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This toy "Cape Canaveral Satellite Monitor" bus is a tin toy produced in Japan for export to an American market. In post-WWII Japan, producing space-themed "tin toys" originated as a way to tap into an international market for "penny toys" or cheap playthings. By the late 1950s, however, this home-crafted industry had become a successful international business manufacturing creatively-designed, complex toys with moving parts and/lights that competed successfully with Western toymakers. This toy's maker, Yonezawa Toys, Co., Ltd., was one of the biggest manufacturers in Japan of tin toys, many of which carried space themes. The design of this toy, which features lithography created to appeal to an American market, tapped into the American fascination with the new NASA human spaceflight program while also showcasing the toy's battery-powered features.

The Gewirz family donated this toy to the National Collection in 2006.

 Display Status

This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.
Object Details
Country of Origin Japan Type MEMORABILIA-Popular Culture Manufacturer Yonezawa Toys, Co., Ltd., Japanese
 Dimensions 3-D: 21 x 8.9 x 16.5cm (8 1/4 x 3 1/2 x 6 1/2 in.)
 Materials Overall, steel; rubber tires; antenna, plastic; rod for fitting on antenna, aluminum
 Inventory Number A20060095001 Credit Line Gift of the Carl and Nancy Gewirz Fund, Inc. Data Source National Air and Space Museum Restrictions & Rights Usage conditions apply
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