Story by Jamie Parsell

If I was a color, I would be fuchsia. It is my favorite Crayola crayon — the one I would use over and over again until the paper wore off and the crayon looked more like a fuchsia colored pebble. I would paint the world a deep fuchsia color. Others would prefer to paint their world in a bright hue of aquamarine, like Rhonda Lilly, who found it hard to pick just one favorite color.

“You’ve got to have all of them to make a pretty picture,” the Princeton W.Va. resident said, while gazing at the rows of colors.

Pink or blue. Red or yellow. A box of Crayola crayons offers more possibilities than the rainbow.

“I like pink,” said Debbie Ragan, of Princeton. “I like all of those pinks.”
So does Princeton resident Sarah Hercey; she favors hot magenta. Kay Chinsolo of Bluefield, W.Va., likes mauvelous and Princeton’s Summer Marshall thinks that the light pink crayon named salmon is a pretty color.

Any color of blue is popular — Meagan King, Lindsay Haun and Becca King, all of Princeton, prefer cerulean. Susan Rannel of Bluefield likes aquamarine.

A throwback to childhood, women never forget the smell, the sight and the feel of a crayon. More importantly, they never forget their favorite color.

The history of color - Color — it accentuates the eyes, paints a wall and is one of the first independent ideas of a child. Some children grab the green crayon first; others scramble for a blue. Quickly, favorite colors are chosen and most likely from a box of Crayola crayons. That first favorite color becomes a part of history, a personality trait in the making.

Crayons were introduced in 1903 by Joseph W. Binney, a chemical plant owner, his son, Edwin Binney, and nephew, C. Harold Smith. Striving to create better teaching tools, the trio began to research pigment and wax techniques. But it was a woman, Edwin’s wife, Alice Stead Binney, who took a special interest in the product, realizing the potential for childhood development. She is also credited for inventing the famous brand name, Crayola, which represents the French word “craie” meaning chalk or stick of color, and “ola,” which means oily.

The first box of Crayola crayons contained the five primary colors along with violet, black and brown. The entire box only cost 5 cents. In 1949, shades like turquoise blue, magenta, burnt sienna and carnation pink hit the stores. And in 1958, the first 64 box, with a built-in sharpener and 16 new colors, tapped into a new generation of children. In the ’70s, pop culture influenced the company, resulting in the introduction of eight new fluorescent colors.

Out with the old; in with mango tango - Eight crayons were forced into retirement in 1990. The forgotten shades like violet blue were placed in the Crayola Hall of Fame. The eight new shades ranged from jungle green to wild strawberry. Hoping to get the public involved in the creation of additional colors, 16 new colors were named by consumers in 1993. With names like granny smith apple, purple mountain majesty and even macaroni and cheese, the new colors exemplified America’s creativity.

Eight years later, 24 new colors were added to the Crayola box — bringing the total number of shades to 120. The new colors reflect a modern generation with shades like almond, pink sherbet and outerspace. In 2003, four more colors disappeared from the color studded line up. Amer-ica said good-bye to blizzard blue, magic mint, mulberry and teal blue. Burnt sienna was also on the retirement list, but was saved thanks to more than 60,000 devoted fans. New to the carton — inch worm, mango tango, wild blue yonder and jazzberry jam.

Identity crisis - While retirement and replacement reflect the changing of generations, only three colors have ever had a name change. In 1958, Prussian blue was changed to midnight blue. Teachers felt that children could no longer identify with the Prussian history. The color flesh was changed to peach after the company realized the important of skin tone. And in 1999, Indian red was renamed chestnut red. While the company named the color after a reddish-brown pigment near India, they felt that children associated the color with Native Americans.

The famous 64 - Would you like to biggie size your crayons? Eight, 28, 48 and finally, the most popular size — 64, with a built-in sharpener. The famous 64 box was introduced to children in 1958 on the “Captain Kangaroo Show.” Since then, more than 200 million Crayola 64 boxes have been sold, allowing for the 12.8 billion crayons inside to circle the earth 24 times. The box is getting a slight makeover this year. In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the classic Crayola 64 box, kids were allowed to choose eight new colors. Not surprisingly, shades with the names best friends, bear hug and awesome made the list.

Future endeavors - Since the early days of the eight pack, Crayola has expanded into markers, colored pencils, chalk and paint. It’s no wonder the name brand is one of the most recognized products in the classroom and at home. And every fall, children eagerly reach for Crayola’s new products — this year, it is no different.

For back-to-school 2008, Crayola will introduce No Drip Paint Brush pens. With paint built into the pens, there are no more drips, spills or messes. Another new product will be the Pip-Squeaks Mix ’Ems markers that allow children to create custom colors by changing out the markers and the caps. Each time a marker is clipped to a cap, a color reservoir will deposit a darker shade into the lighter shade stick. The result: A brand new color!

New to the classroom and art bucket will be Crayola’s True to Life markers, colored pencils and twistable crayons. A realistic look at color, the True to Life line will combine the high and low lights of frequently used colors. Finally, kids can create grass, sky, sand, sunrises and beaches — all in the name of color. P