The BBC reports that a greeting card sent by Anne Frank when she was just eight-year-old has been found in an antique shop near Amsterdam. Anne Frank's diary that she wrote while hiding from the Nazis has become widely read around the world.
The card was sent in 1937, when Frank was eight, and was addressed to one of her best friends, Samme Ledermann.
The Anne Frank museum has authenticated the card, which shows a clover-covered bell above a snowy field, and wishes "good luck for the New Year".
Frank, who wrote her diary while in hiding from the Nazis, died in Belsen concentration camp in 1945.
Paul van den Heuvel, a school teacher, was looking through items in his father's antique shop in Naarden, near Amsterdam, when he came across the card.
"I just found it in a box, which probably came from an Amsterdam flea market," he told Dutch television.
The Anne Frank museum would like to have the card but finder Paul van den Heuvel has not yet made a decision as to what he will do with the historic greeting card.
Freep.com reports on two freelancing mothers - Janalee Chmel and Tiffany Hauber - who launched their own greeting card company called Motherhood with Attitude.
Their mission is to tell the truth about motherhood in their cards, to capture the craziness, messiness and hard work that makes the job a joy.
"There was a lot of pastel and fluffiness," said Hauber of Colorado Springs, Colo. "There wasn't much humor, much reality, much color and vibrancy."
Hauber is a graphic designer with two kids -- Eli, 3, and Emerson, 10 months. Chmel is a Denver-based freelance writer who also has two kids.
Chmel wanted to start Motherhood with Attitude and needed an artist. Hauber was toying with what she calls the grittiness and messiness of motherhood in her art, and needed the proper medium. When the two freelancers met on a project, the match was made.
The article says the unique cards are designed by given from mom to mom. The website for Motherhood With Attitude can be found here. They also have a blog and some free ecards.
The cards will be available at select retailers starting in mid-summer, Burger King spokeswoman Heather Krasnow said Tuesday.
Financial terms of the agreement weren't disclosed.
Andrews McMeel Publishing, a division of Kansas City-based Andrews McMeel Universal, will design the cards. Recycled Paper Greetings Inc. of Chicago will produce and distribute the cards.
"We're always looking for clever ways for the King to surprise his fans," Russ Klein, Burger King's president of global marketing, strategy and innovation, said in a release. "Now special occasions will be even more memorable thanks to the King."
Will these cards have The King on them? That seems like the smartest move from Burger King. The King has even found his way into Xbox video games.
Hallmark recently ran a greeting card contest asking people to come up with an idea for an original pet-themed greeting card. The cards that were chosen are going to be sold on Hallmark.com and at retail stores. The Columbia Tribunereports that a finalist will be chosen in September.
In January, Columbia resident Lisa Kennedy submitted a pet-themed birthday card to Kansas City-based Hallmark Cards Inc. as part of the company's YourPets contest. She learned last month that she was chosen as one of 67 finalists and that her card, titled "Sitting Pretty," would be sold at Hallmark.com and more than 10,000 retail stores starting June 16. Finalists also won $250.
Hallmark spokeswoman Sarah Gronberg said that initially "hundreds, if not thousands" of each of the 67 cards will be produced. She said the cards will be available through September, when a grand prize winner will be chosen.
"I was surprised and excited," said Kennedy, a 30-year-old lawyer who works in the Missouri attorney general's office.
Hallmark is now running a second greeting card contest. This time Hallmark is looking for funny Shoebox cards. Hallmark's site says, "You get cards and you think, 'I'm funnier than that!' Well Chuckle McGigglepants, here's your chance. Send us a card, any card, as long as it's funny." You can read more about the contest and how to enter here. Funny card designs can be submitted until Sunday, 3/23/08, 11:59pm CST.
What's up with the greeting card websites? You would think they would have been ready for the big influx of traffic on a day like Valentine's Day. The Associated Press reports that a company named Keynote Systems Inc. that checks web traffic found that only 30 percent of their attempts to access several of the major greeting card sites were successful.
Keynote said sites that usually load in two or three seconds were taking an average of 12 seconds or longer.
Problems with Web sites not only frustrate customers but also deprive sites of advertising revenue, especially if a visitor doesn't come back to view or send a card.
The Web site for Hallmark Cards Inc. was inaccessible or slow starting about 6 a.m. EST, according to Keynote. It was back to normal by late morning but got slow again around noon - just as people on the West Coast got to work and opened cards that had arrived in their inboxes, said Shawn White, Keynote's director of external operations.
Keynote said it also spotted problems with 123Greetings.com, and The Associated Press found in a test Thursday afternoon that many pages took several seconds to load. But officials at 123Greetings insisted that less than 1 percent of its visitors experienced slowdowns.
"123Greetings.com experienced record traffic today, one of the highest in its history," the company said in a statement. "Problems at other greeting cards sites caused record volumes of users to come over to our site, and we were happy to welcome them all."
Not at all of the traffic was lost because some people who were unable to access a greeting card website probably tried again later. The greeting card companies will get a shot again a year from now.
Valentine's Day is the second most popular card-sending occasion in the U.S. after Christmas according to the Greeting Card Association (GCA). That's a create and print card from American Greetings pictured on the right. The GCA estimates that 190 million valentine cards will be exchanged this year. If you include children's classroom-exchange valentines that number soars to 1 billion valentines that will be opened on Thursday, February 14.
The GCA says about half of all individual Valentine's Day cards exchanged in the U.S. are given to family members other than a husband or wife. The GCA estiamtes that one-third are destined for a sweetheart or spouse.
Women purchase more than 80% of all Valentine's Day cards. Women also purchase their cards earlier than men. The GCA says men typically wait until the last minute to shop and purchase only one card, which they give to their significant other. Nevertheless, Valentine's Day is the number one holiday for greeting card purchases by American men.
Here are some other facts about greeting cards providing by the Greeting Card Association.
Approximately one-fourth of individual valentine cards are humorous, with adults aged 35-and-under being the most likely to send humorous cards.
Valentine's Day is the largest e-card sending occasion of the year. An estimated 14 million e-valentines will be sent in 2008.
Greeting cards are traditionally the most popular Valentine's Day gift in the U.S., ranking ahead of candy, flowers or dinner out.
American men may be more serious about Valentine's Day than women. In a national survey for GCA in 2007, 45% of women said they were likely to give a humorous valentine to their sweetheart, compared to only 34% of men.
The percentage of individual valentines exchanged through the mail in comparison to hand delivery is approximately 50-50.
Red is the most popular color choice for valentine cards, follow by pink and then white. Hearts, roses, Cupid and lace are traditional valentine card icons.
Teachers are said to receive more Valentine's Day cards than anyone else in the U.S., largely due to the tradition of classroom valentine exchanges.
Men tend to purchase more expensive and more romantic valentines than women.
The first valentines in America were exchanged during the Revolutionary War period. They were handmade and typically featured sentimental verses written in flowing script.
Esther Howland, a young woman from Massachusetts, was the first regular U.S. publisher of Valentine's Day cards. She sold her first handmade valentine in 1849.
This year everything is about Super Tuesday even greeting cards. Hallmark has announced a new selection of cards poking lighthearted fun at the American political process and its cast of characters, including Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, President George W. Bush and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
One card depicts Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama in a heated debate over who wishes you a happier birthday. Another card (pictured on the right) features President Bush saying, "The celebrification of a person's bornfulness is a rightitude we hold dear in this nation."
"Political parodies have a close following, although the typical venue is through the news media or late night talk shows," said Steve King, editorial director at Hallmark. "By putting the humor in greeting cards, consumers can share a laugh over lighthearted political satire. It's a way Hallmark is helping people connect through humor that is both timely and relevant."
Hallmark will have new political cards available in stores throughout the election season. Some of these cards include sound and motion according to a statement released by the card publisher. You can also see a few of the cards here on the Hallmark.com website.
American Greetings has announced a licensing agreement with Muhammad Ali Enterprises LLC that will bring the images and famous quotes of Muhammad Ali to the greeting card aisle. The Muhammad Ali collection will debut in mid-January 2008 in anticipation of Black History Month, which is observed annually in February. The first eight cards in the collection will be birthday, thinking of you and anytime designs featuring iconic photos of Ali coupled with some of his most recognized and repeated quotes.
"It is truly an honor to work with such a respected and revered person like Muhammad Ali. His life, career and humanitarian efforts have had a lasting impression on people of every race, religion and ethnicity," said Paul Palmer, Director of Ethnic Card Marketing at American Greetings. "It's a natural fit for Ali to be the focal point of cards that inspire and motivate others to reach their goals, persevere through hardship, and celebrate their many accomplishments in life. The cards truly capture his spirit and determination in a way that moves others to strive for greatness in much the same way that 'The Greatest of All Time' has done throughout his life."
The Muhammad Ali collection from American Greetings will be available January 21st as part of the Black History Month line in grocery stores, drug chains and supercenters nationwide for $2.99 each. American Greetings and Carlton Cards stores will also carry the line.
The White House has selected Hallmark Cards, Inc., for the seventh straight year, to produce the official 2007 presidential holiday card. The card was designed by watercolorist David Drummond who was selected by the First Lady Laura Bush.
The card image is an exclusive design of Sylvia Shaw Judson's statue "Gardner" welcoming winter to the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden at the White House.
Artist David Drummond was selected by Mrs. Bush to create the original artwork for the card. Drummond is a well-known watercolorist specializing in landscapes.
Drummond's painting is reproduced on the card as a tip-on on elegant stock with a deckle edge. An embossed gold foil presidential seal highlights the insert page.
President and Mrs. Bush selected the following Bible verse from Nehemiah and brief message to be incorporated on the card:
You alone are the LORD. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.
These cards will be mailed to friends and family of President and Mrs. George W. Bush as well as to foreign dignitaries.
Ellen DeGeneres' Card Collection with American Greetings Video
This video offers a closer look at the Ellen DeGeneres' Card Collection from American Greetings that we blogged about earlier. The video even includes footage of the cards being printed.
I was struck by the bluntness of the messages inside: "Honestly, I never knew anyone who was arrested before," one read. Said another: "I know that I have not visited you. But I still care about you. . . . When are you getting out anyway??"
I stood with my daughter, reading them aloud and joking about the comic possibilities they provided: "Sorry about your arrest. I guess the shoot-out wasn't such a good idea." Or, "Too bad I can't hide a file in your cake. Happy Birthday anyway!"
It's easy to poke fun at the notion of Hallmark-like greetings for miscreants. But Terrye Cheathem didn't create Three Squares Greetings: For Those Who Can't Come Home as a joke.
"When I hear somebody laugh at them," Cheathem said, "I know that person hasn't gotten the telephone call, yet, saying their son or brother or nephew has been arrested."
Three Squares Greetings's website says their cards address all the regular card sending occasions like birthdays and holidays.
At Three Squares Greetings, we know that it's been impossible to find greeting cards to express difficult, sensitive, and sometimes mixed feelings to loved ones and friends who are "caught up" in the criminal justice system. For all these reasons, we have dedicated ourselves publishing a vast array of greeting cards to encourage and lift the spirits of those who can't come home. Our cards address occasions such as birthdays, holidays, and other events for those who just can’t come home.
The cards can only be found at a few locations so far but they will start selling online November 1st on the card's website. L.A. Times columnist Sandy Banks expects the card's sales to pick up once they start being sold online. It does sound like the type of card that people might prefer to buy online in private.
Halloween seems to be getting bigger each and every year. This year retailers are expecting a Happy Halloween. A study from the NRF found that consumers will spend an average of $64.82 this year including an average of $3.92 on Halloween greeting cards.
Halloween party-goers are bobbing for more than just apples. They'll also be on the lookout for candy, costumes and decorations. The average person will spend $23.33 on Halloween costumes (including children's and pet's costumes), though young adults will spend far more. In fact, according to the survey, 18-24 year-olds plan to be the most festive, spending $34.06 on costumes, nearly twice as much as they plan to spend on candy ($19.65). According to the survey, average spending will rise in all categories, including candy ($19.84, decorations ($17.73) and greeting cards ($3.92).
You can search for Halloween greeting cards here on the search engine. You can find some Halloween shopping links here on ShoppersShop.com.
American Greetings Launches South Park Greeting Cards
American Greetings has signed a licensing deal with Comedy Central that will result in greeting cards using characters from popular Comedy Central shows. The first products to launch include a line of seven South Park cards available now at Target. The partnership also includes licenses for RENO 911!, The Sarah Silverman Program, Mind of Mencia and Lil' Bush. Cards featuring signature South Park soundbytes will debut in January 2008. In a statement American Greetings said they are take their funny cards line very seriously.
We take our funny card business very seriously because we recognize that many people connect with others through humor. Our partnership with Comedy Central is yet another example of our commitment to truly understand what consumers find funny so that we can be sure our products deliver on that," said Michael Brown, Vice President of Licensing for American Greetings. "Comedy Central is a destination for laughs for millions of people every day, and we're proud to be bringing the humor from some of the network's most recognizable shows to life in a new way."
In an effort to ensure the Company continues to create funny cards that resonate with consumers, the humor team at American Greetings conducted a six- month long research project to get to the root of what makes people laugh today. The findings revealed distinct differences in the way men and women use humor to communicate. As the result, American Greetings recently unveiled hundreds of new funny cards that appeal to a woman's sense of humor by highlighting the funny parts of everyday situations and experiences. The licensing agreement with Comedy Central, the #1 cable network in primetime among men 18-24 and men 18-34, allows the Company to create humorous cards that appeal to what men find funny, according to the research.
Greeting card manufacturfers want to keep today's young adults buying paper cards. South Park is defintely a show that is familiar to this demographic.
Reuters reports that Paris Hilton is suing Hallmark over a card that shows Paris Hilton as a waitress. The text on the card reads, "Don't touch that, it's hot. What's hot? That's hot." The lawsuit says Hallmark used Paris Hilton's trademarked phrase "That's hot" without permission and also violated Hilton's right to privacy by using her likeness on the greeting card.
Hilton, 26, is suing for an injunction against the U.S. greeting card company and for damages in excess of $100,000, according to the suit filed late on Thursday in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles.
Kansas City-based Hallmark Cards said the card was part of a satirical series that parodied celebrities and politicians.
According to the lawsuit, Hilton's face is superimposed over a cartoon of a waitress serving food to a patron with the dialogue "Don't touch that, it's hot. What's hot? That's hot."
It says the card was selling in the United States for $2.49.
The suit says that Hallmark failed to obtain approval from the hotel heiress for using her image and had damaged her rights to privacy and publicity.
Smoking Gun has an entry with a copy of the lawsuit. A Hallmark representative told TMZ that "Some of Hallmark's new humor greeting cards are parodies of today's most popular celebrities and politicians. These cards take a satirical look at news and gossip surrounding these public figures, including Paris Hilton, and we do not believe Hallmark has violated any of Ms. Hilton's rights."
Another one of Hallmark's Paris Hilton cards from its Shoebox line features Paris Hilton in jail. The text on the card reads, "The Really, Really, Really, Really Simple Life." You can see the card here in an earlier post. The greating card companies have been trying to produce more current events, pop culture and humorous cards lately to compete with the rapidly growing online greetings market.
American Greetings and Hallmark Turn Topical in Battle Against Ecards
We blogged recently on Greeting Card Search about the new Ellen Degeneres cards from American Greetings and the new line of Pop Goes the Culture cards from Hallmark. An article in the New York Times says this is part of a new topical card trend. Greeting card publishers are moving towards topical cards as they try and compete with electronic greetings. The Times articles says that even though ecards have made a dent in the greetings business 90% of U.S. households still purchase paper greeting cards.
Competing for consumers who spend less time browsing to find the perfect card and who increasingly communicate with friends electronically, the two companies - which dominate the $7.5 billion industry - are appealing to women who, according to their research, like humorous takes on their everyday travails. They also purchase 80 percent of all paper greeting cards.
"Women told us that everyday life had funnier situations than anything that is made up," said Beth Murdoch, director of funny cards for American Greetings, who led the company's six-month look at contemporary humor.
By pushing hard on this genre, the card companies hope to promote the idea that greeting cards can be sent anytime, not just on holidays and special occasions. Given how accustomed people have become to sending funny e-mail messages for no particular reason, they may start to view traditional cards in the same light, the logic goes.
While the paper card market is declining, it is still five times as large as the e-card market, according to the Greeting Card Association, a trade group. Ninety percent of United States households still buy paper greeting cards, and the average household buys 30 a year, the association said.
The article also discusses some of the efforts Hallmark is making to be topical and funny. Hallmark's humor card buyer Stephen B. King told the Times,
"Our goal is to get 80 percent to 90 percent of our customers to laugh out loud by presenting more characters and more real-life situations." In an effort to find out what makes people LOL Hallmark had several dozen of its employees watch YouTube videos and comb through eBay listings.
The Times says nearly one-fifth of the cards in Hallmark's Shoebox line are now tied to current events. Nothing says current events like celebrity gossip so Hallmark has several celebrity cards in stores. There was even a timely "Paris Goes to Jail" card in stores during Paris Hilton's jail sentence.
Popbytes displays a few more of Hallmark's celebrity cards -including cards for Simon Cowell, Martha Stewart and Dr. Phil - in this post. There's also a Fun with Rachael Ray card.
Writers Write, Inc. has added a new blog to its blog network called FantasySFBlog.com. Fantasy/SF Blog is a daily blog covering what's new and interesting in the worlds of fantasy, SF, and horror, including books, movies, TV and gaming.
Hallmark has a new line of cards called Pop Goes the Culture. The cards feature famous lines from popular television shows like Lost and Grey's Anatomy. Other cards in the new line feature quotes from celebrities including Bill Maher, J.K. Rowling and Gwen Stefani. An article on MLive.com about the Hallmark cards gives the following examples.
"Once in a blue moon, people will surprise you ... and once in a while, people may even take your breath away,'' reads one quote from "Grey's Anatomy'' on the outside of a card, with this on the inside: "Thank you for making mine a lifetime of blue moons.''
And there is this from Lost: "You're one of the good ones" on the outside of the card, and inside, "... and I'm one of the lucky ones. Very lucky."
Rocker Gwen Stefani and author J.K. Rowling, the movie Top Gun and TV shows The Office and Cheers are among other sources.
The image on the right is a picture of the Grey's Anatomy card described above. You can see a few more card images here. These cards might work well for people that share a similar interest in celebrities, authors, music or television shows.
Comedian and talk show host Ellen DeGeneres has a new line of cards in stores as part of deal between DeGeneres and American Greetings. The cards are written in Ellen's humorous style. The publisher's statement says they conducted research to find what's funny today in developing the Ellen Collection.
According to Steven Willensky, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for American Greetings, the collaboration between American Greetings and DeGeneres is the result of extensive research the company conducted to get to the root of what's funny today.
"The research revealed that a majority of women prefer to laugh at material that is more relatable, especially when it's based on everyday situations, and that's the humor that Ellen is known for," said Willensky. "the ellen collection is one of the many ways we are marking the launch of our newest funny cards that find humor in the real-life experiences women encounter."
"I look at having a line of cards as another extension of being a host; helping you wish your loved ones well, piggy-backing on your birthday greetings," DeGeneres said. "I like to be up in the middle of everything and doing it this way is much easier than crashing parties."
Cards in the ellen collection highlight many of the comedian's trademark fashions, like crisp white pants, argyle sweaters and Chuck Taylor-like sneakers. Her love for animals is also incorporated into several designs that show her with "Pig," her white French bulldog.
Pig is indeed featured in a couple of Ellen's cards.
One thank you card shows Ellen and Pig on the front, and says, "Wow. Thanks. Does this mean I have to do something nice for you now?"
A birthday card shows Ellen dancing while Pig looks on. The message reads, "Your birthday makes me wanna dance! - which is weird because I'm in line at the DMV and now everyone's staring at me. Enjoy your day."
It sounds like the line of cards will be a hit. They sound funny, positive and upbeat and spontaneous dancing is always good.
The BBC 
Freep.com 
BizJournals.com 
Hallmark recently ran a greeting card contest asking people to come up with an idea for an original pet-themed greeting card. The cards that were chosen are going to be sold on Hallmark.com and at retail stores. The Columbia Tribune 
Valentine's Day is the second most popular card-sending occasion in the U.S. after Christmas according to the 
This year everything is about Super Tuesday even greeting cards. Hallmark has announced a new selection of cards poking lighthearted fun at the American political process and its cast of characters, including Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, President George W. Bush and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
The White House has selected Hallmark Cards, Inc., for the seventh straight year, to produce the official 2007 presidential holiday card. The card was designed by watercolorist David Drummond who was selected by the First Lady Laura Bush.
The L.A. Times has an 
Halloween seems to be getting bigger each and every year. This year retailers are expecting a Happy Halloween. A 
Reuters 
Writers Write, Inc. has added a new blog to its blog network called 
Comedian and talk show host Ellen DeGeneres has a new line of cards in stores as part of deal between DeGeneres and American Greetings. The cards are written in Ellen's humorous style. The publisher's statement says they conducted research to find what's funny today in developing the Ellen Collection.
