Color Chicken Soup for the Soul

A coloring and activity book by
Chicken Soup for the Soul.

        Turn off the t.v. and turn your child onto reading aloud together. Talking with kids about the stories they read and then following up with simple activities is a pleasant and educational way for parents to spend time with their children.
       Chicken Soup for The Soul, not only produces great books for kids but also has wonderful media kits for educators full of free videos and lesson plans here.

       Chicken Soup for the Soul is a publishing, consumer goods and media company based in Cos Cob, CT. It is known for the Chicken Soup for the Soul series of books. The first book, like most subsequent titles in the series, consisted of inspirational true stories about ordinary people's lives. The book became a major best-seller and something of a social phenomenon. Today Chicken Soup for the Soul Publishing, LLC continues to publish about a dozen new books per year. The company has also branched out into other categories such as food, pet food, and television programming.

       Motivational speakers Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen collaborated on the first Chicken Soup for the Soul book, compiling inspirational, true stories they had heard from their audience members. Many of the stories came from members of the audience of their inspirational talks. The book was rejected by major publishers in New York but accepted by a small, self-help publisher in Florida called HCI.

       After the success of the first book, Canfield and Hansen, with HCI, published additional, similar Chicken Soup for the Soul titles. Later, they published Chicken Soup for the Soul books for specific demographics, such as Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul, which came out in 1997 and was a major best-seller. New Chicken Soup for the Soul titles and sequels to existing books have been published on a regular basis since the first book came out in 1993. As of late 2013, the series included more than 200 titles.

       In 2008, the founders, Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen, sold the company to a new ownership group led by William J. Rouhana and Robert D. Jacobs. Since then all new titles have been published by Chicken Soup for the Soul Publishing, LLC and distributed by Simon & Schuster.

       Under the new ownership group, Chicken Soup for the Soul has expanded into other categories besides books. The company markets pet foods under the brand Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's Soul and a line of soups, sauces and other prepared foods under the brand Chicken Soup for the Soul.

       In 2013, the company announced plans to produce a television series and movie with Alcon Entertainment. Chicken Soup for the Soul has also produced television programming with other partners, including PBS.

• 5 Teaching Strategies for Reinforcing Vocabulary 
• Importance of doing puzzles with your kids

Coloring Books by Lisa Frank

"Purfect Playtime" coloring by Lisa Frank.

      Lisa Frank designs were very popular when my youngest girl was small and she was quite enamored with this company's products.
      I introduced pages from this coloring book to some young children that I was taking care of five years ago. The reaction was exactly the same. The moment they laid eyes on her illustrations, they wanted to color the whole book all at once. I guess big eyed pets will always be a big hit with the young folks.

       Lisa Frank Inc. is a private for-profit company formed in 1979, under its founder and CEO, Lisa Frank. The company is known for its colorful, psychedelic designs featured on a variety of media, such as school supplies and stickers.

       The majority of Lisa Frank Incorporated’s relevance in popular culture stems from a wide internet exposure appealing to the childhood nostalgia of women who grew up with Lisa Frank merchandise in the 1980s and 1990s.

       Lisa Frank Inc.’s collaboration with Urban Outfitters in 2012 has launched the renewed interest in the company from the previously mentioned demographic. The teen and young adult targeted clothing retailer currently sells 1990s Lisa Frank merchandise on their website. According to an interview with Lisa Frank, the company has saved ten of each item produced throughout its history and some of those products are what is currently being sold by Urban Outfitters.

Retro commercials and private interview with Lisa Frank
 by Urban Outfitters Television. Click on video to see more
of their interviews.

• Lisa Frank's facebook 

Coloring with Mister Ed

One of several nostalgic coloring books in my
private collection.

            Believe it or not, "Mister Ed" was popular way before my time! Every once and a while I pick up an old coloring book from my local flee market. This one cost me one dollar! Wow, it used to be only 29 cents. This talking horse is the 'official' Hollywood version, published in 1963. Maybe someday when it's copyright expires, I will upload the pages here.

      The Mister Ed show concept was derived from a series of short stories by children's author Walter R. Brooks, which began with The Talking Horse in the September 18, 1937, issue of Liberty magazine. Brooks is otherwise best known for the Freddy the Pig series of children's novels, which likewise featured talking animals that interact with humans. Sonia Chernus, secretary to director Arthur Lubin, introduced Lubin to the Brooks stories and is credited with developing the concept for television.

      The show's concept resembles that of the Francis the Talking Mule movies in which an equine title character talks, but only to one person, thus causing a variety of opportunities and frustrations. The first six Francis films (1950–55) were also directed by Lubin.

      Lubin wanted to make a Francis TV series but had been unable to secure the rights. However someone told him about Brooks' series of stories. He optioned these for TV.

      Comedian George Burns financed the original pilot for Mister Ed which was shot at his McCadden Studio in Hollywood at a cost of $70,000. Scott McKay played Wilbur. Jack Benny was also involved behind the scenes. Unable to sell the show to a network, Lubin decided to sell the show into syndication first. He managed to get single sponsor identification for the program on over 100 stations. The show was recast with Alan Young in the lead. Production began in November 1960, although Lubin did not direct early episodes because he was working in Europe on a film. The first 26 episodes were well received enough for the show to be picked up by CBS.

View old Mister Ed television series:

• Mister Ed's Christmas Story
• Mister Ed Gets The Mumps
  

Free "Water Safety Coloring Book" from Minnesota

"This water safety coloring and activity book may be used to instruct children in some of the basics if boat and water safety." Download this free coloring book here

Parents may wish to share this coloring book with their kids before taking them on vacation. Come explore the water trails of Minnesota this summer.

"Color The Coast" free coloring book

This free coloring book for students was published by The Florida Office of Coastal Management in 1980. It was illustrated by Randy McCaulley and uploaded to the internet archive by The Florida State Library. It teaches students how to keep their coastal environment clean.

"Learning About Florida Invaders" coloring book

A educational coloring book by CAPS.

Science teachers may wish to acquire this free coloring book for their classrooms. 

"Learning About Florida Invaders is sponsored by the Cooperative Agricultural Pest Survey (CAPS), a group of state and federal inspectors that monitor Florida for unwanted exotic invasive pests. To learn more about CAPS, visit FreshFromFlorida.com."

This coloring book has been designated for educational use by the Florida Division of Library and Information Services at The Internet Archive.