TootsieToy

[1] Meanwhile, the Tootsietoy brand also had origins in a range of miniature cars in the form of charms, pins, cuff links and the like, introduced circa 1901 by the Chicago based Cosmo Company owned by the Shure Bros. which bought Dowst in 1926.

Tootsietoy made metal prizes for Cracker Jack boxes,[4] and this success in the 1930s may also have led to Dowst providing cast pieces for the game Monopoly.

[5] In the 1920s trains, cars, trucks, military vehicles, aircraft, pistols and a variety of other toys were manufactured by Dowst.

[6] One car that definitely was a promotional model was the 1935 Lasalle made for General Motors that came in sedan and coupe versions packaged in a special smallish blue and dark rose box.

[7] World War II work later had the Dowst Co. making detonators for grenades and mines as well as belt and parachute buckles.

[citation needed] One exception to this simplistic construction was the 1955 Pontiac Safari two-door station wagon which was heavily diecast in about 1:28 scale, larger than much of the Tootsietoy fare.

[1] A couple of these smaller cars are still in demand, like a replica of the Chevrolet Corvette-powered Cheetah (a real-world competitor with Shelby's AC Cobra).

Tootsietoy, which is now owned by J. Lloyd International, Inc., is still based in Chicago and makes about 40 million cars per year.