Lot Essay
The Eastman Kodak Company produced a number of commemorative and limited edition cameras for particular events, for example, the Worlds Fair, and for anniversaries, such as Kodak's fiftieth anniversary in 1930. Other similar projects never reached production and the George Washington Kodak of 1932 (see Christie's Cameras and Optical Toys, 10 September 1992, lot 281) is a good example of this.
The Brownie Target Six-20 was introduced in July 1946 and was discontinued in May 1952. Neither Eastman Kodak nor the Disney Archives have any record of the Mickey Mouse camera being developed but the style of the transfer is wholly consistent with other designs and colourings from the early postwar period. It would seem that the front-plate was produced as a trial piece, probably as part of a small batch, and never entered commercial production. To date three other examples have been reported in the United States and it has been suggested that a small quantity of front-plates have been discovered and subsequently mounted on to the camera model originally intended to accomodate them.
Walt Disney Enterprises licensed a number of cameras to be produced using the Mickey Mouse character in Britian and the United States from Mickey's introduction and popularisation in the early 1930s. Cameras featuring Mickey and other Disney characters were still being produced into the late 1980s.
The Brownie Target Six-20 was introduced in July 1946 and was discontinued in May 1952. Neither Eastman Kodak nor the Disney Archives have any record of the Mickey Mouse camera being developed but the style of the transfer is wholly consistent with other designs and colourings from the early postwar period. It would seem that the front-plate was produced as a trial piece, probably as part of a small batch, and never entered commercial production. To date three other examples have been reported in the United States and it has been suggested that a small quantity of front-plates have been discovered and subsequently mounted on to the camera model originally intended to accomodate them.
Walt Disney Enterprises licensed a number of cameras to be produced using the Mickey Mouse character in Britian and the United States from Mickey's introduction and popularisation in the early 1930s. Cameras featuring Mickey and other Disney characters were still being produced into the late 1980s.