Ever since I stumbled across a decades-old newspaper article snippet about a charity event held in May 1978, I have been keeping an eagle eye out for any of the 50 specially-decorated whimsical animals that Cybis created for that benefit’s auction. I have only come across a photo of one of them, which – as you can imagine – is very frustrating for a research nerd like myself! 🙂 To make matters worse, only a few of them were described and none were pictured.
This post is a desperate attempt to perhaps, by the grace of the internet and the great-and-powerful Google SEO (our modern-day Wizard of Oz) locate photos of more of these. Again, only one has appeared for sale online since I first began chronicling Cybis almost a decade ago.
All of the fifty one-of-a-kind pieces for the May 1978 charity event were open-edition animals, and each was given a unique name. The event was held at the Garden State Arts Center (now called the PNC Bank Center) in Holmdel, New Jersey, to benefit the Children’s Cultural Fund. Google comes up empty for that fund name, although there is a Children’s Cultural Arts Foundation in Atlantic City. I reached out to both to see if they have a record of this event but have received no response.
‘Mystery 50’ Photo(s)
This is the only photo of one of the ‘mystery 50’ that I have yet seen. He is quite dapper with his monocle and bowler hat, isn’t he? He showed up in a brick-and-mortar auction sale in 2020. He is signed Cybis on the underside along with the Phoenix mold impression but has no other markings. I have no idea what his 1978 event name was.
This is the standard retail-edition basis for him which is Dormouse ‘Maximilian’, introduced in 1971.
‘Mystery 50’ Descriptions (far too few!)
Because I have never seen the 1978 event pieces that the newspaper bit cited, I am showing the corresponding Cybis retail edition along with the newspaper clip’s name and/or description of the event piece.
There were at least two event pieces created with the American Bullfrog ‘Enchanted Prince’ as the starting point. One was named Aunt Betsy Trotwood; she is described as wearing “a bonnet and an apron.” The other frog was described as
A frog prince with a top hat and tie
but not identified by name (if he isn’t wearing a crown, how did the reporter know it was a prince? Hmmmm…)
Here the starting point was Duckling ‘Baby Brother’. I wouldn’t be surprised if more than one of the Mystery 50 is based on him, but the newspaper specifically mentioned one with “a flowery parasol” (which we can assume is a flower used as a parasol; was it the daisy from Funny Face in Green with Daisy, perhaps??) that was named April Rain.
The circus elephant Alexander, He’s the Greatest was used for a piece described this way in the article:
an elephant with ears made of butterfly wings, named Papillon
Because Alexander was the first and only open-edition elephant that Cybis had produced before 1978, we know that they had to have used him as the model for Papillon.
Speculation: Other ‘Mystery 50’ Candidates??
Starting with three facts, I can make a stab at which other sculptures the studio might have utilized. We already know of four (Dormouse ‘Maximilian’, the American Bullfrog, Ducking ‘Baby Brother’, and Alexander) and that there was probably more than one ‘mystery 50’ created from each retail- piece basis. Here are the logical criteria:
- An open-edition single animal of a relatively small size
- Can easily have one or more decorative elements added to it (hat or other clothing, object held in paws, etc.)
- Was currently, or had previously been, a Cybis retail edition as of early 1978
So, let’s see which other open-edition animals are candidates for models. This is MERE SPECULATION ON MY PART, but who knows? Let’s use our imagination!
Baby Owl (he would be perfect to dress up with spectacles and a book resting on the branch)
Bunny ‘Pat-a-Cake’ (what might he hold between his paws?)
the turtle from Marigold (an evolution of The Baron, as explained here)
Monkey ‘Bosun’ (many possibilities here!)
Snail ‘Sir Henri Escargot’ (I’d make him a chef. Seriously.)
Dandy the Dancing Dog (give this guy a fancier cane, a black bow tie, and a top hat, and you’ll have a canine Fred Astaire)
Bear ‘Barnaby’ (another could-hold-anything possibility)
Seal ‘Sebastian’ (I am envisioning a star-gazing seal with his telescope tucked within his back flipper. And I’d name him Neil the Seal, as in Neil deGrasse Tyson)
Penguin (this fellow just cries out for a real tuxedo and a boutonniere)
Pinto Colt (he’d probably be a bit too large but I’m including him anyway)
Deer Mouse ‘In Clover’ (if done in 2024, I’d put a smartphone in his paws as if texting; too bad that wasn’t an option in 1978)
Prairie Dog ‘Poko’ (let’s dress him in sneakers and a jersey, and put him on the starting line for the 5-yard dash)
Burro ‘Fitzgerald’ (a sombrero and a serape would not be considered P.C. today, but the event was in the 1970s…)
Combined with the four open editions that we know were used for some of the specials, these candidates would give us a total of 17 small-animal starting points that the studio could have worked from. If three different variations were made from each, there would be 51.
If anybody happens to have any of the Mystery 50 ‘dressed-up’ 1978 event animals, I’d love to see a photo so that I can add it to this page! There is a contact-form link below.
Name Index of Cybis Sculptures
Visual Index (for human figures/busts only)
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