Nebraska Importer Recalls "Funny Clown" Dressing Doll

WASHINGTON---Brightly colored toy clown dolls, marketed as the "Dress Up Clown," are being recalled by Oriental Trading Company, Inc. of Omaha, Nebraska because they contain small parts that present a choking risk to young children. The recall is being conducted in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

The clown dolls, although marketed as the "Dress Up Clown," came in a package labeled "Funny Clown." They were sold by mail order catalogue and by retailers nationwide for $3.00 each between December 1988 and the present. Clothed primarily in red, blue and yellow, this doll has yellow string hair, a clown's cap and is about 13 inches long. It also has a snap, a button, a zipper, a buckle and shoe laces intended to introduce young children to various dressing functions. The clown doll may be identified by a cloth tag sewn onto the doll's cap that says: "Oriental Trading Co., Inc."

When the Commission tested the clown dolls in accordance with the regulations under the Federal Hazardous Substances Act, zipper clasps, buttons and buckles came off the dolls. The Commission alleges that these small parts make the dolls banned hazardous substances because they present a choking, ingestion and aspiration hazard to children.

Consumers owning the Funny Clown dress up dolls should return the dolls to the place of purchase for a full refund. Consumers who purchased the doll from Oriental by direct mail catalogue may arrange for a refund by phoning the company at its toll-free number, 1-800-327-9678.