Punkinhead, "the sad little bear", was a rubbery toy bear with a tuft of unruly orange hair. He was designed and developed into a storybook character by Canadian cartoonist Charles Thorson.[1][2] The bears were manufactured by Merrythought company.[3]
Punkinhead was created by the T. Eaton Company, who were hoping to emulate the success Montgomery Ward had with Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Once the Eaton's marketing department had developed the initial concept, Thorson was commissioned to flesh out the idea.[4] Thorson chose the name 'Punkinhead' as it was his nickname for his son. [4]
In 1947, Punkinhead made his debut in the Toronto Santa Claus Parade.[5] As Eaton's had been the longtime sponsor of the parade, Punkinhead was quickly declared the parade's mascot. When cheers for Punkinhead got as loud as the cheers for Santa, Punkinhead soon got to ride in Santa's sleigh alongside Santa Claus. Punkinhead's popularity began to wane by the early-1960s, but Punkinhead remained the parade's mascot until Eaton's ended their involvement with the parade in 1982.[4]
Punkinhead became a fixture of Eaton's Christmas advertising.[6] The character also appeared on many of Eaton's toys,[7] accessories and clothing.[8][5] Among them were kitchenware items such as bowls and mugs, furniture such as chairs and rocking horses, and clothing such as toques and mittens.[9]
Punkinhead had a song written about him and Eaton's sold recordings of it.[5] Wilf Carter even recorded a version for his Christmas album.[3]
Eaton's briefly resurrected the character in 1992, hoping to play on nostalgia.[4]
The Punkinhead doll and books have become collector's items.[10]
Books
[edit]The storybooks were a key part of the Punkinhead merchandising push, with children being given a free copy when they visited Santa at Eaton's.[4]
- Punkinhead, the Sad Little Bear, 1948
- Punkinhead and the Snow Fairy,, 1949
- Punkinhead in Santa's Workshop, 1950
- Punkinhead and the Magic Wishes, 1951
- Punkinhead and the Christmas Party, 1952
- How Punkinhead Came to Toyland, 1953
- Punkinhead and His Toy Workshop Adventure, 1954
- Punkinhead in Animal Valley, 1955
- Punkinhead and the Clock that Fell Asleep, 1956
- Punkinhead and the Christmas Skates, 1957
- Punkinhead and the Little Princess, 1958
- Punkinhead and the Lollipop Man, 1959
- Punkinhead and Jock the Jumper, 1960
References
[edit]
- ^ Audrey Greer (2006). The Santa Claus Parade Story: 100 Years of Great Parades in Toronto. J.B. Greer. pp. 26–. ISBN 978-0-9781978-0-3.
- ^ Gerry Bowler (23 October 2012). The World Encyclopedia of Christmas. McClelland & Stewart. pp. 756–. ISBN 978-1-55199-607-3.
- ^ a b "PUNKINHEAD". Canadian Animation, Cartooning and Illustration. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
- ^ a b c d e Bernhardt, Darren (27 December 2020). "When Winnipeg-created Punkinhead made Canadian retail history for Eaton's". CBC News. Retrieved 24 November 2025.
- ^ a b c Doug Taylor (November 2010). Arse Over Teakettle: An Irreverent Story of Coming of Age During the 1940s in Toronto. iUniverse. pp. 330–. ISBN 978-1-4502-0531-3.
- ^ Bruce Allen Kopytek. Eaton's: The Trans-Canada Store, Page 322
- ^ Hockey Night in Canada Junior. Lulu.com. 2011. pp. 108–. ISBN 978-1-257-81680-4.
- ^ "Punkinhead - Santa's Very Special Little Bear" Archived 2018-11-07 at the Wayback Machine. Archives of Ontario website
- ^ MacGregor, Roy (24 December 2007). "The little bear from Eaton's catalogue of dreams". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
- ^ Judith Cowan (1 September 2014). The Permanent Nature of Everything: A Memoir. MQUP. pp. 83–. ISBN 978-0-7735-9624-5.
Further reading
[edit]- Deziel, Shanda (31 March 2003). "Punkinhead's progress". Maclean's. Retrieved 13 November 2020.