Middle-row Jumper - Comet
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Carvers: Ron Critchlow & Max Lemermeyer
Painters: Annette Ayre & Debbie MacKay
Size: 42" chest to rump
Status: finished
Sponsor: Bill & Geri Jarvis
Our prancing Comet, named for one of Santa's reindeers, is one of designer Lauren Baker's favourite creations. Max Lemermeyer and Ron Critchlow have teamed up to carve Comet for the middle row of the Fort Edmonton Park Carousel. For Max, carving a carousel horse is not a new experience as he has previously created an entire miniature carousel, complete with calliope music.
We are often asked how much the carvers at the time PTC #40 was produced would have been paid for their magnificent work. We know that in 1913, just four years before PTC #40 came off the production line, the company purchased six horses from Charles Carmel of Coney Island. The company bought one large stationary horse for $35, one medium stationary horse for $25 and one small stationary horse for $20. Carmel was also paid $35 for one large jumping horse, $25 for a medium jumper and $20 for a small one. There is no way of knowing if these horses were used as models for the company's carving machine, but two stationary Carmel horses were used on PTC #29 and three jumpers were used on PTC #33.
In 1916, John Zalar joined the company as its head carver. Zalar had previously worked for Looff, first in Rhode Island and later in California. Due to failing health he left Philadelphia in 1920, returning to California, but he continued to carve for the Philadelphia Toboggan Company, shipping his figures east. Not only did Zalar carve horses - usually the large stationary models - but he also carved chariot sides for the company. In 1921 he sent two small chariot sides east for which he was paid $160, and in 1922 two more carved sides fetched $200.