This tinplate mechanical toy represents Li'l Abner and his Dogpatch Band, with Daisy Mae on piano, Mammy conducting and Pappy Yokum on the drum. Li'l Abner is the main character in a satirical comic strip by the same name, written and illustrated by Al Capp (1909-1979) and featuring the fictitious hillbillies of the village of Dogpatch, in Kentucky. First published in 1934, this comic strip captured the hearts of millions of readers in the United States and Canada for more than four decades.
This toy was made by the Unique Art Manufacturing Company, an American company established in 1916, in Newark, New Jersey. Despite a few highly successful mechanical toys like this one, the company closed shop in 1952.
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