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"Frisky", the Rocking Horse
Until she got a real pony, Ann Ayres and her friends rode "Frisky" the English rocking horse on the back porch of her Indianapolis home. Between 1917 and 1992, the Ayres family stored the four-foot tall rocking horse at their downtown department store. Scuff marks on Frisky's legs chronicle the many children who climbed up for a ride. (92.18.1) |
Happy Face Cookie Jar
No smiling face is better recognized than the simple, bright yellow circle with black-dot eyes and curved mouth. This design fad of the 1970s actually began about 1969 when two companies made novelty "smilies" with the phrase "Have a Happy Day." Retro fashion has seen a return of the image in the '90s. (91.158.1) |
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Fender Stratocaster Electric Guitar
First introduced in 1954, the Fender Stratocaster electric guitar has defined the sounds of rock 'n' roll icons like Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton and Bonnie Raitt. Created by Leo Fender with business partner Don Randall, it was the first guitar designed with a cut-away in the body for comfort and easier playing. (94.85.1) |
Sparton Blue-mirror Radio
Radio was the most important source of news and entertainment in a 1930s home, but few Americans could afford a rare blue-mirror radio during the Depression. In 1936, designer Walter Dorwin Teague created this streamlined Moderne or Deco style radio with the idea that an object's appearance is as important as its technology. (93.75.1) |
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Ebony-black Bisque Bébé Doll
In the 1890s, this Jules Steiner bébé doll might have belonged to a girl from an upper-middle class European family. The black dolls of European dollmakers looked like ordinary children or dignified adults, unlike American dollmakers who created stereotypical black toys. This doll was re-dressed in new Victorian-style clothing in 1993. (93.89.1) |
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