Revell

Revell is the well-known brand name today used by two distinct manufacturers of scale plastic models. The original American Revell eventually merged with Monogram. In 2007, American Revell was purchased by Hobbico. By contrast, European Revell Germany separated from the American company in 2006 until Hobbico purchased it - bringing the two back together again under the same company umbrella.Early historyLewis H. Glaser, a California entrepreneur, founded a plastics molding firm called Precision Specialties in Hollywood during 1943. The company made a variety of products contracted for different companies, the first reportedly being a small washing machine (Gosson 2015, p. 65). One of the first toy-related products were HO scale (1:87) train sets, including locomotives, and a variety of cars along with buildings. The building line was extensive, including a farm group, a suburban passenger station, and a variety of utility structures. Many of these originals were reproduced later in other scales. The toy line was marketed later under the brand name Revell. Reportedly, the name Revell came from the French word reveille meaning "new beginning". The Revell logo at the time was the early relative of today's design.Gowland and Highway PioneersAbout 1950, Revell reproduced Maxwell and Ford Model T assembled toys originally designed by the Gowland Brothers in England, a company producing toys since 1932. According to noted collector Cecil Gibson, these did not sell so well in England, but Revell had much better luck with the series in the U.S. The Revell box said, "By John Gowland—creator of Champ and Chu Chu". The 1911 Maxwell and 1910 Model T were about 1:16 scale and called "Action Pull Toys", which consisted of a wound thin metal cord with a plastic handle. The cord was attached through the front of the car to the rear axle. The car's body was hinged, so when the plastic handle was pulled, the car bounced on the floor - with the driver bobbing up and down. The box advertised that these were "Made in Hollywood" and were called Revell "Play Planned" toys.