Blue text and an illustration of a chick on a pink background

Please contact us if you have more information.

Black text with an illustration of two feet over a yellow background

Topps Co. was founded in 1938 and today sells predominantly candy and sports memorabilia. In 1965, Topps began producing “Wise Guy” metal pins that featured satire for novelty and humor. Like the collectible sports cards sold by the company, these buttons came in colorful packages and were sold for a nickel a piece. Though some buttons made by Topps came with its trademark bubble gum, “Wise Guy” pins did not.

Green and orange text over a yellow background

Please contact us if you have more information.

Blue text on a pink heart on a blue background

The original form of the "I heart" and "I love" logos was the I heart NY logo created in 1977 by Milton Glaser for an ad campaign created by advertising agency Wells Rich Greene. The marketing campaign was sought by then-Deputy Commissioner William S. Doyle to increase tourism in the state of New York. The campaign was a wild success. The original sketch of the logo is permanently on display at the MOMA.

The "I love" and "I heart" logos have become iconic in pop-culture and have been imitated in many forms around the world, like on this button promoting self-love.  

Have info on this button? Contact us here.

Black and white text on a red background with an illustration of a man's head with black hair and a hat

Davy Jones was an English actor and musician popular in the 60's and 70's. He came to the United Sates and was part of the band The Monkees.  He appeared with his band members on the television show, The Monkees. The show was full of slap-stick comedy and music. Jones wrote and performed many songs on the show and his biggest hit was Daydream Believer. The band split in 1971, however Jones continued to perform, write songs and act until his death in 2012.

White text over a red, white and blue background

The first National Milk Week took place on November 14th through 20th, 1937. A joint project of the National Milk Producers Federation and the Milk Industry Foundation, the publicity campaign sought to increase milk consumption in the United States and to educate the public about the beverage's health benefits. 

Alongside the usual publicity buttons and print ads, the Milk Week campaign recruited newspaper columnists and government officials to tout the nutritional benefits of milk. Popular movie stars posed for posters while drinking the beverage. A train station in Boston honored the week by temporarily housing two cows in its outdoor concourse. The cows were milked twice a day in full view of commuters, to whom the milk was later sold.

In the years that followed, National Milk Week was eclipsed by June Milk Month, which was founded in the same year and which remains in place to this day.

Blue text around a blue illustration of a man and a woman on an orangish background.

This button promoted the premiere of the 1938 movie Boy Meets Girl, an adaptation of the 1935 stage play with the same name. Produced by Warner Brothers Studios and directed by Lloyd Bacon, Boy Meets Girl starred James Cagney and Pat O'Brien. It tells the story of two Hollywood screenwriters who cast a pregnant studio waitress' baby in a Western movie. When the lead actor dislikes having a baby as a co-star, the screenwriters plot a scheme to have the waitress seduced and whisked away from show business. The phrase "Girl 2534" was most likely a serial or raffle number used in promotional activities.

White text on a light blue background

Have info on this button? Contact us here.

Blue text above and below an illustration of a man in a brown hat and a blue suit with a red tie on a white background

The Chicago American was an afternoon newspaper founded in 1900 under the title "Hearst's Chicago American", which ran until 1974 when the rising popularity of TV ran it out of business.

In the 1930s the newspaper ran a series of buttons advertising the Saturday comics, featuring characters from popular strips including Betty Boop, Popeye, Buck Rogers, and Popeye's companion Wimpy, pictured here. J. Wellington Wimpy was one of the main characters in the Popeye comic strip, playing the "straight man" to Popeye and best known for his irresponsible financial decisions and love of hamburgers. E. C. Segar, creator of the strip based Wimpy on his first boss William Schuchert, manager of the Chester Opera House.

Red and blue text around an illustration of a man's head

Dan Dunn was a fictional detective created by Norman Marsh in the 1930s. The comic book Dan Dunn, Secret Operative 48 became a daily newspaper comic strip in 1933 and ran through 1943. "The Saturday Daily News" button set from the 1940s featured characters from their newspaper comic strips including Li'l Abner, Apple Mary, Mutt and Jeff, and Dan Dunn.