Where have all the Pee Wees gone?

Does anyone remember Pee Wees?  Some may remember them just as ‘pocket dolls’, as the caption on their box read ‘the pocket-size dolls.’  They are strangely cute (or weird, depending on your point of view) little dolls standing 4 inches (9 cm) tall and are similar to Wishnik Troll dolls in that they have very short, stumpy little arms and legs and slightly over-sized heads. Pee Wees and Wishniks  were made by the Uneeda Doll Company and launched around 1965 – 1966.  They came in many different outfits, from bridal gowns to bathing suits, and with varying hair colours and styles including bubble cuts, swirl ponytails and bobs.  They all had names that usually ended in ‘time’ (‘Dance Time’, ‘School Time’, etc.).  They were sold in varying forms right through the late 1970s and early 1980s, the older dolls tending to have squishy vinyl bodies and the later ones hard vinyl.  The older dolls are marked ‘HONG KONG’ on their back and ‘PEE WEES/T.M.’ on the bottom of the foot.  Others may be marked ‘HONG KONG’ on their head and ‘PEE WEES/©U.D.CO. INC./1965/HONG KONG’ on the back.  The 1970’s dolls tend to be bigger than the 1960’s dolls and are marked on the head ‘© U.D. CO. INC./MADE IN HONG KONG’.

Now, it turns out my sister and I didn’t have a Pee Wee as kids.  We had a doll called Penny that I thought was a Pee Wee but now know was a clone.  She had the same proportions as a Pee Wee and curly black hair.  Once I had claimed her (when my sister was too old to play with dolls), she became Barbie’s toddler and I made a little cardboard nursery for her.  At about the same time my cousin gave me another little doll similar to Penny except her arms and legs moved and I never realised at the time that she was a real Pee Wee, a Baby Pee Wee in fact.  Confusing huh?

It turns out there were lots of different Pee Wees and even more copies or clones.  A range of male dolls called Hee Wees were available and again came in a variety of outfits such as policeman, fireman, baseball player and cub scout.  The caption on their pack was ‘The tiny he-men of the Pee Wee world’.  A range of cases and homes to store your Pee Wee collection were available too.  By 1967, the Baby Pee Wees were available and were slightly bigger than the originals with moving arms and legs and a ‘bottle mouth’ (open so that a bottle can be placed in the mouth).  Later dolls of the 1970s and 1980s had fixed limbs in a seated position.  Some Pee Wee copies or clones are almost identical to the originals (like Penny), while others have a slightly different head mould.  Even Hee Wee copies exist, and those found here in Australia seem to be dressed in sporting team colours.

Four Pee Wees in knitted dresses, two later dolls from the 1970s and an 80’s Pee Wee Baby, a 1960s version and a clone.

Pee Wee clones with varying face moulds, including a Hee Wee clone that seems to be wearing a football jumper and dolls dressed in national costumes.

They seem to have been popular little dolls and many collectors besides me remember using them as little sister dolls for Barbie or Sindy.  They were also a favourite with football and rugby fans, with an article in The Australian Women’s Weekly (April 10 1968) featuring a full page article on knitting little dresses for Pee Wee dolls in team colours.  The article reads ‘for footy fans… Mascot dollies with shoes cost about 50 cents at chainstores…’  Knitting instructions for two styles of Pee Wee sized dresses are supplied.  I can remember people pinning these little dolls to the lapels of their duffle coats or sitting them on the dashboard of their car in their VFL (Victorian Football League) team colours.  My sister’s best friend knitted a little dress in Richmond team colours of yellow and black (much to the disgust of their Carlton fan fathers) for Penny and her own Pee Wee doll.  Both my sister and her friend have succumbed to cancer but their little dolls survive to pay tribute to their lifelong friendship.

I have gathered quite a few Pee Wees and clones over the years, but every time I look at them I can’t help wondering, ‘where have all the Pee Wees gone?’  For little dolls that were so popular and so cheap they don’t seem to turn up very often at doll shows, collector fairs or op shops.  Perhaps being so small they were thrown away, or perhaps they are still treasured by original owners.  Whatever the answer, next time you come across one, put a Pee Wee in your pocket.  But pay for it first.

(C) Jennifer B – All content is subject to copyright and may not be re-published or reproduced without written permission.