Talk: Muppet Christmas ornaments (Alderbrook)

This might be more for Danny and Wendy, but are we sure that these figures and Muppet flocked figures are not the same things? I know these type of Christmas ornaments were very popular in the late 1970s and into the 1980s, and I'm just a little curious if maybe some wires got crossed on who made these. (I'm also posting this on the talk page for the flocked figures) -- Nate (talk) 23:44, March 12, 2010 (UTC)

well, the box here clearly says Aldergate. I'd have to redo some legwork but HC Ford definitely made flocked figures (not ornaments) of all sorts of tv characters, and I got the info for the flocked figurine page from various British sites. Without a matching character it would be hard to even say it was the same mold. -- Wendy (talk) 00:19, March 13, 2010 (UTC)

I think I have one of these in a box somewhere -- no tag or anything, but (as I remember it) it's not a Christmas ornament and doesn't have a loop on it. Nate's suggestion is certainly possible -- for one thing, it's possible that these were made by H.C. Ford in the UK and then distributed by Aldergate in Canada. But it's also possible that two companies both had the unfortunate idea of making horrible looking flocked Muppet figures. -- Danny (talk) 01:08, March 13, 2010 (UTC)

The Gonzo here definitely has a hang-cord (you can see it). For the H. C. Ford ones, I got them from whatacharacter.com. It lists the date and maker. They never do that unless it is marked on the item. There is also a post on Muppet Central forum confirming that they are tagged with maker and date here. Looking around in general I found other web evidence that HCF is H.C. Ford and they made Star Wars stuff and flocked figurines. So I am pretty certain about the info on the H.C. Ford page.

If this is a repackaging for Canada it's a pretty big time lag -- the date on the HCF ones is 1977, this article gives 1987. Not impossible, but might be hard to tell unless they are marked inside the package with the HCF label... -- Wendy (talk) 02:06, March 13, 2010 (UTC)

So... I don't think there's any evidence that these are the same items, except for the fact that they're both flocked Muppet figures. If we find anything that suggests a relationship, then great; for now, it doesn't seem like there's anything to go on. -- Danny (talk) 06:43, March 13, 2010 (UTC)