Black Firm Joins Toy Industry

Ebony magazine's December 1969 cover image features Marc Copage (of  Julia show fame) and actor Johnny Brown as Santa Claus.

It was newsworthy in 1969 when Ebony magazine featured a 6-page article about Shindana Toy Company in the December issue. I recently discovered and purchased this issue because of the Shindana article, " Black Firm Joins Toy Industry." Behind-the-scene images at the Shindana doll factory and offices in 1969 and captions from the article (modified for the photo layout in this post) are shared below.

At Shindana Toy Co., an all-black Los Angeles firm manufacturing special "soul doll babies," under combined auspices of a black self-help group called Operation Bootstrap and Mattel, Inc., factory workers operate and remove a hot batch of doll bodies from 880° F ovens (above and below). Later, dolls are painted and stitched together so that final product looks like models displayed (below) by a company worker. Shindana, which now produces some 1000 dolls a day should gross $450,000 this year.

In the Shindana Dolls factory, a Shindana factory worker operates and removes a hot batch of doll bodies from an 880° F oven.

Two versions of Shindana's Baby Nancy are displayed by Shindana worker, Mary White.

Introducing Baby Jane, a new doll specially designed for Sears Roebuck & Co., is Shindana's Director of Research and Design, Bob Penny. The company's latest model will have eyes which close when the doll is placed in a reclining position.

Newly painted doll heads are carefully placed onto turntables for drying. The original design for Shindana's 13-inch doll Nancy (the company's first model) was developed by three high school students within a three-month period. Although the firm now produces only four models, it is working on new ones and plans manufacturing other types of children's games. "We want to do everything except war toys," says the company's General Manager Robert Hall.

Before dolls are shipped out, each is packaged in cellophane-wrapped boxes. Although the factory is run on an assembly line basis, Manager Hall says there are no inspectors. "Each employee," he explains, "inspects the other. They're all proud that they're putting out a black product, and they just don't want our things to go to stores looking bad."

For little girls who prefer Afro styles, worker Carrie Rossner (above) roots natural hairdo onto dolls. Shindana has one of a few machines in the country which can root hair automatically.

For young miss who would prefer a doll with twin ponytails, Shindana worker Eloise Reed arranges the hairstyle accordingly. Studies will determine which hairstyle makes the biggest impression on children.

Once the hairstyle is selected, the doll's head is stitched (above) to its body. Then it is dressed and packaged. Shindana, which started with a workforce of 10 to 15 in 1968, now employs more than 70 workers in different sections of the factory.

In his office (above, top) Sales Manager Herbert Thompson (sitting) gives a sales pep talk while across the hall (above, bottom) Operations Manager Phil Gilyard discusses technical problems with Mattel staff member Dolphe Lee.

In the Art Department, Ed Gentry checks new box designs to be sure that "they're attractive, functional, and capable of selling the product." 

Research and design artist Jim Toatley uses a sculpture caliper to check the size of a doll's head.

Clerical staff takes care of the firm's office functions such as billing, typing, and letter writing. While employee turnover was fairly high at first, it is now down to less than 1%.

The production area of the Shindana Bldg. is hub of the doll-making process. The factory, located in South Los Angeles and which opened in 1968, has brought added revenue to the black community. Many of factory's workers were formerly among hard-core unemployed.

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Traditionally, Ebony's November and/or December issues featured new dolls and toys on the market for parents to consider purchasing their children for Christmas. In addition to the Shindana article (pages 84-91) in the December 1969 issue, a Mattel ad featured four toys for preschoolers; Mother Goose See 'n Say, Sing-A-Song Super See 'N Say, Charlie Brown Talking Storybook, and the Mattel-O-Phone with recordings from Snow White, Santa Claus, Old King Cole, and many others. See Mattel's ad here. 

The entire issue is accessible here, and you can learn more about the company's humble beginnings, Mattel's no-strings-attached funding and support, and other little-known Shindana Toy Company facts.

All photos and text are copyrighted and cannot be used elsewhere unless permission is granted by the author.

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