My mother wrote the names on the back in pencil. They weren’t movie stars (to my knowledge), but were the teen-age girlfriends. (Left-Right: Nan, Betty Lou, Janet, Shirley, Marianne, Babs)
Why is one paper doll face down, you ask? I just wanted to show how much my mother really cared about these. The little girl doll (daughter to the vivacious blond mother doll) has been taped and tooth-picked back together. This was a fun set: the mothers and daughters had matching suits for every occasion.
One wedding party. There are two wedding parties in Mom’s collection. This one even has a Parson.
Two sets of teenagers who obviously liked to hang out together in large groups and one more wedding party (on the right in the bottom photo). I believe the teens were all about being Debutantes and going to some fancy Ball or Senior Prom. These dolls didn’t attract me as much as the Movie Stars or the Cabaret Girls.
I think it is fair to say, the Cabaret Girls were the favorites. I don’t know what order they are in, but their names are: Janis, Tina, Cecie, Babs, Fay, Mimi, Lea, Jeanne, and Nan (Nan is missing her right hand). They had the swankiest dresses and little shocking outfits for the 1940’s girls that they were.
My grandmother was probably scandalized by the Cabaret Girls.
Inside the box with the paper dolls is this cigar box.
And inside the cigar box, is this box. These were the Strictly Forbidden Paper Dolls, the ones we were never allowed to handle.
They were cut out of magazines and catalogs. My mother kept lists of their names, who was married to who and what children belonged to what couple. Sometimes, typed names were crossed off where she changed her mind and renamed a paper doll. The spelling is terrible, so my mother must have been very young when she compiled these genealogies. (My mother did not misspell many words as an adult.)
Jeffery Ren Burt 27 – Marlene Vilee 24 Prodestant (sic). (They are, apparently, a couple.)
Daniel Goodjoy 25 – Linda Lou Costellas 18 Prodestant (sic)-Catholic. (My mother liked crossing denominational lines. My Baptist grandmother must have truly arched her eyebrows!)
One sheet is dated Sept. 15, 1946. Mom would have been 14. All the dolls have first-middle-last names. They have ages and histories.
For instance, Willard Joseph Winston, Prodestant, 45 was “killed in fire”.
Juanita Marie Winston, Catholic, 21 was “adopted”.
Gordon Paul Costellas went by “Gordie”
I handle this box with reverence. These are different that the others who are glamorous and can change clothes. These dolls are stuck forever in the outfits they are wearing. They are thin slips of paper with advertisements and magazine articles on the flip side. They are the dolls we were never allowed to touch, the favorites of all my mother’s childhood, and the ones who hold more memory of her than the other dolls do. After all, the other dolls have known many hands. These have known two hands.
I need to find a better way to store these treasures, but I hesitate to remove the last ones from their two boxes. They are safe there, hidden from pudgy little hands and light that fades their ink. And if I stick my nose deep into the box, I imagine I can still smell stale cigarette smoke on them.
Wow! I loved looking at these dolls. Thank you so much for allowing us a sneak peak into your mother’s young life.
An idea to preserve them: Sheet protectors and a 3 ring binder with the sheet protector taped shut.
Thanks again for taking the time to take pictures and write this blog for us.
These are truly a treasure. I would be so tempted to write a scenario for each group. Make a TV series for them to be in. (Mad Men). At the Containers store at Bridgeport you can get acid free tissue paper (heavy duty tissue paper) and you can layer these dolls in a book or an acid free box. I really suggest it. It is items like this that I bid on . . .on Ebay and Goodwill and search for in Aurora.
I would hope Chrsytal or Arwen would enjoy looking at these in 10 more years.
Thank you for sharing these with us.
What a special keepsake! I hope you come up with a good way to store them because they are such a treasure.
Hi, I thought you might like to know your Cabaret paper dolls are called “Pert and Pretty” they were made in 1948 by Merrill. I have a set too, I found your site while I was researching trying to find out what mine were called. A little bit later I found them on ebay.
*eek!* Now I will have to go look them up on eBay. they were def. our favorite dolls to play with. THANK YOU!!!
This is a wonderful find! I and my girlfriend were around eight and nine when we had these “risqué” paper dolls and even in our now-70s, remembered their names. When I googled Mimi and Tina paper dolls, I was delighted to find them and the others. We used to draw and colour pencil our own outfits for them. You’be brought back some very good memories. Thanks!
Marge
That is so cool, Marge! I’m glad I brought back such wonderful memories for you.
My mother had also 3 dolls of your first picture, Also she wrotte the names on the back. She gave them to me before diying last year. I have here Betty Lou, Janet and Nan. There are certanly a tressure!!!! Thanks for sharing!!!
That just made my heart happy. I am sorry you lost your mother, but she gave you a piece of herself. Treasure Betty Lou, Nan, and Janet. God bless♥
Jaci