Menorah Pin, Bert Reiner
c.1947, Front side - Metal pin from Shanghailander, Bert Reiner
Solid metal pin depicting a menorah and Hebrew text encompassed by a thin oval circle.
Name/Title
Menorah Pin, Bert ReinerEntry/Object ID
2025.4.2Description
c.1947, metal pin from Shanghailander, Bert ReinerUse
Worn on clothing or collected as memorabilia.Context
Recently, Bert Reiner donated a Cabbage Patch Kid named Anna to the Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum. Anna is one of two prototypes that were made in 1983 of an Asian Cabbage Patch Kid. The Asian Kids were not manufactured. Bert had both prototypes. One was stolen from him many years ago. Thus, Anna is the only prototype for which we know the whereabouts. Danny Spungen acted as the currier of Anna to Shanghai and documented her journey. In 2018, I published an article about Bert Reiner with the American Institute of Contemporary German Studies of Johns Hopkins University titled, “The Story of Bert Reiner, the Toy Maker, or: An Appreciation of the Individual Experiences of Former Shanghai Jewish Refugees” (https://americangerman.institute/2018/06/the-story-of-bert-reiner-the-toy-maker-or-an-appreciation-of-the-individual-experiences-of-former-shanghai-jewish-refugees/). I have started to write the sequel to this article, titled, “Toymaker II: Anna’s Journey.” This article will explore in more depth, Bert’s career as a toy maker, highlight his patents, narrate the story of Anna’s journey to Shanghai, and convey Bert’s thoughts regarding his recent trip back to his birthplace of Dresden, Germany. I have started writing the piece based on previous interviews I have conducted with Bert. I have arranged to interview Bert via Zoom on December 10, 2024. I will interview Danny Spungen shortly thereafter. Given that I wrote the first article for the American Institute of Contemporary German Studies, I contacted the editor of the American-German Institute (the new name of the Institute) about publishing “Toymaker II: Anna’s Journey” as a cross-publication with the Florence and Laurence Spungen Family Foundation. She has agreed to this. This will enhance the readership of “Toymaker II: Anna’s Journey.”Collection
Bert ReinerCategory
Pin