The TV Lamp Collectors Blog

I’ve been playing around some more with Flash on texansinc.com, and have added an audio clip to the Howard Kron page. (see previous post) The song that so well represents Howard’s days as a singer, Pedlar of Dreams, was performed and recorded by Corey Ash (Band Director at Howard Payne University) for inclusion on the site, and appears at the bottom of the page. I toyed with different styles for the play/pause/stop buttons, and can’t decide if I like them or not…we’ll see. Creating Photoshop buttons isn’t something I have trouble with, but the implementation of Flash effects, now that’s another story! Before I post the four “designers” pages I hope to make menu page for them, something that will include some image effects that, while crystal clear in my mind, are going to put my Flash skills (or the lack thereof) to the test. Any Flash pros out there that would care to volunteer their assistance?

I thought I’d give my blog readers a “sneak peek” at the biography of Howard Kron that I just finished. It’s one of four pages that will focus on the Texans Incorporated designers, and will be posted on texansinc.com once they’re all done. There’s no link to this from the website yet, but I had to share it… don’t tell anyone! The Designers: Howard Kron

I thought this would be a good time to clue everyone in on my recent and future exploits. I’ve been putting a good deal of time into my beloved side-project, texansinc.com, toying around with Flash animation. Since that site doesn’t receive the same volume of visitors that flock to tvlamps.net I’m a little more comfortable using it as a test-bed, a place to make risky changes that might not work properly or simply look bad. (20/20 hindsight and all) As my “bravery quotient” increases I’ll no doubt apply Flash to tvlamps.net as well. At the present time, the texansinc.com header (title graphic) does indeed have a certain goofy quality, and I’ll definitely change it this week. My experience with Flash goes back all of 48 hours, so forgive any “issues” with the pages as I claw my way up the learning curve. Besides the funky moving header on the main page, I’ve also applied a little Flash work to the “71 Fire” page. (shown above) Previously, to view the fire movie footage one clicked on a link that would, hopefully, cause the .mpg file to play from the visitors default movie player. Now the clip is embedded into the page with Flash, a handy play button residing below it. Read more…

$560.00 Hedi Schoop Comedy-Tragedy
$177.50 Beachcomber Accordion
$163.50 Texans/Kron Butterfly and Magnolia
$160.00 Texans/Kron Sportsman Panther (white)
$129.16 Haeger Exotic Princess
$127.37 Sailfish (blue and pink, maker unknown)
$125.50 Hankscraft Squirrel
$119.49 Maddux Flamingo
$111.49 Mermaid (green…Haeger?)
$104.50 Comedy-Tragedy (maker unknown)
$104.48 Maddux Siamese Cat

One of the main sources of confusion among collectors, and sellers, is the true definition of a TV lamp. The term is used quite loosely, often by eBay sellers that understand how avidly that category is watched. So, in the strictest sense, what constitutes a TV lamp? I’ll start with the Jacquelin panther shown above, as I consider it to be the very essence of the genre, the style that immediately comes to mind for most people. The attributes that make this a classic TV lamp are simple: It dates from the ’50s, it is ceramic, it provides back-lighting, it represents a popular mid-century theme (the panther was one of several “exotic” icons of the day) and it was designed and marketed specifically for use atop the family television. This is a TV lamp in its purest form, no question. But there are others, many others that meet the criteria.  Read more…

Maybe it’s just me, but I find TV lamp design sketches fascinating, if for no other reason than their extreme rarity. This one, in the collection of Richard Gunter, is a layout sketch by Howard Kron for the Circus Horse TV lamp. The lamp, manufactured by Texans Incorporated, follows this drawing with little deviation. This was clearly a final sketch, with the basic concept having been sorted out in other drawings. A great deal of precision and detail has been applied here and, although it doesn’t appear to exist today, I suspect that a similar rendering was done of the back as well. Designers put a huge amount of work into preparing a lamp for production, with proportions, size, mold design and glaze formulations all taken into account. A larger version of this sketch, as well as several other Kron drawings, will eventually appear on texansinc.com.

This is just personal ramblings, and way off topic, but I’ve got to ask: Where are all the collector websites? All sorts of vintage artifacts are collected, from wall pockets to jigger glasses to stereoscopic viewers, and it baffles me that no one has created websites dedicated to the them. Am I just crazy for posting hundreds of pages on TV lamps? Obviously there’s many enthusiastic TV lamp collectors around, but aren’t there plenty of Rosemeade collectors? Where’s the website? Over the past years tvlamps.net has become hugely popular, and it’s occurred to me that the reason could be because it’s different… an in-depth, perhaps obsessive, website. I’m certainly not doing anything difficult. Anyone that is passionate about a thing can share their interest. On-line commerce will always be the prime user of internet bandwidth, but one can only hope that more collectors/hobbyists will step up and contribute. One doesn’t have to be a computer genius (I’m not), or even have a plan (I didn’t). It just takes enthusiasm.

Maddux Mare & Colt (rare), #180185892684.
Texans Inc. Hunting Dog, #350000396787.
George Washington(!), plaster, #370000144419.
Texans Inc./Kron 3-horses, #250192857857.
Fuhry & Sons Eagle (gold), #290186376307.
Alert Lamp Mfg. Comedy-Tragedy, #110199375790.
Phil-Mar Rooster (brown), #120189086629.
Claes Cocker Spaniel Puppies, #290185823578.
Haeger Comedy-Tragedy, #290185808308.

The activity (or lack of it) on eBay in the past couple of weeks makes it clear that we’re solidly into the holiday slump. But fear not, for even though few TV lamps are listed, even fewer people are bidding. It’s a great time of year for bargains! Here’s some choice lamps now at auction:

Cali-Co of California Mermaid (gray), #230190792978.

“Two Hunting Dogs”, maker unknown (black w/gold detailing), #290179547692.

“Two Deer Heads” (Gilner?), #160178381296.

Maddux of California Doe and Fawn, #120181807342.

Texans Inc. (Kron) Circus Horse with airbrushed color, #180179573826.

Rock O Stone “Oriental Woman”, #180179573826.

Esco-Lite 3-leaf (white/black), #220170782322.

Jarra Ceramics Seahorse (green), #330187394909.

Lane & Co. Rooster, closed-back version (not to be confused with the “open back” variety!), #130173114758.

Lane & Co. Swordfish, #170168355798.

Texans Inc. (Kron) Poodle & Pug (white poodle), #220171239565.

The community of pottery collectors has lost a true friend, as Charlene Korcz passed away on October 4th following her fight with cancer. Char was a knowledgeable and enthusiastic historian, particularly regarding the products of Haeger Potteries. She traveled from her home in Carpentersville, Illinois to Texas in 2006 for the Texans Inc. Reunion, and my family and I had the pleasure of visiting her this past summer for a tour of the Haeger facility. Char was a dear friend, and will be missed.