Scissors:Penguin Pete Kiddykut Scissors

A manufacturer of scissors and shears produced the Penguin Pete "Kiddykut" scissors for preschoolers' small hands. The John Ahlbin company intended the penguin shape of the scissors to appeal to youngsters, and it intended the design of the scissors--which require little ones to keep their fingers and hands well below the cutting surface--to keep children's appendages far from harm's way. If the scissors' design was not enough to sell the scissors, the packaging proclaimed: "Scissors play an very important part in developing creative talent of children!" When these scissors appeared in the 1950s, the idea an age-appropriate designations for toys was quite novel. World Toy House, Inc., the company that distributed the scissors, advertised that it tested toys with children in several schools, day centers, and homes to grade and group toys properly for kids of various ages. The company predated the work of child safety experts and the Consumer Protection Agency by more than two decades.