Western Publishing, also known as Western Printing and Lithographing Company, was a Racine, Wisconsin, firm responsible for publishing the Little Golden Books. Its Golden Books Family Entertainment division also produced children's books and family-related entertainment products. The company had editorial offices in New York City and Los Angeles, California. Western Publishing became Golden Books Family Entertainment in 1996. Little Golden Books remains as an imprint of Penguin Random House. Golden Guides and Golden Field Guides are published by St. Martin's Press.
A toy or plaything is an object that is used primarily to provide entertainment. Simple examples include toy blocks, board games, and dolls. Toys are often designed for use by children, although many are designed specifically for adults and pets. Toys can provide utilitarian benefits, including physical exercise, cultural awareness, or academic education. Additionally, utilitarian objects, especially those which are no longer needed for their original purpose, can be used as toys. Examples include children building a fort with empty cereal boxes and tissue paper spools, or a toddler playing with a broken TV remote control. The term "toy" can also be used to refer to utilitarian objects purchased for enjoyment rather than need, or for expensive necessities for which a large fraction of the cost represents its ability to provide enjoyment to the owner, such as luxury cars, high-end motorcycles, gaming computers, and flagship smartphones.
A Happy Meal is a kids' meal usually sold at the American fast food restaurant chain McDonald's since June 1979. A small toy or book is included with the food, both of which are usually contained in a red cardboard box with a yellow smiley face and the McDonald's logo. The packaging and toy are frequently part of a marketing tie-in to an existing television series, film or toyline.
LeapFrog Enterprises, Inc. is an educational entertainment and electronics company based in Emeryville, California. LeapFrog designs, develops, and markets technology-based learning products and related content for the education of children from infancy through grade school. The company was founded by Michael Wood and Robert Lally in 1994. John Barbour is the chief executive officer of LeapFrog.
Ole Kirk Christiansen was a Danish carpenter. In 1932, he founded the construction toy company Lego, later known as The Lego Group. Christiansen transformed his small woodworking shop, which initially sold household products, into a manufacturer of wooden toys. By 1934, he had officially named the company Lego and established its fundamental principles. The business shifted to producing plastic bricks after the acquisition of a plastic moulding injection machine in 1947. Following his death in 1958, the company's management was handed over to his son, Godtfred.
Glo Worm is a stuffed toy for young children, designed by Hasbro's Playskool division, and made in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Introduced in 1982, the plush, pajamaed worm body contained a battery-powered device that when squeezed would light up the toy's vinyl head from within, creating a soft glow.
Webkinz is a stuffed animal and video game franchise by the Canadian toy company Ganz. Webkinz stuffed animals have online counterparts in the video games Webkinz Classic and Webkinz Next. It was originally released by Ganz on April 15, 2005.
Educational toys are objects of play, generally designed for children, which are expected to stimulate learning. They are often intended to meet an educational purpose such as helping a child develop a particular skill or teaching a child about a particular subject. They often simplify, miniaturize, or even model activities and objects used by adults.
WordWorld is an American children's CGI animated television series based on the books and the wooden puzzles of the same name. Created by Don Moody, Jacqueline Moody, Peter Schneider and Gary Friedman, the show was produced by The Learning Box and WTTW National.
Spin Master Corp. is a Canadian multinational toy and entertainment company. Spin Master employs over 1,600 people globally with offices in Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Vietnam.
PlayMonster is a manufacturer and marketer of family entertainment products that specializes in games, children's puzzles, toys, activities, and teaching tools. As of February 2016, Patch changed its company name to PlayMonster.
AEA Investors LP is an American middle market private equity firm. The firm focuses on leveraged buyout, growth capital, and mezzanine capital investments in manufacturing, service, distribution, specialty chemicals, consumer product, and business services companies in the middle market. The firm makes investments primarily in the US and Europe, and periodically invests in Asia as well.
Juno Baby was a multiple Emmy Award winning line of children’s educational-development products that blend original music with puppet characters. The product line focuses around the characters of Juno, a six-year-old girl with a natural passion for music, her two-year-old brother Rai Rai, and several animal companions. The company has two brands: Juno Baby which is geared toward the toddler and infant market and Juno Jr. and the world of Harmonia Springs which focuses on pre-school aged children.
Pillow Pets are a brand of stuffed toys with velcro straps which enable them to be converted from a decorative pillow into a stuffed animal. The toys are made from chenille. Pillow Pets were invented by Jennifer Telfer in 2003. They first gained success when Telfer personally sold the toys close to the Christmas season of that year. They would later become more successful through television advertising, where the company's slogan, "It's a pillow, it's a pet, it's a Pillow Pet!" was featured in every ad. Pillow Pets have been used for charitable fund raising.
The Simba Dickie Group is a German toy manufacturer founded in 1982 as Simba Toys. The Group is the fourth largest toy manufacturer in Germany. The company's slogan is "We love to make toys".
Primo Toys is a London-based educational toy company founded by Filippo Yacob and Matteo Loglio, best known for creating the Cubetto Playset, an award-winning wooden robot that has been used by more than 10 million children to date, designed to teach children how to code using a tangible programming language that doesn't use screens or literacy. In April 2016, Cubetto became the most crowd-funded ed-tech invention in history, when 6,553 backers pledged a total of $1,596,457 to support their Kickstarter campaign. Primo Toys are backed by Randi Zuckerberg, Arduino co-founder Massimo Banzi, and Liam Casey's PCH International.
YooHoo & Friends is a South Korean line of stuffed toys released by Aurora World around July 2006.
Ronnen Harary is a Canadian entrepreneur, television and film producer, philanthropist, and billionaire. He is a co-founder of Canadian children's entertainment company Spin Master and the co-creator of PAW Patrol, a preschool series that airs in 160 countries. Along with childhood friend Anton Rabie, he founded Spin Master shortly after graduating from the University of Western Ontario, and they were co-CEOs of the company from 1994 to 2021. Harary is now chair of Spin Master's board of directors. He continues to oversee the company's long-term strategic vision and remains involved in business development and merger and acquisition activity.
Jazwares, LLC is an American company headquartered in Plantation, Florida that designs and manufactures toys and other consumer products. As of 2022, the company is owned by investment holding company Berkshire Hathaway. The company is best known for its Squishmallows plush toy line.
Poppy Playtime is a 2021 episodic survival horror video game developed and published by American indie developer Mob Entertainment. Set in the year 2005, a former employee of toy-making company Playtime Co. revisits its abandoned toy factory a decade after the company's staff mysteriously disappeared, and must solve puzzles, some requiring a gadget named the GrabPack, to progress while avoiding various enemies.
