Kit-Cat Klock

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Kit-Cat Klock, before 1953, only two paws and no bow tie
Kit-Cat Klock, from 1982, with the lettering Kit-Cat

The Kit-Cat Klock is an American wall clock. In form and drawing, it represents a smiling cat, whose long, drooping tail serves as a pendulum and moves in sync with the pupils of the wide-open eyes, a so-called eye turner . The original color is black, but other colors are also available in the 1950s, and today numerous one and two-tone models and watches that differ in size and design details are available.

All components of the watch, which has been in production since 1932, have always been made in the United States. The original design has rarely been changed, and the number of paws and toes and other drawing features are important aids in dating older collectibles. The Kit-Cat Klock has become an icon of American cuisine in popular culture , and older models are coveted collectibles.

description

The Kit-Cat Klock is an American wall clock designed in the Art Deco style with a height of around 40 centimeters. It has the shape of a comic-like, exaggerated, smiling cat, with a long drooping tail as a clock pendulum and wide-open eyes, whose pupils move in time with the tail. The traditional color is black, but numerous other colors, two-tone models, smaller Kitty Cat Klocks, Lady Kit-Cats with pearl necklaces instead of bow ties and other models are available. The California Clock Company has been producing limited edition kit cats for many years , which are only offered by the manufacturer for one year.

Older models were intended for mains operation, since 1989 the clocks have been operated with two baby cells .

history

The Kit-Cat Klock was designed by Earl Arnault (1904–1971) during the Great Depression in 1932 . The manufacturer was the Allied Clock Company in Portland , Oregon . The first models still had a hand-wound movement, which was replaced by a mains-powered electric motor in the 1940s. The first clocks had a metal case with no inscription on the back, metal hands and four toes on each of the two paws. They also had buttons or levers on the front to be able to start the motor in the right direction, since the early electric clock drives did not start automatically. After a few years, the company began to switch production to watch cases made of Bakelite and finally molded plastic. At that time the company relocated to Seattle , Washington .

From the 1950s to the 1980s, the Allied Clock Company also produced different designs, in the shape of an owl ( Owl Clock or Professor Timebelly ), a poodle ( French Poodle Clock or Fifi the Poodle ), a teddy bear , a panda and the Disney character Pluto . In addition, individual special models decorated with crystals have been offered since the 1960s. In 1962, the Allied Clock Company relocated its headquarters and production to El Monte , California, and changed the name to California Clock Company.

The California Clock Company states that a Kit-Cat Klock has been sold every three minutes for 50 years. That would be several million watches. The company advertises with the claim "Brings Out the Smile in You" (German brings out the smile in you ). With the sub-claim "Keep an American Icon in America" ​​(German: Let an American landmark in America ) the company indicates that its watches consist entirely of components produced in America and that because of the great demand for "USA-Made." “Watch movements made such components available to other American watch manufacturers. In the 1980s, almost all American manufacturers of electric motors moved production to Asia. That was the reason for the California Clock Company to develop battery-operated movements and to convert the clocks from mains to battery operation.

A lively collector's scene has developed around the Kit-Cat Klock. Models from the 1940s and 1950s sell for hundreds of dollars, and a hand-wound watch from the 1930s could sell for $ 10,000 at auction. Newer limited special editions are cheaper, but also find their fans.

chronology

  • Manufactured in Portland, Oregon since 1932 and labeled on the back, these early watches are very rare
  • Early 1940s, moved to Seattle, Washington and noted on back
  • Early 1950s, plastic back panels
  • 1953 Introduction of the front paws
  • 1954 Introduction of the cross tie
  • 1962 Relocation of production to El Monte , California, and information on the reverse
  • In the mid-1960s, production was relocated to San Juan Capistrano , California, with information on the reverse
  • 1982 Introduction of the Kit-Cat logo on the dial and a serial number on the back
  • 1989/1990 conversion to clockworks with battery operation
  • 1990s introduction of limited editions
  • 1996 Introduction of the Kitty Cat Klock in a smaller size (approx. 30 centimeters)
  • 2001 Introduction of the Lady Kit-Cat with a pearl necklace instead of a bow tie and long eyelashes.

Popular culture

In addition to a black Kit-Cat Klock, the opening credits of the American film Back to the Future from 1985 also show an olive-green owl watch and a silver-gray poodle watch amid numerous other watches. In a scene from the 2012 film Katy Perry: Part of Me, a pink Kit-Cat Klock hangs next to Perry's mirror. The music video for We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together by Taylor Swift , produced in the same year, also shows a Kit-Cat Klock on the wall. Also in an episode of the Stranger Things series and in the feature film Darling, I've Shrunk the Children , the clock can be seen.

Web links

Commons : Kit-Cat Klocks  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Kit-Cat Klock. 2019, accessed April 15, 2020 .
  2. ↑ a b c Marti Attoun: California Clockmaker Animates Time. In: American Profile. March 9, 2008, accessed April 15, 2020 .
  3. ↑ a b c How Old is My Kit-Cat Clock? 2019, accessed on April 15, 2020 .
  4. ↑ a b c d About Us. 2019, accessed on April 15, 2020 .
  5. ↑ a b c Jennifer J. Bush: This is one kitty that changes with the time. In: Orlando Sentinel. November 5, 2006, archived from the original on September 13, 2018 ; accessed on April 15, 2020 (English).
  6. ^ Rich history. 2019, accessed April 16, 2020 .
  7. ^ Black Kit-Cat Klock. 2020, accessed April 15, 2020 .