I Am a Magnificent Human Being

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Text on Button I AM A MAGNIFICENT HUMAN BEING H. GARDNER ©1955
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Illustration of a person over black text on a white background

Curl Text Bernard Creations Yonkers N.Y
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Created by American cartoonist, playwright, and artist, Herb Gardner, The Nebbishes was a syndicated comic strip that was originally picked up by the Chicago Tribune and later syndicated to 60-75 major newspapers across the country. Running on Sundays from 1959-1961, the strip features characters called Nebbishes, which are small white blob-like creatures who often spoke with humorous self-deprecating mottos and sayings. Prior to the comic strip being picked up, the characters were already popular from their appearances on cards, napkins, and wall decorations. Gardner has mentioned in interviews that he used the name Nebbishes because in Yiddish, "nebbish" means an insignificant, pitiful person.

Catalog ID HU0174

I'm a Three Letter Man

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Text on Button SEX I'M A THREE LETTER MAN PAULA ©1959
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Black text and an illustration of a person standing with their arms open, wearing black pants and a white shirt with black text on it

Curl Text MADE IN U.S.A.
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"Sex: I'm a three letter man" was created by the Paula Company, now the C.M. Paula Company, a greeting card supplier founded by Charles McCullough in 1958. It was released as a figurine in 1964, and the image has since appeared on mugs, buttons, postcards. 

Catalog ID HU0184

Water Comic

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Text on Button PAULA ©1959 WATER
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Illustration of a person breathing fire holding a bottle with black text on a white background

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This button is one of many made by the Paula Company, a greeting card company founded in 1958 in Cincinnati, Ohio, by Charles McCullough. In addition to greeting cards, the company also sold stationery, novelty products, and other unique gifts including pinback buttons. It now goes by the name C.M. Paula Company.

Sources

Caproni, E. (2017, December 26). Cincinnati company founder Charles McCullough dies. Retrieved July 4, 2018, from https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2017/12/26/cincinnati-compa…

Catalog of Copyright Entries: Third Series(Vol. 18). (1964). Retrieved July 5, 2018, from https://books.google.com/books?id=rzIhAQAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=on…

Catalog ID HU0181

Looking for Some Action

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Text on Button Looking for some ACTION? hart ©1973 FIELD ENTERPRISES
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Illustration of the B.C. comic character Thor next to white text on a blue background

Curl Text union bug
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In 1973, ACTION was a group of volunteers of all ages and skills seeking to help people. It was touted as a combination of service groups such as the PEACE Corps, RSVP (Retired Senior Volunteer Program), The Foster Grandparent Program and others. B.C. comics characters were widely used to promote this initiative in Public Service Announcements (PSAs) and by newspaper ads.

The character featured here is Thor of B. C. comics. The B.C. comic strip was created by cartoonist Johnny Hart and is set in prehistoric times and features cavemen and other creatures. It was launched on February 17, 1958 and currently runs in syndication. Several characters of the B.C. comic are featured in a Public Service Announcement (PSA) promoting ACTION: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5Fll5ZhQUA

Catalog ID CA0717

Get Into Action

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Text on Button Get into ACTION ©1973 FIELD ENTERPRISES hart
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Illustration of the B.C. comic character Thor standing on a wheel next to white text on a green background

Curl Text union bug
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In 1973, ACTION was a group of volunteers of all ages and skills seeking to help people. It was touted as a combination of service groups such as the PEACE Corps, RSVP (Retired Senior Volunteer Program), the Foster Grandparent Program and others.  B.C. comics characters were widely used to promote this initiative in Public Service Announcements and in newspaper ads. The character featured here is Thor. The B.C. comic strip was created by cartoonist Johnny Hart and is set in prehistoric times and features cavemen and other creatures. It was launched on February 17, 1958 and currently runs in syndication.

Several characters of the B.C. comic are featured in this Public Service Announcement (PSA) promoting ACTION:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5Fll5ZhQUA

Catalog ID CA0716

Pumpkin Bowl 1957

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Text on Button PUMPKIN BOWL OCT. 31 1957 ANOKA MINNESOTA "HALLOWEEN CAPITAL OF THE WORLD"
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Illustration of a pumpkin head character on an orange background side by side with a black background with orange text

Curl Text WENDELL NORTHWESTERN INC.
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Anoka, Minnesota has been known as the "Halloween Capital of the World" since 1920 when it first began hosting a Halloween parade to keep its younger residents from running amok. Since that time, the festivities have grown larger, to include concerts, pillow fights, dances, painting contests, and football games such as the 1957 Pumpkin Bowl. The Grand Parade continues to be the highlight of the month long celebration with participants and spectators coming from all over the midwest. 

Sources

History. (2015) Anoka Halloween Inc. Retrieved from http://anokahalloween.com/history/.

Catalog ID EV0254

Isleton Crawdad Festival

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Text on Button SHOW ME YOUR TAIL! ISOLATION CRAWDAD FESTIVAL
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Illustration of a crawdad character over black text on a yellow background

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The Isleton Crawdad Festival, hosted by the city's Chamber of Commerce, takes place each year over Father's Day weekend in Isleton, California. It is modeled after similar festivals held in Louisiana and features traditional Cajun style music and dishes, including steamed crawdads, gumbo, and jambalaya. The festival began in 1986, after a tourist from Louisiana excitedly regaled Isleton citizens about the festivals back home. Isleton Chamber of Commerce members worked with Breaux Bridge, Louisiana to establish the Isleton festival, even going so far as to buy a crawdad boiling rig from the Breaux Bridge festival organizer. Since then, the Festival has grown into a three day affair, featuring local vendor booths, crawdad races, and an all ages carnival. 

Sources

Isleton Chamber of Commerce. (2008). Crawdad Festival. Retrieved from http://www.isletoncoc.org/crawdad.html

Isleton Chamber of Commerce. (2008). Crawdad History. Retrieved from http://www.isletoncoc.org/c-history.html

Catalog ID EV0495

E Day 1964 50th Anniversary

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Text on Button 50th ANNIVERSARY 1914 1964 E DAY 1964 APRIL 30-MAY 2 UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA
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Black text and illustrations of a balloon, airplane, buildings and a rocket on a blue and yellow background

Curl Text THE MIDWEST NOVELTY AND BADGE CO INC. MPLS 16, MINN
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E-Day, or Engineers' Day, is an annual celebration of engineers and engineering. Observed at universities across the United States, the event generally involves activities such as engineering competitions, demonstrations, lectures, and banquets.

Since its inception in 1914, E-Day at the University of Minnesota has been organized by a once-secret society called Plumb Bob. The oldest organization on campus, Plumb Bob professes a tongue-in-cheek devotion to St. Patrick, the patron saint of engineers. Plumb Bob may have roots in an even older St. Patrick's Day tradition wherein engineering students at various universities used to cut classes to parade loudly around campus, supposedly in honor of their patron saint.

Today, E-Day at the University of Minnesota is known as CSE Week, to reflect both an expanded calendar of activities and the event's sponsoring department, the College of Science and Engineering. Plumb Bob is now a leadership society with open membership.

Sources

Petroski, H. (2011). An engineer's alphabet: Gleanings from the softer side of a profession. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Plumb Bob. (2018, April 12). The history of CSE Week [Fact sheet]. Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/pg/CSEWeek/about 

Plumb Bob. (n.d.). Plumb Bob. Retrieved from http://plumbbob.umn.edu/

Catalog ID EV0494

CFS Falconbridge Winter Carnival 1986

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Text on Button CFS FALCONBRIDGE 19 86 WINTER CARNIVAL
Image Description

Black text around the outer edge with an illustration of a building in the center on a white background

Curl Text BOBB'S T-SHIRTS, SUDBURY, 673-0333
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The Canadian Forces Station (CFS) Falconbridge was a radar station located in Ontario, Canada, that was active from 1952-1985. It got its name from the nearby settlement of Falconridge and was part of the Pinetree Line of radar stations, which was established by NORAD to create a long-range missile detection system. The Pinetree Line consisted of a group of 44 radar stations that stretched across Canada that would act as an early warning system should a long-range missile be fired toward North America.

Sources

CFS Falconbridge. (n.d.) Revolvy. Retrieved from https://www.revolvy.com/page/CFS-Falconbridge

Pinetree Line Radar Sites. (n.d.) The Pinetree Line. Retrieved from http://www.c-and-e-museum.org/Pinetreeline/boundary/canada.html

Catalog ID EV0496