The Penny King Camera:
Who cares if the Penny King is the cheeziest of the cheezy? As long as it has the MAGIC LENS. That MAGIC lens? It’s not made of diamonds or crystal … it’s not even cubic zirconia. It’s plastic. Magic plastic. Must be rare earth plastic. Made in Hong Kong, this camera takes 16 images on what the instructions refer to as “the regular” 127 film. [As opposed to the irregular film?] Anyway, the box says “Protective lens cap keeps dust and dirt away from the fast MAGIC LENS.” f 11? Fast? That must be the magic part.
Click on any image for a larger view:
When my Penny King’s shutter lever is depressed, the shutter opens and closes (unless it’s set for “time”, in which case it stays open until I push the lever back up). It doesn’t return to the up position on it’s own, and must be pushed back up for the next shot. I’m not sure if this is simply the way the camera works, or if the return spring is dead. The Penny King reminds me of the Empire Baby, though this featherweight camera is a bit larger. Its sides stick out more, which gives the photographer a steady grip. In fact, it says so in #7 of FEATURES. “Size designed for steady hold. It is Featherweight NOT midget.”
My results:
I wrote the above a while back. At one point I received an email from someone overseas – I think it was the middle east. He said, “Why you use name Penny King? I AM PENNY KING! Not use name!” Don’t know what to tell you, bruh.
The Penny King Featherweight camera was manufactured sometime around 1955 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
