Summary

Kodak Brownie Starflash camera, which was used and owned by Bill Boyd in the late 1950s.

This popular snapshot camera was first made by Eastman Kodak in the USA in 1957 and manufacture continued until 1965. It is part of the Kodak Star range of cheap, easy to use cameras. It has a plastic body, fixed focus Dakon lens and used 127 roll film. It has a built-in flash with a parabolic reflector and used a single, small flash bulb.

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

Brownie Starflash Camera with black moulded plastic body and black strap, in original box with Instruction Manual.

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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