Does anyone recognize these? (1 Viewer)

[theBaron]

Hello, all!

I recently bought a selection of figures on eBay, that represent a group of Bavarian or Austrian musicians and people celebrating. I attached pictures of some of them to this post--it's my first time posting pictures in this forum, so cross your fingers!

The seller had them as part of a larger, Christmas-themed collection, and had them mixed with items from Department56, but I am sure that these are not made or marketed by that company. Some of the bases are marked "LMM", but others are not. I thought that that might have been Le Man's, but that's a stretch.

The painting is very simplistic, which belies the quality of the castings themselves. I am leaning towards stripping them and repainting them, though I may just settle on fixing their faces. I would prefer to paint the eyes with a fine line and a dot, and not have rosy patches for cheeks.

I have seen, very rarely, similar civilian figures, though not for a long, long time. It may be as long ago as the Valley Forge show, in '92 or '93. As a Germanophile, and one-time resident of Munich, I have always kept an eye open for some gut bairische Figuren.

Unfortunately, I lost the auctions on some of the really choice pieces from this collection. The musicians included a zither player, seated at a rustic table with his zither, and an accordian player. The buyer who beat me on that one is an accordian fanatic, not a toy soldier collector, which was like rubbing salt in the wound.

Anyway, if anyone has ever seen these, or recognizes the mark "LMM", please let me know. I would like to track down the ones that got away, then add to my list of projects building a suitable backdrop for a display. Maybe a Gasthaus and Garten, or maybe a clearing in the woods...

Thanks in advance,
Brad

 

[theBaron]

Heja, wahnsinnig! Da hat es geklappt mit den Bildern! Toll!

 

[theBaron]

As I keep answering my own post...

I will certainly repaint the Bierkrüge the barmaid is carrying. They should not be silver-ugh! They should be gray, for stoneware, with brewery logos. And the men's jackets really ought to be green or gray Loden, but as a band of musicians, red is not too bad.

Still, pretty neat....

 

[thebritfarmer]

Guten abend Brad. Wie gehts ?

Certainly are some nice figures and a refreshing change from the ones depicting war. And would look great in a Gasthaus setting....I can almost picture it...bratwurst mit senf, jaegerschnitzel

Do you think they could have been made by a Germany cottage industry? Are the figures metal or plastic.


Thanks for the pics

Scott

 

[DMNamiot]

Lieber Himmel!

Dieser Zinnfigur sind wunderbar! Aber Ich habe kein idee welche fabrik.


I wish I could identifiy them but it will take some research I have an idea but need to do some digging. They are fun all the same

Thanks for sharing

Dave

 

[Leadmen]

I am not sure but I think they were made by Little Metal Men. Charles Duvall makes figures and attends Chicago Show. He has civilian scenes and Halloween figures. I have some of his figures and those shown look like his style of painting. He is located in South Carolina. If I got a recent card I will see what his address is. He use to use the name Little Lead Men but changed it to metal men. John

 

[thebritfarmer]

Certainly does look like them

Below is their website although it is under construction.

http://littlemetalmen.homestead.com/littlemetalmen.html

 

[Leadmen]

Scott: Thanks for his address. I did not have it. John

 

[aujj65]

jaegerschnitzel

Scott

Yum, one of my favorites.

Jeff

 

[theBaron]

John, thanks very much! I had completely forgotten about Little Metal Men. "LMM"-it makes perfect sense.

I used to have a hard-copy catalog from them, I think I picked it up at the MFCA show in '94. When I think of it, that was probably the last time I saw them at any show.

I hadn't been to their website in a while; I used to have it bookmarked. I followed the link now, and it hasn't changed in at least a year.

I happen to have the Mozart figure that they make, with the piano. And the quality of the castings for these Bavarians, and the quality of the paint job, is right in line with their other offering. That is, good basic castings, but the painting is rather indistinct.

Now I have to see if I can find some of the other pieces. Here are some of the figures that got away, the zither player, and the accordian player.

Thanks for the help, gentlemen! As I find out more, I'll add it here.