Baby Einstein is a line of multimedia products and toys that specialize in interactive activities for preschool viewers aged 4 years old and younger. Subjects music, art, language, science, and mathematics are prominently explored. These products are currently made by a division of the Walt Disney Company, marketed under the slogan, "Great minds start little". The Baby Einstein Company pays a significant amount of money to Corbis, on behalf of the estate of renowned physicist Albert Einstein, for the use of the Einstein name, though the products have virtually nothing to do with Einstein or his work (however, Disney uses a disclaimer that Einstein is a trademark of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem The Baby Einstein Company was founded in 1997 by stay-at-home mom and former teacher Julie Aigner-Clark at her home in suburban Alpharetta, Georgia, asJulie Aigner-Clark Films.[2] Aigner-Clark and her husband, Bill Clark, invested $18,000 of their savings to produce the initial product, a Video Board Book, a VHS entitled Baby Einstein, later sold as Language Nursery. The original video shows a variety of toys and visuals interspersed with music, stories, numbers, and words of many languages. Eventually, the video was marketed across the United States, Europe, Asia and Australia. Other videos followed, some featuring the Clarks' two daughters, Aspen & Sierra, among other children. Also featuring toys by Ambi, Brio, Folkmanis, Dakin, Chimes, Battat, Tomy, Legends and Lore, among others. Baby Einstein became a multi-million dollar franchise; its revenue grew from $1 million in 1998[3] to around $10 million in 2000.[4] Aigner-Clark renamed the company to The Baby Einstein Company in January 1998, and sold a 20% stake in the company to Artisan Entertainment and Family Home Entertainment in February 2000 and sold the rest to The Walt Disney Company for an undisclosed amount in November 2001.[5] The franchise is named after and pays significant royalties to the estate of deceased physicist Albert Einstein, putting him in the top 5 of most earning dead celebrities, according to Forbes.[6] At one point in 2009, the brand was estimated to be worth nearly 400 million dollars based on revenues. Julie was named Entrepreneur of the Year and won various awards for her products, which are the number one selling brand (1 in three households with babies in the US own at least one Baby Einstein product) of videos for very young children.[citation needed] Julie has appeared in many media outlets, including Oprah, GMA, The Today Show and USA Today. On January 23, 2007 The Baby Einstein Company was mentioned in the State of the Union address by President George W. Bush. Aigner-Clark, along with other notable U.S. citizens, was invited to sit in the gallery during the speech, and was recognized by Bush during his presentation to the nation. As a subsidiary of Disney, the production budgets were increased and the concept was expanded to include a wide range of themes. A line of educational toys were also developed. In 2005, the franchise inspired a Disney Junior animated television series called Little Einsteins. The official Baby Einstein website is available in English and en Español, with specific content for more than 30 different countries. • Baby Einstein - Language Nursery (1997) • Baby Mozart - Music Festival (1998) • Baby Bach - Musical Adventure (1999) • Baby Shakespeare - World of Poetry (2000) • Baby Van Gogh - World of Colors (2000) • Baby Santa's Music Box (2000) • Baby Dolittle - Neighborhood Animals (2001) • Baby Dolittle - World Animals (2001) • Baby Newton All About Shapes (2002) • Baby Beethoven - Symphony of Fun (2002) • Baby Neptune - Discovering Water (2002) • Baby Galileo - Discovering the Sky (2003) • Numbers Nursery (2003) • Baby MacDonald - A Day on the Farm (2003) • Baby Da Vinci - From Head to Toe (2004) • Baby Noah - Animal Expedition (2004) • Baby Monet - Discovering the Seasons (2005) • Baby Wordsworth - First Words - Around the House (2005) • On the Go - Riding, Sailing and Soaring (2005) • Meet the Orchestra - First Instruments (2006) • Baby's Favorite Places - First Words Around Town (2006) • Baby's First Moves (2006) • Discovering Shapes - Circles, Squares, and More! (2007) • My First Signs (2007) • Lullaby Time (2007) • Baby's First Sounds: Discoveries for Little Ears (2008) • World Music (2009) • World Animal Adventure (2009) • Baby Einstein - Wild Animal Safari (2010) • Baby Einstein - Animals Around Me (2010) • Baby Einstein - Baby Lullaby (2011) • Baby Einstein - Neptune's Oceans (2011) • Baby Einstein - World Of Rhythm (2011)

• published: 15 May 2014
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