Who Was...?

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Who Was? or Who HQ is a series of children's non-fiction books published by Penguin Books. The "Who Was...?", "What Was?...", "Where Is?...", "What Is the Story Of?...", "What Do We Know About?...", "Who HQ: The 50 States" and "Who HQ Now" series tell the stories of trailblazers, legends, innovators, significant landmarks, and historical events. [1] Covering everything from sports to politics, the "Who HQ Now" series focuses on trending topics and prominent subjects discussed in the news. [2] As of December 2022, the series had over 250 entries, sold over 20 million copies, and has been on the New York Times Best Seller list. [3] [4]

Contents

The first four Who Was? books — Who Was Sacagawea?, Who Was Ben Franklin?, Who Was Albert Einstein?, and Who Was Annie Oakley?—were published on February 18, 2002. Penguin Books publishes about 24 new books each year. [5] Example entrants in the series due for publication in 2026 include John Cena, [6] Cleopatra, [7] "Weird Al" Yankovic, [8] Lizzie Borden, [9] Rita Moreno, [10] Vera Wang, [11] Greek Mythology, [12] the Trail of Tears, [13] Rocky Mountains, [14] Dragons, [15] and more.

Book format

There are about 80 illustrations in each book — one on almost every page, and always one for each sidebar. The large heads were inspired by the caricatures that used to be drawn for the weekly cover of the New York Times Book Review . Some books include those for famous people like Stevie Wonder, Ronald Reagan and Jeff Kinney. [16]

TV adaptation

In 2017, Netflix ordered a 13-episode variety show based on the books, The Who Was? Show . The series was developed by Penguin Workshop and FremantleMedia, produced by Rich Korson, and written by Brian McCann, Elliott Kalan, Eric Gilliland, Delaney Yeager, and Tami Sagher. Each half-hour episode was slated to feature "live-action, animated shorts, improvisations, sketches, musical performances and guest appearances." [3]

References

  1. "Books Archive". Who HQ. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  2. "Who HQ Now". Who HQ. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  3. 1 2 N'Duka, Amanda (May 10, 2017). "'The Who Was? Show': Netflix Sets Family Variety Series For 2018". Deadline Hollywood . Archived from the original on November 30, 2020. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  4. "Books Archive". Who HQ. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  5. "FAQ". Who HQ. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  6. "Who Is John Cena? by Ryan G. Van Cleave, Who HQ". PenguinRandomhouse.com. ISBN   9798217144112 . Retrieved December 31, 2025.
  7. Who Was Cleopatra? by Kathryn Waterfield, Who HQ. ISBN   9780593750292 . Retrieved December 31, 2025.{{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  8. "Who is "Weird Al" Yankovic? by Robert Squier, Who HQ:". PenguinRandomhouse.com. ISBN   9780593889695 . Retrieved December 31, 2025.
  9. "Who Was Lizzie Borden? by Meg Belviso, Who HQ". PenguinRandomhouse.com. ISBN   9780593888872 . Retrieved December 31, 2025.
  10. "Who Is Rita Moreno? by G. M. Taboas Zayas, Who HQ". PenguinRandomhouse.com. ISBN   9798217049172 . Retrieved December 31, 2025.
  11. "Who Is Vera Wang? by Vivian Jun Kirklin, Who HQ". PenguinRandomhouse.com. ISBN   9780593888285 . Retrieved December 31, 2025.
  12. "What Is Greek Mythology? by Gregory Copeland, Who HQ". PenguinRandomhouse.com. ISBN   9780593754283 . Retrieved December 31, 2025.
  13. "What Was Trail of Tears? by Sean Teuton, Who HQ". PenguinRandomhouse.com. ISBN   9780593751831 . Retrieved December 31, 2025.
  14. "Where Is the Rocky Mountains? by Sarah Fabiny, Who HQ". PenguinRandomhouse.com. ISBN   9780593890905 . Retrieved December 31, 2025.
  15. "What Do We Know About Dragons? by Ben Hubbard, Who HQ". PenguinRandomhouse.com. ISBN   9798217050345 . Retrieved December 31, 2025.
  16. "FAQ". Who HQ. Retrieved December 1, 2022.