Kenner
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Kenner Products was a toy company founded in 1947 by Albert, Phillip, and Joseph Steiner, in Cincinnati, Ohio, and was named after the street where the original corporate offices were located. Kenner introduced the Give-a-Show projector in 1959, the Easy-Bake Oven in 1963, and the Spirograph drawing toy in 1966. It was a pioneer in the use of television as a medium for advertising toys across the United States, beginning in 1958.
The company was purchased by General Mills in 1967.
In 1970, General Mills merged its Rainbow Crafts division into Kenner Products, bringing Play-Doh into the Kenner product line.
Kenner Products obtained the rights to produce action figures and playsets for the Star Wars trilogy from 1977-1984. After Kenner acquired the license to produce Star Wars toys when the Mego Corporation rejected it in 1976, Kenner created the industry standard 3.75 inch action figure that continues to dominate the action figure toy market.
In 1985, General Mills spun off its Kenner and Parker toy divisions to form Kenner Parker Toys, Inc. Kenner Parker was acquired by Tonka in 1987. Under Tonka management, Kenner Products was reconstituted as a division.
Tonka (including Kenner) was purchased by the toy company Hasbro in mid-1991. Hasbro closed the Cincinnati offices of Kenner in 2000, and Kenner's product lines were merged into Hasbro's.
External links
- History of Kenner Products (http://www.kennertoys.com/history.html)