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One of the more interesting developments in Christmas lighting came
from this decade. Matchless Stars, beautiful, solid glass ornaments
surrounding a brighter than normal lamp, were introduced to the
market in about 1932 by the Matchless Electric Company. The Stars
were made in seven sizes, ranging from 1-15/16" to 3-1/8". Sold in
sets of eight or ten or singly from countertop boxes like the
example below, the lamps were made for either series or parallel
wired outfits. The examples shown are single-row Stars, but double row
varieties were also offered. There was even a Star with a standard
size light bulb base available, for use in wall lamps and other
light fixtures. The glass points and center crystal of the units
were imported from Czechoslovakia, and the Star was assembled in the
United States. These lights are highly collectible today, and
somewhat hard to find. Due to their high selling price and the
economic conditions of the 30s, they were only moderate sellers.
After World War II, Czechoslovakian glass was no longer practical
for use in the manufacture of the Stars, due to the Communist
occupation of that country. Lucite stars were then produced, and
were sold until all production of Matchless Stars ceased in the
mid-1950s. It is interesting to note that these Stars were also
used in pinball games in the 30s, as decorative bumper lights. To
the right and left is pictured a wonderful 32 light table top tree
filled with Stars and owned by fellow collector and friend
Jim Sloss. To learn more about the history of these Stars on
this site, CLICK HERE,
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Outside of Countertop Sales Box |
Rare opalescent Centered Star |
Extremely Rare Frosted Double Star |
Inside of Countertop Sales Box |
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Date |
Manufacturer |
Notes |
Outside of Box |
Inside of Box |
| 1933 |
Reliance |
In 1932, the
Reliance Company came out with their own star tree lights known as
Kristal Stars. Imported from Japan, the stars were made of painted
and glitter covered tin, with colored glass star points. A clear
miniature base lamp was located within the tin body, and when power
was applied the tips lit up with a nice effect. The company also
sold a larger version of the lights for use as a tree topper. The
products were discontinued in 1939, just before the War. |
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| 1933 |
Reliance |
A set of
replacement Kristal Stars. |
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| 1933 |
Reliance |
A Kristal Star tree
topper. These were offered in several colors, and had replaceable
lamps. |
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| 1933 |
Reliance |
A typical C-6
lighting outfit, packaged in a very attractive box. As the effects
of the Depression wore on, some manufacturers tried creative
packaging to entice reluctant buyers. Judging from the small number
of this particular outfit available to collectors today, the set
does not seem to have been a big seller. |
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| 1933 |
Real
Lite/NOMA |
 Marketed
by NOMA under the Real Lite name, this outfit contains the unusual
C-13 Mazda egg-shaped lamps. The lamps were outside colored matte
finished products, and as a result, the paint was easily
scratched. These C-13 lamps were not offered for long. |
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| ca
1934 |
Reliance |
It is interesting
to note that lantern bulbs were never originally intended for
Christmas lighting, but rather for parties, festivals, etc. Through
the years, the lanterns found their way to Christmas trees and
remained in favor until the beginning of World War II. A few years
after the War, the lanterns reappeared for a short time in the early
50s and 60s, and then were no longer produced. |
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1934 |
General Electric |
In this year, General Electric
offered the new C-7 candelabra based light bulb for the first time.
New technology allowing the filament to be tightly coiled allowed
this smaller indoor lamp to be made. These lamps operated without the
extreme heat generated by the larger C-9 intermediate based lamps
that were used outdoors. Sets offering this lamp were parallel
wired, so that the failure of a single lamp would not cause the
entire string to go dark. These new sets were expensive, however,
and sales did not really take off until after World War II.
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1934 GE advertisement announcing the new lamps. |
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| 1934 |
NOMA |
here is NOMA's
first issue of the C-7 candelabra based parallel wired outfit. The
set bears the NRA symbol, and includes a red and green unlacquered
cloth cord that was UL listed for indoor use only. This set is hard
for the collector to find today. |
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| 1934 |
ClemCo |
This ClemCo box was
the first style the the company used to sell both their C-6 sets and
the new C-7 candelabra based parallel wired outfits. The set
pictured here has C-6 miniature based lamps. |
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| 1935 |
ClemCo |
This box was used
for both C-6 miniature base and C-7 intermediate base strings up until the
beginning of World War II. |
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| ca
1935 |
Paramount |
First offered by
Paramount in 1935, these Rosette lamps were not actually their own
product, but a Japanese import that was also sold to other
companies. Made of glass with a metal "snowflake" backing, the lamps
were a far less expensive offering to compete with the Matchless
Stars. These Rosettes are pretty when lit, but do not even come
close to the beauty of a genuine Matchless product. |
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| ca
1935 |
Reliance |
Here is the
Reliance company's set of the Rosette lamps. As explained above, the
lamps are a "generic" imported product, not actually manufactured by
Reliance. The metal backing of these Rosettes is often found
discolored from rust and/or flaking paint. The lamps are easily
replaceable, and spare bulbs were sold separately by both Reliance
and Paramount. One Rosette is turned sideways to show the metal
backing of these lights. |
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