 The Trinkets |
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NOTE: Click on any photo below to open a much larger (and more detailed) version in a new window. Once open, you can re-size the photo window as large as you like. See the "helpful hint" on the home page for more help on viewing detailed pictures. |
 NEW! While this one's faded and worn, the original bookmark was all a luxurious purple. I wonder if any of these still mark pertinent pages in home bibles around the upper Midwest.UPDATED September 2009! Click the graphic to check it out. |
 NEW! These little trinkets were always hard to come by. Touch a burning cigarette (which means you have to find someone who still somkes these days) to the star and watch the burning tracks for each "horse." You'd normally have clients pick their horses and see who won. The winner got ... well, we'll never know for sure. UPDATED December 2009! |
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 NEW! You've seen this "pocket ruler" before (it's also shown in the photos below); but this was a real find. Es/Marie found this - complete with the original card. Obviously, this completes this item and explains its significance. UPDATED Jan 2009! I found a COMPLETE card with a pocket ruler. The original card has a small flap that folds over the end of the ruler. Click the graphic to check it out. |
 NEW! Another real find. This long-lost Vita-Ray wall thermometer. Norm recently got this and graciously allowed me to take a couple photos. (He wouldn't let me touch it or have it, but taking pictures was apparently acceptable.) |
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 Before Ray-Vitam there was Vita-Ray. An original name for sure; but not original enough. The name didn't last long, as some other unscrupulous "company" had already registered the name. Still, a few things remain to mark this step in the development of the Ray-Vitam name. |
 One thing Ray had was a lot of class, as indicated by his choice of this "gold"-plated fingernail clipper, complete with snazzy box. A hand-out trinket worthy of executives. |
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 "Live by the Golden Rule." More than just a saying for Ray and his business ethic. This useful little trinket is probably still in use today in homes or offices around his sales area. This solid metal, golden-plated ruler is functional, decorative, durable, and a lasting advertising tool. |
 Ray was also practical. As a traveling salesman, he ate most of his meals in restaurants. I imagine that each time he left a dining establishment he'd grab a toothpick from the counter. A waste of wood, don't you think? I also imagine he thought it was wasteful, too. So he chose this reusable plastic toothpick (complete with case) as one of his give-aways. You just don't see this kind of thoughtfulness today. |
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 If the "Golden Rule" was useful in the office (or home), then Ray provided a measuring tool for use anywhere -- this handy little pocket ruler. Of course, the clip bore his company's name -- he was no fool. |
 Ah, the ever-popular pencil. What better way of getting your brand name into the hands of thousands of people for just a few bucks. And these things lasted a long time -- or at least until the erasers wore down. |
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 Another give-away was this little novelty. An optical illusion which would fool anyone. (Well, anyone under the age of 5, and only on the first try. But still, it's a cool little gimmick.) |
 Just so you know that this cute little "card trick" wasn't just a gimmick -- it was also a very useful office tool. Well, at least at that time. Fountain pens were still used in most businesses. And unlike ballpoint pens, the ink from fountain pens didn't dry right away. Enter the Cute Trick cards -- made with an ink blotter on the back of each card! Now it was a useful illusion! |
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 Of course, not all of Ray's customers wanted to carry around a long, cumbersome pencil, and he was always tuned into his customers' needs. So why not a pencil that was less than half the size but could be extended (using the handy dual-purpose plastic case) to make it easy to use. And it still had an eraser! |
 Okay, so I may not understand common culture back in those days -- I was still just a kid. But apparently Ray's sense of humor was shared by many. This little "card" employed both the power of advertising and the power of humor. ...I guess. |
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 I'm not entirely sure about this, but I think this keychain-coin was another hand-out he provided to a few of his customers. However, it lacks any logo or company name, so maybe it's just a cool trinket that got mixed in with all the other stuff in the Ray-Vitam Museum. |
 NEW! On the other hand, there's no doubt about THIS trinket. This "encased penny" dates back to the early Vita-Ray days, as the 1948 "wheat penny" attests. Ray gave these key chains to clients (and prospects).These images graciously and anonymously submitted to this site by a collector of fine collectibles (I'll just call him "Bob"). The benefactor wouldn't let me mention where he's from, but I can say this much -- he ain't from Deep River, Iowa. (Thank You again, Bob!) UPDATED November 2010! Click the graphic to check it out. |
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 One of the most entertaining trinkets Ray handed out to his customers (and folks clammored to get this one) was the famous "Tug Boat Annie" card, used to announce the change in his company name from Vita-Ray to Ray-Vitam. Annie came with a small packet of "cigarettes." Stick one in the corner of her mouth (the small hole you see) and light it. She'd begin smoking -- blowing little smoke rings out the end (unless there was a draft, in which case she just smoked in spirts!). Alas, while Annie remains here, her smokes are gone. |
 A very useful promotional "tool" was this "Shelton Ratchet Head Versatool" -- a ratchetting screwdriver with two flat and one Phillips head bits. The tools came in two versions - one with a black handle, one with red. If you look very closely at the larger image, you can see that each one was engraved with "RAY-VITAM PRODUCTS CO. WASECA MINN." |
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 Ray was never at his wit's end over what to hand out to his customers. Here's another little card he created as a give-away and promotional tool for his key products at the time -- Vita-Ray 100 D Pre-Mix, Vita-Ray 400 D Vitamin Supplement, and Vita-Ray Vitamin Fortifier with APF.. Note that this one is from the Vita-Ray Products period. |
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