A Brief History of Winnie-the-Pooh

The Rise of Pooh
From his creation, Pooh enjoyed great popularity, but his fortunes rose considerably in 1930, when his U.S. and Canadian trade rights were acquired by Stephen Slesinger, an American producer who was among the first businessmen to recognize the commercial value of product licensing. After he acquired the rights to the character, Slesinger developed Pooh dolls, records, board games, puzzles and more. By 1931, the little bear had grown to a $50 million–a–year business.

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