Uncle Natchel

The Hy Hintermeisters were also known for their character Uncle Natchel (Natural), who was the brand image for Chilean Natural Soda, a soil additive mined in Chile. I do not get the connection but the character appeared on Chilean Natural Soda calendars for decades. I only recently discovered Uncle Natchel, as the character, which was introduced in 1935, was retired in the '60s.

The Hintermeisters created a world where this kindly old black man was a companion to, apparently, lonely white children. Absent, of course, is any hint of Uncle Natchel's own family or children.



The Hintermeisters often featured young boys and girls together in manners that didn't seem quite age-appropriate. The freakish bow-tied Buster looks like Howdy Doody.

I'm not sure if this is supposed to be the same couple from the previous slide but the dogs are nearly identical.

This might be my favorite of the series, if one is allowed to favor an image so steeped in racial stereotypes and societal fictions. The banjo, of course, came with enslaved Africans and became a staple of American roots music. The Hintermeisters were from New York, so it's understandable if their knowledge of southern life owed a debt to Harriet Beecher Stowe.