NEW Vintage Miniature Classic Little Little Golden Book 2 Book Set Vol. 39 & 40
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NEW Vintage Miniature Classic Little Little Golden Book 2 Book Set Vol. 39 & 40:
$19.99
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Vintage Miniature Classic Little Little Golden Book 2 Book Set Vol. 39 & 40
Baby Animals
AND
Bunnies\' ABC
2.75\" x 2.75\"
When the Little Golden Books were launched in 1942 at 25 cents each, they changed publishing history. For the first time, children’s books were high quality and low priced. They were available to almost all children, not just a privileged few. Little Golden Books were designed to be sturdy (a new concept), delightfully illustrated, and to be sold not only in bookstores, but department stores and other chains (another new concept).
Little Golden Books were an instant success story, even though World War II was on and paper shortages loomed. Five months after the launch, 1.5 million copies had been printed, and Little Golden Books were in their third printing.
Since then, over two billion Little Golden Books have reached the hands of children all over the world. Who hasn\'t heard ofThe Poky Little Puppy, star of the bestselling Little Golden Book of all? It has sold well over 15 million copies worldwide, in many different languages.Tootle the Train,The Saggy Baggy Elephant,The Shy Little Kitten,The Little Red Caboose,The Tawny Scrawny Lion, andScuffy the Tugboatsoon followed, to become household names.
Little Golden Books have mirrored children’s popular culture over the years, having featured Lassie, Raggedy Ann, Uncle Wiggily, Roy Rogers and Dale Evans, Howdy Doody, Annie Oakley, Captain Kangaroo, Bozo the Clown, Gene Autrey, The Lone Ranger, Smokey Bear, Disney, Warner Brothers, Hanna Barbera, Sesame Street, Pokemon, Between the Lions characters, Mister Rogers, Barney, Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Underdog, Peter Cottontail, Barbie, and others.
Many famous writers and illustrators created Little Golden Books, notably Margaret Wise Brown, author ofGoodnight Moon(Harper). Her Little Golden Books were often illustrated by Garth Williams, most famous for his illustrations forCharlotte’s Web,Stuart Little, and the Little House series. Richard Scarry began his career at Golden Books and did most of his most famous books here, from Little Golden Books to his beloved oversized booksCars and Trucks and Things that Go, andRichard Scarry’s Best Word Book Ever!Eloise Wilkin, famous for her stunning paintings of cherubic children, illustrated dozens of Little Golden Books. Caldecott medalists James Marshall, Tibor Gergely, Leonard Weisgard, Alice and Martin Provensen, and Trina Schart Hyman have illustrated Little Golden Books.
Today, Little Golden Books are icons. The Smithsonian Institution includes Little Golden Books and artwork in its Division of Cultural History.
Little Golden Books 1940s
Average cost: 25¢
In 1941, children’s books normally sold for $2 to $3—a luxury for many families. George Duplaix, president of the Artists and Writers Guild, Inc. (a joint interest of Simon & Schuster Publishing and Western Printing) came up with the concept of developing a colorful children’s book that was durable and affordable for most American families.
September 1942:Simon & Schuster publishes the very first Little Golden Book. The original 12 titles included the following:
The Poky Little Puppy
Three Little Kittens
Bedtime Stories
The Alphabet from A to Z
Mother Goose
Prayers for Children
The Little Red Hen
Nursery Songs
The Golden Book of Fairy Tales
Baby’s Book
The Animals of Farmer Jones
This Little Piggy
September 19, 1942:First advertisement announcing Little Golden Books appears inPublishers Weekly.
February 1943:In five short months, Little Golden Books is in its third printing, with 1.5 million copies total printed.
1944:Due to its amazing success, Simon & Schuster launches a separate Little Golden Books division called Sandpiper Press, headed by George Duplaix.
1944:First Walt Disney Little Golden Book,Through the Picture Frame, is published.
1945:Most of the original 12 Little Golden Books are now in their seventh printing.
Little Golden Books
1950s–1970s
Average cost:
25¢ (1952); 29¢ (1962)
39¢ (1968); 59¢ (1977)
1951:Doctor Dan, The Bandage Manis released with Johnson & Johnson®Band-Aids glued to the right side of the title page. This marked one of the first ventures into book and product joint packaging. First printing is 1.75 million—the largest first printing of any Little Golden Book to date.
1952:Little Golden Books’ 10th anniversary. To this date, almost 183 million Little Golden Books have been sold, withThe Night Before Christmasalone selling over 4 million copies.
1953:To date, almost 300 million Little Golden Books have been sold!
1954:Little Golden Books are now available throughout most of the world, except the Soviet Union, where at the time they were considered too capitalistic.
May 1, 1954:Release ofLittle Lulu and Her Magic Tricks, with a 2.25 million first printing. The book has a small package of Kleenex®tissues attached to its front cover and directions for how to make toys from the tissues. An extensive advertising and promotional campaign for this title leads to the book\'s appearance on theArthur Godfrey Showthe month it is released.
Mid-1950s:Top-selling Little Golden Books center around children’s TV shows and westerns (The Roy Rogers Show, Howdy Doody, The Lone Ranger, Captain Kangaroo,etc.).
Early 1960s:A large number of new Little Golden Books focus on popular Saturday morning TV shows such asHuckleberry Hound, The Bullwinkle Show, Yogi Bear, The Flintstones,andBozo the Clown.
Little Golden Books
1980s–1990s THE MINIATURE GOLDEN BOOKS1980s–1990s
Average cost:
89¢ (1982)
99¢ (1986)
1982:Little Golden Books turns 40. Over 800 million books have been sold.
November 20, 1986:One billionth Little Golden Book (The Poky Little Puppy) is printed.
1992:Little Golden Books celebrates its golden anniversary—50 years! In recognition of this milestone anniversary, a permanent Little Golden Books exhibit is given to the Smithsonian Institution. The exhibit, titled “Little Golden Books and American Culture 1942–1992,” can still be viewed there.
December 1992:First Precious Moments™ Little Golden Book,Put on a Happy Face, is released.
1996:Publishers Weeklyarticle listsThe Poky Little Puppy.
[Julie: Copy missing above.PWlistsThe Poky Little Puppy. . . as what?]
Little Golden Books
Today
Average cost:
$2.99
March 2001:Publishers WeeklylistsScooby-Doo: The Haunted Carnivalas the third bestselling hardcover children’s book title for 2000.
June 2001:Little Golden Books Classic line is launched to great success (many titles sell over 200,000 copies in just over a year!) The new line brings back popular vintage Little Golden Books titles based on consumer demand. The first six titles in this new library include:
Richard Scarry’s Good Night Little Bear
Animal Orchestra
The Lion’s Paw
The Fire Engine Book
The Little Red Hen
The Good Humor Man
2001:The Little Golden Books Classic line wins a 2001 Dr. Toy “Best Classic Toy” Award.
January 2002:Golden Books kicks off its 60th anniversary year with a special edition boxed set of Little Golden Books Classics.
January 2002:The Golden Books Library now includes over 1,200 unique titles!
2002:To date, over 2 billion Little Golden Books have been printed—enough to reach the moon!
October 1, 2002:Happy 60th Birthday, Little Golden Books!
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