Vintage Tupperware

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cadman

cadman

Well-known member
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Sep 7, 2004
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Cedar Falls, IA
Hi again everyone! Just curious if we have any Tupperware experts on the board.

Around here I pretty much stick to the classics- if lunch is more than a sandwich it goes to work in a refrigerator dish. The GF on the other hand is a little more contemporary and I've let a few Tupperware pieces sneak in to make her happy...as long as they're vintage and in good shape.

I've found some interesting Millionaire and Wonderlier bowls w/lids, most dated 1954, of course with the figure of a seal. I gather the earliest were labeled "Farnumsville, MA", then Orlando, with later versions having Toronto, Tokyo, Mexico City, etc. being added in later years? Lots of interesting colors, too.

Anyone an expert on the matter? Would love to know some history-
-Cory
 
My mom had a lot of Tupperware, including some vintage pieces, and lids with the figure of a seal. I remember her hosting parties in the late 50's and early 60's. I think my sister took a lot of what Mom had, so I presume some of those vintage items are still in use.

I'd like to know more too. I was given a DVD titled "The Wonderful World of Tupperware" and I thought it might contain information on Tupperware over the years but instead it turned out to be a vintage promotional film produced by Tupperware. I passed it along to a fellow member to enjoy.
 
I try to snatch up any Tupperware I see that has 1954 & Farnumsville, Mass. on the cover. We have quite a bit of that vintage, as well as from the early 70's. The link is to Wikipedia's article about Tupperware.

Tupperware - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org
 
that pbs film

was awesome. I found it on dvd at the library and we watched it.

My wife had heard of Tupper, of course, but not Bonnie. Yet she is the one who was responsible for most of the corporate success.
 
In the 1960's we grew up with Tupperware. My mom was a dealer and my aunt a distributor (with a light blue Ford station wagon provided by Tupperware).
It was OK. The only thing I didn't like was that if you didn't wash it first while doing dishes it'd pick up grease from the other dishes in the sink and you'd end up with a greasy slimy cup. This happened often at our house and is one of the reasons we don't have ANYTHING plastic in our kitchen. Everything is either stainless steel or glass.

My favorite Tupperware pieces were made of the flexible plastic. The one with the semi transparent pink, blue and green pieces. Once Tupperware came out with those really hard, opaque brightly colored pieces, it just wasn't the same.
 
Highly Recommend The PBS Program

Regarding Tupperware.

Yet another example of a woman building up a business then being chucked out on her rump while a man takes over, and the credit.

Had Ms. Brownie Wise been a man her story with Tupperware probably would have had a different ending. Her name certainly would be on more lips and probably even studied in business schools.

Tupperware, like Avon, Amway, Mary Kay and a few others gave women (and quite a few of their husbands who eventually joined), a way to make a good living when options were few. This was especially true for housewives/mothers because they could work in their "free time" and not take away from the home front. This allowed many wives to slide under the radar of their husband's objections about them "going out to work".

Remember when Tupperware was a big deal. My mom like so many of her surburban peers gave and went to parties. All I remember is we children were normally sent to grandmama's house or somewhere else for a sleep over. Suppose this was to keep the field clear!

Think my mom and others still have lots of Tupperware items still in their cupboards. There was a great rolling pin one filled with cold water/ice cubes that was used when rolling out pastry. Jell-o moulds where one could change the center design by way of a series of removable disks, etc.

Aside from pots and pans, nothing created more furore at family or any other group get together than what Tupperware item belonged to whom. Months or years later someone would spy a bowl, lid or what have you in someone's cupboard and say "that's mine"! Worse still is when the offending person bought something to the event in the suspect vessel. Have seen contents *dumped* into something else, washed, dried and put squarely into the rightful owner's bag (if not walked out and put into the car)!

Methinks what did Tupperware in was that it did cost allot and so much cheap plastic knockoffs came along. Also cannot remember if the original stuff was microwave and or dishwasher safe. Those last two were becoming a big deal as more households moved to cooking/reheating using the MW oven. As dishwashers became more the norm in all households, many housewives looked to cut their hand washing by not using and or purchasing items that required hand washing.

What one does remember is the Tupperware jingle "If you want to lock in freshness, "Tupperware" really locks it in".
 
Oh yes, that whole scenario of pieces ending up in the hands of others is very familiar.

And yet, old habits die hard. Even today, if someone brings something in a Gladware container, I am sure to set it aside after washing and give it back to its rightful owner regardless of the fact that Gladware was conceived with the idea of letting the pieces end up where they may.
 
microwave and or dishwasher safe

Er hem....

Listen up folks!

No vintage Tupperware is either microwave or dishwasher safe.

Should you wish to wash any Tupperware in a dishwasher, it is 'top shelf' only to keep it away from heating elements. It can, and WILL warp if it gets too hot - especially vintage stuff as it is softer plastic than the modern versions.

No 'modern' Tupperware is microwave safe unless bought as such. This doesn't mean it will leach nasties into your food, but rather may deform so the seals may not fit or 'blister' the inside where oil/sugar sits - especially at the point where the surface of the contents meets the container. The gaurantee will be voided

Under NO CIRCUMSTANCES are Tupperware seals microwave safe regardless of age - they will warp and the gaurantee is void...

People may argue that they have 'washed/microwaved my Tupperware for years without issues' - fine, just remember that the lifetime guarantee won't cover mishaps should they happen.

Finally, one of the key reasons Tupperware works so well is that the plastic is softer than other, cheaper brands. This enables the seals to be very flexible and to fit correctly creating either (or both depending on the vessel) an air-tight seal or water-tight seal.

Oh, and one doesn't 'burp the seal' - it's actually called 'expressing the air', and you 'never take the air from a square'
 
Loves me some of the "Tupp"

"Tupper-Tart" I love that!

I have found a few pieces of the vintage Tupperware around but it's usually so far gone that it isn't worth bringing home. Microwaving and improper dishwasher-ing did much of the great older stuff in. I see a box of it from all eras at estate sales but usually the useful things have been so "well-loved" that they are no longer even attractive and the pieces that are NIB are some of the odd ball things that I also would never, ever use.

Sorry, but I think any effort to change the term "burping" concerning Tupperware will be futile in this country, it always has been and always will be burping the bowl to me :-)

My half-sister in Minnesota (no, not Fred ;-) was a regional director for years, earned several cars and made a great living back in the 80's.

Check out Aunt Barbara selling Tupperware! One of the top dealers in the country. ("plastic crap and cocktails")

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We don't have alot of tupperware. We use (gasp!) Gladware alot. hehe..

My mom, however, since the 70's has had a harvest gold Gallon sized Servalier (accordion lid) container that she kept flour in. I THINK it's a gallon. It's pretty big. Recently, she started using more than just all purpose. She has whole wheat and bread flour now. So I went searching for the gallon size Servaliers. Harder than HELL to find. Anyway, I was able to snag at a reasonable price, two of the same gallon size Servaliers. One in chocolate brown, the other yellow. So now she has brown, gold and yellow ones.

~Tim
 
Servalier (accordion lid)

....you mean 'Astroflex seal'....

you seal them by pushing them in the middle, not by running your thumbs around the rim....
 
I have the old "devil egg dish", bottom top and two trays that hold six halves, it's nice for a small gathering. alr2903
 
*burp*

hee hee.

I remember the parties when I was a kid that my mother would have and they would all giggle when they heard the burp sounds from the bowls.

My step-sister "joined the Tupperware cult" as she said for a short time. They had some good deals for the dealers, the monthly specials were pretty reasonable. I bought some online not long ago, they brought back some "vintage" designs in a butter keeper and I think a cheese box. The butter keeper turned out to be for a whole pound of butter, didn't have an airtight seal and too big for my needs.
 

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