Those of us that are crazed about all things Christmas, the name Hallmark is in our everyday vocabulary.
Who would think that the company was started by an 18-year-old high school dropout, Joyce Clyde Hall who arrived in Kansas City, Missouri with 2 boxes of postcards he intended to sell.
The postcards sold easily and soon his brother Rollie joined him and the company was named, "Hall Brothers."
Eventually the name of the company was changed to "Hallmark."
In 1915 a fire destroyed their office and all of their inventory. The only thing they managed to grab was the safe.
The fire forced them to buy printing presses and thus they began producing their own greeting cards.
In 1951, NBC approached Hallmark about sponsoring an opera made specifically for television, "Amahl and the Night Visitors." This was the first of many TV specials which became "Hallmark Hall of Fame."
Hallmark would eventually incorporate actual television channels such as "The Hallmark Channel," and "Hallmark Movies & Mysteries."
The 1970's Hallmark introduced the Hallmark Keepsake Ornaments which sparked ornament collecting.
As the company grew, it acquired other companies such as Crayola and DaySpring.
Hallmark is still thriving today and is still family run.
Interesting Facts:
* Hallmark is credited with inventing wrapping paper. Early on in the company's history, one Christmas, Hallmark ran out of tissue paper, which was the way presents were wrapped. Customers still wanted something to wrap their presents with so they offered customers French paper which they had bought to line envelopes.
The following year, they offered their own patterned wrapping paper and the way we offer presents was forever changed.
* Artist Mary Hamilton has been employed by Hallmark for over 60 years and her greeting card creations are some of the most popular sellers.
* The most successful of Hallmark's greeting cards was debuted for Mother's Day in 1939. It is simply called, "The Pansy Card." It depicts a pushcart full of the flowers with the sentiment, "To Let You Know I'm Thinking of You." The card has been a sales juggernaut for the company.
Your turn:
What are your memories/traditions surrounding Hallmark?
Do you get a keepsake ornament or all of them every year?
Did you watch Amahl and the Night Visitors?
Do you watch the Hallmark Channels?
Have you given someone "The Pansy Card?"
Who would think that the company was started by an 18-year-old high school dropout, Joyce Clyde Hall who arrived in Kansas City, Missouri with 2 boxes of postcards he intended to sell.
The postcards sold easily and soon his brother Rollie joined him and the company was named, "Hall Brothers."
Eventually the name of the company was changed to "Hallmark."
In 1915 a fire destroyed their office and all of their inventory. The only thing they managed to grab was the safe.
The fire forced them to buy printing presses and thus they began producing their own greeting cards.
In 1951, NBC approached Hallmark about sponsoring an opera made specifically for television, "Amahl and the Night Visitors." This was the first of many TV specials which became "Hallmark Hall of Fame."
Hallmark would eventually incorporate actual television channels such as "The Hallmark Channel," and "Hallmark Movies & Mysteries."
The 1970's Hallmark introduced the Hallmark Keepsake Ornaments which sparked ornament collecting.
As the company grew, it acquired other companies such as Crayola and DaySpring.
Hallmark is still thriving today and is still family run.
Interesting Facts:
* Hallmark is credited with inventing wrapping paper. Early on in the company's history, one Christmas, Hallmark ran out of tissue paper, which was the way presents were wrapped. Customers still wanted something to wrap their presents with so they offered customers French paper which they had bought to line envelopes.
The following year, they offered their own patterned wrapping paper and the way we offer presents was forever changed.
* Artist Mary Hamilton has been employed by Hallmark for over 60 years and her greeting card creations are some of the most popular sellers.
* The most successful of Hallmark's greeting cards was debuted for Mother's Day in 1939. It is simply called, "The Pansy Card." It depicts a pushcart full of the flowers with the sentiment, "To Let You Know I'm Thinking of You." The card has been a sales juggernaut for the company.
Your turn:
What are your memories/traditions surrounding Hallmark?
Do you get a keepsake ornament or all of them every year?
Did you watch Amahl and the Night Visitors?
Do you watch the Hallmark Channels?
Have you given someone "The Pansy Card?"