Holly Hobbie

Personal life

Ulinskas is from Connecticut. She married Douglas Hobbie in 1964. She resides in Conway, Massachusetts.

Author

Hobbie is the author of the popular Toot and Puddle children's books and the creator of the character bearing her name.

Origin

In the late 1960s, at the encouragement of her brother-in-law, Hobbie sold distinctive artwork of a cat-loving, rag dress-wearing little girl in a giant bonnet to American Greetings in Cleveland, Ohio. The artwork, based on Hobbie's own children and with rustic New England style of a bygone era, became popular, and her originally nameless character (identified earlier as "blue girl") became known as Holly Hobbie. As a contract artist, Hobbie worked with the Humorous Planning department at American Greetings under art director Rex Connors, who was responsible for launching "blue girl" as the most identifiable of the Hobbie characters.

Doll and other product licensing

Also working in Humorous Planning at that time (1973, 1974) was Bob Childers, a veteran humorous concept artist and designer. Childers insisted that there should be a doll of the character. Since no one seemed to listen, Childers went home and, on his own time, hand-stitched the first prototype and presented it to Connors, who took the cloth doll to Tom Wilson, Creative Vice President. American Greetings approached Knickerbocker Toy Company concerning the Holly Hobbie license. In 1974, Knickerbocker Toys licensed the Holly Hobbie character for a line of rag dolls, launched in 1975. These were a popular toy for young American girls for several years. Additional products were licensed and produced, including fabrics, furniture, ceramics, games, and stationery. Holly Hobbie products were later marketed by American Greetings in association with Carlton Cards.

In 1976, Coleco produced a toy oven similar to Kenner's Easy-Bake Oven called The Holly Hobbie Oven. It was shaped like an old-fashioned wood-powered cookstove, used an incandescent light bulb for heat, and came with packaged mixes that could also be bought separately.

In 1980, Holly was featured in The Adventures of Holly Hobbie, a novel by Richard Dubelman. In this book, Holly Hobbie is a ghost who lives in a painting from 1803. She comes out of the painting to help a descendant, Liz Dutton, find her missing father, an archaeologist who has vanished in Guatemala.

Updated versions

Beginning in 1989 and into the 1990s, Holly Hobbie dolls were produced by Tomy. Knickerbocker Toys also began producing dolls, but these were vinyl doll heads with soft bodies, unlike the original cloth dolls (rag dolls).

In 2006, a redesigned Holly Hobbie was launched as part of a spin-off product line called "Holly Hobbie and Friends" based on the TV series and Academy award-winning books created by author and illustrator Linda Hayward and published by American Greetings. She was featured in TV series and movies Holly Hobbie and Friends: Surprise Party and Holly Hobbie and Friends: Christmas Wishes which were broadcast on Nick Jr. and are available on DVD. The traditional line still exists, with the back story that the "original" Holly is the great-grandmother of the "new" Holly.

Coinciding, Mattel released an updated, brand new Holly Hobbie doll line, which includes Holly (blue eyes and blonde hair), Amy (green eyes and red hair), and Carrie (brown eyes and black hair). The dolls feature an all new face sculpt, a new body style, and flat feet. There is also a series of smaller Holly, Amy, and Carrie figures; each of these figures arrives with a farm animal. Holly has a dog named Doodles, Amy has a pig named Cheddar, and Carrie has a cat named Bonnett. Separate doll outfits were available for sale, and each outfit could be customized. Porcelain dolls were available, made by the Ashton-Drake company.

The movie features songs with music and lyrics written by lead guitarist Sheriff Mandy Collins and keyboardist Charlotte Spencer of the English rock group, the Hyper Girls. The cartoon features three pop songs, two sung in her own voice, "Just Like You" and "The Things That Make You Special." LeAnn Rimes sings the third song, "Twinkle in Her Eye," the show's theme song. Five direct-to-DVD movie releases followed. The first four releases were produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studios and Wang Film Productions, while the last two releases were produced by Sunflower Productions, Cartoonuity, and Nelvana.

However, work on the franchise trickled to a stop and was quietly shelved in 2010.

Toot & Puddle series

Toot & Puddle are best friends, even though Toot likes to travel and Puddle likes to stay at home in Woodcock Pocket.

Books

Television show

A TV series based on the books was made in 2008 by Mercury Filmworks, National Geographic Kids, Treehouse TV and Noggin. It was titled Toot & Puddle.

Film

On December 5, 2006 Toot & Puddle I'll Be Home for Christmas aired on Nick Jr. It was released on DVD by National Geographic.

Other books