The Celebrated?

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12-17-2009, 09:01 PM
tabre

The Celebrated?

Hey guys, as I have explored the various thread here on the site, I have seen many razors which are name "The Celebrated". They seem to all be hollow ground and have either a barber's notch or Spanish point. Also, they all seem to use the same text either etched or stamped into the blade: "The Celebrated Hollow Ground Razor". They even use the same font for the "The Celebrated" part.

The part that I don't understand is that I've seen this razor made by several different razor manufacturers - Boker, Wade and Butcher, and Joseph Rodgers just to name a few.

Why is it that so many manufacturers have made the same model razor, by the same name, and in almost the same style?

Thanks.

EDIT: Ok I've done some more research and found "The Celebrated" with a round tip as well so it's not always a barbers notch or a Spanish point, as I previously indicated.
12-17-2009, 09:10 PM
JimmyHAD

Could it be imitation is the sincerest form of flattery ? Any successful product seems to get copycats trying to cash in riding the coat tails of the original one. :shrug:
12-17-2009, 09:22 PM
tabre

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

Could it be imitation is the sincerest form of flattery ? Any successful product seems to get copycats trying to cash in riding the coat tails of the original one. :shrug:

Certainly a good possibility. But then my question becomes, "Who made the original and when?" Everyone seems to claim that this razor was a best seller in 1906....
12-17-2009, 09:35 PM
tat2Ralfy

Beats me, but I do love my W&B
12-17-2009, 10:08 PM
Scipio

Id bet money that Wade and Butcher came up with the 'Celebrated;' either that or back in the day in Sheffield 'Celebrated' was a commonly used term with a lost meaning in modern day every day life
12-17-2009, 10:19 PM
v76

"The Celebrated" - Badger & Blade

"It's an English adjective that can mean all of the following:
renowned, popular, famous, outstanding, distinguished, well-known, prominent, glorious, acclaimed, notable, eminent, revered, famed, illustrious, pre-eminent, lionized.
It's an old fashioned English word which implies it is a razor with a well earned reputation for quality."

It's a marketing scheme/word that was very usual in these days... I don't think it had anything to do with a particular razor/maker".
12-17-2009, 11:13 PM
Miner123

I was wondering the same thing. I have a razor marked Clinton Cutlery Sheffield with the "Celebrated" marking on the blade. It looked very similar to the W&B marking.
12-18-2009, 12:59 PM
tabre

Quote:

Originally Posted by v76

"The Celebrated" - Badger & Blade

"It's an English adjective that can mean all of the following:
renowned, popular, famous, outstanding, distinguished, well-known, prominent, glorious, acclaimed, notable, eminent, revered, famed, illustrious, pre-eminent, lionized.
It's an old fashioned English word which implies it is a razor with a well earned reputation for quality."

It's a marketing scheme/word that was very usual in these days... I don't think it had anything to do with a particular razor/maker".

Thank you. This is helpful. Maybe that is all there is to it. But if that's the case, then why did all the manufacturers decide to use the same font and put "The Celebrated" in the same place on the blade? I'm willing to accept that it could just be a conincidence. It just seems so strange that they would make their markings so similar.

Boker
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...brated-7-8.jpg

Wade and Butcher
http://straightrazorpalace.com/attac...1-19-08-1-.jpg

E.C. Simmons
http://straightrazorpalace.com/attac...-finds-001.jpg
12-18-2009, 01:03 PM
tat2Ralfy

Thats mad! and the last one is almost identical to my wade butcher:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...celebrated.jpg

Did anyone consider that Blades may have been made in the same factory??
12-18-2009, 01:03 PM
tabre

Quote:

Originally Posted by Miner123

I was wondering the same thing. I have a razor marked Clinton Cutlery Sheffield with the "Celebrated" marking on the blade. It looked very similar to the W&B marking.

Just out of curiosity, do you have a pic of it?
12-18-2009, 01:05 PM
tabre

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scipio

Id bet money that Wade and Butcher came up with the 'Celebrated;' either that or back in the day in Sheffield 'Celebrated' was a commonly used term with a lost meaning in modern day every day life

Honestly, most of the ones I see are indeed Wade and Butchers. I've seen them in 7/8, 8/8, and 9/8. Maybe 6/8 too - not sure.
12-18-2009, 03:27 PM
JimmyHAD

Quote:

Originally Posted by Miner123

I was wondering the same thing. I have a razor marked Clinton Cutlery Sheffield with the "Celebrated" marking on the blade. It looked very similar to the W&B marking.

I've noticed that they also had a run of 'Fine India Steel' etchings from one manufacturer to another. W&B came out with an etching that said 'You Lather Well I'll Shave Well' and Wostenholm followed with a similar blade (size) etched 'You Lather Well I'll Shave Better'.

Wostenholm etched some of their blades IXL (I excel) and George Allen seeing the popularity of his competitor came out with 'Non XL' to pick up some of the market share. According to Robert Doyle in "Straight Razor Collecting" in the 1840s to 1850s Celebrated, Celebrated Rattler, Celebrated Old Army and Old English were common etchings of various manufacturers.

Some manufactures marked their blades with 'Solely made by', 'The Original', 'The Only True', and such as that. They were all trying to push their wares one against the other. Nothing new under the sun as Solomon said a couple of thousand years ago. :)
12-19-2009, 12:08 AM
Miner123

2 Attachment(s)

Quote:

Originally Posted by tabre

Just out of curiosity, do you have a pic of it?

I might have a picture of it if not I'll try to get one up.

Not very good pictures but here it is:
12-19-2009, 12:10 AM
tat2Ralfy

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

According to Robert Doyle in "Straight Razor Collecting" in the 1840s to 1850s Celebrated, Celebrated Rattler, Celebrated Old Army and Old English were common etchings of various manufacturers.

Do you have any idea how old my W&B might be Jimmy?
12-19-2009, 12:20 PM
tabre

Quote:

Originally Posted by Miner123

Not very good pictures but here it is:

Thanks for the pics. So, we have yet another "The Celebrated" by a different manufacturer with very similar markings to the others we've seen. By the way, nice razor. I love the barber's notch.
12-19-2009, 12:38 PM
JimmyHAD

Quote:

Originally Posted by tat2Ralfy

Do you have any idea how old my W&B might be Jimmy?

No I'm afraid not. If it doesn't have 'England' in the tang stamp it would be pre-1881. IIRC that was the year a treaty required that the country of origin be marked on cutlery. To gauge the era a razor was made prior to that there are nuances of scales and blade that are helpful and shown in Doyle's book.
12-19-2009, 07:19 PM
tabre

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

No I'm afraid not. If it doesn't have 'England' in the tang stamp it would be pre-1881. IIRC that was the year a treaty required that the country of origin be marked on cutlery. To gauge the era a razor was made prior to that there are nuances of scales and blade that are helpful and shown in Doyle's book.

Hey man thank you for that info. Very interesting.