Charles Rossignol - Exceptional Toy Design and Detail

Friday, January 25, 2013
 -19 C or -2.2 F - It's Getting warmer!

Charles Rossignol

Exceptional Toy Design and Detail

   The weather this week has been very cold - always in the minus 20's C or low -4 to  - 8 F.  Not that I care to stay inside or write blogs all day, but I do have extra time. I walked my dog Buddie who hasn't had a clipping in 3 months. He thinks it's summer, and he's prancing and dancing like Santa reindeer, while I though I'd become an icicle! 2 more months to spring!

   I was at a site that lists lots of toy manufacturers, and I came across the name Charles Rossignol. Immediately I thought of the famous French ski manufacturer, but I was wrong. However, I then decided to go to Live Auctioneers,  et voila (and there you are - in French) - the marvellous toys of Charles Rossignol.

   I'll have to find 1 of my toy reference sites that describes toy manufacturers in detail, with good information for narrating on my posts. However, for now I'll provide some personal  opinions  on these fine toys.

    Most of the toys are large, and I especially like the design and detail of the toys.I'll add my personal comments as we go through the toys. However, my favourite is the green trolly below with that giant gear! My second favourite is the large-size scale model of a tow truck. THose 3 workers on the truck seated and position are just so "extraordinaire".

http://bertoiaauctions.com

(Please click on the above address to be redirected to Bertoia Auctions Fine Site)

Might I offer a suggestion to everyone?

1. First go to Liveauctioneers 

2. Enter a toy manufacturer's name (e.g. Charles Rossignol)

3. Press "Sold" - that will give you all of the sold toys for the manufacturer

4. Then look at the toys from all of the sellers

5.  Then go to Bertoia Auctions for their large-sized and excellent photography 

(Use the Auction dates and lot numbers from Live Auctioneers)

I don't know if they made airplanes like this, but it's comical to see the pilot right behind the bi-plane wings. Also, if those are passenger windows below, then the scale of the pilot to the plane is off. But I like that! I also like the design of that rear tail with the undulating curves at the bottom.

The warm-tones of beige, yellow and red work well on this toy. But what I like amost about this bus are the handles on the doors!

Design, design, and detail!  Why I haven;t known about Charles Rossignol until this week is beyond me. The double windshield, the lady driver with the flapper hat, the foldaway step for the rear passengers, the huge front headlights,that giant on/off battery switch, and the perforated air vents on the hood sides, all add to my fascination of this Mr. Charles Rossignol. He should have been designing real  cars or airplanes!

You just got to love that GIANT gear on the inside of this toy!

You can see the pure graphic design of this car due to the intentional lack of paint.

Those 3 workers certainly stand out, and just a bit of red on the wheels. 

But those 3 mens positioned in a triangle is just wonderful!

Someone at Bertoia Auctions must have seen what I saw or felt a certain attachment to this toy,as there were more photographs than usual for this listing. However, the final bid price was not higher than any of the other toys.

There's that small step again. I assume in this case, it was for the driver to get up on the [platform, and then to check the gas levels. Mind you, that could simply be the wind-up key that was integrated into the toy, so the key would not get lost!

Beautiful, Beautiful, Beautiful!

On most toys of the day, one doesn't see such large-sized wind-up mechanisms. I wonder of the mechanism was sturdier or made the toy go faster, compared with other toy manufacturers of the day?

I have a feeling that what I was describing as a "step" is really the integrated wind-up (key) mechanism so that children would not lose an unattached key.

What I like most about this toy is that it reminds me of the movie Fahrenheit 451 with  Oscar Werner. I just checked up, and sadly he passed away much too early at the age of 62.

He was highly-talemnted and super actor.I've seen him also in Ship of Fools, and in both movies, his performances were "Oscar" quality.

My Dunkin' Donuts "haunt" (Hangout) closed down on December 29, 2012. The land on it was much too valuable for a coffee shop without a drive-in. So now I go to Tim Horton's, a Canadian Coffee Shop, eh!  I was up very early, but I can't complain. I was able to process the wonderful images from Bertoia Auctions site, finished and posted the post on Blogger.  I'll be off to Tim Horton's, then to walk my dog Buddie. It's really enjoyable to write about toys and look at them,and the ere never seems to be an end to writing or finding new toys.

If you've ever had a dog ,there's nothing like getting dressed up to walk him/her in the early morning. He's always happy, and most of the time eager" to go for a walk. Today, as long as the wind is not blowing too hard, Buddie will think it's summer. As for me, I'll be waiting for him to "do his business", and then run back to the house. At  -19 Celcius or -2.2 F, that's cold.  

One final recollection to share. When I first visited my brother Michael and his wife Marlene in Calgary in the late 1970's, I went in winter. I arrive to -30 C or  -22 F. My brother would say that it's nt bad since the humidity was low! Yeh right! I wasn't used to cold in those days, and cold was cold regardless of humidity levels. Meanwhile, everyone at a coffee shop or gas station would keep their cars running so they wouldnt' stall. I'll have to ask my bother if they still do that,since cars are all fuel-injected, and perform much better at start-up times, that back then. Of course, -30 C or -22 is still cold - and who knows!

Thanks for dropping by, 

and if you're in a cold place,then keep warm, and bundle up.

And, as usual,have a nice day and weekend wherever you may be.

Stacey