Who's cooking tonight.. !!

[Dextrous63]

That reminded me of the old Black & White Minstrels.  Remember them? 

I can't recall who first suggested that they were racist and should be abolished.  Nor indeed who first started having tantrums about Robinson's jam jar golliwog.

[Mups]

I can't recall who first suggested that they were racist and should be abolished.  Nor indeed who first started having tantrums about Robinson's jam jar golliwog.

One of my favourite cuddly toys when I was a kid, was a Golliwog. 
Wish I still had him.

I don't remember ever wanting dolls like most little girls,  I had my golliwog and a cuddly tiger for many years.   - Oh,  and a Muffin the Mule metal puppet on strings.   I loved all of those.     

[klondike]

Long way from cooking 

Anyway will this get me locked up?

[Michael Rolls]

But of course!

[Dextrous63]

What's he doing to that (rather startled looking) teddy that's making him smile so widely???

[Ruthio]

Actually the very first golly invented by Florence Kate Upton around 1894 wasn't a bit racist....

1895
Upton began to sketch out ideas for a children's book, using "penny wooden" dolls as her models.
However, without a central character on which to hang the tale, progress came to a standstill.
Her aunt, Kate Hudson, found a blackface minstrel toy in her attic that the Upton children had owned but left behind on an earlier visit. This toy, which she named "Golliwogg", provided inspiration, and the first story was completed in 1894.
After the manuscript was rejected by several publishing houses, John William Allen of Longmans, Green & Co. took it home and read it to his children.
Their enthusiastic response prompted Allen to advocate for its publication, and Longmans offered Upton a contract.
The Adventures of Two Dutch Dolls was published for Christmas 1895, with the title updated to The Adventures of Two Dutch Dolls and a "Golliwogg" in the second printing.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florence_Kate_Upton

It's  a fascinating story and it only started getting ugly when Enid Blyton got her hands on it.
Before that it was an innocent and popular doll

[Dextrous63]

Fascinating.  Are you suggesting that the third syllable of the name was invented by Upton innocently, and prior to the latter explanation involving acronyms?

[klondike]

I recall reading a while back that some Enid Blyton stuff had been removed from libraries.  I used to love her stuff as a child - Famous Five, Secret Seven and Brer Rabbit spring to mind. Not sure what the evil stuff might be. Noddy and Big Ears maybe? Don't think I read those or even sure they were hers but I think they were.

[Mups]

I recall reading a while back that some Enid Blyton stuff had been removed from libraries.  I used to love her stuff as a child - Famous Five, Secret Seven and Brer Rabbit spring to mind. Not sure what the evil stuff might be. Noddy and Big Ears maybe? Don't think I read those or even sure they were hers but I think they were.

Aah,  I liked the Golly piccy, Klondie. 

Wasn't it Robinson's jam who displayed the Golly symbol?
I wonder how that ever started?   

[klondike]

There is a real golly up the roof along with loads of other soft toys from the time grandchildren used to stay with us. I was too idle to try and find it as that tiny one and the pottery fairy castle it is standing in front of is downstairs as it has been for donkey's years.  The castle was bought for my oldest daughter on a day out to Wicksteed Park where they used to have a few craft workshops. No idea were the tiny golly came from. I noticed he was going grey in the photo so he's had a felt tip hair dye applied now.

[Mups]

I just look this up about Robinson's jam and their Golly.

It seems they began using it back in 1910,  and officially withdrew it completely in 2002, although it stopped being used in television advertising in 1988.

Memories, ey . . .

[Ruthio]

I've  got a Robertson golly badge somewhere!