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Larry Simms plays Baby Dumpling and is dressed in a variety of small boy outfits. The Blondie films as they were made over several years provide a good overview of boys' fashions, primarily during the 1940s. Baby Dumpling wears slightly more stylish clothing than the average American boy, but many of the outfits are commonly worn garments, especially the overalls and "T"-shirts. Quite a few of his outfits are smart casual garments. I supose this is in keeping with his stylish mom. His outfits included suspender shorts because of his age. He also wears short pants suits, overalls, sailor suits, and other small boy fashions. We note bib-front shorts that seem to hint at the shortalls that would become popular in the 1950s. He also wears a Scout-like uniform in one film. Usually he wears rather short shorts, but rarely knee socks. They were rapidly going out of style for boys in America. And he never wears long stockings. Gradually he wears older boys' outfits and finally teenage outfits.
We note bib-front shorts that seem to hint at the shortalls that would become popular in the 1950s.
He also wears a Scout-like uniform in one film. The group is called the Boy Rangers. No such organization existed, but many films use this expedient to depict Scouting. Scouting in America in the 1940s was extremely popular. It was the main organized activity outside of school for most boys. Note the cap which was made in the style adopted by the Boys Scouts in 1942. Note the term "Ranger". Unfer U.S. law only the Boy and Girl Scouts and their respective associations could use the term Scout. Interestingly the boys here are not depicted in Cub uniforms more appropriate for their ages, but in Scout-like uniforms.
Usually Babu Dumpling wears rather short shorts, but rarely knee socks. He and Alvin dis wear knee sovks when dressed up as Scouts. We usually see him wearing dark ankle socks. Knee socks were rapidly going out of style for boys in America. And he never wears long stockings which were still worn in the 30s.
Overalls was a major style for pre-school boys. They were a utilitarian play garment. We see many boys wearing them in the photographic record. Baby Duumpling wears them in several films. The overalls were done in several style. Baby Dumplings seem to wear styling overalls, rather than the jeans or railroad type. His have straps that button on to the bib-front. I'm not sure what color they would have been. The bib-front seems cut a little short and does not have pockets. Before World War II, overalls were commonly worn in rural areas, often by poor children. After the War we see middle class children wearing them as the Bumsteads represent.
The Blondie films as they were made over several years provide a good overview of boys' fashions, primarily during the 1940s. Baby Dumpling wears slightly more stylish clothing than the average American boy. Note the shirt here where the collar was done in the same material as the pants. Many of the outfits are commonly worn garments, especially the overalls and "T"-shirts. We note the sports collars that wre still popular in the early 1940.
Baby Dumpling usually wore short pants in the pre-War and Wokd War II productions. Sometimes as as a toddle he wore long pants coveralls, but usually he wore shirts. He was avery fashionably dressed comparred to boys at the time. After the War he made the reansition to long pants. His friend Alvin who was only a year older made the tranition earlier. A reader writes, "I remember watching these Blondie movies when they showed them on Philly TV in the early-70s . Larry Simms as a youbger boy always wore short pants and in some of the movies his friend Alvin did also . Simms eventually mafe the transition yo long pantss as he got older. 'Blondie' was also a TV show in the early-50s . Singleton and Lake were in it. The boy who played their son was about 12 years old and wore long pants."
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