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Sculptor, Lafayette L. Rittgers
produced humors novelty figurines from
1939-1956, out of his studio in Chicago
ILL. By 1941, when this baseball set of
three was created, Rittgers employed
six individuals to produce, and paint
his humorous figures. Rittgers signed
and copyrighted his work, and on this
set it appears on the shoes. Because
the chalkware figurines were each
painted by hand, there are slight
variations. This baseball theme was
copied by other companies, but never
quite matched the workmanship of the
Rittgers.
The comical sports series sets featured; wrestling, basketball, football,
Golf, bowling, baseball which included:
an umpire with a chest protector, a
baseball player, and perhaps the most
popular, this set of three, disgruntled
pitcher, batter, and umpire. (who
doesn't seem to have any interest in
changing his call) The label placed on
the bottom of the
figure reads “Original Humor by,
RITTGERS, Copyrighted by, Lafayette L.
Rittgers, -CHICAGO-” A separate sticker
reads “Distributed by, SUTTLE & ASMUS,
CHICAGO, ILL.” Suttle and Asmus, was a
wholesale distributor that sold the
figurines for Rittgers.
The majority of statues feature an "N" (National League) on one player's
jersey, and the "A" (American League).
Other custom made variation have
surfaced featuring other teams. Chips and missing paint are common flaws with these figurines. Minor flaws
will not hurt the value as much, but
more severe imperfections make it hard
to sell. In mint condition, you can
expect to pay a premium
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