California Raisin: Museum Object and Cultural History
California Raisin: date made: 1986 - 1991. user: California Raisins Advisory Board. producer: Will Vinton Productions.
The object in the museum catalogue
The California Raisins are sculpted clay figures used as advertising and merchandising characters by the California Raisin Advisory Board. The figures were first developed by Will Vinton Productions in 1986 based on caricatures of African American rhythm-and-blues groups. The California Raisins are often accompanied by a soundtrack of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine,” originally popularized by singer Marvin Gaye. The Raisins released numerous studio albums in the 1980s, starred in a cartoon series, and were nominated for an Emmy for their 1988 “Meet the Raisins” mockumentary. These figures were used in the Claymation advertisements from 1986 through 1991.
Materials, dates and provenance
- date made: 1986 - 1991
- user: California Raisins Advisory Board
- producer: Will Vinton Productions
- maker: Will Vinton Productions
- Object Name: figure, animation
- Physical Description: clay, plasticene (overall material)
- Physical Description: lead (overall material)
- Physical Description: wood (overall material)
- Measurements: overall: 22 cm x 15 cm x 6 cm; 8 21/32 in x 5 29/32 in x 2 3/8 in
- place made: United States: Oregon, Portland
- Subject: Motion Pictures
- Subject: Animation
- Subject: Consumerism
- Subject: Food Culture
- Subject: Music
- Subject: Blacks
- Subject: African American
- ID Number: 1991.3182.04
- catalog number: 1991.3182.04
- nonaccession number: 1991.3182
- Credit Line: Will Vinton Productions
- Data Source: National Museum of American History
Sources and reuse
Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of American History through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed.
Sources
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