There aren’t many toddlers toys that can claim to be a national icon. Buzzy Bee certainly can. Born in New Zealand, a friend to Kiwi kids and royal offspring, and an endearing and enduring piece of Kiwiana, Buzzy Bee’s place in our hearts is permanently cemented. In the modern era where playthings for toddlers are increasingly advanced pieces of technology, that’s not bad for a humble wooden toy that has just celebrated its 80th birthday.
Buzzy Bee was born in 1939/1940. He (yes, he’s a male bee) was the brainchild of Maurice Schlesinger, a toy and wood craftsman working out of a small workshop in St Benedicts Street in Newton, Auckland. Schlesinger was something of an entrepreneur as well, and on learning that imported toys were not coming into the country because of wartime restrictions, he decided to do something about it.
Schlesinger, via his company Playcraft Products, fashioned the very first Buzzy Bee in that small workshop. and the first bee was pretty much the same as the ones sold by New Zealand toy retailers in the 21st century – with the possible exception that today’s Buzzy Bee might have slightly brighter markings.
Mr Schlesinger engaged the services of a tradesman in Epsom, Auckland who used his wood lathe to turn the bodies. Meanwhile, thinking about the health and safety of his young customers down the track, Schlesinger made a point of using lead-free paint which he sourced from a paint shop at the top of Aye Street in Parnell, Auckland. Everything came together in a toy that hit the stores just before Christmas, and soon Buzzy Bee was flying out of toy stores and general retailers all over New Zealand. When Schlesinger became sick and was forced to close his workshop, the business was taken over by brothers Hec and John Ramsey, who continued making the toys for about 30 years in their New Lynn wood turning factory. The postwar baby boom and import restrictions saw sales increase year by year and not even a fire at the factory in the late 1970s could stop Buzzy Bee. The operation was sold into a number of different hands before the trademark and device were sold to Lion Rock Ventures, who have owned all intellectual property associated with Buzzy Bee since 2004.
Every biography needs a hint of controversy, and Buzzy Bee’s life story is no exception. There was a scandalous myth that claims a similar toy was brought from the United States to New Zealand by American troops during World War II and was then modified to the Kiwi version of Buzzy Bee. This would mean our national icon was actually American, which would turn the world completely upside down. Fear not. Much research has been done and besides uncovering no evidence to substantiate the story, it seems strange that soldiers would pack a toddlers toy as an essential war item. It’s far more likely that the troops took Buzzy Bee back to the US for their partners and kids, as Fisher Price started selling a similar toy in the 1950s.
Buzzy Bee is quintessentially Kiwi, and we love him. He’s appeared on postal stamps, sculptures, paintings, musicals, TV shows, magazine covers, school murals and in the newspapers of the world when he was presented to the future King of England, Prince William when he accompanied his Mum and Dad, Diana and Charles on the tour of New Zealand in 1983. William was just a toddler then, and newspaper photos show him looking adorably at his clicking and colourful companion. Nearly 40 years on, William is all grown up but we can’t help but think that he still has his Buzzy Bee.