Merchandise!
The tireless research of the The Welcome Home Restoration Project has revealed an absolute plethora of merchandise created during the heyday of Welcome Home! From toys, to books, records, greeting cards, all the way to your favorite breakfast cereal, there was truly no shortage of ways to bring your favorite neighbors into your own home! We've catalogued a few of our findings below, and will continue to add more as new discoveries are uncovered and restored!
"It's-For-You!" Talking Telephone Toy
Dated 1971, manufactured by Marlo, Inc.
We are very lucky to have recovered this item packaging and all, and restored the toy to original working order! Our research suggests it was an officially licensed toy from the Playfellow Workshop that had partnered with a company called Marlo. The packaging suggests that many versions of these phones were sold, each themed to one of the neighbors, but as of writing we have only been able to recover the Wally Darling themed phone.
Click the buttons below to listen to the audio recovered from this delightful device! (NOTE: The audio for Wally Darling is experiencing a glitch and has been temporarily taken offline. Please be patient as we work to restore this as soon as we possibly can!)
"Rainbow Letters" Eddie Dear Playset
Dated est. 1971, unknown manufacturer
This array of brightly colored letters seem to be inspired by the equally as colorful neighbors of Home, such as Howdy Pillar, Frank Frankly, and Barnaby B. Beagle. These pieces are predicted to have been from an activity set based upon the efforts of the friendly and reliable mailman, Eddie Dear. It seems as though whoever enjoyed this playset had a grand time pretending to mail letters to their favorite Playfellow puppets!
"Eddie's Big Lift" Storybook Record
Date unknown, published by Marlo Records
A rare find indeed! We were able to recover not only the complete, original audio from this Welcome Home storybook record, but several illustrations speculated to have been part of either the record packaging or complimentary storybook. Listen below as the neighborhood comes together to challenge the might of resident reliable mailman, Eddie Dear!
Currently Unknown Records
Including "Welcome Home", "Drawing with Wally Darling", and "The Fun in Your Frown"
Dated est. 1970-1972, published by Marlo Records
Get ready to laugh, draw and sing with your favorite cast of puppets from the Welcome Home television program, through this collection of newly uncovered vinyl records! Although not entirely from the same catalog, these records display an array of different music and activities that range from singing with Frank and Julie about the joys of frowning, to Wally’s helpful guide to drawing, and an array of other silly songs meant to keep viewers engaged with this delightful television show. Unfortunately, these records are heavily damaged and appear to have been poorly maintained, so efforts to recover the audio are still ongoing.
"Crispy Sweets" Rice Puff Cereal
Date and manufacturer unknown
Currently, this deliciously sweet treat is only known through the discovery of an advertising standee, which you can see restored above. One can only imagine the joy of seeing this charming standee in their own local supermarket, surely beside a fully-stocked shelf of Crispy Sweets ready to take home! The search is ongoing to recover the original cereal packaging, so we might learn more about this neighborly part of a complete breakfast.
"Mail-in-Time Day" Valentine's Day Cards
Dated est. 1971, manufacturer unknown
Love is in the air, or so they say, and nowhere is that more clear than this package of Welcome Home Valentines Day Cards! They appear to be promoting a made-up holiday, as “Mail-in-Time Day” is found on the back of all of the cards, as well as on the packaging itself. This may have been a holiday displayed only on the show, perhaps associated with Eddie Dear. (Wally and Barnaby are displayed on the yet-to-be-restored front of the package, wearing his uniform!) Currently, lovely illustrations of Wally, Julie, Frank, Eddie, Sally and Howdy have been recovered from the set found by the Welcome Home Restoration Team.
Wally Darling's Coloring Book
Date unknown, published by Marlo
With the help of this beautiful booklet, viewers could color along with Wally Darling right at home! Though we have only been able to restore one out of surely many illustrations including in the book, the recovery of the complete cover - including price and publisher information! - is an unexpectedly wonderful find!
