–World War II baby boom era, Ideal became the largestdoll-making company in theUnited States. Their most popular dolls includedBetsy Wetsy,[1] Toni, Saucy Walker,Shirley Temple, Miss Revlon,Patti Playpal,Tammy,Thumbelina, Tiny Thumbelina, andCrissy.[2] The company is also known for selling theRubik's Cube.
Morris and Rose Michtom founded the Ideal Novelty and Toy Company, inBrooklyn,New York, when they invented theTeddy bear in 1903.[3][4][5] Rose had made the original "Teddy's Bear" for their children. Morris and Rose sent a bear to President "Teddy" Roosevelt, and asked permission to use his name for the bear. Roosevelt "adopted" the bear and had it present in his campaign and on display at White House functions.[6] After Morris Michtom's death in 1938, the company changed its name to the Ideal Toy Company,[7] and Michtom's nephew Abraham Katz became chief executive.
Ideal began making dolls in 1907 to complement its line ofteddy bears. Their first doll was “Yellow Kid,” fromRichard Felton Outcault'scomic strip of thesame name. After that, Ideal began making a line of baby and character dolls such asNaughty Marietta (from theVictor Herbert operetta), andAdmiral Dot.[8] Ideal advertised their dolls as "unbreakable," since they were made ofcomposition, a material made of sawdust and glue, rather than ceramics. Ideal produced over 200 variations of dolls throughout the composition era.[2]
In 1914, Ideal had a boy doll launched named the Uneeda Kid, after abiscuit company.[9][8] It was patented on December 8, 1914.[10] The 15-inch boy doll wore a blue and white bloomer suit and held a box of Uneeda Biscuits under his arm.[11]
One of Ideal's most lasting products wasBetsy Wetsy, introduced in 1934 and in production for more than 50 years. The doll was named after the daughter of Abraham Katz, the head of the company.[2] Ideal, via the Betsy Wetsy doll, was also one of the first doll manufacturers to produce anAfrican American version of a popular doll.[12] In 2003, the Toy Industry Association named Betsy Wetsy to its Century of Toys List, a compilation commemorating the 100 most memorable and most creative toys of the 20th century.[13] Debuting in 1934, the Shirley Temple doll was Ideal's best-selling doll.[8] The company followed this with licensedDisney dolls and aJudy Garland doll.[4]
DuringWorld War II, the company's value rose from $2 million to $11 million.[14] The company began selling dolls under license inCanada,Australia, theUnited Kingdom, andBrazil in thepost–World War II baby boom era.[citation needed]
Two cosmetics-based doll series were launched after World War II: Toni was introduced at the end of the 1940s, and the MissRevlon series followed in the 1950s.[4] Doll designer, Judith Albert, worked for Ideal Toy Company from 1960 to 1982.[1]
Key Ideal employees during the 1950s, '60s, and '70s were Lionel A. Weintraub and Joseph C. Winkler. Weintraub, the son-in-law of Abraham Katz, joined the company in 1941 and rose to become president, chairman of the board, and chief executive officer. Winkler joined Ideal in 1956, rising to vice president by 1971.[15] Master sculptor, Vincent J. DeFilippo spent 27 years creating dolls for Ideal. Some of the company's most popular dolls during this period wereTammy (1962–1966),Flatsy dolls (1969–1973),Crissy (1969–1974), andTressy (1970–1972).
Ideal had a hobby division in the 1950s, then shifted from that to games in 1962.
In 1951, Ideal partnered with its competitors theAmerican Character Doll Company and theAlexander Doll Company to establish the United States-Israeli Toy and Plastic Corporation. The company was created to produce material for toys in Israel; the U.S. Ideal CEO, Abraham Katz, was named president of the new company.[16]
In 1953, Ideal won the licensing rights to produce theU.S. Forest Service'sSmokey Bear. They kept their licensing until 1968 when the U.S. Forest Service switched to Knickerbocker.[5]
In 1966, Ideal released toy puppets ofMuppet characters, includingKermit the Frog andRowlf the Dog.
In 1968, Ideal joined the New York Stock Exchange.[5]
In 1968, the American Character Doll Company filed for bankruptcy, and Ideal acquired the defunct company's dyes, patents, and trademarks,[17] as well as specific products like the "Tressy" Gro-Hair doll.
By the early 1970s, 30% of the company's sales were games such asMouse Trap and Hands Down.[14]
Popular Ideal toys in the 1970s included a full line ofEvel Knievel toys,Snoopy toys, and the Tuesday Taylor and Wake-up Thumbelina dolls.[18]
By 1970, Ideal had outgrown its manufacturing complex inHollis, Queens. The company wanted to build a new plant inCollege Point, Queens, but was unable to strike a deal with theLindsay administration. The company opened a new facility inNewark, New Jersey, in the early 1970s, while continuing to operate its factory in Hollis.[3][19][20]
In late 1971, Ideal joined theNew York Stock Exchange. Valued at $71 million, it was one of the U.S.'s top three toy companies.[14][5]
In 1979, a Hungarian inventor,Erno Rubik, pitched hisMagic Cube to Ideal Toy Company. Ideal renamed it theRubik's cube.[21][22][23] The toy was sold in stores beginning in 1980.[21] In May 1981, trying to maximize profits on theRubik's Cube craze, Ideal filedcivil suits against dozens of distributors and retailers sellingknockoff cubes.[24][25][26] The Rubik's Cube was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame in 2014.[27][28]
Ideal had earnings of $3.7 million in fiscal year 1979–1980, but lost $15.5 million in fiscal year 1980–1981. Sales both years averaged around $150 million.[15]
In May 1981, Joseph Winkler was named Ideal's president, succeeding Lionel Weintraub, who remained chairman and CEO.[15]
In 1982, the company moved its headquarters fromHollis, Queens, toHarmon Meadow, New Jersey. It was sold toCBS Toys later that year for around $58 million.[3][29]
In 1984, CBS sold Ideal toViewmaster International, which renamed itself "View-Master Ideal" in the process.[30]
In 1989, View-Master Ideal was bought byTyco Toys of Mt. Laurel,New Jersey, for $43.9 million.[31] The Ideal line remained part of Tyco until Tyco's merger withMattel, Inc., in 1997.[32][33][34][35]
Ideal's United Kingdom assets were sold toHasbro, which has since releasedMouse Trap,Buck-a-roo!, andKerPlunk under itsMB Games brand. Other toys that originated with Ideal continue to be marketed and sold by other companies, includingRubik's Cube byHasbro andMagic 8 Ball byMattel.[36]
The Ideal trademarks, and most toy molds not purchased by Hasbro or Mattel, were purchased by Jay Horowitz, of American Plastic Equipment, who later transferred all rights to American Plastic Equipment's subsidiary, American Classic Toys. Mr. Horowitz licensed the trademark and toy rights to Plaza Toys, to be used on its Fiddlestix building sticks products, and eventually sold the mark and toy rights in January 2011, to Poof-Slinky.[37]
In January 2014, the Ideal brand and toy rights became part of a new company, Alex Brands, after the May 2013 acquisition of Alex Toys by Propel Equity Partners.[38]
In early 2019, Jay Horowitz of American Classic Toys entered into an exclusive license agreement with the Juna Group to represent worldwide select Ideal brands (not included in the sale to Poof-Slinky) in all categories outside of toys and playthings.[citation needed] In 2023, this license agreement was acquired from The Juna Group by CSN Press LLC, publishers of the weekly newspaper,Comic Shop News.[citation needed]
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