The Kodak Brownie Starlet was a popular snapshot camera that was part of the Kodak Star range of cameras. It had a plastic body, fixed focus Dakon lens and used 127 roll film. It also featured flash capability, with contacts on the side of the camera for a flash gun to be connected into, for indoor and night photography. It was originally created by Eastman Kodak in the USA in 1957, but production stopped around 1962.
The Kodak Brownie Star series products were the first low-priced cameras "designed to take color slides, as well as color and black-and-white snapshots". They were portable and easy to use, and were extremely popular. Ten million of the three models of Star series cameras were sold around the world in five years.
The Brownie Star series was the second range of Kodak cameras to be assembled in Australia, after the Kodak Brownie Flash II. From 1958 an increasing range of components was made locally, and the Star cameras were assembled from more than 95% Australian parts.
The first Star camera in the range to be produced in Australia was the Brownie Starlet camera. The Brownie Starlet was followed by the Brownie Starmite and then the Brownie Starflash.
Museums Victoria has three Kodak Brownie Starlet cameras in its Kodak Heritage Collection, including one Camera Outfit in its original box. It also holds a range of marketing material including 16mm motion film television commercials, point of sale price tickets, an instruction booklet and a brochure.
References
Kodakery, No. 82, September 1977, p.3.
Kodakery, No. 168, March, 1985, p.5.
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