Hallmark hall of shame: Where cards go to die

[greatauntoftriplets]

Hallmark hall of shame: Where cards go to die

By Matt Sedensky
Associated Press
Published March 30, 2006

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Some were sent away for being too profane, others for making snide comments at inopportune times. Now the greeting cards that never made it to the stores hang solemnly on a wall at Hallmark Cards Inc.

For employees at Hallmark's Shoebox division who make their living writing humorous greetings, only a small fraction of their work ends up as cards for birthdays, holidays and other special occasions. The best of the rest are brought to their final resting place--a giant fabric "NO" along one office wall.

"It could be that it's highly inappropriate. It could be that it feels like too much of an internal joke," said Sarah Tobaben, an editorial director for Shoebox. "We want to write for the mainstream while taking some appropriate risks."

Hallmark introduced its Shoebox line of irreverent cards 20 years ago this spring and says it has sold more than 2 billion since. Most days since the line's inception, card writers have been given an assignment to develop ideas for a specific category. They typically write them on blank 3-inch-by-5-inch index cards, folded to resemble a miniature greeting, and then they're tried out on co-workers in a roundtable read-off.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0603300231mar30,1,348311.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed

[wildhorses]

1. funny...stuff

but
no
fucking funny

now that's funny...



FBN...FIRE BUSH NOW!!!!

[ScreamingMeemie]

2. the Mother's Day card is hysterical.

:hi: