Summary

Brown plastic cowboy figurine. One of a set of figures issued in 1959-1960 and distributed inside Kellogg's Corn Flakes, Sugar Frosties and Coco Pops cereal boxes. Advertisements for the figurines in the Sydney Morning Herald on 22 March 1959 and 7 February 1960 referred to a 'Wild West Club' and 'authentic Wild West' building cut-outs on the back of the cereal boxes.

The William Boyd Childhood Collection includes most of the childhood possessions of William (Bill) Boyd, who was born in 1947 and raised in the Victorian town of Maryborough. Kept by Lillian Boyd (Bill's mother) for decades, upon her death the Collection was donated by Bill to the former Museum of Childhood at Edith Cowan University in Western Australia. When the Museum of Childhood closed it was transferred to Museum Victoria.

Physical Description

Brown plastic cowboy with gun in one outstretched arm. Figure wears chaps, shirt, kercheif, hat, belt and second gun in holster.

Significance

Encompassing toys, books, clothing and other items, the William Boyd Childhood Collection is rare in its comprehensiveness: even ephemera such as the back of a Cornflakes box are included. The Collection demonstrates a range of prominent themes in the lives of postwar Victorian children, such as the ability to 'make do' under austere circumstances; the shift in toy manufacture towards plastic materials and mass production; the continuing cultural influence of Britain; the increasing embrace of American popular culture; the prominence of gender roles; and the popularity of transport and war themed toys for boys.

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