Come to the island!
Which island, you ask?
I don't know–just pick one.
Just make sure it's tropical.
The other day I added this charming tropical
couple to the Ozark collection:
eBay pic
Island Dancers, made by W. Goebel, the company best
known for its Hummel Figurines.
eBay pic
It even says so on the bottom of each figure.
eBay image
I tried to pin down exactly which island
Goebel had in mind, but, couldn't find any
definitive information. My best guess? They
weren't intended to represent one specific
island at all.
After World War II, Americans became
fascinated with tropical destinations like
Hawaii and the Caribbean. In response,
European and American designers created
figurines, artwork, and exotic home décor
that blended influences from Polynesia, Hawaii,
Jamaica, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and other island
cultures into one romanticized vision of paradise.
Goebel's Island Dancers fit that mold perfectly.
They're a cheerful tropical couple whose
clothing, guitar, conga drum, tropical plant, and
overall styling feel much more West Indian
than Hawaiian or Polynesian.
Ironically, I found them completely by
accident.
I was actually searching for a entirely
different figurine.
A while back, I bought two framed
vintage reproduction travel posters
of the Caribbean:
"Fly to the Caribbean by Clipper"
by Pan American World Airways
and "Caribbean" by British West Indian
Airways–The airline of the Caribbean.
I was especially intrigued by the girl
doing the limbo on the B.W.I.A. poster.
As it turns out, she was BWIA's
advertising mascot.
Her name was Vicki Viscount,
matchbooks,
travel brochures,
and other promotional items.
Eventually I stumbled across a photo of an
adorable promotional Vicki Viscount figurine.
Naturally, I thought "How hard could it be to
find one?"
Not easy, as it turns out.
A Google image search came up nearly empty.
I found only a single photograph and
no examples for sale.
However, Google suggested a few similar-looking
figurines– and that's when I
discovered my Caribbean couple.
The price was $49, plus tax and shipping,
bringing the total to $65.60.
I have to admit, a couple of the other
figures that appeared were tempting as
well. One represented a Trinidad and Tobago
couple, while another had no specific island
identified.
Unfortunately, both were just a little beyond my budget.
To display my Tropical finds,
I picked up a wall shelf from Hobby Lobby.
It has a fun Caribbean feel–or at least
that's what I tell myself–
and quickly filled it with my
growing collection of island treasures.
including my Quon Quon
toucan pitcher from eBay,
and my Nautilus tiki mug
from Trader Sam's Grog Grotto,
A gift from my ol' buddy Alex,
A few years ago, he was on assignment in Florida
working on a Muppet project,
where he was responsible for keeping the Muppet's
costumes in good repair.
and sometimes the Muppet's themselves.
He stopped in at Trader Sam's and went through the ritual
to get a Nautilus Tiki Mug just for me!
What a Pal!!
But I digress.
My Caribbean couple
may not be Vicki Viscount,
but they capture exactly
the carefree
Caribbean atmosphere
I was hoping to find.
Still... I might keep looking for Vicki.
Thanks for stopping by,
and happy hunting!
