Mark Lansdown's Comic Character Pinbacks - Pinback Reproduction Guide

Pinback Reproduction Guide

Reproductions plague most corners of the collecting world, and comic pinbacks are no exception. On this web page, I have documented some of the more common reproduction and fantasy pinbacks that I regularly see at flea markets and on eBay. The page is organized alphabetically by the character on the pinback. Please consider this guide to be a work in progress, and if you would like me to document a specific reproduction, just send me an e-mail. Your comments and suggestions are always welcome!

I would like to offer my special thanks to Ted Hake for lending me his collection of reproduction and fantasy buttons. Without Ted's help, I would have been forced to actually purchase some of the reproductions displayed here, a situation I find too distasteful to even contemplate. If you are in the market for quality collectibles, please check out Ted's website: http://www.hakes.com.

Original	Reproduction	Notes
		Original is 1" celluloid. Whitehead and Hoag backpaper. Repro is 2.25" celluloid. No backpaper. Artwork is identical to original.
		Original is 1.25" celluloid. Backpaper reads "Read Dick Tracy Every Day In..." with various newspaper names. Dick Tracy's body touches the word "Detective". Repro is 1.25" celluloid. Plain metal back with no backpaper. Fewer creases in Tracy's jacket and a more legible artist signature.
		Original is 1.25" celluloid. Kay Kamen backpaper. Stars located on the right side of the image. Repro is 1.25" celluloid. Plain metal back with no backpaper. No stars.
		Original is 2" celluloid. Union stamps on curl. No copyright text. Repro is 1.75" celluloid. "Copyright 1950 William Boyd" written on curl.
		Original is 1" lithograph. Greenduck Co. Chicago manufacturer stamp on reverse. Repro is 1" celluloid. Plain metal back. Comma is missing after the text "Hi-Yo". "Sunday Herald and Examiner" text is written in thin script.
		Original is 1.25" celluloid. Kay Kamen backpaper. "Follow My Adventures" text is red. Repro is 1.25" celluloid. Plain metal back with no backpaper. "Follow My Adventures" text is black.
		Original is 1.25" celluloid. Kay Kamen backpaper. Outer grid lines are close the button edge. Repro is 1.25" celluloid. Plain metal back with no backpaper. Outer grid lines are positioned away from the button edge. Red color is washed out to a faded pink.
		Original is 7/8" celluloid. M. Pudlin backpaper. Image fills the button area with very little white space around the border. Repro is 7/8" celluloid. Plain metal back with no backpaper. Image is small with larger border of white space.
		Original is 1.25" celluloid. Parisian Novelty manufacturer stamp on curl. Green background behind Annie. Harold Gray's signature is crisp and legible. Repro is 1.25" celluloid. Plain metal back with no backpaper. Grey background. Harold Gray's signature is not legible. Made from a color photocopy of the original button.
		Original is 15/16" celluloid. Sharp details around belt, bottom of pants, and shoes. Copyright on front has hand-lettered appearance. Repro is 1.25" celluloid. Washed out details around belt, bottom of pants, and shoes. Copyright on front has uniform font that looks computer-generated.
		Original is 1.25" celluloid. Dark blue artwork. Sharp details around bottom of pipe, tongue, and KMOX emblem. Curl reads "St Louis Button Co. Inc. St Louis 2, MO" Repro is 1.25" celluloid. Light blue artwork. Washed out details around bottom of pipe, tongue, and KMOX emblem. Curl reads "St. Louis Button Co. - St. Louis 2 MO"
		Original is 1.25" celluloid. Kay Kamen backpaper. Copyright text reads "© 1938 W D Ent". Repro is 1.25" celluloid. Plain metal back with no backpaper. Copyright text reads "© 1938 W. Disney".
		Original is 1.25" celluloid. Union symbol stamped into the metal back. "Supermen of America" text is red. Repro is 2.25" celluloid. Plain metal back. "Supermen of America" text is black.
		Original is 7/8" lithograph. Text on reverse reads "Member In Good Standing." Superman's cape has white line near his neck. Tim's collar is clearly defined. Repro is 7/8" lithograph. No text on reverse. Missing white line on Superman's cape. Tim's collar is lacking detail.
		Original is 1" celluloid. No backpaper or manufacturer name. Repro is 2.25" celluloid. No backpaper or manufacturer name. Artwork is identical to original.
		Original is 1.125" lithograph. The "O" in "Tom" is filled with white. Ampersand between "Tom" and "Jerry" looks like a capital "E". Repro is 1.25" celluloid. Plain metal back with no backpaper. The "O" in "Tom" is filled with red. Ampersand between "Tom" and "Jerry" looks like "&".

More Reproductions

More reproduction pinbacks are documented below, but for these pinbacks, I don't own original examples to offer for comparison. If you are considering the purchase of a button that appears here, please be aware that reproductions do exist.

Fantasy Pinbacks

The following pinbacks are classified as "fantasy" pieces, a term introduced by Ted Hake to describe forgeries that do not copy an original design but are still made to appear vintage. The buttons displayed below are all modern and worthless.