Just One Word: Plastics Exhibition Guide (Pdf)

PLASTICS On the cover: front: Dominoes, manufacturer unknown, 1920s?; phenol formaldehyde. Gift of Lawrence J. Broutman. All photos by Tony Faulkner SPECIAL COLLECTIONS RESEARCH CENTER just one word PLASTICS the evolution of everyday objects in our plastic world Willie and Millie Salt & Pepper Set, manufactured by Fiedler & Fiedler (F & F) Mold and Die Works Company for Kool Cigarettes, 1950s; polystyrene. Gift of Lawrence J. Broutman. 2 just one word PLASTICS In the 1967 movie The Graduate, Dustin Hoff- made. Thermosets, which include most plastics man’s character, Benjamin Braddock, is given made before the 1940s, can melt and take shape the unsolicited career advice of “Just one word: only once; thermoplasts undergo no chemical plastics.” The phrase quickly became a derisive change when heated and can be molded again and dismissive summation of the ubiquity of and again. Because plastics can be shaped into plastics in our world—and a symbol of the (per- many forms for many purposes, generations ceived) overwhelming falseness of all things for have imposed upon plastics—or the idea of plas- the 1960s generation. The truth, of course, is tics—their aspirations and insecurities. that while plastic by definition is always mold- Since the New York World’s Fair of 1939, any able and malleable, it is neither imitative nor image of a “World of Tomorrow” has featured false. Plastics are materials in their own right plastic, but while plastics may evoke the future, and engineered with their own special qualities. they are very much of the present. No material Rather than stifling originality, for more than has adapted so easily to the changing needs of Jersey Jessie the Milking a century plastics have been a springboard for an era, and no era has been so quickly defined Moo-Cow. Manufactured almost unlimited invention and innovation by by a material. The American flag planted on the by Thomas Manufacturing chemists, engineers, designers, artists, and en- moon is made of plastic (nylon). The same plas- Corp., mid-1950s; polysty- trepreneurs. And as this exhibit shows, there tics used for prosthetic limbs and replacement rene. Originally gift of Mrs. Islyn Thomas. are many words for plastics: the names of the joints are used in lifelike dolls. High-impact plas- products we can hold in our hands but also of tics are used in industry and on the sports field. the materials, processes, chemical compounds, The film and recording industries have relied on and applications that give them birth. plastics, and so have hundreds of millions of chil- Plastics are synthetic or semisynthetic poly- dren who play with plastic toys. mers—materials in which the selection of mole- Despite its persistent modernity, plastic is cules and the chemical bonding process is man- one of our older technological innovations, a 1 product of the 19th century. Experimentation with semisynthetic plastics in 1870 led to the creation by John Wesley Hyatt of a relatively stable and durable cellulose nitrate plastic, com- monly known as Celluloid after its most famous trade name. For more than a century, since the invention of the phenol formaldehyde resin Bakelite by Leo Baekeland in 1907, synthetic plastics have taken pride of place in a growing array of products. While earlier generations celebrated the seemingly unlimited potential of plastics, public health advocates and environmentalists have in recent years pointed to the consequences of our addiction to plastic. For example, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) has had many life-saving applications (as in blood bags), but also produces the environmental contaminant dioxin, which in high doses is a carcinogen. Though recyclable, the majority of plastics in the United States are still dumped in landfills, or burned for energy. More and more efforts have been made to cre- ate “sustainable” plastics—including the greater use of cellulose as a primary ingredient. The in- Alarm Clock, manufactured dustry, like the material, has proven itself adapt- by Westlock, 1950s. Gift of Lawrence J Broutman able. In many respects, we are still living in the Plastic Age. Samuel D. Gruber Curator, Plastics Collection 2 Billiard Balls, manufactured by Albany Billiard Ball Company, 1870–1910; composite with cellulose nitrate (Celluloid). Gift of National Plastics Center. 3 Toy Telephone, manufactured by Ideal Novelty and Toy Company, 1945-1948. Originally gift of Bill Hanlon. 4 games into millions of toy cars, trucks, soldiers, model trains, and more. Small toys produced by entre- John Wesley Hyatt patented a billiard ball on Oc- preneurs Islyn Thomas, Louis Marx, and others tober 10, 1865, inaugurating a rapid series of dis- flooded five-and-dime stores and turned up as coveries that led to Hyatt’s 1870 patent of a new novelty prizes in Cracker Jack and cereal boxes. way to make pyroxylin (cellulose nitrate plastic) Decade by decade, plastic displaced tradi- which he developed commercially as Celluloid. tional materials for toys such as cloth, wood, Hyatt founded the Albany Billiard Ball Company and metal. Adaptable and sturdy polyethylene to produce the Hyatt “composition” ball, which (hula-hoops, Little Tikes) and acrylonitrile bu- had a Celluloid base. It was eventually replaced tadiene styrene (LEGO blocks) appeared in an by balls made of synthetic resins. ever-growing range of toys and games. Mattel’s Celluloid was also used for markers for gam- Barbie doll and LEGO’s building blocks provide bling games, and plastics of many kinds have an inexhaustible variety of offerings that, a half- proved to be the preferred material for poker century later, still sell millions of products a year. chips. In the 1930s, cast phenolic plastics also began to replace wood in dominoes and checkers. fashion toys From the Gilded Age to the Roaring Twenties, clothes were the mark of a man—and woman. A century ago blow-molded cellulose nitrate toys Fashions changed rapidly and an expanding were mass produced with realistic details and urban population strove to keep up with new in large quantities—but they were fragile and trends, all of which were well-known through flammable, obvious drawbacks in items intend- newspapers and magazines and ever-increasing ed for children! The development of durable and store advertisements and manufacturer cata- easily-moldable plastics and the metal shortage logues. Almost from the start, plastics played of the 1940s triggered the plastic toy revolution Child’s Sunglasses. a role in fashion. Inexpensive and flexible cel- of the post-World War II years when, deprived Manufactured by Foster lulose nitrate plastics replaced whalebone and Grant, 1958-1962. Originally of the military market, producers shifted produc- metal for women’s corsets, while the new gift of Chet Fantozzi. tion to consumer goods. The baby boom meant “white collar” urban workforce was happy to millions of children as potential customers ac- buy easy-to-clean Celluloid, Viscoloid, and other cessible through the new medium of television cellulose nitrate plastics in the form of collars advertising. and cuffs. Semi-synthetic plastics imitated ivory Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) was developed in the and tortoiseshell for hair ornaments, hand fans, 1930s and was used in dolls, balls, and soft toys. and jewelry. Newer machines made possible faster and prof- In the 1930s, the introduction of brightly itable cellulose acetate and polystyrene injec- colored phenolic formaldehyde plastics allowed tion molding, turning plastic powder and pellets 5 people to appreciate plastic for its own sake, hair, but during its heyday, there was a thriv- setting the stage for the popularity of plastic in ing market for hair combs. At first, horn was fashion during the post-World War II era. This the favored material for combs, but by the turn popularity came from the new—and essentially of the 20th century, horn was mostly replaced unnatural—traits of plastic such as transparency. by the new semisynthetic plastics, especially Beginning in the 1950s, handbags and purses Celluloid. were made of see-through acrylics, soft vinyl, Celluloid was also widely employed for the and stiff polystyrene. In the 1960s and 1970s, a handles and backing of all sorts of toiletries and whole range of smooth, transparent, and color- personal grooming items. Dresser and van- ful lines of “plastic, fantastic” vinyl clothing were ity sets filled catalogues and were popular gift popularized on London’s Carnaby Street, TV’s items in department stores, clothing and gift Mod Squad, and in movies such as Barbarella. shops, and even drugstores. Higher-priced offerings included multi-colored sets, often with jewelry tooled or inlaid patterns. Art Deco was a popular In the late 19th century cellulose nitrate plastics style of decoration for the backs of mirrors and imitated expensive materials like tortoiseshell brushes. and amber. By the late 1920s, however, the syn- Cellulose nitrate and later cellulose acetate thetic phenolic plastic Bakelite and its competi- were favorite materials for dresser sets. Nylon tor Catalin created a craze for jewelry that was bristles for brushes began to supplement and unrepentantly recognizable as plastic—often in replace animal hair in the 1940s, and nylon was dazzling color. Bangle bracelets were cheap to also used for injection molded combs by the produce and therefore the most common, but mid-1960s; the latter were sold at a very low phenolic thermoset plastic was also molded price, paving the way for disposable one-use plastic hygiene products. Back Comb, manufactured and cast into parts that were cut, carved, and By United Comb and polished for earrings, brooches, necklaces, Novelty, ca. 1920; cellulose buckles, and many other embellishments. novelties nitrate. Originally Gift of The practice of wearing political pinback buttons Evelyn B. Hachey. hair combs and vanity items was widespread at the turn of the 20th century. Fancy “high back” combs were popular be- Buttons were employed as advertising for all tween 1850 and 1920 when women’s hairstyles sorts of products—not just political candidates.

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