Won't You Be My Baby

Blue text and illustration of a doll holding a flower on a white background with a blue border.

Johnson Smith & Company began in Chicago, Illinois in 1914 as a mail-order novelty and gag gift supplier, settling in Racine, Wisconsin in 1926. Johnson Smith & Co. or Johnson Smith Company sold an array of toys including pinback buttons with suggestive slogans meant as ice breakers.  Their 1929 catalogue touts, “These Buttons provide subjects for pleasant jokes and amusing conversations, and thus smooth the way to a more familiar acquaintance and cordial friendship. They are very wittily worded and quite unobjectionable. Wear one and see the effect.”

During the 1920s and 1930s, the phrase "Won't you be my baby?" was a widely recognized and significant expression, especially within romantic relationships and the realm of popular music. Its prevalence is evidenced by its appearance in the titles and lyrics of songs from the period, with Benny Carter composing an early piece in the late 1920s titled "Will You Or Won't You Be My Baby?" as well as Louis Armstrong having recorded a song around 1930 titled "Won't You Be My Baby." In the early 20th century, "Won't you be my baby?" represented a forthright and often earnest invitation to embark on a romantic relationship, reflecting the romantic and social conventions of the time.