Have you ever wondered about play-doh history? It’s hard to imagine that anything that has successfully entertained children for almost 60 years, and inspired their imagination could ever be considered a failure, but that is just what Play-Doh was in the beginning.
No, the original Play-Doh was called by a name that has been long forgotten and was created to be not for child’s play, but for cleaning wallpaper.
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Play-Doh History – In the Beginning
In the 1930s Joseph and Noah Mcvicker made a compound they were sure would make them a good deal of money.
The compound was designed to clean the wallpapers that were in most of the homes at that time.
Unfortunately, it simply didn’t work, thereby leaving boxes of this cleaning compound sitting in some warehouse unused and useless.
Perhaps, it would have eventually ended up in some landfill somewhere, if it hadn’t been for a little twist of fate.
Joseph Gets Schooled
Twenty years later Joseph was having a conversation with a teacher, who mentioned to Joseph that the modeling clays and other modeling compounds that were available for children to use, were simply too hard for those small hands to work and to mold.
The thought occurred to Joseph that, that failed wallpaper compound in his warehouse, was actually easy to mold into all kinds of different shapes.
Since it was simply just sitting in its 1.5 pound boxes gathering dust he decided to send a box to the teacher to have her students try out in place of the current molding compounds.
The teacher reported back that the off white modeling clay was a huge success and her students loved it.
Wanting to make sure that his product would indeed be a long term success as a child’s modeling compound, Joseph sent his repurposed wallpaper cleaner to several other schools, and it was a huge hit at all of them.
Play-Doh was Born
Joseph reformed his company under the name “Rainbow Crafts” and first introduced it to the world in 1956 with a few little tweaks under the name of Play-Doh.
It was an instant success and the creative world of the average child burst wide open.
Over the years there have been some changes to Play-Doh, containers went from cardboard, to Plastic, a variety of colors were added to further interest children, and the company was purchased by Hasbro.
In addition, accessories to use with the Play-Doh have been developed from simply molds, to the “Fun Factory”, and even a toy head you make teeth for (Play-Doh dentist set).
However, it still continues to be the most popular molding clay for children and part of everyone’s childhood memories.
Why Kids and Adults Love Play-Doh
Kids love Play-doh because it is fun to play with. Parents love it because they are not only fun, but also crafty and educational.
There are several toys of different colors, a variety of accessories, a lot of playsets with favorite characters, all of which will help your kid or toddler learn how to mold different things while playing and having fun.
More Play-Doh Fun To Consider
Play-Doh Modeling Compound 36-Pack Case of Colors, Non-Toxic, 
Play-Doh Sweet Shoppe Cookie CreationsPlay-Doh Cake Party
