Billy Possum Pins and Buttons
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Description: Championed as the successor to the Teddy Bear, the Billy Possum was a stuffed toy inspired by a famous possum dinner honoring William Howard Taft. Somehow, Billy Possum did not replace the teddy bear in the hearts of the nation's children, but the story of the wild efforts to promote this toy did make for one of our favorite episodes.
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Description: A cutout of an advertisement for Billy Possum, c. 1909. As per Wikipedia: "Billy Possum is a type of stuffed toy depicting an opossum. Designed to be the replacement for the Teddy bear after Theodore Roosevelt vacated the office of President of the United States in 1909, the toy's popularity waned quickly, with the trend having lost all momentum by Christmas of that year. "
