Hello Kittyis, by far, Sanrio’s most famous character since her introduction to the franchise in the mid-1970s.In 1974, Sanrio held a contest encouraging their artists to create the most adorable character possible,and artist Yuko Shimizu was up to the challenge, designing the widely recognizedcat-like character who is actually a human, according to the company itself.
For over five decades, Hello Kitty has been one of Sanrio’s most lucrative, beloved personalities, andshe was likely popularized because of another, unexpected pop-culture icon from thePeanutscomic: Snoopy.Because of conflicts of interest between Snoopy’s creator, Charles M. Schulz, and the Sanrio Company, more attention was given to Hello Kitty, leading the feline to become one of the franchise’s most revered characters.
Snoopy Was Almost a Part of the Sanrio Universe
Sanrio’s President Recommended Schulz Make Snoopy the Star of the Peanuts Comic
Snoopy, the unmistakable white beagle character and best friend of Charlie Brownfrom Schulz’sPeanutscomic strip, is one of the most renowned animal characters nowadays, butfew know that he was almost actually a Sanrio character.Peanutsbegan appearing in newspapers in October 1950 and quickly gained traction for its humorous jokes, memorable art style, and lovable characters like Snoopy that readers continually returned to catch up with week after week. Eventually, Schulz’s work caught the Sanrio Company’s eye, and they reached out to the artist.
In the beginning,Peanuts’human characters were the series' focal point. Snoopy received more of a side part in the comics, which is very different from his prominence in the franchise today.Shintaro Tsuji, the president of Sanrio, recommended Snoopy be promoted to more of a starring role,citing the popularity of Sanrio’s animal characters in Japan at the time. In the words of Tsuji himself to Schulz, “Your comic will be more popular if you make this dog a main character.” This advice was certainly sagacious, as the public’s favor for Snoopy continually grew the more he was featured.
The Rights to Snoopy Were Acquired by Sanrio During His Rise in Popularity
Sanrio Planned to Release More Snoopy Merchandise in Japan With the Newly Obtained Rights
At this point in history, both Sanrio and Schulz were beginning to realize the audience’s appreciation for adorable anthropomorphic animals of all varieties, with Sanrio coming out with characters like Hello Kitty and My Melody and Schulz shifting the focusof thePeanutscomicsto highlight characters like Snoopy and Woodstock more than humans like Charlie Brown, Linus, and Lucy. Eventually,Snoopy’s explosion inpopularity caused Sanrioto go as far as to acquire the merchandising rights for the famous dog, preparing to expand his merchandise collections in Japan in light of his newfound acclaim.
According to aPeanutsfan blog,The AAUGH Blog,Snoopy did not just wind up inadvertently increasing Hello Kitty’s popularity; Tsuji’s wise words to Schulz helped catapult Snoopy into the public eyelike never before as well. It is difficult to pinpoint the exact time of Sanrio’s acquisition of the rights to Snoopy, but according to Schulz’s autobiographies and Tsuji’s statements, it was between the 1960s and 1970s. Everything went well at first, withSanrio and Schulz working in collaborationto bring Snoopy and friends to new audiences in Japan, but the peace between the partners ultimately did not last long-term.
Sanrio Began Focusing on Snoopy Less Due to Creative Differences
Because of Royalty Fees and Creative Differences, Schulz and Sanrio Parted Ways
Schulz and Sanrio began having creative differences regarding details of Snoopy as a character,and eventually, the creator began stepping back from his involvement with Sanrio, while Sanrio pivoted in a new direction, too. Rather than spending as much time and energy on licensed characters like Snoopy, Sanrio devoted more attention to their original characters, like Hello Kitty and My Melody, instead. While developing their own original personalities, Sanrio did not have to worry about the oversight of outside creators or paying hefty royalty fees any longer.
Another notable benefit of Sanrio putting original characters in the spotlight is that these anthropomorphic animals began to skyrocket in popularity too, and were introduced to wider audiences than before. One of these characters that received both more screentime in shows and more incorporation into merchandise was Hello Kitty herself. While before she was merely a symbol of cuteness created for a Sanrio contest,once Sanrio began focusing on her, she rapidly developed into an icon that became the face of the Sanrio Company branditself, a title she has held for decades now.
Sanrio Still Primarily Focuses on Original, Not Licensed, Characters
This Moment in Sanrio and Snoopy’s History is Ultimately a Rumor, Since it is Difficult to Pinpoint Sources
Realizing the benefits of creating their own unique characters caused Sanrio to pour more resources into developing a whole host of original Sanrio icons, such as Pompompurin, Cinnamoroll, and Badtz-Maru, to name just a handful.Sanrio’s own characters are some of the most popular fictional characters in the world today,and many historians and fans cite this incident of Sanrio stepping back from Snoopy-related merchandise as the company’s shift in priorities. Frustratingly, it is difficult to find precise sources chronicling this time in the company and the aftermath that resulted in both Hello Kitty and Snoopy’s approval spiking.
Although numerous sources reference this information being presented in Charles Schulz’s autobiographies, there seem to be no direct quotes regarding his involvement with Sanrio that are readily available. Because of Schulz’s and Sanrio’s silence surrounding this past partnership,this part of the Sanrio Company’s history must be considered an alleged rumor,although it does seem incredibly likely that the events transpired in this way. Both Hello Kitty and Snoopy were coming into vogue in the 1970s, so the timeframe does seem to suggest these rumors may have some credibility to them.
Currently, in Japan, Sanrio does have merchandising rights to Snoopy, but they still use his likeness more sparingly than their other original characters. There was once a statement on the official Sanrio website by Shintaro Tsuji chronicling their timeworking with Snoopy and Schulzin the past, but it has long since been deleted. Ultimately,it is still up to speculation whether Snoopy’s newfound popularity pushed Hello Kitty to become an icon too, or if Tsuji’s sage advice lent Snoopy his presence in pop culture.
