THE GUND PUPPET

The following material has been brought together by a dedicated collector, who wishes to share his findings with all who share his love of GUND, especially GUND puppets. This page will help you to identify your old puppet, (as many old puppets are missing their tags and even their bodies!)

Via the eBay links, that will give you and idea of the value of your puppet.

In 1898 Adolph Gund, a German immigrant founded a toy and novelty company in Norwalk, Connecticut. The company named for its founder, Gund, would later become one of the notable pioneers in the global soft and plush toy industry. In 1925 when Gund retired he sold the company to one of his employees, Jacob Swedlin who had apprenticed under him for close to thirty years. Sweldin continued the tradition of establishing Gund as an innovative leader in the soft toy industry. He led the way in the marketing technique of licensing cartoon characters for soft toy production. He was able to obtain licenses from Disney and King Feature Syndicate, to produce plush toys of the well known characters of Popeye, Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse and Felix the Cat.

Gund is responsible for creating many of the industry standards used today, like safety standards and the manufacturing processes for toys. GUND was also the first company to produce a musical toy that was affordably-priced for the average American family. Gund is known for under-stuffing their products to make them softer than competing teddy bears. Gund became one of the 50 most recognized companies in America in the 1980s marketing the brand slogan, "Gotta Getta Gund."

The famous GOTTA GETTA GUND advertising campaign in the early 1980’s led to the company’s recognition as a leading consumer brand. Snuffles the bear and Muttsy the dog are two of the company’s most famous characters. Beginning in late 2002, GUND launched a new consumer ad campaign with two adorable creations, Manni and Dreyfus. The world is once again saying, “Gotta Getta GUND”.

On July 1, 2008 Gund was sold to Enesco, a gift company known for among other things the Cherished Teddies line. Operating as a division of the Enesco family of brands, Gund continues to build and expand upon a century of tradition. Today Gund sells over 1500 products including Gund, Baby Gund, Gund Bears, Gund Snuffles teddy bears, and Gund Holiday. Currently, GUND is a worldwide operation headquartered in Edison, New Jersey.

Pretend play means more than just fun for your children. For decades, young children have been engaging in role and pretend play. There are many reasons for this, first and foremost because children love to imitate what they see the grownups around them doing. Studies have shown that role and pretend playing can actually help your child's imagination grow. Pretend play fosters a child's cognitive development by encouraging them to problem-solve, by giving them social and linguistic skills, and by developing certain areas of their brains that lead to academic achievement. Children between the ages of two and six especially enjoy engaging in pretend play. Hand Puppets are perfect for this type of role play. Children can act out scenarios in real life, and emulate the normal routines they see every day. Allowing that role and pretend play lasts around five years' time for most children, a set of puppets is really an investment for a young child. Hand puppets sets come in many styles and many animal and people characters. You can find endless array of puppets which helps ensure that your child will never become bored. Add a puppet theatre and your child will be able to create ‘shows’ for themselves, family, and all their friends! Whatever puppets and puppet theatre set you decide on, know that you're looking at an investment into your child's future. The value of hand puppets goes way beyond giving your child just another toy to play with, it helps a little mind develop and a little imagination soar!

Gund puppets have been a part of many children’s lives. Our research shows that Gund puppets where produced from the 1940s-1960s. Gund created many different characters from Disney movies, and other shows such as Harvey Toons, King Feature Syndicate characters. Each puppet originally had a squeaker inside it in a pouch below the neck, “a toy with a voice”. There are two varieties of puppet body; the kind with the character printed onto the body, and the kind with the vintage fabric design on it. The vintage fabric design had felt hands and a red ribbon. Both kinds usually had some color of bias tape on the neck and bottom hems.

There are 70 disney gund puppets that we know of so far. But we are always looking for new information.

Mickey Mouse, formerly “Mortimer Mouse” first showed his face to the world in 1928, in the Disney Short Plane Crazy. Since then he has been one of the most beloved cartoon characters of all time!!

Mickey Mouse, short for Minerva Mouse first showed her face to the world in 1928, in the Disney Short Plane Crazy. Since then she has been around so Mickey wouldn’t get lonely!!

Goofy, originally “Dippy Dawg”, first showed his face to the world in 1932, in the Disney Short Mickey’s Revue. Since then he has been in many other Disney movies, cartoons, and remains in the hearts of children to this day.

onald Duck or Donald Fauntleroy Duck first showed his face to the world in 1934, in the Disney Short THE WISE LITTLE HEN. As far as we can tell, a puppet of Donald’s girlfriend Daisy was never created.

Pluto, originally “Pluto the Pup”, first showed his face to the world in 1930, in the Disney Short The Chain Gang. Mickey’s faithful pet, but in later cartoons is featured as the pet of Minnie or even Goofy.

Horace Horsecollar appeared frequently from 1930 to 1932 and less frequently afterward, making his final classic-era bow in 1942. His first appearance was in the Disney short The Plow Boy. As far as we can tell, a puppet of Horace’s girlfriend Clairabell was never created.

Dumbo, appearing in the movie Dumbo in 1941, taunted for the size of his enormous ears, the little elephant, Dumbo, is too young to understand what the laughter is about, but old enough to know that it's aimed at him. Cruelly separated from his mother by the circus, misunderstood and mistreated by the other animals, he's all alone in the world with "no warm trunk to cuddle up to, no one to dry his tears." Fortunately, he's got a mouse in his corner -- Timothy Mouse. With his new friend's help and guidance (and the help of a "magic feather"), Dumbo has the courage to take a leap of faith that turns the taunting into cheers, and makes all his dreams soar.

When Pongo and Perdita, a pair of adorable Dalmatians play Cupid for their human pets, wedding bells soon ring! In a short time, the dogs become the proud parents of 15 winsome puppies, but their happiness is short-lived. The wicked Cruella De Vil wants to buy the all puppies-to make a coat! When her dastardly offer is turned down, she orders her bumbling henchmen Horace and Jasper to abscond with the puppies as well as every other Dalmatian puppy in London . Pongo and Perdita must rally a network of animals across England with the "twilight bark" to help find Cruella's secret hideaway and rescue 99 precious puppies.

Photos Left to Right: Patch, Perdita, Lucky, Pongo.

Released in 1963, the movie The Sword in the Stone is one of my very favorite Disney movies. Here is a brief synopsis. Arthur (aka Wart) is a young boy who aspires to be a knight's squire. On a hunting trip he falls in on Merlin, a powerful but amnesiac wizard who has plans for Wart beyond mere squiredom. He starts by trying to give Wart an education (whatever that is), believing that once one has an education, one can go anywhere. Needless to say, it doesn't quite work out that way.

Photo Left to Right: Wart, Merlin, Archimedes

King Brian showed up in 1959, in the relatively unknown movie "Darby O'Gill and the Little People". A frisky old storyteller named Darby O'Gill is desperately seeking the proverbial pot of gold. There's just one tiny thing standing in his way: a 21-inch leprechaun named King Brian. In order to get the gold, Darby must match his wits against the shrewd little trickster- which proves no small task indeed!

Mr. Stubbs showed up in 1960, in the relatively unknown movie "Toby Tyler aka Ten Weeks with a Circus". He is a naughty chimp that gets Toby into some BIG trouble.

"Toby Tyler" is about a boy named Toby Tyler who is angered at stern Uncle Daniel, Toby Tyler runs away from his foster home to join the circus, where he soon befriends Mr. Stubbs, the frisky chimpanzee. However, the circus isn't all fun and games when the evil candy vendor, Harry Tupper, convinces Toby that his Aunt Olive and Uncle Daniel don't love him or want him back. Toby resigns himself to circus life, but when he finally realizes that Tupper lied to him, and that his aunt and uncle truly love him, Toby happily returns home once again.

The White Rabbit is a fictional character in Lewis Carroll's book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. He appears at the beginning of the book, wearing a waistcoat, and muttering "Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!" Alice follows him down the rabbit hole into Wonderland.

The March Hare appears in the 1951 version of “Alice in Wonderland” by Walt Disney . The March Hare, sometimes called the Mad March Hare, is a character most famous for appearing in the tea party scene in Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. As far as we can tell, he is the only character made from that movie.

The Shaggy Dog appears in the 1959 film “The Shaggy Dog”. It is about Wilby Daniels, a teenage boy who is transformed into an Old English Sheepdog by a spelled ring of the Borgias, and was the first ever Walt Disney live-action comedy. Was recently remade starring Tim Allen.

Thumper appears in the 1942 film "Bambi". It is an animated film about a young deer, Bambi, growing up in the wild after his mother is shot by hunters. This puppet is the only character from the movie Bambi that wee have ever encountered.

Zorro is an American action/adventure drama series produced by Walt Disney Productions. Based on the well-known Zorro character, the series premiered on October 10, 1957 on ABC. Don Diego de la Vega is depicted as a former University student, has summoned him to help fight this injustice. His alter ego, Zorro, operates primarily at night, taking the direct action that Diego cannot.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a 1937 American animated film based on Snow White, a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It was the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history, as well as the first animated feature film produced in America, the first produced in full color, the first to be produced by Walt Disney. Photo from left to right: Grumpy, Dopey, Happy/Bashful

Lady and the Tramp is a 1955 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released to theaters on June 22, 1955, by Buena Vista Distribution. The fifteenth animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, it was the first animated feature filmed in the CinemaScope widescreen film process. The story centers on a female American Cocker Spaniel named Lady who lives with a refined, upper middle-class family, and a male stray called the Tramp. Pictured are: Tramp, Lady, Pedro, and Dachsie.

In 1940, one what historians believe to be the most technically perfect of all the Disney animated features, Pinnochio was created.

A wooden puppet, Pinocchio, is brought to life by the Blue Fairy, with the promise that he can become a real boy if he proves himself worthy. Pinocchio is led astray by the wicked Honest John and his companion Gideon, who turn him over to an evil puppeteer, Stromboli. Pinocchio is sent to Pleasure Island, where wicked boys are turned into donkeys, but he escapes with the aid of his friend and conscience, Jiminy Cricket, and eventually redeems himself by saving his father, Geppetto, who has been swallowed by Monstro, the whale. The Blue Fairy rewards Pinocchio by turning him into a real boy.

Pictured are: Pinnochio, Jimimy Cricket, Geppetto, Figaro.

In 1961, Disney produced the Classic film "Babes in Toyland". Tom the Piper's Son is about to marry Mary Quite Contrary. On the eve of their wedding, evil miser Barnaby hires two henchmen to drown Tom and steal Mary's sheep, cared for by Little Bo Peep, thus depriving Mary and the children she lives with of their livelihood, forcing her to marry Barnaby.

Pictured are Mother Goose, Mary, Tom, Gonzorgo, Toymaker, Soldier, Cadet, Toyland Clown, Nosey Clown, and Silly Dilly Clown.

In 1953, Disney produced the Classic film "Peter Pan". Peter Pan is the magical boy who won't grow up, and who teaches the three Darling children -- Wendy, John, and Michael -- to fly to Never Land with him. There they embark on adventures with the chief inhabitant, Captain Hook, and his crew of pirates. The fairy, Tinker Bell, is jealous of Peter's attentions to Wendy, and is duped into helping Captain Hook. After rescuing the Indian princess Tiger Lily, Peter must save his band, the Lost Boys, and the Darlings from Hook.

Pictured are: Peter Pan, Wendy, Captain Hook, Tinkerbell

In 1950, Disney produced the Classic film “Cinderella”. The famous rags-to-riches tale of a beautiful girl reduced to being a servant by her jealous stepmother and stepsisters, Anastasia and Drizella. With the help of a bit of magic from her fairy godmother, Cinderella is given a beautiful dress and use of a magnificent coach, and is able to attend the royal ball and inadvertently falls in love with the prince. Fleeing the ball at midnight, the hour when the magic spell is due to end, she leaves behind a glass slipper that the prince and grand duke use to search her out. With the help of her little mouse and bird friends, she is discovered and assured a happy future.

Pictured are: Cinderella, Prince Charming, Guss, Jaq

In 1959, Disney produced the Classic film "Sleeping Beauty". In spectacular style, the film recounts the simple story of Princess Aurora, who is cursed by the evil fairy, Maleficent, to die at the age of 16 by pricking her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel. Despite the loving attempts of the three good but often bumbling fairies, Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather, to protect her by raising her, disguised as Briar Rose, in a forest cottage, the curse is fulfilled. The good fairies put everyone in the castle into a deep sleep until the spell can be broken. It is only with the aid of Prince Phillip that Maleficent, transformed into a towering, fire-breathing dragon, is destroyed, and the Sleeping Beauty is awakened by his kiss.

Pictured are: 2 Sleeping Beauty (Princess Aurora) 1 awake, 1 asleep, Prince Philip, Flora, Fauna, Merryweather, Maleficent, King Stefan, King Hubert

Spoiled and bored upper crust Edwardian English family has their world turned upside down by an all nonsensical nanny who teaches them how to enjoy life. It's been almost 50 years since the Mary Poppins movie has been released, and it appears to be truly timeless as it is still with us and we love it!

Currently there are 12 Gund King Feature Syndicate puppets that we know of. We are always on the lookout for new information.

In 1950, Beetle Bailey made his debut in a mere 50 newspapers. With America's entry into the Korean conflict, cartoonist Mort Walker's star character accidentally enlisted in the Army, and the rest is comic-strip history! Beetle Bailey went on to become the third most widely distributed comic strip of all time. His error proved a blessing in disguise, as readers of more than 1,800 newspapers around the world can attest today.

Pictured are: Beetle Bailey, The Sarge, and Zero

In 1919, Billy DeBeck created "Barney Google and Snuffy Smith", one of the longest-running comic strips in history.

Pictured are: Snuffy Smith, Barney google, and Spark Plug

In 1929, The first popeye cartoon was created. The sailor man with the spinach can. The working class defender of the poor and downtrodden. Rival of Brutus, beloved of Olive Oyl, bane of bullies and ne'er do wells of all varieties. He's Popeye the sailor and for over 80 years, he's remained a staple of American popular culture. Though he got his start in comic strips and was featured in a live-action movie starring Robin Williams, most people became familiar with him through one of multiple cartoon series recounting his adventures.

Pictured are: Popeye, Olive Oyl, Wimpy, Brutus, Swee Pea

In 1930s, Little Iodine was a popular Sunday comic strip, created by Jimmy Hatlo, which was syndicated by King Features and had a long run from 1943 until 1985. The strip was a spin-off from an earlier Hatlo creation.

Little Iodine was the daughter of Henry Tremblechin and his wife, Cora. Her purpose was to serve as a pesky nuisance to the strip's star, Henry, and her behavior caused endless misery for her mild-mannered, easily unsettled father.

The Harveytoons Show is a television series presenting theatrical animated cartoons produced from October 1950 until March 1962 and produced by Famous Studios, featuring Harvey Comics characters and series including: Casper the Friendly Ghost, Little Audrey, Tommy Tortoise and Moe Hare, Baby Huey, Herman and Katnip, and Modern Madcaps. The Film Roman version of Richie Rich has also been featured on the final season of The Harveytoons Show. The show itself contained 3 full cartoons and on 1 toontake a shorter version of cartoon. Jerry Beck was the show consultant.

Casper the Friendly Ghost is the protagonist of the Famous Studios theatrical animated cartoon series of the same name. As his name indicates, he is a ghost, but is quite personable. According to the 1995 feature film Casper; his family name is McFadden, making his "full" name Casper McFadden.

Spooky is Casper's mischief-minded cousin. He looks up to the Ghostly Trio as his heroes and despises his cousin's lack of interest in scaring humans. As such, Spooky is always trying to out-scare Casper and become the best in class. However, underneath the gruff, ghostly exterior, Spooky may also have a slight soft spot for his cousin. Spooky is visually very similar to Casper, but he has a black nose and freckles, wears a hat, and speaks in a Brooklyn accent.

Wendy the Good Little Witch was clearly inspired by Casper the Friendly Ghost, also published by Harvey Comics, which did both as part of a minor genre of kid-friendly versions of supernatural bugaboos.

Herman and Katnip are a duo of cartoon characters (Herman the mouse and Katnip the cat). From 1944 to September 1950, Herman appeared without Katnip, who made his first appearance in November 1950 with Mice Meeting You. The two characters continued to star in animated cartoons by Famous Studios until 1959. Their cartoon series, which was distributed by Paramount Pictures, together is essentially a clone of MGM's Tom and Jerry.

Little Audrey is a fictional character, appearing in Paramount Pictures' Famous Studios cartoons from 1947 to 1958. She is considered a variation of the better-known Little Lulu, devised after Paramount decided not to renew the license on Marjorie Henderson Buell's comic strip character. Despite some superficial similarities between the two characters, the Famous animators were at pains to design Audrey in contrast to Lulu, adopting an entirely different color scheme and employing the stylistic conventions common to Famous Studios' later '40s repertoire. Little Audrey was voiced by Mae Questel, who had also voiced Little Lulu, as well as most of Paramount's other major female cartoon characters including Betty Boop and Olive Oyl.

Baby Huey is a gigantic and naïve duckling cartoon character. He was created by Martin Taras for Paramount Pictures' Famous Studios, and became a Paramount cartoon star during the 1950s. Although created by Famous for its animated cartoons, Huey first appeared in comic-book form in an original story in Casper the Friendly Ghost #1 September 1949, as published by St. John Publications.

In 1923, The Fleischer brothers started their own studio. The clown who previously had no name came to be known as KO-KO, when animation veteran Dick Huemer became the new Director of Animation production. Huemer, who had begun animation with the Mutt and Jeff cartoons in 1916, brought the influence of that series to "Out of the Inkwell" and created a small canine companion named Fitz.

Pictured are: Koko the clown, Kokette, Kokonut, Mean Moe

Cherished through many generations, the adventures of Raggedy Ann, a mop-headed rag doll found in a grandmother’s attic, have been shared for generations between parents and children and grandparents and grandchildren and continue to delight children of all ages.

Created in 1920 by Johnny Gruelle to appeal to boys and girls and to bring a central male character into the raggedy storyline, Raggedy Andy became a popular companion for Raggedy Ann.

The dolls were produced in separate locations, so Andy's hands and feet were bigger than Ann's, a clever technique to make him appeal to boys. In addition, Andy's first patent focuses on his floppier limbs and his mischievous ways.

Pictured are: Raggedy Ann and Andy

Soupy Sales (January 8, 1926 – October 22, 2009) was an American comedian, actor, radio-TV personality and host, and jazz aficionado. He was best known for his local and network children's television show, Lunch with Soupy Sales; a series of comedy sketches frequently ending with Sales receiving a pie in the face, which became his trademark.

Pink Panther

Originally created in 1964 by the animators Friz Freleng and David DePatie for the opening credits of the classic film comedy “The Pink Panther”, the cool cat won the hearts of millions and went on to enjoy a career that has spanned a variety of genres over the past four decades.

www.katrinastoys.com

At Katrina's Toys we are constantly scouring all of our great local suppliers amassed over the years looking for those coveted and rare Gund puppets so that we can offer them up for you in 'one' convenient location! We also feature puppets restored by katrina9799 puppet designs.

Visit us www.katrinastoys.com

Give your old puppet a new lease on life!

Who are Katrina9799 puppet designs?

Katrina9799 puppet designs is the brand created by Katrina Baker. She noticed that many vintage puppets came to her in one of three ways: original bodies in need of repairs-minor to major, inferior and shoddy replacement bodies poorly made by an amateur, and puppets that were missing their bodies altogether and were thus reduced to just puppet heads.

She saw that a great need existed, that these rare vintage puppets needed to be restored to their former glory!! She blended her love of vintage puppets with her artistry, creativity, and my excellent skills as a seamstress and created Katrina9799 puppet designs.

If you would like Katrina9799 puppet designs to restore your prized puppet contact them at:

katrinastoys@live.com