Father's Day
Celebrated on June 17, 2012
Facts
- Father’s Day is always the third Sunday in June.
- Father’s Day is the fourth-largest card-sending holiday in the United States, with 94 million cards exchanged annually.
- 50 percent of all Father’s Day cards are purchased for dads. Nearly 15 percent of Father’s Day cards are purchased for husbands. Other categories include grandfathers, sons, brothers, uncles, and someone special.
- Two top-selling kinds of cards are “Dad from Daughter” and cards from a couple or family group: “Dad From Both” and “Our Wish.”
- Humor cards account for about 30 percent of Father’s Day sales.
- Hallmark has been producing Father’s Day cards since the early 1920s.
2012 Product Features
Cards for Special Dads
- Hallmark offers more than 650 cards for Father's Day, including 99-cent value cards, Postage-Paid Greetings, Shoebox humor cards, Mahogany cards for African-American consumers and Hallmark Sinceramente designs with Spanish messages designed for Hispanic consumers.
- Card prices begin at 99 cents.
- New for Father’s Day 2012, Hallmark offers the following greeting card innovations:
- Pop-Ups with Lights: Make Dad the center of attention and add some excitement to his Father's Day with lights. These cards light up the fun with innovative lights that flash and dance on designs that pop-up when they're opened. Great songs and sounds from Hallmark's exclusive library of featured artists, movies, properties and our own recordings add to the excitement!
- Motion + Sound and 3D Motion + Sound: Make Dad feel special and bring some excitement to Father's Day with clever motion cards with sound! These cards not only move - they combine music, talking characters, and clever concepts that tell a fun story dads will love. Also this Father's Day, the magic of 3-D Motion and great music come together bring the "Wow!" factor.
- Humor: The new humor innovation cards take some of our most popular concepts and enhance them in new and unexpected ways. They appeal to many of dad's interests and his sense of humor. These cards feature motion + sound, lights + sound, alternative activation and four all-new lip-sync + sound designs. This brand new technology features an entertaining voice-activated format where dad's voice triggers funny and surprising results. Easy to use, and no buttons to press.
- All the Involved Dads: Dads do it all, so why not compliment his involvement with warm yet simply stated praise. This collection of cards are lighthearted solutions that find humor in the everyday- from driving carpool vans to playing dress-up with their daughters- real things fathers can identify with in their caregiving, interactive, involved relationships with their children.
- Humor Funny Retro Photos: Fun retro-style photography is paired with clever writing that goes well beyond the obvious. This is a card offering that makes a unique and indelible impression on Dads. These cards are funny, smart and quirky.
- He's My Hero: Let Dad know he is your hero! Celebrate Dads, grandpas and more with cards that express pride and appreciation for their role in the family. Many of these cards feature images of popular super heroes - The Amazing Sprider-ManTM, ThorTM, Iron ManTM and even Captain AmericaTM.
- Pet Dads: Honor the "dad" of friendly creatures with fun and heartwarming cards praising his loyalty, playfulness and loving nature. Cards work from the pet, or from family and friends.
- Papercraft: Masculine motifs are presented in new and exciting ways, and feature a variety of textures. These cards take paper greetings to a new level.
- Postage-Paid Greetings: Hallmark has partnered with the U.S. Postal Service to offer Postage-Paid Greetings – a line of cards that already includes postage. Just sign seal and send! Consumers will be able to choose from 39 Father’s Day Postage-Paid Greetings for dad, grandpa, brother, son and uncle.
- To meet consumer needs, the Father's Day line includes a variety of cards for special circumstances, including "Son's First Father's Day," "Husband - Soon to be a Dad," "Son - Soon to Be a Dad," "Patriotic Dad," "Patriotic Grandfather," "Dad Having a Difficult Year," "Husband Having a Difficult Year," and "Loss of Child."
- Hallmark is bringing back the following consumer favorites for Father’s Day:
- Shoebox cards offer a fun, humorous way to appreciate, affirm and acknowledge the dads in a consumer’s life through real-life, shared parenting experiences.
- The Mahogany Father’s Day collection includes 66 culturally-relevant designs and sentiments that help consumers honor dad and other special men in their lives. The collection contains 99-cent cards, general greetings, as well as Cards With Sound featuring classic R&B hits such as "It's Your Thing" by the Isley Brothers and a gospel song.
- Hallmark Sinceramente provides Hispanic consumers with a choice of 125 Father’s Day cards, including three Cards With Sound. Sinceramente Cards With Sound play the classic title "Mi Viejo" by Mariachi Aquila Real, a love song "Te Quiero Tanto, Tanto" by OV7, or commentary from Hallmark's hoops&yoyo.
- Card Showers from Hallmark is a free, online service that helps a group of people “shower” a special person with a mailbox full of well wishes, gratitude or support. With this new service, consumers quickly can create and organize their own Card Showers to share ‘get well’ wishes or celebrate occasions, such as Father's Day.
- Hallmark.com offers a variety of cards and e-cards for Father’s Day. On Hallmark.com, you can upload photos and draft customized messages to be featured in your card. Hallmark will address, stamp and mail your Father’s Day cards for you.
Gifts Perfect for Dad
- Perfect for Father's Day, Recordable Artwork – capture the story behind the art! Hallmark research shows that parents want to preserve their children’s stories before the memories are gone forever, and they want to see the world through their children’s eyes. Four products make that possible:
- Canvas Art Kit - A child paints on the canvas panel, lets it dry and then inserts the artwork into a recordable 9” x 9” black plastic frame. The frame holds 40 seconds of recording time. Complete with Crayola washable paints and paint brush.
- An Art Gift Book is a perfect way to give permanent memories to mom. This make-and-give book features Hallmark illustrations, verses and the child’s own drawing and voice. Frame on cover holds photo of child with special person and 20 seconds of recording time for dedication.
- Capture the magic of a child’s creativity and preserve special memories with Recordable Greeting Cards. A die-cut frame on the front of each card holds an 8 1/2” x 11” paper so a favorite piece of artwork, award certificate or any other special treasure can be shared. Each card features 10 seconds of recording time.
- Magnetic Photo Clips - A fun and unique way to personalize and showcase important papers like artwork, certificates, photos and more. Can be used to pair a special piece of artwork with a 40 second recorded message and holds a school-sized 2” x 3” photo. Features bright-colored plastic frame with clip and magnet.
The force will be with Dad this Father's Day with the Star WarsTM gift collection, featuring the likes of Yoda, Luke Skywalker and even a Jedi on Framed Art, Sound Buttons, Bottle Opener, Picture Frames, Travel Mugs with Sound, and Coffee Mugs. The Darth Vader Fortune Teller and the Light Saber Note Cube are sure to be hits with Dad.
- A daily reminder that they are super heroes, dads and grandpas will love the collection of Super Hero themed gifts. They range from t-shirts to flip-flops and even a sound button. Five cool and clever Super Hero Mugs are also available featuring popular licensed properties, SupermanTM and BatmanTM.
- Hallmark's Family Tree is a creative way to showcase a family's lineage. The Family Tree proudly displays framed photographs of relatives and also provides space for new family additions.
- Hallmark Gift Books offer a variety of books for Father's Day, including:
- Recordable Conversation Books: Dads and grandpas can record conversations with the kids in their lives by asking them a series of fun, open-ended questions from the books Dad and Me and Grandpa and Me
- Dad and Grandpa Photo Insert Books: Just insert dad's or grandpa's photo and this book instantly becomes a fun and playful way to acknowledge all the roles dad and grandpa play in their (grand) children's lives every day.
- Hallmark also offers a variety of gift bags, wrap, tissue and add-ons to make one-stop Father's Day shopping easy, as well as paper partyware to enhance the celebration.
Holiday History
A Babylonian youth named Elmesu carved the first known Father's Day card in clay nearly 4,000 years ago. His special message wished his father good health and a long life.
William Jackson Smart of Spokane, Wash., a man ahead of his time, is the inspiration for modern-day Father’s Day. Smart was a widower and Civil War veteran who was both father and mother to his six children for 21 years after the death of his wife. Smart’s daughter, Sonora Louise (Mrs. John Bruce Dodd), got the idea for Father’s Day in 1909 while listening to a Mother’s Day sermon at church. She encouraged local churches to institute a Father's Day observance the following year (1910) on one Sunday in June, the month of her father’s birth. Through her efforts, interest in the celebration of Father’s Day grew and spread to other cities and states.
Although many congressional resolutions proclaiming a national Father’s Day were introduced through the years, the holiday was made official in 1972 when President Richard Nixon signed a presidential resolution that declared Father’s Day as the third Sunday in June.
In Stores
Available at Hallmark Gold Crown® stores nationwide and wherever Hallmark products are sold. Use the store locator on Hallmark.com to find the nearest Hallmark Gold Crown store.