Denny's Christmas Scrooge

 

This is the last in this series of 4 Christmas Magic Mugs from Denny's Restaurant.  The mug also features the iconic Denny's logo on the right side of the mug.  

On the left side of the mug is a dark drawing of Ebeneezer Scrooge (from Dickens' A Christmas Carol) complete with grimace and his signature phrase "Bah, Humbug!" above him. 

When hot liquid is added, the entire dark area clears to show Ebeneezer happy, with a big smile and the phase "Happy Holidays" above him.  

The color change is great and is one of my favorite mugs in this series. 

DESIGN:  1+ Sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE: Retail, promotional

Denny's Christmas Ornament

This is the third in the Denny's Christmas Mug collection.  On the right side of the mug is the iconic Denny's logo. 

On the left side of the mug is a christmas ornament with a frowning, sad face.  The entire ornament is a dull dark brown color.

 

When hot liquid is added to the mug, the entire dark ornament becomes translucent and the smiling face of Santa Claus appears.  

The color change is about average, but it's a great addition to the collection.  

DESIGN:  1+ Sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE:promotional, retail

Denny's Til Dawn

In the 1980's and 1990's Denny's had several magic mugs for retail purchase as well as premiums.  Taking a break from Christmas mugs, here is Denny's "Til Dawn' mug, which was used to promote their 24 hour restaurants.   The right side of the mug shows the iconic Denny's mug and the stylized 'Til Dawn' logo used in the 24/7 campaign. 

On the left side of the mug is a dark oval with a tired face and sleepy eyes.   (The oval on this mug is not as dark as it should be due to UV, Microwave damage, or general use.)

When  hot liquid is added the tired sleepy face clears to show a happy, smiling face with rosy cheeks, ready to face the dawn.  Around the outside of the face are the words "Denny's  Til Dawn"

The color change is quick and near complete, even though the color is more transparent at the beginning which would indicate damage to the Thermochromatic Ink.  

DESIGN:  1+ Sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE: Retail/Promotional

Denny's Christmas - Snowman

This is the second in the Denny's restaurant Christmas Series.  On the right side of the mug is the iconic Denny's logo. 

On the left side, there is a colorful snowy scene with a snowman's sillhouette, complete with sticks for arms, pipe and stove pipe hat. 

 

When hot liquid is added, the snowman clears to show a puddle with the sticks, pipe and hat floating in it, along with the words "I would have preferred something cold."

The color change is great, and the mix of graphics is a great  use of the magic ink. 

DESIGN:  1+ Sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE: Retail

Denny's Christmas - Reindeer

Denny's restaurants sold several magic mugs in the mid to late 1980s.  For the next 4 weeks, I'm going to list one of each of a set of 4 of these mugs.

On the right side of this mug is the iconic Denny's  Logo. 

 

 On the left side of the mug is a reindeer on a snowy field of blue.

When hot liquid is added, the reindeer's brown color clears to reveal green antlers, bright holiday lights around his neck and Rudolph's glowing red nose! The color change is quick and near complete.


DESIGN:  1+ Sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE:Retail

F-117A Radar #2

This week's mug comes from the military once again.  This F-117A mug is similar to another F-117A mug  I posted just a few short weeks ago.  On the left side of the mug is a large dark area bordered by blue sky and white clouds. 

On the right side of the mug is a shadow of the plane on a drawing of a radar. 

When hot liquid is added to the mug, the large dark area clears to reveal the F-117A in flight.

And the shadow on the radar clears to show a radar screen with nothing on it.

DESIGN:  2 Sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE: Retail / Promotional

US Space Shuttle

This is another of my favorite mugs. On the left side of the mug it shows the US Space Shuttle on it's launching pad against a blue sky.

On the right is the well known logo for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

When hot liquid is added to the mug, the launching pad and gantry disappear revealing the shuttle just lifting off, it's rockets bright and clouds of smoke erupting as it lifts off.

The color change is good, and the mug is in great condition.


DESIGN:  1+ Sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE:Retail Purchase

RCC Los Angeles

This week's mug is from the Rail Construction Corporation, a subsidiary of the Los Angeles County Transportation Commission.  Yes, a long name for a single mug.  On the right side of the mug is the Logo for the RCC along with its long title. There is also the logo for the LACTC. 

On the left side of the mug is a large dark cloud shape in the middle of which you can just about make out the shape of a car.

When hot liquid is added, the entire dark area clears to reveal a light rail train above which is the phrase "The Way is Clear!"  The mug was released to coincide with the construction and opening of the Los Angeles Subway System (The Blue Line) in 1990.

 The color change is about average, but does clear enough to show the change in full.  A great mug and a piece of LA History!

DESIGN:  1+ sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE: Promotional

Shadow Puppets

This weeks mug is another retail purchase, given to me as a gift many years ago.  When cold, the mug appears to be many sets of hands in odd positions.  If you look closely there are some dark areas beside each set of hands.

When hot liquid is added and the mug warms up, the dark areas clear to reveal shadow puppets matched to each set of hands.  This mug is in mint condition and the color change is fast and complete.  

There are very few black magic mugs, but this one is a beautiful use of both design and color.  A great addition to the collection.

DESIGN:  Full, 3 Sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE:  Retail purchase.

Phantom of the Opera

This week's mug is from the Phantom of the Opera Musical production.  This mug was purchased at a touring company performance and sent to me by my sister (thanks, again!) On the right side of the mug is the logo for the show.  

The left side of the mug is supposed to be clear, as if there is nothing there.  The mug is black, and using black magic ink over the design causes what is there to blend in with the black mug.  (The age of this mug has caused the ink to be less opaque then it should, but it's still a great design.) 

When hot liquid is added, the design makes the 'phantom mask' appear as if out of nowhere. A wonderfuluse of the heat changing ink!

DESIGN:  2 Sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE:  Retail purchase

Arthritis Foundation Telethon

This week's mug is from the Arthritis Foundation Telethon.  On the left side of the mug is a large dark star, surrounded by many small stars. Below this, are the words "ARTHRITIS FOUNDATION."  At the bottom of the mug is a stylized logo for the word "Telethon." 

When hot liquid is added, the star clears to reveal the words "I WAS A STAR."

The Arthritis Telethon began in the mid 1980s and ran for at least 25 years and the mug was given as a free gift for a donation of a certain size.  The color change is very good and the general condition is excellent. 

DESIGN:  Full, 3+ Sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE:Corporate Freebie
                                                                                                                  

Agatha Christie 100th Birthday

This week's mug is from Berkley Publishing Group's celebration of Agatha Christie's 100th Birthday in 1990 which emphasized that the author was still #1.  The mug has a full wrap around design with #1 AGATHA CHRISTIE opposite the handle. Below this is "The Berkeley Publishing Group."

On both left and right sides of the mug is a design which features a silhouette of the author inside a wreath like frame. 

When hot liquid is added, the silhouette clears to reveal the words "100th Birthday Celebration." 

The color change is excellent on this mug and it is a great addition to the collection.


DESIGN:  Full, 2+ Sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE: Corporate Freebie

F-117A Radar

This is a retail mug sold in honor of the building of the F117A Stealth Fighter.  Also known as the Stealth Nighthawk, the plane was built by Lockheed and introduced in 1983.  On the left of the mug is the F-117A flying among the clouds. 

On the right side of the mug is a drawing of a radar screen with the F-117 visible in the center.

When hot liquid is added to the mug, the plane disappears from both the clouds and the radar screen.

This mug is in great condition and is a wonderful addition to the collection.  Color change is near complete and fast.

DESIGN:  2 Sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE:

Teacher's Mug

This week's mug is a retail mug which I found many years ago.  It shows a blackboard surrounded by pencils, the alphabet and a ruler.  On the blackboard is the math equation 2 + 2 = 4. 

When hot liquid is added, the blackboard clears to reveal words which turn the equation into a phrase.  "2 Teach is 2 touch lives 4 Ever!"

The color change is about average, but it's a beautiful mug in great condition.

DESIGN:  1 Sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE: Retail

PBS Mystery #1

This week's mug is one of my personal favorites.  It is a freebie from the Public Broadcasting System in honor of their broadcast of the English produced Series "Mystery!" This is a 3 sided wrap-around design with the Mystery! logo above near center. 

There are several mugs in this series and this is my first.  These mugs were given away during their annual telethon fundraising event and feature drawings by Edward Gorey, which match the opening sequence of the show.  Here you can see a game of Croquet, but all is not as it seems.  One person hides while two others seemingly pause to gossip. 

When hot liquid is added, several things change.  People appear and disappear and clues abound. Supposedly, there  is an actual mystery here that can be solved once the clues appear.  

The color change is not as good as I'd like, but you can still see the changes that should occur.  (I've never figured out the mystery or the solution.) 

DESIGN:  Full, 3+ Sided
THERMOCHROMIC: 1 Color
TYPE: Corporate Incentive