POWERHOUSE COLLECTION

'Romper Room' child's play apron

Object No. 93/433/52

This item is from a collection of material relating to the children's dress-up firm, A.L. Lindsay & Co. Pty Ltd, established by Albert Leslie Lindsay (1882-1957). It began in Sydney in the 1920s when Albert made Indian headdresses from left-over turkey feathers and children's leather cowboy suits cut out on his kitchen table and sewn by the neighbourhood women on treadle sewing machines. A factory was then set up at 90-94 Parramatta Road, Stanmore, and by 1936 Albert's 'Big Chief' range included Indian suits and headdresses, cowboy and cowgirls' hats and play suits as well as calico play tents. During the 1940s the Lindsays began using Buffalo Bill as their trade mark and traded as Buffalo Bill Products, exploiting the boom in film and later television westerns such as 'Rawhide', 'Wyatt Earp', 'Gunsmoke', 'Bonanza' and 'Have Gun Will Travel'. They produced a series of chaps in calf skin, leather, and suede, as well as beautifully embossed holsters. Many of the western costumes were manufactured under licence from the large motion picture companies including Walt Disney and Warner Brothers in the United States. When the Davy Crockett character was popularised in film and television in the 1950s, hundreds of fox tails were sourced to make the famous 'racoon skin' hats. The firm made sure that girls were equally catered for when devising outfits and introduced the sharp shooter, Annie Oakley, to the Lindsay costume range which became one of their most popular lines. The firm advertised widely on ATN Channel 7's children's television programme, 'Town of Make Believe', hosted by Uncle Reggie (the late Reg Quartly). Lindsays had a segment in the show featuring their Wild West clothes and their Leichhardt factory was referred to as the Lindsay Ranch. The Lindsay advertising slogan was 'Dress Up and Play the Lindsay Way'. Also, a regular fancy dress parade for children in Lindsay costumes was held at Smoky Dawson's Ranch at Ingleside. The fascination with space exploration and travel, which began with the first Russian Sputnik orbiting Earth in October 1957, heralded the space race. This enthusiasm for space was captured by the Lindsays with their Space Invader, Space Explorer and Moon Walk Suit costumes as well as the Buck Rogers in the 25th Century outfit. Despite being very topical these outfits did not sell particularly well as space offered little play value compared to cowboys and Indians. By the 1960s many of the fifty Sydney toy manufacturers had gone out of business or moved away from toy production. This was in line with the gradual decline of the Australian manufacturing industry caused by cheaper imports and lower import duties. Lindsays survived by diversifying into plasticine-type modelling clay and finger paints. In 1973 the firm also went into children's book publishing with their own imprint, Ansay. The character merchandising was abandoned by the firm in 1985 and by this time they were trading under the name Lindsay's Leichhardt Pty Ltd and later Lindsay's Toy Factory Ltd. They went on to become the longest continually-operating toy manufacturer in New South Wales and produced a wide range of dress-up costumes and accessories, tents, and other toys largely based on television and film characters since 1930. Generations of Australian children entered a world of make believe wearing their Lindsay costumes and became characters from the Wild West, superheroes and various occupations. Sold through the major department stores, especially popular were the Lindsay cowboy and Indian outfits and toy guns which played a significant role in making the Wild West part of an Australian childhood. Lindsay, Hilarie, 'The A.L. Lindsay Story 1930-' (unpublished article). Lindsay company catalogues and archives in the collection of the Powerhouse Museum Margaret Simpson, Curator July 2018

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Summary

Object Statement

Play apron and packaging, childrens, 'Romper Room, Mr Do Bee play apron', cardboard / plastic, A L Lindsay & Co Pty Ltd, Leichhardt, New South Wales, Australia, 1980-1989

Physical Description

Double-sided yellow plastic bib with red and white striped binding. A red, yellow and black illustration of a bee is printed below the text 'I am a Romper Room Do Bee'. The apron is designed to slip over the child's head to protect the front and back of their clothing while playing. The apron is contained in it's original clear plastic packaging with a cardboard label attached.

DIMENSIONS

Width

380 mm

PRODUCTION

Notes

The children's play apron was made by Lindsay's Leichhardt in Australia between 1980 and 1989.

SOURCE

Credit Line

Purchased 1993

Acquisition Date

17 December 1993

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