Showing posts with label Ovaltine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ovaltine. Show all posts
Captain Midnight - Flight Commander Flying Cross (1942)
This was another item orderable only from the catalog accompanying the Code-O-Graph. It was plated in 24 karat gold. The instructions that came with it told of how the inscription on the back of the medal had a secret setting for Flight Commanders (you can find it also here on The Secret Squadron website). The inscription is: "Awarded for distinguished service," and signed "Capt. Midnight," with the "SS-1" under the signature, and in quotes.
Captain Midnight / Jet Jackson ring
Ovaltine had the trademark "Captain Midnight" from 1940. Ovaltine wished to retain rights to the trademark, so for syndicated reruns, the TV hero was renamed "Jet Jackson," and the sound track was edited to insert "Jet Jackson" everywhere in the dialogue where "Captain Midnight" was. This is considered a "fantasy item", as there are no known official Jet Jackson premiums.
Captain Midnight "Photomatic Code-o-Graph"
(Ovaltine, 1942)
"So called because the owner was to insert a photo of him- or herself into a small square area at the top of the badge, replacing the (supplied) photo of a pilot's face. The manual touted it as a personalized identification, like those used in defense plants. Actually, once the user removed the pilot's picture and substituted one of his or her own for it, the user was supposed to use a hammer and nail to fix the picture in permanently. This was shown pictorially, and consisted of pushing down the four metal tabs at the picture corners so that the picture couldn't be removed. There was enough of an overproduction of these so that they were issued throughout the war to new listeners."
-- From Radio Days website.
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| Instructions from the "1942 Book of Official Charts, Codes and Secrets". |
Captain Midnight "Magni-Magic Code-O-Graph"
(Ovaltine, 1945)
"So called because the center of the rotor was a magnifying glass. This was the first of the dated Code-O-Graphs. The manual had "key messages" scattered throughout that were printed in a typeface so small that the owner needed to use the lens to read them. Brass was still a critical material, and the badge was actually stamped sheet steel, with a "gold" paint atop it.
The lens in the rotor was plastic, of course (indeed, all postwar Code-O-Graphs were at least partially plastic; one was completely plastic), and scratched easily. The manual had short messages printed in very tiny type that required the Code-O-Graph's magnifier to read. These were called "Key Messages," and were numbered. The Squadron member might pass a note to a friend who was also a Squadron member. The note might say, "KM-3," meaning "Expect important news soon."
-- From Radio Days website.
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