Yellow smiley face with a wrinkled texture over the yellow.

This button is part of the 2014 Button-O-Matic artist series produced by Busy Beaver Button Company. It was designed by artist Tim Lahan.

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 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.

A smiley face with letters inside the eyes and mouth on a red background

Illustration of a face with red letters for the eyes, nose and mouth and black text underneath on a white background

This button was given for the Whooper Award in the 1950s, created by Governor Hugh Gregg of New Hampshire to acknowledge the honorary citizens of New Hampshire, and thus allowing them to "Whoop it up for the Greatest of All States." Gov. Gregg held banquets and other celebrations for the "Whooper Week," as a series of attempts to help boost New Hampshire agriculture, recreation and industry. 

Notable recipients of the award include President Dwight D. Eisenhower (for his fishing skill in New Hampshire) and Vice President Richard Nixon, John H. Griffin, and Wayne E. Richards, etc.

Hand drawn smiley face on what appears to be white paint on top of the button (that used to be gold)

This button has the smiley faced hand drawn in marker on it.

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 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.

Traditional yellow smiley face design but with two black and white photographs of people's heads as the eyes and with black text above and below the face

Uncanny Alliance was an American house music group of the 1990s which included Brinsley Evans and E.V. Mystique. Their song “Happy Day” was featured in the movie Happy Gilmore.

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 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.

A yellow background with an alarm clock illustrated in black. The face of the clock has a black smiley face. Black writing at the bottom.

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.

“Tic-Toc” is a phrase to indicate that time is running out. It also refers to the sound that the hands on an analog clock makes while it moves and measures the hours, minutes, and seconds. The old-fashioned alarm clock pictured were made on winding mechanisms which ticked the minutes as the mechanism rotated across the gears.

Illustration of a white and pink smiley face with white text above and below it on a pink background

Twin City Federal, also known as TCF, is a bank chain established in 1986.  The button was part of an advertising campaign to generate business for the bank. They currently have offices in Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan, Colorado, Arizona and South Dakota.

Yellow background with black text across the center, the first letter swooping down to make a curving line back up to connect with the last letter, making a smile. Black text curved along the bottom portion of the button.

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.

“Have a Nice Day” is a colloquial expression when saying goodbye. It is often used in customer service in the USA with the consumer and the seller parting ways by telling each other to have a nice rest of their day. The first use of the phrase appeared in Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales in 1387. The phrase gained wider use in the 1920s and has continued on into present day. 

“Think big” is used as a term to encourage someone to think more ambitiously or grand.

The design of the smile also forms the shape of a cross, a symbol of Christianity.

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Smiley face with yellow and white eyes and yellow smile on a red background with yellow and white text underneath the face

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.

Traditional yellow smiley face with black text above and below the face

This button is from the Plaza Hotel. In a 1972 New York Magazine article reviewing the hotel’s new restaurant “The Green Tulip” the writer refers to “a bowl of yellow buttons that stands alongside the mints at the door, the buttons bearing a familiar stylized smile and the slogan, ’The Plaza is happy people’” as one of the many “mistakes” the new restaurant has made. The slogan is also mentioned in a 1971 Sales Management book.

This button is a variation on the classic yellow smiley face that 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.