I have a couple of examples of this Haji-brand truck (see Expressing Change in the 0-Gauge Zen Garden). And I've been searching for other variations on this design that Haji offered -- I'll share the results of that search in a future post.
The problem with these inexpensive Japanese toys is that they were always meant to be disposable. Branding is minimal. I assume that was because the Japanese companies who made these toys back in the postwar era were supplying them to American importers, who placed their own brand on the packaging.
And because these were dime store toys, the packaging was seldom saved. So I was very interested to find this example of new-old stock. The truck -- as all Haji vehicles in this series -- is modestly branded "Haji" on the truck body. But the buyer would have thought this was a product of the Toy Merchandising Corp., as it clearly states on the card.
I wasn't able to find out a lot about the Toy Merchandising Corp. of New York -- save that they ran afoul of the FCC in 1965. As you can see from the ad that they ran in various papers, one could make a fortune stocking "Toy Shop" displays in five-and-dime stores and drug stores. The Toy Merchandising Corp provided the products, and for a small initial investment of $298, you could be in business.
In the complaint, the representation of the business in the ads was brought into question, as well as the earning potential. According to the complaint, "it is impossible for a distributor to make a profit from the initial purchase of the respondent's products."
"Samples of products shown to prospective distributors were indicative of quality or value of the products which would appear on racks or available for placement." And most telling: "Respondents' products were of domestic manufacture."
As the complaint states, "In most instances respondents failed to clearly and conspicuously disclose to prospective purchasers that a substantial amount of their merchandise was of foreign origin."
Like the Haji truck. There's nothing on the packaging that indicates the toy was made in Japan.
Another mystery.
I found your article interesting in the fact that I found a small bag of unopened toy sets just like the one you have except of different toys at an auction in Clarksville, TN. late at night as the auction was ending and everyone was leaving. I bought the bag of toys for about 2-3 dollars lol. I started to try to find something out about them on e-bay and seen no listings and stumbled upon your article. The ones I have are 2-unopened GAMES OF CHANCE which included a very small Dice Shaker,slot machine and Roulette Wheel for 29 cents. 2. two sets of unopened RING TOSS GAME 39 cents. 3. An unopened Educational Bingo game 19 cents. 4. unopened WASH DAY 29 cents and lastly an unopened Spin-a-Ball 49 cents. I still know absolutely nothing about these or if they have any value what so ever I hoping you might be able to tell me of any value they might have if any but I thought they were interesting and actually comical. Thanks...Jerry
ReplyDeleteGood question. They may well have been part of the Toy Merchandising mix of products. Those type of mini-games were very common (and still are). But there might be some minimal value to them (say, $1-$5). I would look on eBay for the name found on the packaging. You also might want to do a search for "vintage Japanese ring toss game," "vintage Japanese games of chance," etc. Also look for NOS (New Old Stock). Good luck!
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