Charleen Kinser

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Charleen Kinser (1934-2008) was an American toy designer, noted for her teddy bears.

Life and work[edit]

Kinser was born 1934[1] in Long Beach, California, where she went to school. She was an only child,[2] and made her first toy when she was eight years old. She studied at the Chouinard Art Institute and worked with film animation at United Productions of America (UPA) and Disney. She became a director, worked with commercials, travelling to London and Paris. Her work was awarded at the Cannes Film Festival.[3][4][2] She also designed toys and exhibits for toy firms in Los Angeles and Chicago.[4]

She and her husband settled in Boalsburg, Pennsylvania.[3] She started designing her own toys, notably teddy bears.[5][4] After having made a 5 foot grizzly, "T.R.'s Bear" (T.R. for Teddy Roosevelt), for her daughter, the family started started a company, Forever Toys, initially making sew-it-yourself kits for bears and other toys. However, companies like Bloomingdales, their first customer, and Abercrombie & Fitch (A&F) preferred to order the finished products. By 1993, 3 200 "T.R.'s Bear" had been sold.[4][6] She started another company in 1977, Charleen Kinser Designs, which included herself and a small group of artisans.[5] Kinser wanted her toys to be durable, saying that "I'd like my bears and animals to be able to survive whatever they have to go through, from childhood rough-and-tumble to the taumas of going of to college or backpacking around Europe."[7][8]

USA Today Magazine said in in 1993 that the line of "Live-in House Monsters" was "perhaps the most unusual ones on the market."[9] Contemporary Doll's writer praised the Forever Toys toys, saying "... unlike anything I had ever seen. Handsome enough to grace an art gallery ... totally fairy and utterly enchanting."[6] Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's writer said of a Kinser teddy bear "I am not ashamed to say I wanted Lulu. She's the only one left. I held her as if she were my newborn, but alas, she is Charleen Kinser's creation, one of 100 limited editions, and she is out of my price range at $300. She's adorable. ... I hope Lulu finds a good home. Most of all, I hope she isn't put on a shelf to be preserved. She was made to be hugged -- a lot."[10]

Books[edit]

Kinser wrote three craft books in the 1970s. School Library Journal called Outdoor Art for Kids "A good source of ideas for science and art classes, schoolyard beautification projects, or after-school activities."[11] Dubois Courier Express said of Sewing sculpture that "... she coaxes you into expanding your visual awareness and encourages you to add your own style to her design ... a rarity in the crafts book field."[12]

  • Kinser, Charleen (1975). Personally Yours, Needlepoint. Consolidated Book Publishers. ISBN 978-0-8326-2207-6.
  • Kinser, Charleen (1975). Outdoor Art for Kids. Follett. ISBN 978-0-695-80533-3.
  • Kinser, Charleen (1977). Sewing sculpture. Evans. ISBN 978-0-87131-236-5.

Personal life[edit]

Charleen was married to Bill, and they had two children, a son and a daughter. Their 19-year-old son was found murdered in 1981, having disappeared ten months before. Bill died in 1999, and Charlene in 2008.[13][1]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Charleen Kinser Obituary". Centre Daily Times. 13 April 2008. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
  2. ^ a b "The Loving, Creative Bear Factory". State College Magazine. January 1991.
  3. ^ a b Mullins, Linda (1995). American Teddy Bear Encyclopedia. Hobby House Press, Incorporated. p. 94. ISBN 978-0-87588-432-5.
  4. ^ a b c d Wood, Scott (1998). "I.mag.i.na.tion". Teddy Bear & Friends. Vol. 16, no. 2. p. 36.
  5. ^ a b Wineka, Mark (17 July 2019). "T.R. takes a ride: For Betsy Rich, he's bigger than the average bear". Salisbury Post. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
  6. ^ a b Noble, John Darcy (April 1993). "So Now There's a Toad in My Life!". Contemporary Doll. p. 38-41.
  7. ^ "The real thing". The Teddy Bear Club International. Vol. 2, no. 10. July 1998.
  8. ^ Mullins, Linda (1991). Teddy Bears Past & Present: A Collector's Identification Guide. Hobby House Press. pp. 220–221. ISBN 978-0-87588-384-7.
  9. ^ "The right stuff". USA Today Magazine. Vol. 122, no. 2582. 1993. p. 95.
  10. ^ "HAVE YOU HUGGED YOUR TEDDY BEAR TODAY?". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 9 December 2001 – via ProQuest.
  11. ^ "Outdoor Art for Kids (Book Review)". School Library Journal. 22 (2): 100. 1975.
  12. ^ Felsenthal, Carol (23 February 1978). "Handmade in... your own home". Dubois Courier Express. p. 7 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
  13. ^ "News Briefs". Clearfield Progress. 15 December 1981. p. 10 – via NewspaperArchive.com.

External links[edit]

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