Photograph

During the late 1940s and early 1950s, the Whitman Publishing Company of Racine, Wisconsin trademarked the name "Fuzzy Wuzzy," for its line of Fuzzy Wuzzy activity books for children. The lead characters in the stories, such as dogs, cats, clowns, or fairy-tale characters, were printed and then their fur or garments was covered with a soft "fuzzy" coating. Toddlers and young children delighted in touching the friendly and soft characters, which is just what the two little girls in this photograph from about 1950 are doing. Some of the books were also called "Whitman Tell-A-Tale" books because they were meant to be read aloud to children. Amazingly, many have survived and the fuzzy parts are still quite soft.