The
collectors
Rev Jen
Rev Jen is an artist,
poet,mail-order
minister andcollector
who likes towear elf ears
andhas transformed
her Lower East Side
New York apartment
into apsychedelic
trollmuseumwith a
collection that numbers
in thehundreds and
includes customised
BurningMan, cyborg and
Elvis trolls. Visits areby
appointment only (email
)
and tourshavebeen
known to last up to
sixhours.
Sherry Groom
SherryGroom from
Ohioholds thecurrent
GuinnessWorldRecord
for her collectionof over
4,000 trolls,which is
housed in theTroll Hole
FolkArtGallery she runs
withher husband, Jay.
thetrollhole.com
Ray Dyson
RayDyson, a52-year-
oldCanadianwho goes
by thenickname“Troll”,
sports ahuge tattooof
ablue-haired troll on
his right bicep andhas a
collectionof 1,754 trolls
onwhichhe spends up
to 15hours aweek.
Justas the trollwasmaking its
comeback,ThomasDampassedaway in
November 1989at theageof 74.Anarticle
writtenshortlybeforeThomas’sdeath
describeshimas“veryenergeticandagile,
withawrysenseofhumour”.
Despite theenormousglobal success
ofhis trolldesign,he thoughtofhimself
asawoodcarveruntil theendofhis life–
perhapsshyingaway from the ideaofbeing
abusinessmanbecauseof the troubles
hehadencountered in theUSduring the
1960s. “Heproducedsomanyworks that
noone, evenhis family,hasany ideaof the
number– therewere literallyhundreds,”
saysØstergaard.
Thesecond invasionof trollswasas
swiftas the first, and in 1991Dam trolls
were, for thesecond time,namedToy
of theYearby theUSToyAssociation
–adistinctionunique to the troll.The
majorityofDamThings’ production
wasoutsourced to factories inChina,
anda teamofover 100 factoryworkers
inDenmarkproduced thehigher-end
GoodLuck trolls.As in the 1960s,
however,DamThingswere
plaguedbycopiesof
their troll, andonly
receiveda fraction
of thesales from
the top-selling toy,
whichby 1992had reachedUS$700million
(acrossallbrands). “AlthoughDamThings
hadagood fewyears in the 1990s, the
rewards for thecompanyshouldhavebeen
muchbigger,”saysØstergaard.
Everyone, itseemed,was jumpingon
the trollbandwagon– therewereOriginal
BattleTrolls fromHasbro,TeenageMutant
NinjaTurtle trolls,andevenBarbie trolls.
Ace,whosoldLuckySnook trolls in the ’60s,
wasback in themarketwith thepopular
TreasureTrolls,whichsportedcolourful
“wishstones” in theirbellybuttons,butone
of thebiggestcompanies to
get into the trollbusiness
wasUS toygiantRuss
Berrie.At theheightof the
troll craze, thecompanysold
over2,000different troll-related
products thatbrought
inaround
US$300 million
annually.
»
Left
⁄
EvenFrench
film stars
caught the
bug–here’s
RogerHanin
andhis good
luck troll
at theMer
deSable
amusement
park inFrance
in 1965
“Wedecidedwewould
shoot for the stars
withHollywood”
n
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