Dam Political Trolls . . .

In the mid 1960s, Thomas Dam created political finger puppets for the American market.  An elephant was designed for Republicans, and a donkey was designed for Democrats.  (I remember these finger puppets being given out at political conventions in the mid-to-late 60s.)  These party trolls were approximately 3 inches tall.  Most of them had the 1964 "Dam Things Establishment" Copyright embedded around the finger hole (at the bottom) of each puppet and "Design Dam Patent" stamped on one foot.

Ava's Christmas Troll Horse

My sweet granddaughter has fallen in love with troll horses.  Her favorite color is pink.  Look what "Dran Ma" restored and can barely wait to give to her for the holidays!

Trolls Official Teaser Trailer #1 (2016) - Justin Timberlake Animated Mo...

Can you guess where I will be on my birthday?

Magical Super Trolls -P1- 90s Television - 1992 Cartoon Series

Thomas Dam's trolls were often stolen and morphed for cheap profit by other companies.  Troll "knock offs" actually began during the 1960's (with Wishnik making the greatest profits) . . . but Russ, Treasure Trolls and several others really made a killing with Dam's copyrighted creations in the 1980's and 90s.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Above is a custom-restored Scandia House Troll that I gave to my sister for Christmas.  As you can see, she is celebrating the New Year with a Bud Light!  (Yes, I know.  There was no Bud Light in the 1960's and early 1970's.)

The Creator of Beautiful Dam Things

Thomas Dam was born in Denmark on October 2, 1909.  He loved and spent most of his life in his hometown of Argir, a village in the Faroe Islands.  On January 11, 1986, he passed away, just before the second "troll craze" hit.

Maria Joensen Dam, wife, sews and stuffs troll dolls - while Thomas Dam "puts on the finishing touches".

Thomas Dam in his later years, enjoying the ocean breezes of the Faroe Islands.

Of All the Dam Horses, . . .

. . . this one is my favorite!

This photograph of Thomas Dam and his largest equine creation was taken in Denmark sometime during the early-to-mid 1960s.

Original (No Restoration Needed) "Iggy Normous" Cave Troll

Restored "Iggy Normous" Cave Troll

In the 1960s, the largest Dam dolls on the market were known as the "Iggy Normous" trolls.  They were anywhere from 10.5 to 12 inches in height (not including the hair).  Probably the best known of the Iggy Normous Trolls was Dam's Cave Troll.  This 1964 version of the Cave Troll originally had a 2-inch, (cream colored) plastic, sharp-tooth or bear-claw piece hanging from his neck.  "Ugh" was missing this before I got him - so, I replaced it with an authentic Bison (American Buffalo) tooth.  White Icelandic mohair now takes the place of his once rotting gray hair.  Real rabbit fur, dyed in a leopard pattern, now covers his body - instead of the original deteriorating costume.

HAPPY, HAPPY, JOY, JOY!  I will soon be retiring from over-the-road trucking and will soon be free to return to my troll hobby (and the wonderful on-line community associated with it).

For those of you, who are interested in trolls and would like to either know more about them or join a fellowship of other troll enthusiasts, click on either the button or link below:


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Centaur Troll

In 2005, the moderator/member of DAMTHINGS Yahoo Group suggested that a "Centaur Troll" be created. The moderator, Goblin King (AKA Adam), then followed up on his suggestion by writing to the Danish maker of modern Dam trolls.

Many of us in the troll community crossed our fingers, hoping to see this new collector's item become a reality. Unfortunately, either because the prototype would be too complicated or too expensive to manufacture, the Centaur Troll was never even put on a drawing board.

In 2006, I tried to put together a simple Centaur design. My artistic daughter, Candace, drew the idea. We then e-mailed the proposed troll and sketches to the then APS (formerly Norfin) Company in Denmark.

Alas, the Centaur troll was not to be . . .

Restoration of an Animal Troll

This is an underside photo of a large Dam donkey, severely marked and with rotting hair, before restoration.

This is the underside photo of the same troll, after ink-removal treatment and with mane & tail replacement. "Vee have vays of making zee schribbles go kaput . . ."

He is one Dam handsome donkey!

A Dam, Damn Rare, Animal!

Folks, I had to wipe the drool off of my chin when Sherill (a fellow collector) shared this EXTREMELY RARE animal with me! This LARGE, WHITE, reindeer is just one of only a hundred that were manufactured in Denmark during the 1960s - and he is the only one known to reside in the United States. The newer "hang tag" around his neck was signed and given to Sherill by the son of Thomas Dam, Niels Dam (who also verified this masterpiece's authenticity).

My 2006 State Fair of Texas Entry

I could not resist! My 1965 Scandia House edition of the large (6.75 inches) tailed troll will be entered in this year’s doll show at the Texas State Fair. This bigger version of Dam’s doll with the fur-tipped rear appendage has uniquely detailed finger and toe nails. Many of the larger tailed trolls were dressed in burlap tunics with brown yarn belts tied around them. Sometimes, there were various “charms” strung on the belt. Generally, the charms were made of either felt or plastic. A red felt diamond, two types of green felt leaves, a plastic four-leaf clover and a plastic lantern filled with colored rings are just some of the charms I know of.

Tailed trolls are highly prized among collectors with the smaller (around 3 inches) versions being “all the rage” and selling for hundreds of dollars. Most of them were originally sold “in the buff”, but a few petite individuals with “butt extremities” were also dressed in burlap garments.

A Dam Trollish Santa

Dam's BIG Santa! (www.theplaymakers.com)

Before the creation of his famous trolls, . . .

Thomas Dam was recruited by a large Swedish department store to assist in the creation of a two-story Santa Claus for their 1956 Yule display. The majority of this "jolly old elf" was made of metal, but the rubber face and hands were designed and handcrafted by Dam.*

*Information obtained from www.theplaymakers.com

Restored Robin Hood Troll

This is a larger classic Robin Hood troll, which I have "liberally" restored. His badly decaying velveteen coat, velveteen hat and deteriorated arrow case were used as patterns and were recreated in suede leather. Robin's missing green felt pants and brown felt belt have been replaced. The damaged dyed chicken feather that was in his cap has been exchanged for a quail feather. The once broken arrow now sports a handcrafted stone spearhead, and the bow he holds was hand-carved from wood. (I'm rather proud of it.)

Unlike many of the 7-inch character trolls, this one is not a coin bank.

Human Troll Tootsies

These are not life-size replicas of Dam troll feet. These are my actual feet!

Large character and other odd trolls (view from right side)

A variety of character trolls . . .