In the 1940s, kids could rest comfortably in the
evenings knowing that the forces of evil were kept at bay because Captain Midnight and his
Secret Squadron patrolled the night sky. Well, that’s only if you believe everything
you hear on the radio. Fans of the Captain Midnight radio show could obtain this ring by
mailing in 10¢ and the thin metal seal from under the lid of a can of Ovaltine. The ring
allowed the wearer to pass sensitive information back and forth hidden in a secret
compartment located beneath the ring’s red plastic stone. The stone was designed to
simulate the luscious red glow of a ruby, a symbol of the Aztec Sun God’s temple,
where blood sacrifices were made. Simple to use if you knew the secret, the stone slid out
of place to put or retrieve notes, and was easily returned to position once done to fool
meddling strangers. Ornamenting the ring’s side is Tonathiuh, the Sun God, the most
popular of the Aztec gods. Also, as if the ingenious compartment wasn’t enough to
guarantee safe passage for your secrets, the Aztec symbol of good luck was located below
the Sun God to safeguard the wearer.
CAPTAIN VIDEO ROCKET RING (1950s)
Premiering in 1949, Captain Video beat out Buck Rogers
as television’s first venture into space. This notoriously low budget production was
one of the most popular children’s shows of the time. Two Power House candy bar
wrappers and 20¢ would entitle fans of the show to this Captain Video Rocket Ring,
provided you filled everything out and mailed it in correctly. The charm of this ring,
which seemed to have a higher production value than the actual TV show, is that it
provides the owner with options. You can wear it as a ring or detach the rocket pendant
and carry it in your pocket or feed a string through the pendant’s loop and wear it
as a necklace or attach it to your key ring (although if you’re old enough to drive
and are still playing with this ring, you really need to look at your collector habits).
As if that wasn’t enough to attract fans, the picture of Captain Video in the top
compartment glows in the dark (just in case you’re out after curfew and need to prove
your Captain Video loyalty). The rocket pendant portion also functions as a secret alarm
and signal whistle (because kids love to make noise) and finally the window in the rocket
compartment is actually a magnifying glass (which can help older collectors closer inspect
the ring before purchase).
MICKEY MOUSE SUGAR JETS RINGS (1950s)
What kid doesn’t need a bowl of
hyper-sugary cereal in the morning to give them that fresh start on the day? As an added
bonus to the sugar rush, with Sugar Jets cereal kids could also collect 8 different rings
of their favorite Disney characters: Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Pluto,
Pinocchio, Dumbo, Snow White and Peter Pan in vibrant red, yellow, blue, green, or orange.
They were even made out of unbreakable plastic. (Can’t you hear mom saying "No,
you can’t open the next box until you’ve finished the last one?") The rings
were produced to promote the Mickey Mouse Club on ABC-TV.
DONALD DUCK LIVING TOY RING (1949)
A ring so life-like, it’s like wearing a live
duck on your finger. This ring, available through Kellogg’s Pep Whole Wheat Flakes at
the low cost of one box top and 25¢, did everything necessary to convince someone that a
ring could really be alive; Donald’s beak opens and snaps shut, his head swivels, his
eyes roll and even glow in the dark. The trick is that the ring comes complete with a
small metal box of Pep cereal (the box is extremely rare) which is actually a magnet. As
you move the box in relation to Donald’s metal head, the ring comes alive.
In the 1940s, kids could rest comfortably in the
evenings knowing that the forces of evil were kept at bay because Captain Midnight and his
Secret Squadron patrolled the night sky. Well, that’s only if you believe everything
you hear on the radio. Fans of the Captain Midnight radio show could obtain this ring by
mailing in 10¢ and the thin metal seal from under the lid of a can of Ovaltine. The ring
allowed the wearer to pass sensitive information back and forth hidden in a secret
compartment located beneath the ring’s red plastic stone. The stone was designed to
simulate the luscious red glow of a ruby, a symbol of the Aztec Sun God’s temple,
where blood sacrifices were made. Simple to use if you knew the secret, the stone slid out
of place to put or retrieve notes, and was easily returned to position once done to fool
meddling strangers. Ornamenting the ring’s side is Tonathiuh, the Sun God, the most
popular of the Aztec gods. Also, as if the ingenious compartment wasn’t enough to
guarantee safe passage for your secrets, the Aztec symbol of good luck was located below
the Sun God to safeguard the wearer.
Premiering in 1949, Captain Video beat out Buck Rogers
as television’s first venture into space. This notoriously low budget production was
one of the most popular children’s shows of the time. Two Power House candy bar
wrappers and 20¢ would entitle fans of the show to this Captain Video Rocket Ring,
provided you filled everything out and mailed it in correctly. The charm of this ring,
which seemed to have a higher production value than the actual TV show, is that it
provides the owner with options. You can wear it as a ring or detach the rocket pendant
and carry it in your pocket or feed a string through the pendant’s loop and wear it
as a necklace or attach it to your key ring (although if you’re old enough to drive
and are still playing with this ring, you really need to look at your collector habits).
As if that wasn’t enough to attract fans, the picture of Captain Video in the top
compartment glows in the dark (just in case you’re out after curfew and need to prove
your Captain Video loyalty). The rocket pendant portion also functions as a secret alarm
and signal whistle (because kids love to make noise) and finally the window in the rocket
compartment is actually a magnifying glass (which can help older collectors closer inspect
the ring before purchase).
What kid doesn’t need a bowl of
hyper-sugary cereal in the morning to give them that fresh start on the day? As an added
bonus to the sugar rush, with Sugar Jets cereal kids could also collect 8 different rings
of their favorite Disney characters: Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Pluto,
Pinocchio, Dumbo, Snow White and Peter Pan in vibrant red, yellow, blue, green, or orange.
They were even made out of unbreakable plastic. (Can’t you hear mom saying "No,
you can’t open the next box until you’ve finished the last one?") The rings
were produced to promote the Mickey Mouse Club on ABC-TV.
A ring so life-like, it’s like wearing a live
duck on your finger. This ring, available through Kellogg’s Pep Whole Wheat Flakes at
the low cost of one box top and 25¢, did everything necessary to convince someone that a
ring could really be alive; Donald’s beak opens and snaps shut, his head swivels, his
eyes roll and even glow in the dark. The trick is that the ring comes complete with a
small metal box of Pep cereal (the box is extremely rare) which is actually a magnet. As
you move the box in relation to Donald’s metal head, the ring comes alive.