Mr Potato Head

I was reading the newspaper, well, flicking through it and looking at the pictures, and there, looking up at me, was a picture of the epitome of coolness, Mr. Potato Head.  Immediately I knew that my gift buying dilemma was solved and, after a quick trip to a toy supermarket in a suburban shopping centre, I had one in my hot little hands.

Doing a Google search gives a wealth of information on Mr Potato Head’s history and adventures. Highlights are the pictures from Mr Potato Head’s travels around the world at www.spudstravels.com and Mr Potato Head enacting each of the seven deadly sins at www.kimberlyyau.com/misc.html.

While reading some of the many articles, I realised that Mr Potato Head is not just a kids’ toy; Mr Potato Head is the American Dream. Mr Potato Head as we know him was born in 1952 into a time when, on the surface, family values ruled and the spread of suburban America was fuelled by post-war consumerism. This early version of Mr Potato Head needed a real potato or other vegetables for a body (the plastic version of Mr Potato Head appeared in 1964) and taught American children that playing with vegetables was preferable to actually eating them.

As a symbol of the American Dream, Mr Potato Head has it all. Mrs Potato Head came on the scene in 1953 and, a respectable amount of time after the wedding, along came the children, Spud and Yam. As the perfect family, the Potato Heads have many fruit and vegetable friends, pets and a car with a trailer.

The concept of removable and replaceable body parts furthers the American Dream.  Americans turn to plastic surgery as a simple solution to dissatisfaction with their appearances and strive for eternal beauty. Mr and Mrs Potato Head are into their fifties and have retained their youthfulness.

Mr Potato Head has also had success in the shining light of American culture – Hollywood. Starring roles in Toy Story and Toy Story 2 saw his fame skyrocket and film merchandising opportunities brought him the great wealth that every American strives for.

We should not overlook the most important of Mr Potato Head’s characteristics. He is a potato. Potatoes are the backbone of American society and are omnipresent: “would you like fries with that?” What meal is complete without the carbohydrate rich potato as an ingredient or as fries, hash browns, boiled or roasted potato on the side? Without the humble potato, America’s obesity epidemic might not be as bad.

So now I can give a symbol of the American Dream to my niece for her birthday but at three years old will she understand or will she (and I) just have fun sticking body parts into a bit of brown plastic?

 

Get free email now!