Smile though your heart is aching
Smile even though it’s breaking
When there are clouds in the sky
You’ll get by
Smiling is one of the most universal things – everyone knows how to smile and what a genuine smile means. Regardless of where you’re from, smiles are often a symbol of kindness, happiness, and warmth. Smiles bring interesting stories to our lives, including one fun story of the smiley face.
Birth of The Smiley Face
This smiley face is possibly one of the most used icons since its inception. In 1963, a graphic artist named Harvey Ball created the iconic smiley face image. It was meant to be a graphic that would boost the morale of the employees of an insurance company. The company faced a difficult merger that resulted in low employee morale. It was a hit, and did boost the mood of both employees and executives.
Increased Popularity
The icon was used in the company’s friendship campaign where they gave away button pins to the employees with the icon. They hoped that the buttons would be a positive reminder for the employees throughout the day. By 1971, the smiley face button pins became an international icon with over 50 million pins sold. Other companies followed suit, and the design was used beyond the pins, but the original company did not benefit from it as they did not apply for a trademark for the design. According to Harvey Ball’s son, he never regretted the decision not to apply.
Overuse and reclamation
Because of the production of the icon, the image became overused and its impact started to fade. To rejuvenate the original goal, Bell created a tradition in Smiley’s hometown of Worcester, MA, where everyone should dedicate one day to kindness, and making at least one person smile. This continued annually until his death where the Harvey Ball World Smile Foundation, an establishment created in his honor, continued his tradition for him to this day.
“Do an act of kindness. Help one person smile.”
