There are thousands of them. Literally. Enter the words "Josef Originals" on any online auction site, and prepare to be overwhelmed. Limitless listings appear, each of a fetching ceramic figurine ripe for the picking. There are hoop-skirted maidens, birthday party girls bearing birthstone-bedecked bouquets, sleeping Santas, and mischievous choir boys. Poodles. Pussycats. Kimono-clad geishas, graceful ballerinas, playful pixies, and winsome young lovers.
What do they all have in common? Each and every one owes its existence to the creative mind of designer Muriel Joseph George.
California: Ceramics Central
Like many of her California ceramics contemporaries, Muriel's career soared (and then soured) due to events far beyond her control. During the World War II years of the 1940s, inexpensive giftware imports from overseas were cut off. To keep consumers satisfied (and store shelves filled), retailers turned to domestic manufacturers. Most of those manufacturers were, at least in their initial years, "mom-and-pop" operations (usually "mom"). They operated out of converted storage sheds, kitchens, basements, or, in Muriel's case, the family garage.
So that products could be sold inexpensively, yet still result in a profit for the budding entrepreneurs, both overhead and staffing were kept at minimal levels. Talent, however, was at a maximum. California's cottage industry in ceramics (plus the occasional geographical anomaly, such as Madison's Ceramic Arts Studio) allowed artisans whose abilities might have been smothered in a more traditional work environment to flourish. Such ceramic design mavens of the 1940s and '50s as Hedi Schoop, Betty Lou Nichols, Betty Harrington, and Betty Cleminson enjoyed long careers that began in just this way. So did Muriel Joseph George.
From "Muriel" to "Josef"
In the early 1940s, then-single Muriel Joseph began to establish a name for herself via a limited line of handcrafted jewelry. While unique, her Lucite-leather-Austrian crystal creations were both time-consuming and expensive to produce. Their of-necessity higher selling prices proved unattractive to wartime buyers, so Muriel turned to ceramic as a less-costly medium. At the same time, she began experimenting with the creation of ceramic figurines. Highly detailed, these "Muriel of California" designs were precursors of the creative deluge that followed.
Encouraged by the positive reaction of her family, including new husband Tom George, Muriel decided to focus full attention on figural production. In 1945, "Josef Originals" set up shop in the couple's Arcadia, Calif., garage. (According to company legend, the "Josef" name came about as a printer's error. The initial batch of labels for the first run of the firm's figurines arrived with "Joseph" misspelled. With a release deadline looming, Muriel decided the misprint had a catchy ring to it, and "Josef Originals" was born.)
In today's carefully pre-planned manufacturing world of crossed "T's" and dotted "I's," we can only marvel at the seat-of-your-pants ingenuity that went into ensuring the success of such start-ups as "Josef." In the market for a sales rep? If you're enterprising Muriel Joseph George, you call on the talents of your father, already a salesman for other companies. Muriel encouraged him to bring one of her earliest figurines, "Pitty Sing," along on sales calls. With other business completed, her father would display Muriel's tiny charmer to his clients. Orders were immediate for this Oriental-themed rendition of a child in an oversized conical hat, posed with a fluffy kitten. "Pitty Sing" became the first big hit for Josef Originals, and the firm's one kiln operated day and night in order to meet demand.
A Series of Successes
Well into the 1950s, business boomed for Josef Originals. Soon outgrowing its makeshift garage surroundings, the firm moved to a dedicated production facility in Monrovia. Muriel knew exactly what her customers wanted, and happily provided it. There were no outré Dorothy Kindell nudes or Yona exotics emerging from the Josef studio. Instead, Muriel focused on readily accessible themes with universal appeal. Among the most popular Josef lines are the following:
- "Birthstone Dolls" (on each, the dress and birthstone colors matched)
- "Birthday Girls" (available numerals covered all ages up to 21)
- "Dolls of the Month" (there were 12, of course)
- "Day Of the Week Dolls" (seven, naturally)
- "Little Pets" (each little ceramic girl cuddled an even littler ceramic animal)
- "Career Girls" (among them a teacher, a florist, a nurse, an actress-and a debutante!)
- "Little Commandment Dolls" (Muriel's twelve "commandments" were more on the order of a guide to graciousness. For example, "be loving and giving")
- "Little Internationals" (29 countries made the roll call in this series)
- "Flower Girls" (each figurine's sun hat was a different flower)
- "Big Sisters and Little Sisters" (one for each!)
- "Little Gourmets" (tiny ceramic cooks served up favorite concoctions)
- "Belle Girls" (the skirt of each doll was--you guessed it--a bell)
- "You Are An Angel" (beguiling angel figurines with gold-tipped wings)
- "Ecology Girls" (the nature-based decoration on these 1970s figurines illustrated a variety of plant life, from cattails to mushrooms)
The possibilities for new and varied series of figurines was endless, and eventually, Muriel explored most of them. Her series concepts could be inspired by a childhood activity--an historical period or even a favorite catch phrase. Among the many Josef series introduced throughout the years were "Nursery Rhymes," "Make Believe," "Let's Pretend," "Little Homemakers," "Dress-Ups," "A Little Girl's Dreams," "Mama & Baby," "Summer Days," "American Colonial Days," "Four Seasons," "Moments To Remember," "Sweet Memories,” "First Love," and "My Favorite Things."
In addition to purely decorative pieces, Josef Originals occasionally turned out "double-duty" figurines. Particularly popular themes were combined to enhance sales, resulting in such mash-ups as the "Twelve Month Musical Dolls With Birthstones." Also on the market: Josef planters, vases, candleholders, towel rings, trinket boxes, lady head vases, pin trays, soap dishes, lipstick holders, wall plaques, pie birds, music boxes, bells, mugs, ashtrays, bride-and-groom cake toppers, and a sleigh-ful of assorted holiday ware. Crossover tie-ins included the "Secret Pals" series, with Josef figurines designed to match specific Hallmark greeting cards.
A Signature Style
Easy-to-relate-to themes were one element of the Josef appeal. Even more important, however, was the overall skill of execution. Particularly throughout the 1950s, when Josef was based in California, the figurines, both in design and realization, are exquisite. The colors are restful pastels and the finishes glossy, with embellishments including applied gold accents, spaghettiwork, and jeweled trim.
Muriel specialized in depicting children (adult Josef figurines are few and far between), and these are children that look like children. Their proportions, poses, and facial features--the always-black eyes, wide-open or demurely downcast, the button noses and shy smiles--were carefully observed from real life and lovingly recreated. Muriel's innate creative talents found their best realization not only in the "statement" her figurines made ("childhood recaptured"), but in just how artistically and effectively that statement was conveyed.
From California to Japan
With the reopening of overseas markets after the war, Josef Originals, like so many domestic ceramics firms in the 1950s, found import competition a new, and unwelcome, threat. Often, overseas competitors simply copied the work of firms based in the United States, slapping on their own labels. In almost every case, the copies were vastly inferior to the originals. Cast from existing figurines rather than master molds, the results were imprecise and at times misshapen, their decoration sloppily and hastily applied. However, they were also less expensive. Buyers in search of a bargain snapped up the imports, causing a severe dent in domestic sales.
In the face of seemingly insurmountable competition, many companies, such as Madison's Ceramic Arts Studio, simply closed up shop. Others, however, elected to forge onward. Among them: Josef Originals. Convinced that consumers would always opt for quality, Muriel upped the ante, turning out figurines even more detailed than those previously released. Unfortunately, all that detail meant higher retail prices--and ultimately even fewer buyers than before.
Well, if you can't beat them, why not join them? In 1959, Muriel and Tom George teamed up with George Good, their ceramics distributor since 1954, and moved the Josef base of operations to Katayama, Japan. Prior to the opening of the now co-owned "George-Good" plant, both Muriel and Tom George spent several months in Japan so that workers could receive firsthand training in the Josef style and technique.
Once Josef Originals Japan was up and running, the Georges returned to the United States. For the next two decades, before retiring completely in 1985, Muriel would send her designs to Japan; prototypes of the figurines would be returned for her approval, then put on the market. Regular visits to the Japanese factory by George Good ensured that interpretation of the Josef brand remained on point, and on schedule.
Thanks to lower production and labor costs overseas, Josef was able to remain competitive in the giftware market long after its contemporaries had vanished. And, freed from the daily demands of mass production, Muriel Joseph George was able to devote herself completely to her first love--design, prolifically adding to the already-vast Josef inventory. (In later years, to keep up with production pace, additional designers were called in as needed. Among the most successful in capturing the "Josef" look: Muriel's daughter, Diane.)
A Collector’s Bonanza
While the Josef Japan figurines are certainly attractive, and have a loyal band of adherents, many collectors remain smitten with their own first love-the Josef California output. These figures seem to possess more uniquely individualized "personalities," thanks, in large part, to their carefully realized facial features. (How to tell them apart? While both Japanese and California pieces often have an incised "Josef Originals" on the base, there is a differentiation in other markings. California works originally boasted black labels with gold or silver lettering, reading "Josef Originals California"; in Japan, "California" was replaced with a decorative gold squiggle.)
George Good acquired full ownership of Josef Originals in 1982, selling his interest in 1985. Muriel Joseph George died in 1992. Although different owners (Applause, Dakin) have continued to turn out "Josef" items right up until the present day, most collecting interest centers on the earlier Muriel Joseph George designs. Such latter-day figurine innovations as papier-maché, bisque finishes, flocked finishes, and eyes that are reddish-brown (or even made of glass), have not yet become primary draws on the secondary market.
Josef Originals satisfy four basic collecting needs: they're attractive; they're compact; they’re readily available, and they remain immensely affordable. For some, their heart-on-sleeve sentimentality can seem a bit over-the-top. So much sweetness! So much light! But "sweetness" is just what Muriel Joseph George was selling, and just what her buyers found delectably irresistible. The inherent innocence of Josef figurines provided a welcome respite from the jangle of the times in which they were created. They provide just as soothing a respite today.
Donald-Brian Johnson is the co-author of numerous Schiffer books on design and collectibles, including "Postwar Pop: Memorabilia of the Mid-Twentieth Century." Please address inquiries to: donaldbrian@msn.com
All photos by Donald-Brian Johnson



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