Teto the Clown
My TBT toy this week is a vintage Hazelle's Marionette. Teto was an eBay find several years ago. After seeing something about this company I began to look around and see if any of the marionettes were still around. Once I saw a picture on the web, I knew I wanted to find one! I initially found a Teto that didn't have the box and had some damage to his plastic parts. That one was only a few dollars, so I bought him. A short time later I found this one on eBay. He cost a little more than the first, but not much. I loved that he had the original box and was in such good shape. I ended up selling the first Teto to gentleman wanting a marionette for his grandson. Teto is from the 1950's. I have now had him for about 15 years.
A little about the creator of Teto:
Hazelle Hedges Rollins was born in 1910. She graduated from the University of Kansas and the Kansas Art Institute and later started her business in the basement of her father's house. She married and her husband became her partner in the company. She owned the company until she sold it in 1975. Her small business that started in her father's basement, became the largest puppet factory in the world! Located in Kansas City MO, the factory made marionettes, hand puppets and finger puppets until the 1980's when the factory closed.
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