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Golliwogg
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The "Golliwogg" (later "Golliwog") is a character of children's literature created by Florence Kate Upton in the late 19th century, inspired by a blackface minstrel doll which Upton found as a child in her aunt's attic in Hampstead, north London. The character, depicted in the books as a type of rag doll, was reproduced, both by commercial and hobby toy-makers as a children's toy. The toy was known as a "golliwog", and had great popularity in North America, Britain, Europe and Australasia, into the 1960s.
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The "Golliwogg" (later "Golliwog") is a character of children's literature created by Florence Kate Upton in the late 19th century, inspired by a blackface minstrel doll which Upton found as a child in her aunt's attic in Hampstead, north London. The character, depicted in the books as a type of rag doll, was reproduced, both by commercial and hobby toy-makers as a children's toy. The toy was known as a "golliwog", and had great popularity in North America, Britain, Europe and Australasia, into the 1960s. While home-made golliwogs were sometimes female, the golliwog was generally male. For this reason, in the period following World War II, the golliwog was seen, along with the teddy bear, as a suitable soft toy for a young boy.
The toy golliwog has become a collector's item. However, the image of the doll has become the subject of heated debate. One aspect of the debate in its favor argues that it should be preserved and passed on as a cherished cultural artifact and childhood tradition, while opponents argue it should be retired as a relic of an earlier time when racism against those of African descent was blatant.
The word "golliwog" has from the 1950s onward been used as a term of racial abuse directed at black people. This has reduced the popularity and sale of golliwogs as toys. Manufacturers who have used golliwogs as a motif have either withdrawn them as an icon, or changed the name. There has been wide press coverage of incidents in which the term "golliwog" has been applied to a well-known personality.
History
attire in Golliwogg and Friends in 1895.]]
Florence Kate Upton was born in 1873 in Flushing, New York, the daughter of English parents who had emigrated to the United States three years previously. Following the death of her father, she moved back to England with her mother and sisters when she was fourteen. There she spent several years drawing and developing her artistic skills. In order to afford tuition to art school, she illustrated a children's book entitled The Adventures of Two Dutch Dolls and a Golliwogg. The 1895 book included a character named the "Golliwogg", who was first described as "a horrid sight, the blackest gnome", but who quickly turned out to be a friendly character, and is later attributed with a "kind face". A product of the blackface minstrel tradition, the character was classic "darkie" iconography. The Golliwogg had jet black skin; bright, red lips; and wild, woolly hair. He wore red trousers, a shirt with a stiff collar, red bow-tie, and a blue jacket with tails — all traditional minstrel attire.
Upton's book and its many sequels were extremely successful in England, largely because of the popularity of the Golliwogg. Upton did not trademark her character, and its name, spelt "golliwog", became the generic name for dolls and images of a similar type. The golliwog doll became a popular children's toy throughout most of the 20th century, and was incorporated into many aspects of British commerce and culture; for instance, some of Enid Blyton's books feature them, often as a villain and sometimes as heroes. Upton's Golliwogg was jovial, friendly and gallant. but some later golliwogs were sinister or menacing characters.
The golliwog contributed enormously to the spread of 'darky' iconography in Europe. It also made its way back across the Atlantic in the form of children's literature, dolls, children's china and other toys, ladies' perfume, and jewellery.
British jam manufacturer James Robertson & Sons used a golliwog called Golly as its mascot from 1910, after John Robertson apparently saw children playing with golliwog dolls in America. Robertson's started producing promotional Golliwog badges in the 1920s, which could be obtained in exchange for tokens gained from their products. In 1983, the company's products were boycotted by the Greater London Council as offensive, and in 1988 the character ceased to be used in television advertising. The company used to give away golliwog badges making up different sets, such as playing jazz instruments, or with sports equipment, or other such themes. The badge collection scheme was retired in 2001.
In a statement reported by the BBC, Virginia (Ginny) C Knox, previously brand director for Robertson's and now Chief Operating Officer of the Culinary Brands Division of RHM, told the Herald Newspaper in Scotland in 2001 that the decision to remove the Golly (Golliwogg) symbol from Robertson's jam and marmalade jars was taken after research found that children were not familiar with the character, although it still appealed to the older generations. "We sell 45 million jars of jam and marmalade each year and they have pretty much all got Golly on them," said Ms Knox. "We also sell 250,000 Golly badges to collectors and only get 10 letters a year from people who don't like the Golliwogg image". Today, Robertson's Golliwog badges remain highly collectible, with the very rarest sometimes selling for more than £1,000, and even comparatively common and recent badges being worth £2.00–£3.00.
Golliwog as racist insult
After the publication of Upton's first book, the term "golliwog" was used both as a reference to the children's toy and as a generic, racist term for Black people. In Britain and the Commonwealth, "golliwog" perhaps became "wog," a racial slur applied to dark-skinned people worldwide, including Africans, Southern Italians, Greeks and other Mediterranean people, Native Americans, Middle Easterners, Hispanics, Pakistanis and Indians.
In Australia many young people of Greek, Lebanese and other Mediterranean descent have adopted the name "wog" as a humorous identifier. An example of this from popular Australian culture is the 2000 movie The Wog Boy starring the popular actor Nick Giannopoulos.
In the early 1980s, revised editions of Enid Blyton's Noddy books replaced Mr. Golly, the golliwog proprietor of the Toytown garage, with Mr. Sparks.
In September, 2007, retail chain Zara put a T-shirt on sale in its UK stores with a Golliwog-looking little girl printed in the front. The design spurred controversy, coming only weeks after the company had been forced to pull a swastika-emblazoned handbag from its shelves.
On Saturday, June 21, 2008, supermodel Naomi Campbell pleaded guilty to assault in a foul-mouthed "air rage" incident which occurred on April 3, 2008, where she alleges being called a 'Golliwog supermodel' by an employee of British Airways. Campbell accused the airline of racism. British Airways issued a statement denying the allegations made by Campbell.
In February 2009, Carol Thatcher, in an off-air conversation at the BBC, referred to the black French tennis player Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, competing in the Australian Open, as looking like a golliwog. The comment was considered by the BBC as "wholly unacceptable" and Thatcher was informed that unless she apologised she would no longer be a reporter on BBC's The One Show. Thatcher stated that it was a silly joke and declined to make an "unconditional apology". Thatcher claimed that her comment was a reference to the golliwog motifs that she saw in her childhood on "jars of jam" (Robertson's Marmalade).
The French publication Sportsweek claimed that Thatcher, in talking about a previous competition referred to another player as "the one who was defeated by the golliwog in the previous tour". The French publication, which showed a picture of Tsonga above a picture of a toy golliwog, claimed that Thatcher was "mortified" and that her comment was about the similarity of Tsonga's appearance to the doll that she had as a child.
In September 2008, Amanda Schofield , a woman living in Stockport, was arrested by the police for keeping a "golly" doll in her window. She claims that it was her daughter who put it there after she found it in a bag of toys. She was let off only after she promised to sell off the doll.
A shop owner in Wrightington, near Wigan, faced prosecution and a £1,000 fine after a customer complained about the golly dolls and keyrings on sale. Police confiscated a doll and a keyring, but the complaint was not taken any further and the items were put back on sale.
Other meanings and in popular culture
- "Golliwog" was World War II British naval slang for a Gauloises cigarette, which had tobacco that was nearly black in colour.
- The American rock group Creedence Clearwater Revival was known as "The Golliwogs" and under this name they released a number of singles on the Fantasy label before they rose to prominence.
- The sixth movement of Claude Debussy's Children's Corner is titled "Golliwogg's Cakewalk", inspired by the American dance.
- Golliwog is the former name of a popular line of cocoa biscuits in Australia. First released in the 1960s, they were renamed by manufacturer Arnott's in the mid-1990s and are now sold under the name of "Scalliwag".
- Golliwog is a solo-single by ABBA member Agnetha Fältskog from 1974.
- Golliwogg is featured in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen as the pilot of an interdimensional ship, along with the Dutch dolls. Golliwogg is said to be a creature made of dark matter in the book.
See also
External links
- Article by David Pilgrim, Ferris State University, Michigan
- Golliwog history & vintage Golliwog guide
- by Bertha Upton 1895 at Project Gutenberg
- Information on Robertsons Golly Badges
- An independent guide to Golliwogs
- A brief history of Golliwogs
- An anti-racist story for young children about a white Golliwog
- GOLIWOG license plate
- 13/01/07
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- Gollyfest and the International Golliwogg Collector Club
- Book 'Golliwog Gone' examines disappearance of golliwog from politically-correct society through the eyes of a child. Golliwog song called 'Golliwog Gone' (I want my Golliwog back!) recorded.
- Play- "Conversations with a Golliwog" by Alexander Guyan
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