The Johnson Smith Company

 By Bruce Shawkey

Johnson Smith Company was a mail-order business established in 1914 by Alfred Johnson Smith that sold novelty items and gag gifts such as miniature cameras, invisible ink, x-ray specs, whoopee cushions, fake vomit, and joy buzzers. Founded in Chicago, the company relocated to Racine, Wisconsin in 1923, to Detroit in the late 1930s, then to Bradenton, Florida in 1986.

The company advertised in magazines devoted to children and young adults such as Boys' Life, Popular Mechanics, and Science Digest. Their ads appeared on the back cover of many historically significant comic books, including Action Comics #1, June 1938 (first appearance of Superman) and Detective Comics #27, May 1939 (first appearance of Batman).

I found a 1951 catalog of theirs on the Internet Archive, and it is a hoot. Here is the cover:















I've ordered a few things from them; nothing expensive. I was always great fun to browse their catalog. Here is a link to their complete catalog. It takes a while to download; it's 290 pages long, so be patient.

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