First introduced by The Ohio Art Company as a mechanical drawing toy, the Etch A Sketch turns 55 years old on July 12. To date, more than 175 million units have been sold worldwide since it made its debut in 1960, according to The Ohio Art Company.
With the classic Etch A Sketch, kids create pictures by twisting and turning either the horizontal or vertical knobs, forming lines on the magic screen. When finished, they can shake it to start all over again. Etch A Sketch is known for its simple red exterior case, but the line has expanded over the years to include popular licenses.
Throughout its tenure, Etch A Sketch has received numerous toy awards and can boast a 95 percent worldwide awareness factor. Quickly after its release in the U.S., it became the No. 1 selling toy for Christmas of 1960. It has appeared in the Toy Story movie franchise and Elf, and was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame in 1998 and added to the Toy Industry Association’s Century of Toys List five years later.
“For 55 years, Etch A Sketch has remained one of the world’s most popular toys despite an increasingly technological toy market,” says Martin Killgallon, senior vice president of marketing and product development for The Ohio Art Company. “Its success can be attributed to its simple design that inspires endless hours of creativity, requires no instructions, is portable, and powered simply by imagination.”
