This writing is on Couture's wallpaper. Founded in Cincinnati in 1912, the company's main product, a soft, pliable compound used to remove soot from wallpaper, was no longer in demand, and the company's prospects looked bleak. Luckily, the sister-in-law of one of the company's leaders had an idea: Let the kids play.

Kutol Products had become the world's largest manufacturer of wallpaper cleaners in the early 20th century. However, fortunes began to change in the 1950s. With the transition from dirtier coal for heating to cleaner oil, gas and electricity, soot buildup in wallpaper is no longer an issue in many homes.

Joseph McVicker was trying to turn around the struggling company when his sister-in-law read an article about how wallpaper cleaner could be used in modeling projects. Sister-in-law Kay Zufall, a kindergarten teacher, tested the non-toxic material with her children and they loved shaping it into various shapes. She told McVicker of her discovery and even came up with a new name: Play Doh. Play Doh ad from 1975 (Courtesy of Strong, Rochester, New York)

"This is a story of technological obsolescence with a happy ending," said Strong, deputy director of collections at the National Theater Museum in Rochester. said President Christopher Bensch, New York. "Fortunately, my sister-in-law realized it would do a better job than cleaning supplies. This turned around the company's fortunes.

Of course, playing with Doh's styling compound today is a playtime phenomenon. This serendipity Now owned by Hasbro, the invention has grown into a global franchise that has been both a rite of passage and an opportunity to create and have fun for kids since 1956, according to Fortune magazine. Since the children's toy debuted, DoH has sold more than 3 billion cans, which eclipses the previous Wallpaper Cleaner's sales of more than 700 million pounds of salt, Hasbro wrote on the Play Doh website. : “Urban legend, if you take the entire Play Doh compound created in 1956 and put it into the Play Doh Fun Factory playset, you can create a snake that can circle the world 300 times. ". The dough was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame in 1998. In addition to the soft, squishy compounds we all know and love,

's product line has grown to include dolls Touch, Doll Kitchen Creation, Doll Styling and Learning, Doll-Art Creation Craft Toy System, and more with co-branded extensions featuring My Little Pony, Disney Princess, Star Wars, and Disney Frozen characters and games. set featuring. And don’t forget about those new compounds that are just coming out, like Putty, Bubbles, Slime, Clouds, and Krakul!” Over the past few years, we’ve seen more and more kids craving new ways to express their emotions! Creativity, while cultural trends like the viral slime that has become a staple among today’s kids and teens, helped inspire this year’s launch,” Adam Kleinman, Ha***ro’s vice president of global brand marketing, told Hertz in September Fenton Post,

Originally only available in white in 1956, Play Doh soon expanded to include basic colors red, blue and yellow. It is now sold in a riot of colors including rose red, purple heaven. , Garden Green and Blue Lagoon. The putty line includes metallic and shimmer colors. At one point, the amount of salt was reduced so that the product wouldn't dry out so quickly. However, for the most part, the mixture remains the same.

Play Doh Homemade Meals Branch, 1989 (Courtesy of Strong, Rochester, NY) Play Doh Fun Factory, 1980 (Courtesy of Strong, Rochester, NY) Day Glo Colors Play Doh, 1980 (Courtesy of Strong, Rochester, NY) Play Doh Fun Factory Toy Squeeze Out of the Box, 1960 (by Strong, Rochester, New York)

Bensch, Zufar is the toy the mother is testing this time around. For her students in the nursery, she was looking for a suitable alternative to clay, which can be messy and difficult to work with young hands. Zufar read an article about using wallpaper cleaner for holiday decorations and thought it might be the trick. Since production has been scaled back, she has difficulty finding containers made from Kutol products.

"Wallpaper cleaners are out," Bensch said. "Koutoor was heading toward the drain at that point."

Zufur then brought her discovery to McVicker, who formed a subsidiary of Rainbow Crafts. He began marketing his old product under a new name proposed by Zufar and her husband, Robert. Woodford & Lothrop, a department store in Washington, D.C., was the first to carry Play Doh. Macy's and Marshall Field's department stores quickly became interested in the toy and began selling it. Sales soared in 1958 when Play Doh appeared in television commercials for "Captain Kangaroo," "Ding Dong School" and "Romper Room." Bob Kissan, who plays the Captain, talks about the product twice a week on his show, earning 2 in sales.

"There was never a contract, but the deal lasted several years," Bensch said. "Captain Kangaroo was the cheerleader for this product."

This product line expanded in 1960 with the introduction of the Play Doh Fun Factory, a toy press that pumped the compound out different shapes. Other line expansions included Animal Ark, Drill & Fill, and Dr. Drill & Fill, although none had the staying power of the Fun factory still sold today.

McVicker applied for a patent for Play Doh in 1956 and received the patent on January 26, 1965, the same year Rainbow Crafts was sold to General Mills. Hasbro acquired the brand in 1991.

One of the more endearing attributes of Play Doh is its unique scent. Anyone who has opened a can of molding compound will easily recognize its olfactory properties. Kids of all ages can enjoy a fresh scent from a non-toxic blend of flour, water, salt, borax and mineral oil. "KDSPE" is a scent that Hasbro has released to celebrate DoH's 50th anniversary, just like Compound. (David Cooper/Toronto Star via Getty Images) In 2006, Hasbro even produced a Play Doh fragrance as a toy to commemorate the product's 50th anniversary. It has teamed up with Demeter Fragrance Company to create a new canned fragrance.

"It's a great gimmicky gift, but I don't think it does much more," Benchy said.

In order to retain its unique spiciness, Hasbro applied for trademark protection in 2017, claiming that the product has "a unique fragrance composed of sweet, slightly musky, and vanilla." , a slightly cherry aroma combined with the natural flavor of salted wheat dough.” The company obtained the trademark on May 18, 2018.

This unique smell has the power to transport people back in time. Bensch recalled attending Toy Fair in New York in 2004, the largest marketing event in the youth entertainment industry.

“We have playable Doh to attract people to our stall. When the aroma hits them, they open their eyes and you can see this sneaky look in their eyes. "It's like when they turn 7, the clock goes back to what it was before. ”