Hello Kitty - History

1974	In the very beginning, Hello Kitty, did not have a name. It was first seen as a kitty with a little red bow on its left ear, sitting down. However, Hello Kitty instantly attracted respect and love of thousands of people in Japan with its cute design and character, which turned Hello Kitty into an instant celebrity.
1975	This cute kitty was finally given a name, called Hello Kitty. The very first item which featured Hello Kitty was a wallet, which was a very tiny purse with the picture of Hello Kitty embriod on its side. Hello Kitty's family was also introduced.
1976	The company Sanrio took the job of the main distributor and owner of Hello Kitty. Sanrio welcomed and celebrated Hello Kitty by creating a new pose for Hello Kitty. Instead of just a sitting pose, they made Hello Kitty a standing pose.
1977	Apparently Sanrio liked the new standing pose, and they decided to try a bit more. They made Hello Kitty to sit in a plane, piloting it. It was a very simple picture of Hello Kitty in a plane with its head sticking out. The school children loved it, even high school students and some adults were attracted to this cute new design.
1978	This time, Hello Kitty was designed to ride a dolphin, along with other different styles such as in a car, in different places...etc. Hello Kitty also had a large varity of different uniforms and outfits.
1979	Grandpa and grandma formally introduced to the Hello Kitty world.
1980	Hello Kitty playing sport! Hello Kitty was in a tennis top and playing tennis. Holding a tennis racket and a ball, extremely cute and adorable. Hello Kitty digital watch was also released and went on sale that year, and more than a million watches were sold. Incredible.
1981	The range of Hello Kitty items on sale expanded to telephones and cameras also some more electronic products, which it continued to increase year after year. The first Hello Kitty movie was made, called "Kitty and Mimi's new umbrella".
1982	Hello Kitty's outline disappeared! The reason for this is to make Hello Kitty more involved to the background picture. They also made a bit of adjustment to the position of Hello Kitty's eyes.
1983	Cris-cross and straight lined background, with a more US style design attracted lot of people in the US. During the same year, Hello Kitty was named the child ambassador of UNICEF in the US as well.
1984	Hello Kitty photo design. This was to make Hello Kitty more realistic and made it seem closer to us. This process was a huge success at the end.
1985	Tiny Cham introduced. Hello Kitty baking a cake in the kichen, which also attracted lot of young parents.
1986	Passport shot of Hello Kitty's face. This extremely simply design became the offical logo for Hello Kitty for a while. This design was also seen on handbags, different clothing, handkerchiefs and lots more.
1987	Black and white Hello Kitty series. This design was aimed to attract more adults instead of teenagers or younger children.
1988	Cris-cross and straight lined background Hello Kitty is back. This design became really popular, and received large recongition from around the world. US CBS television started to show the first Hello Kitty cartoon on TV, "Hello Kitty's Fairy Tale Theater".
1989	English Hello Kitty comic series went on sale in US. This attracted even more fans because the reader could actually get a closer feel to Hello Kitty, it friends, family and life.
1990	Water droplets and snow background design developed. During the christmas it was even more popular with Hello Kitty in Santa-like costume with snowy background. Sanrio Puroland theme park opened in the same year as well.
1991	Flower series. Hello Kitty was hold a flower with flowers in the background. It attracted lot of female fans instantly.
1992	Fruit series. Hello Kitty was holding a fruit with fruits in the background. The design was changing depending on the season and the time of the year, to match the fruit and the color. It gave the fans a heart-warming feel.
1993	Hello Kitty design changed! The bow on her ear changed to a flower, a new start to this new look of Hello Kitty.
1994	Nurse series. Hello Kitty in a hospital and in a nurse's uniform! Hello Kitty was named the child ambassador of UNICEF in Japan.
1995	Flower series back again. With much more designs and more more colorful.
1996	More flower series...
1997	Traditional Kitty design. Hello Kitty in traditional Japan clothing, also in school uniform, beach uniform, wedding gown. Mermaid Kitty was also a popular design.
1998	Kitty's House themepark opened, attracted thousands of visitors a day.
1999	Kitty baby series. This series was created in response to a strong request by young mothers who have been loyal fans of Hello Kitty since her debut.

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