THE BEATLES FOUR POP JR. GUITAR

Manufactured by Mastro, the four-string plastic “Junior” ukulele measured 37.5 cm and was available in three color combinations: pink and burgundy, orange and red (with graphics of various sizes featuring The Beatles), and a promotional display version in red and maroon. 

The instrument had “Jr. Guitar” printed on the front, and the packaging included an instruction booklet with “Made in U.S.A. Under License” printed in black. 

Another model produced by Mastro is the four-string plastic ukulele “Four Pop.” It was 53 cm long and had a red and pink body. This version was also available in orange and red. It featured the band members’ faces on the front, the guitar headstock, and autographs on the body, and was sealed in a cardboard sleeve with the instruction booklet and a strap bearing the words “Made in U.S.A. Under License” printed in black.

Most of these models were released with a generic red toy pick. 

Some models featured the words “Four Pop” or “FOUR POP” printed on the body. There is an extremely rare promotional version of the “Four Pop” guitar. It had a red body and a burgundy neck with images of the Beatles on the headstock. This model was sold in stores for only a short time before the company switched to the more familiar style with a red body and pink neck. 

“We made so many ukuleles and the Ringo bongo drum. The ukulele had pictures of the Beatles’ four heads on the top. That period was something else. We sold so many instruments.”—Maria Maccaferri, *The Ukulele Occasional*

A 14-cm miniature ukulele in pink, featuring the faces of the Fab Four, was also produced. Made of plastic, with two rubber bands for the four strings, it had a label on the back that read: “Because of the plastic used, [they had] developed a kind of partnership with Dow Chemicals in order to find the best ‘resonating’ polystyrene. The best one they called ‘Styron.’ All the ukes were made of Styron.” Antoine Carolus, UkeHeidi  

(In an effort to find the best material for making instruments, a partnership of sorts was formed with Dow Chemicals, which was committed to finding the best resonant polystyrene. The resulting material was named STYRON. All the ukuleles were made from Styron. — Antoine Carolus, UkeHeidi)