Airflow Taxi
I always loved the Chrysler Airflow; this is a 1935, made in Portgual by Rex Toys. It's 4-1/2 inches long.
My collection of taxicab memorabilia - click on each photo to view it.
I always loved the Chrysler Airflow; this is a 1935, made in Portgual by Rex Toys. It's 4-1/2 inches long.
A driver's badge from Ajax, Ontario. Drivers had to wear these as identification when on duty.
The city of Albany, New York issued its taxi licenses through the police department.
An ashtray, date unknown, from the Cozy Cab company of Newport, Rhode Island.
An ashtray for Transit Cab, "Any Time, Anywhere." The car appears to be from the late 1940s or early 1950s. There's no indication of the city.
An Audi A6 Avant, 3-1/2 inches long, made by Siku. The bottom says it's a six-cylinder and can do 214 km/h.
A 1926 Checker Cab from Avon, originally filled with Deep Woods after-shave (which sounds more like a mosquito repellent). You see these at flea markets all the time, but I bought this new from the Avon lady in the 1980s.
This is a common configuration for a taxi badge, and could have been used in any jurisdiction. It appears that this one is a blank, since a number hasn't been engraved into it.
A balsa wood taxi, with "Welcome to USA" on the rooflight. It came as a flat sheet and I had to punch out the shapes and put it together.
A taxi magnet from Barcelona, Spain, where the cabs are all this black and yellow paint scheme.
I was in Barcelona, Spain on a business trip. The city is filled with black and yellow taxis. I was finished my shopping at the airport when I noticed one more souvenir store and didn't it have all kinds of taxi stuff, including this little stuffed toy key chain.
This lovely little metal taxi is just over three inches long. It's made in the U.S. and marked Barclay #31. I believe someone may have repainted it, because I didn't pay enough for it to be original.
A metal toy with the marking "Barclay", made in the U.S. These show up occasionally at flea markets. It's three inches long. Mine's in tough shape, but mint-condition ones command some very serious prices.
Some people have recreation rooms where they can display their collections. I don't. So I figured, if you're going to be sitting there anyway, why not have something to see? And so my taxi collection is almost entirely stuffed into the bathroom, which is finished in the appropriate shade of yellow, with checkerboard trim.
What I wouldn't have given for one of these when I was driving. It's a 1957 Chevrolet, made by Jada Toys, and is part of a series of "Battle Machine" toy cars. It's 3-1/2 inches long. The license plate reads T1BCKL3, an obvious pun on the Travis Bickle character in the movie "Taxi Driver."
Another Beetle taxi by Vitesse, in different trim. This time the license plate properly reads "Rio de Janeiro."
I worked for East End Taxi, and one year they had these belt buckles made.
You'd certainly get to your destination in a hurry! I saw this in the window of a toy store in Chengdu, China and of course it had to come home with me.
I never actually saw a BMW X5 taxicab in Munich, but I was able to buy a toy of one there. It's made by Siku and is a little more than three inches long.
I bought this in an airport gift shop, although I don't remember which one. On the bottom it has a copyright "Mand 2000 CPH". It's made of china and is four inches long, and has a little string for hanging as an ornament.
A taxi license from Brockville, Ontario, dated 1976. The badges are common enough, but getting one with the corresponding paper license is a real find. A friend picked this up at a flea market for me.
I have a metal taxi driver's badge from Buffalo, New York, but this is a metal-backed plastic-covered pin. There's no date on it.
A cabover wrecker and 1965 Cadillac, sold as a set by Maisto. The wrecker is five inches long.
A plastic 2007 Cadillac Escalade. The door logo reads "City of Hot Wheels."
A stylized metal taxi that I think is supposed to be a Cadillac. It's seven inches long and there are no manufacturer's markings on it. Someone has repainted it over the years.
A 1950-ish Cadillac, 7 inches long. There are no company markings on it, but it does have "Made In Japan" faintly stamped into the underside. The Yellow Cab signs on its doors were added separately, and on the trunk it has a metal sign with a green dot and "Go" on the left, and a red dot and "Stop" on the right. An absolutely beautiful toy in lovely condition.
Badges from Nepean, Ontario show up frequently at flea markets, and I have three of them. These were what drivers used to get as licenses.
In 1971, Nepean went from a bronze-colored shield to this pointed chrome one.
A Toronto taxi driver's license badge from 1967. I briefly dated its owner and he gave it to me as a gift.
I know nothing about this badge other than it was neat enough for me to buy it. It says "W. L. Branch Cab 1," and the cab -- which looks like a 1948 Dodge -- just has "Taxi" written on the door.
I admired this for several years at Hershey and finally shelled out the $70 for it. It says "Yellow Cab Safe Driver" and the number one.
The bottom reads, "Ian Logan's Carlectables, designed and distributed by Ian Logan Ltd., made in England for Keller Charles of Philadelphia." Beyond that, I have no idea if it's anything more than a fancy tin box!
I don't remember this little guy from the movie "Cars," but he was too cute to leave in the store.
I think I bought this at a flea market. It's a ceramic 1950 Chevrolet, but there are no markings on it. It's four inches long.
Along the lines of a Limoges box, with a hinge that opens it up. It's 3-1/2 inches long and is definitely hand-painted, but there are no markings of any sort on the bottom or inside.
A china taxi by Department 56, which makes vehicles and buildings for people to design scenes at Christmas and other holidays. This one came with the two "flags." Will there be a battle? Will the Christmas shopper defeat the businessman? Will they eventually figure out they're both too big to fit inside the car?
A Checker cab, four inches long. According to the markings, it's made in China, and is "Number Sixteen In A Series Of Vintage Vehicles From Ertl."