1953 George Wagner, Studebaker Commander, \"NBC T.V. Camera Car\" in Orig. Box For Sale

New TemplateToy Name:George Wagner, StudebakerCommander, \"NBC T.V. CameraCar\" in Original Box
Year: 1953 Description:Out of the hundreds of Japanese builttin toy cars made during the 1950\'s and 1960\'s there are perhaps lessthan 10, excluding buses, that feature a roof-mounted televisioncamera and cameraman. Of those 10 models, the first and by far themost difficult one to find, especially in complete condition, is the\"Studebaker Commander, NBC T.V. Camera Car.\" Even more amazing is to find it stillcomplete with original box!But that\'s exactly what I found. This is the car\"StudebakerCommander, NBC T.V. Camera Car\", in excellent condition, complete andall original, andwith its incredibly rare original box. I purchased it from a collectorin Paris, France where it resided for many years. Thecar is obviously a Studebaker although it isn\'t printed on the box ortoy. In fact, except for \"Made in Japan\" there are no manufacturer\'smarks of any kind any kind, anywhere. Andrew Ralston\'s book \"TinplateToy Cars\", Veloce Publishing, 2008 isthe only other example I\'ve seen with box. (I\'ve seen only three orfour examples of the car itself). The book states the manufacturer as\"George Wagner\" and has the G.W. logo on the box cover to prove it.However there is no such logo on the box I found. Regardless, GeorgeWagner was a importer and distributor, but as far as I know they werenot a Japanese toy manufacturer. The actual production company to myknowledge is unknown. The car itself is a simple friction powered tinlitho auto. As the wheels revolve the camera and cameraman turn rightand left. The overall design is actually very true tothe original car.

The caris red with black chassis. An early NBC television logo was lithoed onboth doors and the rear trunk. \"Television Car\" was also included onthe trunk. The NBC fender mounted flag, the camera, andcameraman are all tin litho. Both are removable and aretherefore frequently lost. The front and rear bumpers, roof railings, wheel hubs, and bothwindshield frames arepolished tinplate. The tires are solid black rubber. The box cover was illustrated with an accuraterepresentation of the car, camera, and cameraman in full color.The bottom half still has its original 39 cents price sticker on oneend. Size7½\" long x 4½\" tall. Condition: Excellent! Superb original colorthroughout with no fading or discoloration. Lustrous and glossy. Thefriction motor works well, although only for a few rotations. The bodyisfree of dents or rust. The front right tire has flattened just slightlyfrom age, while the rear left is slightly squiggly. The thing that takes it down a notch arelocalized nicks and flecks; probably due to the flag and cameramanhitting against it while inside the box. Starting from the back of thecar they\'re located on thetop edges and sides of the rear fenders, on the rear trunk\'s left andright corners, a tiny nick on the passenger door, on the sides and topedges of the front fenders, and a tiny nick on the driver\'s side doorand forward roof corner. Both the roof and front hood are in fantasticcondition due to \"protection\" from the roof rails and flag support.The chassis has only a tiny smudge on the universal axle hump betweenthe rear wheels. From the condition of the chassis it was probablyplayed with very little, if at all. Likethe car the box has virtually no wear. The colors are amazingly strongand except for slight ripples due to the weight of the car duringstorageit\'s square and even. However, possibly due to the add-onparts, a branched tear was poked through the cover just to the right ofthe cameraman on the cover and leading up to the right top corner. Itwas repaired, but isstill noticeable. There\'s also a small perforation just to the right ofthe last letter \"R\". The corners have some light creases mostnoticeable on the lower left, and the frontpanel has a single small vertical tear across the letter \"T\". Lookslike a repair was also attempted. Except for a tiny notch on one end ofthe cover it\'s complete.
MyItem No.15-0011

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