Presented is a classic 1930’s-era baseball toy, “Home Run King the Mechanical Baseball Wonder Toy,” from Selrite Products of New York. The original painted tin toy features a 5½-inch tall tin baseball player with bat in hand, wearing a red cap, red and blue stirrups, and a blue pinstriped uniform atop a 1½ x 3½ x 6 ¼ -inch illustrated tin base.  The batter stands at home plate and faces a 2 ½ -inch high tin “cup” on which miniature baseballs are placed to hit, with a lever at the bottom left side under the batter to set the batter in motion. The base features illustrations of baseball players at bat and in the field and the legend “Home Run King” in blue on the bottom right side. This item is accompanied by the original 4 x 4 x 7-inch white cardboard box with red and blue printing. The box has some small tears and is missing the left side edge. The box bears the additional legend, “Every Toy Makes a Hit.” This item is also accompanied by two of the original white, hard-plastic miniature baseballs that were to be placed in the tin cup on the toy. The toy is in excellent condition and is a great example of early 20th Century baseball toys, as the sport experienced its Golden Age during the heyday of Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and the dominance of the New York Yankees in the national imagination.

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