Taiyodo Koki & the Beauty Camera Company

Planet Accessories

These are mysterious things. They are known (exclusively from Taiyodo advertising) to comprise Rollei and Leica compatible film roll spools, filters and lens caps.

 
There is a circumstantial connection between the names "Planet", and "Meteor" (Taiyodo's first camera), but the scale is counter-intuitive.

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I imagine these accessories were made of metal, because Taiyodo's own lens caps were metal, and injection moulding of plastic parts was in its infancy. If they were aimed at Leica and Rollei users, then they must have surely been of reasonable quality?

Known advertising of Planet products dates between December 1947, and May 1948.

Taiyodo were manufacturing cameras from January 1948, so it's reasonable to suspect they also made Planet items, especially since the hand of any other company is invisible. If they were a distributer, then they were probably very unsuccessful, because the Planet brand would have surely appeared elsewhere? However, the placement of an advertisement in a trade journal (Nihon Shashin Kōgyō Tsūshin) would suggest that Taiyodo were attempting to distribute Planet accessories in addition to selling to the public.

A Taiyodo advertisement in a May 1948 issue of Ars Camera stated that the company were Planet product "distributors".

References

• Planet roll film holders and filters - December 1947 of Kohga Gekkan (a Japanese magazine for photography enthusiasts) found on Flickr($).

• Planet roll film holders (6×9cm and 6×6cm), filters and lens caps - Advertisement on p.6 of Nihon Shashin Kōgyō Tsūshin (a Japanese magazine described as essentially a news bulletin for the Japanese photographic industry), 20th April 1948, reproduced on p.84 of Hyaku-gō goto jūkai no kiroku (assumed to be an alternative name for a 1967 book by the Japan Photo Industry News Agency called "Ten records for every 100 issues of the Photographic Industry News), and an advertisement in Kohga Gekkan in May 1948, reproduced in Awano, p.5 of Camera Collectors' News no.239 (magazine devoted to classic cameras published from 1977).

• No specific products - May 1948 issue of Ars Camera (a Japanese magazine for photography enthusiasts) found on Flickr($).

 

 

Zoom-Biokor Lens

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The Beauty Camera company made one of the earliest Japanese zoom lenses, which was built with an M42 Praktica screw fitting. The 50-100mm f/3 "Zoom-Biokor" featured a direct lever zoom mechanism that was completely different to the twist or push/pull zoom lenses that were to become conventional. Details can be found on the Omocane World($)website (written in Japanese).​

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Varicon Exposure Meters

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Varicon branded Sekonic LC-2 clip-on light meter was sold as an accessory for the Varicon SII (a.k.a. Beauty Super II) in 1958 (see the Varicon page).

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TTK Flash

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The following images of a TKK branded - 1950s style - flash and its packaging were found on a Japanese auction site. There were no details given in the description.