1930 Marx, Home Town Grocery Store in Original Box
Awesome example of Marx's tin litho Home Town Grocery Store in incredible near mint+ condition. Comes with its original box which, believe it or not, also grades near mint. Has to be one of the highest condition Home Town sets I've seen. Unfortunately it's missing its two stamped metal store patrons., however it does have its correct "Manny, Moe, and Jack" grocery clerks plus an upright icebox. As with all of the Marx Home Town and Newlywed Room series, the toy consists of a rectangular room with open front and roof. The edges are all rounded except above the Grocery Store sign. The exterior room surfaces were lithoed solid blue. The interior, however, was lithoed with accurate, early 20th century details. The rear wall shows a clerk reaching for an item on the top shelf using one of those mechanical pincers. I assume that the little girl in front is the customer. The shelves are loaded with all kinds of things like soap, tea, tomatoes, and flour. The left wall shows an aproned clerk behind the counter with a scale on the left and a large coffee grinder on the right. The right wall has two built-in glass storage closets. The floor has an art deco pink and blue criss-crossed diamond design and really makes the entire room stand out. And of course there's Manny and his two buddies standing behind their three dimensional counter containing sugar, butter and spice. A blue and white upright three dimensional metal icebox (refrigerator) also comes with the set, however it's not part of the original set. It would've come in the Home Town Meat Market. There would have also been two flat, stamped metal woman figures, standing upright and holding shopping bags. They are the identical figures found in the Marx circular toy called "Pinched". The second was used in Marx's "Main Street". So they wouldn't be completely impossible to find. The box is fantastic. Such a small box with so much detail. The front and back main panels show an accurate depiction of the Grocery Store with its three clerks along the rear wall and single clerk on the left. It shows the shelves lined with the same stuff lithoed on the toy. A little girl and four stylishly dressed woman are their customers. The top and bottom panels have the same identical graphics as the front and back, only it's minus the green and red parallel line frames. The hinged endflaps were printed with the toy name and number, plus manufacturer name, trademark, address and motto. Size: 5" x 2¾" x 3¼". Sold: Sep. 2008
Price Sold: $ 326
