Effanbee - Doll's 1912-1939

Effanbee Doll Company - Dolls <1912 - 1939> 1940-1970's

Founded around 1912 in New York city, Effanbee stands for Fleischaker & Baum who were the company founders. They became well known for being the first to produce a realistically proportioned child doll named Patsy; they created companion dolls, a large wardrobe and her own fan club reportedly with 275,000 members. They also created the first hard rubber, drink and wet doll named DyDee Baby, marked: "DyDee Baby/U.S. Pat. 1-857-485/England-880-060/France-723-980/ Germany-585-647/Other Pat. Pending" on their back.

The Effanbee Company produced composition, hard rubber, cloth, hard plastic and vinyl dolls.

Here are some dolls we have found from 1912-1939:

1912-1925 Baby Dainty, 13, 15" tall, composition shoulder head on a cloth stuffed body, blue sleep eyes, open mouth with four teeth and felt tongue, or closed mouth, the 1913 version has a closed mouth but came with a pacifier, came with molded hair or wigged.

Early dolls are marked: Effanbee/Dolls/Walk/Talk/Sleep in an oval, after 1920 marked: Effanbee/Baby Dainty

1912-1925 Baby Dainty, 15"

1913-1939 Baby Grumpy or Grumpy, 14 & 20" tall, composition head, arms & legs, stuffed cloth body, side glancing painted eyes, molded hair with a "grumpy" facial expression. Some of these have stuffed cloth legs. Earliest dolls are marked on the head with the mold number: 172, 174 or 176, later ones use the Effanbee/Dolls/Walk/Talk/Sleep in an oval marking on the shoulder plate.

1913-1930's Grumpy, 20"

1912 Miss Coquette & Naughty Marietta, 15" tall, composition flange head, cloth body with partial composition limbs, molded painted curled hair, hair bow, painted blue side glancing eyes, closed smiling mouth, some marked: DECO & possibly 462.

Photo N/A

1912 Miss Coquette, 15"

1917-1923 & 1931 Mary Jane, 16, 18, 20 or 24" tall, all composition, ball jointed body, jointed at the neck, shoulders, elbows, wrists, knees and hips, moving sleep eyes some can be painted, real human hair wig, came dressed in various lace and ribbon trimmed voile dresses.

From what I can tell, this was the only doll Effanbee sold that had this all composition ball jointed body.

In 1919 Effanbee commissioned the Lenox Pottery Company to produce bisque heads (during WWI bisque dolls from Europe were not available in the USA market), these may not have been marketed or very few were produced, the same Lennox head molds were later made in composition and are considered very rare. The 1919 Mary Jane doll came on a German kidelene body with composition wood arms & legs with extra joints.

1959 Mary Jane came as a 32" tall doll, hard plastic walker body, vinyl head, rooted hair, blue flirty sleep eyes.

1921 Sears Mary Jane ad

1959 Mary Jane 32"

1920's Pat-O-Pat, 13-15" tall, composition flange head and composition hands, cloth body and legs, molded painted hair, painted eyes, closed mouth. When you press the button on the tummy she claps her hands. Marked: Effanbee/made in USA.

Photo courtesy of Ronsfancy.

1920's Pat-O-Pat, 14"

1925-1930s Bubbles, sized 13-24" tall, cloth body, composition head and shoulder piece, also arms and legs composition, some were black dolls. There was a whole line of Bubbles dolls; Dolly Bubbles 14", Charlotte Bubbles 20", & Betty Bubbles 22".

1925 Bubbles

ca. 1924 Baby Evelyn, 18" tall, composition head, limbs, cloth body, molded painted hair, sleep eyes. This doll has magnets in her hands to hold metal objects like a hankie, flowers. Doll is marked on neck rim Effanbee/Baby Evelyn.

Photo courtesy of Ronsfancy new auction win. WTG!

ca. 1924 Baby Evelyn, 18"

1926-1946 Patsy, 14" tall, cloth body on the first ones and used the Baby Dainty head mold, later it was all composition, molded painted hair usually a shade of red with a painted headband, there is a whole line of Patsy family of dolls came in many sizes. (Patsy & the 1922 Armand Marseille, Just Me doll #310 mold with bisque head are identical). The 1946 dolls are unmarked, some dolls have been found on the Patricia marked body and with the Patsy Baby head with a mohair wig, too. Some of the Patsy dolls came in a black version. 1928-1943 Skippy was Patsy's boyfriend.

Heads unmarked, marked on back: Effanbee/Patsy/Pats.Pend./Doll or other variations with dolls name.

Others in the Patsy family were: Wee Patsy 6", Baby Tinyette 7", Tinyette Toddler 8", Patsy Babyette 9", Patsyette 9", Patsy Baby or Babykins 10", Patsykins or Patsy Jr. 11", Patsy, Patricia, or Skippy 14", Patsy Joan 16", Patsy Ann 19", Patsy Lou 22", Patsy Ruth 27", Patsy Mae 30" tall.

1926-1946 Patsy, 14"

1928-1937 Lovums, 15, 22 & 28" tall, mama doll, composition head and limbs with cloth body, marked with the dolls name & patent No. 1283558. One of the Lovums dolls had a key wound mechanism to make the sound of a heartbeat. This shoulder plate and head mold was used to create other dolls as well. Reissued from 1977-1980.

1928 Lovums, 22"

1928-1937 Mary Ann, 19" tall, shown all original, composition head and limbs, stuffed cloth body, sleep eyes, open smiling mouth, wigged.

Photo courtesy of Flozdolz, all pristine and original.

1928 Mary Ann, 19"

1928-1943 Skippy, 14" tall, Patsy's boyfriend, uses the Pasty body, has blonde molded hair with a curl on the forehead, he's modeled on the comic strip character by P. J. Crosby, played in the movie version by Jackie Cooper. Part of the Patsy Family.

Heads unmarked, marked on back: Effanbee/Patsy/Pats.Pend./Doll

1928 Skippy, 14"

1928-1944 Mae Starr, 30" tall, composition shoulder head, cloth body, composition limbs, brunette human hair wig, blue sleep eyes, open mouth with four upper teeth, jointed at the shoulders, has a phonograph in the body and came with six cylinders that played nursery rhymes, doll is marked: Mae/Starr/Doll. Part of the Patsy Family.

1928 Mae Starr, 30"

1929 Patsy Ann, 19" tall, all composition, molded hair and some have a human or mohair wig over the unpainted molded hair, sleep eyes some came with tin or glass; blue, brown or green, closed mouth, marked: Effanbee/Patsy Ann/Pat. #1283558. Part of the Patsy Family.

There is also an open mouth with six upper teeth version, composition body, sleep eyes, used the Lovums head with a caracul or human hair wig.

1929 Patsy Ann, 19"

1929-1940 Patsy Lou, 22 1/2" tall, all composition, painted molded hair or with a mohair wig, sleep eyes; blue, brown or green and fully jointed. Part of the Patsy Family.

1929-1940 Patsy Lou, 22 1/2"

1930 & 1946 Patsy Joan, 16" tall, all composition, sleep eyes with lashes, closed mouth, sleep blue or brown eyes, came with molded hair or with a wig. Part of the Patsy Family.

1946 they added a black Patsy Joan, 17" tall with brown sleep eyes, molded or wigged hair.

Photo courtesy of Flozdolz, pristine and all original.

1946 Patsy Joan, 16"

1930-1935 Mary Lee, 21" tall, composition shoulder head and limbs, cloth child body, wigged, sleep eyes, open smiling mouth with teeth, marked faintly on back of head: Mary Lee, marked on back of shoulder plate: Effanbee Doll, Walk, Talk, Sleep.

1932 came in 14-15, 16, or 17" tall, used the all composition Patsy Joan body or composition head and limbs with a cloth body.

1932 Mary Lee, 16"

1931 Patsy Babyette, 8-9" tall, all composition, molded hair, sleep eyes, dolls were dressed as either a girl or boy. Patsyette was the same doll with a mohair wig. Part of the Patsy Family.

1931 Patsy Babyette, 8-9"

1931 Lambkins, 16" tall, composition head and limbs, cloth body, open mouth, marked: Lambkins.

1931 Lambkins, 16"

1932-1933 Patricia, 14 & 15" tall, all composition, came in a black or white version, blue, brown or green sleep eyes, brown or auburn wig usually in braids, closed mouth, several different outfits, doll appears to be in her original outfit. Marked: Effanbee/Patricia. Part of the Patsy Family.

1932-1933 Patricia, 14"

1933 - 1950's Dy-Dee, 9-24" tall, has hard rubber head (earliest dolls) later ones were hard plastic with blue, brown or green sleep eyes, real upper lashes, single stroke brows, painted lower lashes, open mouth, applied soft rubber ears, painted hair, soft rubber body jointed at the neck, arms and hips, first drink/wet doll, came dressed in cotton flannel diaper, marked on back:

DyDee Baby/U.S.Pat.1-857-485/England-880-060/France-723-980/Germany-585-647/

Other Pat. Pending.

Dy-Dee 11" tall

1935 Anne of Green Gables, 14, 21 or 28" tall, this was the "real" Anne Shirley doll, a character in Lucy Maud Montgomery's book "Anne of Green Gables", a feisty 11 year old orphan with red auburn hair, used the Mary Lee head mold with open mouth, has a fully jointed body (14" is the Patsy Joan type slim body), all composition, sleep eyes, painted upper & lower lashes, wigged. Think the head maybe faintly marked Mary Lee. Marked on body: Anne Shirley

1935 Anne of Green Gables,

Mary Lee mold, 14"

1935 Anne of Green Gables, 9, 12, & 15" tall, this was the " real" Anne Shirley doll, a character in Lucy Maud Montgomery's book "Anne of Green Gables", a feisty 11 year old orphan with red auburn hair, used the Patricia head mold with closed mouth, fully jointed child body all composition or composition and cloth, sleep eyes with painted lashes both upper & lower, auburn braided wig. Think the head is faintly marked: Patricia. Marked on body: Anne Shirley

Photo courtesy of Flozdolz, pristine and all original.

1939 Anne of Green Gables,

Patricia mold, 12 or 15"

1936 Ink U Bator baby, 6 1/2" tall, all composition jointed body, molded painted hair, came with it's "incubator" and layette, doll is marked with it's name on back.

1936 Ink U Bator baby, 6 1/2"

1936-1939 American Children Portrait Dolls, designed by Dewees Cochran, six dolls were contracted by Effanbee to be produced for the 1936 Toy Show, they are 17 or 20" tall, all composition socket head with jointed body, human hair wig, tin painted or sleep eyes, closed or open mouth. Usually marked: Effanbee/American Children or Effanbee/Anne Shirley (when they used the Anne Shirley body) or unmarked.

Think some of the doll names were; Gloria Ann with dark brown hair, and Ruth Ann (both have open slight smiling mouths). Barbara Ann, Barbara Joan, Barbara Lou with honey blonde hair, a Boy doll (with painted eyes only) and Peggy Lou (all have closed smiling mouths).

A 17" tall boy doll was sold only one year is unmarked and came with painted eyes and closed mouth.

In 1997 the U. S. Postal Service Stamp Commerative issued a reproduction vinyl doll based on the earlier Dewees American Children dolls of the 1930's. Robert Tonner also has reproduced the Effanbee American Children dolls in the 1990's-2004.

1936-1939 American Child;

Gloria Ann, 20"

1937-1939 Clippo the Clown, 15" tall, ventriloquist marionette doll, dressed in a red and white clown suit with white organdy collar, white felt hat and white shoes. Came with a play booklet, tickets and poster. Designed by Virginia Curtis Austin (1903-1986), other marionettes were; Emily Ann, Lucifer, Liza Lee, Poochie (a dog) and were know as the "Clippo Club". Virginia toured giving theatre performances with her puppets for many years.

1937-1939 Clippo the Clown, 15"

1938-1943 Button Nose or Butn Nose, 8" tall, all composition, molded hair, painted side glancing eyes, jointed at the neck, shoulders & hips. Marked: Effanbee. Came wearing ethnic costumes, doll shown is a boy in an oriental costume, there was a companion girl doll.

1938 Button Nose, 8"

1938-1943 Betty Button Nose or Betty Butn Nose, 8" tall, shown all original with her box, and tag, all composition, molded hair, painted side glancing eyes, jointed at the neck, shoulders & hips. Marked: Effanbee.

1930's Betty Butn Nose, 8"

1939-1940 Historic Sets; three dolls to each set, 30 dolls total, 21-22" tall, used as department store displays, depicted various clothing from a 1492 Indian Maid to 1939 Miss America a "modern doll".

What was sold to the public were replicas that were 14" tall, Little Lady head mold, marked: Anne Shirley body, have painted eyes, DeWees Cochran designed arms of hard rubber with separated slender fingers.

1939-1940 Historic:

1620 Plymouth Colony

1939-1959 Little Lady/Anne Shirley, 14-15, 19, 22, 27, 29" tall, all composition, sleep eyes, wigged, fully jointed, DeWees Cochran designed one of two hand molds; the other one has separated fingers that are a bit shorter & fatter. Dolls are marked: Anne Shirley or just Effanbee. The 1959 Anne Shirley was re-issued in hard plastic.

Flo's doll is all original, has the beautiful braided blonde wig with a long floral gown and matching headpiece, she has the DeWees Cochran hands. Photo courtesy of Flozdolz.

1939-1959 Little Lady, 14-15"

1939, 1959, 1962 Suzette, 11 1/2" tall, strung all composition, painted side glancing sleep eyes, molded hair or wigged, slight bent right arm, marked on head & back: Suzette/Effanbee USA & Suzette/Effanbee/Made in USA .

The 1962 doll is 15" tall and made of vinyl.

1939 Suzette, 11 1/2"

1939-1946 Baby Bright Eyes, 1939-1944 Tousle Tot or 1938-1941 & 1950 Noma Talker, 1957-1981 Sweetie Pie, (all same head mold), 19 or 24" tall, composition head and limbs, stuffed cloth body, flirty sleep eyes, caracul wig over molded hair.

1939-1946 Baby Bright Eyes