My favorite kitchenware is vintage, fun and functional. About six months ago I began collecting mostly Pyrex and Fire King glass from the 1940-s through the 1970’s with my favorite pieces being from the 40’s and 50’s. When we attend auctions, my eyes are always searching out the colorful, functional pieces of glass used by our mothers and grandmothers in their kitchens. I think part of the appeal for me is the fact that dishes are fragile and the fact that they survived use over such a long period of time is some sort of a testament to the women and the kitchens of another era. We were at an auction when I spied some vintage glassware that was obviously milk glass with the words “Tom and Jerry” written in red in an Old English type print. I had done enough reading to know that mugs with characters on them (such as the tiger used to advertise Exxon) were more desirable to some collectors. Having grown up in the seventies, I immediately thought of the cat and mouse cartoon duo named Tom and Jerry that I used to watch on television and I mistakenly thought the Tom and Jerry reference somehow connected to the cartoon. I bid, on a hunch rather than experience, and given my choice of box lots, I chose the rather large box that contained a punch bowl and sixteen mugs. I was excited but didn’t have enough time to do much more than a quick search on the internet and found out that “Tom and Jerry” didn’t have anything to do with the cat and mouse of my childhood, but rather was a type of alcoholic, seasonal drink. The drink itself is a bit labor intensive and from what I have read (I have not tried it) gives a nod to eggnog but is very different in that it is not as thick and "heavy" a drink. One article I read compared the taste to that of a vanilla sugar cookie (and evidently a non alcoholic version can be made for children and those who don't consume). The drink was popular enough at one time that competing companies made various versions of the punch bowl sets during the 1940’s and 1950’s. In fact, after a bit of research, I found that the set I had purchased was neither Pyrex or Fire King, but rather a competing company of that era called McKee. I wrapped the punch bowl set and stored it away with my Christmas decorations and forgot about it. Last weekend as I was going through the closet, I unwrapped the glassware and fell in love with it. Noticing the set was dingy and contained what looked like permanent stains on many of the mugs, I decided to try giving the set a good washing in a solution of bleach water. (For the record, don’t ever put your vintage glass in the dishwasher. Over time, this fades and scratches it.) It didn’t take but a minute or two in the bleach water and the punch bowl set was in almost perfect condition once again, bright white and minus the stains.
Being fascinated with vintage glass and history, I found this a most interesting research project and the Tom and Jerry punch bowl and mugs a decorative and functional addition to the holiday table.
For more information on the history of the drink and the
punch bowls visit the following links:
About Those Tom and Jerry Bowls
Tom and Jerry Batter and Cocktail Recipe
Origin of Tom and Jerry Drink
A Regional Oddball, Resurrected for the Chilliest of Days ~ An article from the New York Times