Sad Green Flower

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Illustration of a green flower drooped over with a sad face and tear on a yellow background

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A variation of the classic smiley is the inverted sad face with a tear drop. A daisy is a common flower with either white or yellow petals with a yellow center and green stem. A wilting flower can also express sadness as well as decay.

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Catalog ID SM0102

Green Creature

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Illustration of a green creature with red eyes and a sharp toothed grin and tongue hanging out of its mouth wearing a black and purple suit on an orange background

Curl Text ANYA DAVIDSON | ANYAISDEAD.TUMBLR.COM BUSY BEAVER BUTTON-O-MATIC 2014
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This button is part of the 2014 Button-O-Matic artist series produced by Busy Beaver Button Company. It was designed by artist Anya Davidson.

Catalog ID SM0054

Perfect School Plan Green and Pink Smiley

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Illustration of a traditional smiley face design but where the eyes and mouth make up the profile views of two other smiling faces, on a bright pink background.

Curl Text copyright 1971-PERFECT SCHOOL PLAN
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This button was created by Perfect School Plan which is a division of Perfect Subscription Co.

The is a variation of the classic yellow smiley face which is comprised of a yellow circle, two black dots for eyes and a black arc ending in serifs for a mouth. It was designed in 1963 by by commercial artist, Harvey Ross Ball. Ball was commissioned by The State Mutual Life Insurance Company to create a happy face to raise the morale of their employees. His version was created in 10 minutes. The design was printed onto more than 50 million buttons. Neither Ball nor the company copyrighted this smiley, so it was continually used by other businesses in their promotions.


The design and concept is quite simple and was definitely used before Ball’s 1963 version. However his has become the most iconic. Variations have been used for advertising campaigns and in popular culture ever since.

Catalog ID SM0045

Googie's

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Text on Button GOOGIE'S
Image Description

Illustration of a face where the eyes become the letter O's of the text with a red lipped mouth under the eyes on a white background

Back Paper / Back Info

NYC written on the back to indicate the button is from New York City

Curl Text N.G. SLATER CORP., N.Y.C. 11
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Googie's was a coffee shop and restaurant in Los Angeles on the Sunset strip. The restaurant was known for its googie architecture, a style from the 1950s to 1960s. Googie's had other locations in downtown Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, and Monterey Park. Googie's was originally owned by Mortimer C. Burton and Ernie Goldenfeld. It was then sold to Ed Thrasher. Many celebrities dined at the restaurant including James Dean, Dennis Hopper, Vampira, Marilyn Monroe, Natalie Wood, Lee Marvin, and Steve McQueen. Lenny Bruce got into a fight in Googie's and was thrown through the window. From the 1960s to the 1980s, the restaurant changed its name from Gee Gee’s, Steak n’ Stein, and Pippy’s Pizza. It was demolished in 1988.

Lipstick, or red lips, became popular in the 20th century. The American women’s suffrage movement adopted red lipstick as a sign of protest. Prior to this movement, red lips were considered sexual amoral and during medieval times, having to do with the devil. Red lipstick became a common part of the modern American woman’s makeup regime. During World War II, Hitler famously hated red lipstick so for an American Woman to wear red lipstick was also a protest against fascism.

Sources

Hayes, S. (2008). Googie's Coffee Shop to the Stars. Bear Manor Media.

Hess, A. (2004). Googie redux. San Francisco: Chronicle Books.

Jacqui Palumbo, C. (2021). Empowering, alluring, degenerate? The evolution of red lipstick. Retrieved 6 February 2021, from https://www.cnn.com/style/article/red-lipstick-history-beauty/index.html

Three Injured in Cafe Battle on Sunset Strip". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. February 5, 1957. p. A5

"Freak Out Hot Spots by Frank Zappa". Los Angeles Free Press. Los Angeles, California. November 11, 1966. Retrieved October 18, 2020.

"Roundabout". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. October 30, 1966. p. A5

Los Angeles Times (October 7, 1988). "Wrecking Ball Falls on Famed Schwab's Store". Los Angeles Times

N.G. Slater Corporation - Custom Imprinted Merchandise - Home. (2021). Retrieved 6 February 2021, from https://www.ngslater.com/

Stern, Phil. "Phil Stern Archives". philsternarchives.com. Los Angeles.

Catalog ID SM0101

Find A Face Yellow

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Text on Button Find it! From Find a Face copyright 2004 by Francois and Jean Robert with Jane Gittings, published by Chronicle Books.
Image Description

Photograph of the heal of a shoe viewed from the bottom on a yellow background

Curl Text RECYCLED PAPER
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This image is from a fun interactive art book published in 2004 called Find a Face, by Francois Robert and Jean Robert. The goal is to get young children to look at the world around them to try to get them to see faces in every day objects, like cheese graters and cookie cutters.

Catalog ID SM0076

Find A Face Red

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Text on Button Find it! From Find a Face copyright 2004 by Francois and Jean Robert with Jane Gittings, published by Chronicle Books.
Image Description

Photograph of a cheese grater viewed from the side on a red background with white text above and small black text at the bottom

Curl Text RECYCLED PAPER
Back Style
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This image is from a fun interactive art book published in 2004 called Find a Face, by Francois Robert and Jean Robert. The goal is to get young children to look at the world around them to try to get them to see faces in every day objects, like cheese graters and cookie cutters. ​

Catalog ID SM0075

Engineers Local 324

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Text on Button ENGINEERS LOCAL 324
Image Description

Orange background with black text arched along the top, black smiley face in the center.
 

Curl Text PARA-GIFT, SOUTHFIELD, MICH. 48075 (union bug)
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Engineers Local 324, now known as Operating Engineers 324, which, according to their website, has provided value to workers, businesses and communities throughout the entire state of Michigan. Established in 1906, they have played a central role in building, operating and maintaining Michigan’s industrial infrastructure. They have a membership of over 14,000.

Catalog ID SM0066

Double Eyed Smiley

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Illustration of a traditional smiley face design but with two sets of eyes and a cigarette hanging out of its mouth on a yellow and orange swirl background

Curl Text KILLING MYSELF TO LIVE WWW.SOMEGUYDESIGN.COM BURRITOBREATH.TUMBLR.COM
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The classic yellow smiley face is comprised of a yellow circle, two black dots for eyes, and a black arc ending in serifs for a mouth. It was designed in 1963 by commercial artist, Harvey Ross Ball. Ball was commissioned by The State Mutual Life Insurance Company to create a happy face to raise the morale of their employees. His version was created in 10 minutes. The design was printed onto more than 50 million buttons. Neither Ball nor the company copyrighted this smiley, so it was continually used by other businesses in their promotions.
The design and concept is quite simple and was definitely used before Ball’s 1963 version. However, his has become the most iconic. Variations have been used for advertising campaigns and in popular culture ever since.

Burrito Breath is a graphic artist company that designs buttons, stickers, and other creative items.

Sources


About Harvey Ball. (n.d.). Retrieved September 12, 2020, from https://www.worldsmileday.com/index.php/article-index/item/380-about-ha…

FRESH STUFF. (n.d.). Retrieved September 18, 2020, from https://www.burritobreath.com/

Catalog ID SM0105

Coors Smiley

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Text on Button Coors
Image Description

A red and white smiley face made up of cursive text for teh eyes and a nose and a mouth with a red outer edge

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The Molson Coors Brewing Company is a North American brewing company. Molson (a Canadian company) was founded in 1786, and Coors (an American company) was founded in 1873. The two companies merged in 2005, and together, the Molson Coors company is the seventh largest brewer in the world, employing over 5,000 people. Their headquarters are in Denver, Colorado, and they produce a variety of beers, lagers, malt beverages, energy drinks, spirits, and wines.

Catalog ID SM0070

Come Back Again

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Text on Button WELCOME! COME BACK AGAIN!
Image Description

Illustration of a face with big white and black eyes and a smile with red text above it and green text below

Curl Text STANDARD PUBLISHING 7805 LITHO USA
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"Welcome" is a greeting often used when a customer enters a place of business. "Come back again" is a salutation often stated by the worker of the place of business towards the departing customer. 

The classic yellow smiley face is comprised of a yellow circle, two black dots for eyes, and a black arc ending in serifs for a mouth. It was designed in 1963 by commercial artist, Harvey Ross Ball. Ball was commissioned by The State Mutual Life Insurance Company to create a happy face to raise the morale of their employees. His version was created in 10 minutes. The design was printed onto more than 50 million buttons. Neither Ball nor the company copyrighted this smiley, so it was continually used by other businesses in their promotions.

The design and concept are quite simple and was definitely used before Ball’s 1963 version. However, his has become the most iconic. Variations have been used for advertising campaigns and in popular culture ever since.

In internet culture, the smiley face is often represented by a colon and a parentheses. :)

Sources

About Harvey Ball. (n.d.). Retrieved September 12, 2020, from https://www.worldsmileday.com/index.php/article-index/item/380-about-ha…

Catalog ID SM0112