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United Kingdom Martin Handford is an illustrator widely recognized for creating the globally successful 'Where's Wally?' (or 'Where's Waldo?') series of puzzle books, influencing children's literature and popular culture.
License this Brand. First published in 1987, Where's Wally? began as a collection of puzzle books created by English illustrator Martin Handford.
Through the deal with series creator Martin Handford, ER gained audiovisual, licensing and merchandising, publishing, live events, and digital rights. In January 2007, Entertainment Rights purchased the 'Where's Wally?' franchise for £2.5m.
Walker Books has partnered with restaurant chain Ask Italian and Universal Brand Development, on behalf of Dreamworks, to celebrate 30 years.
An official collaboration between Where's Wally? and OnePiece artists.
In the early 1990s, Quaker Life Cereal in the US carried various 'Where's Waldo?' scenes on the back of the boxes along with collector's cards, toys and send-away prizes.
On April 1, 2018, Google Maps added a minigame in which users could look for Wally and his friends around the world.
Martin Handford spent his childhood engaged in drawing, with his early artistic interests including cinema epics and toy soldiers. Following his art college education, he commenced his career as a freelance illustrator, specializing in the creation of detailed crowd scenes. His illustrative work draws inspiration from a variety of sources such as films, museum and art gallery visits, comics, books, and collections of ephemera and trivia. This meticulous research and personal embellishment contribute to the development of his intricate and humorous scenes.
The turning point in Handford’s career occurred in 1986 when an art director at Walker Books in London requested a book featuring detailed crowd scenes. During the book’s preparation for the Bologna Book Fair, the idea of incorporating a distinctive character for readers to find emerged. Handford conceived “Wally,” a world-traveling and time-traveling character consistently dressed in red and white. The first ‘Where’s Wally?’ book was published in 1987. The illustrations for each two-page spread were time-consuming, sometimes requiring up to eight weeks to complete. The books have been translated into 26 languages and are published in over 50 countries, selling more than 73 million copies worldwide by 2007.
Throughout the series, the challenge of finding Wally has evolved, with his size decreasing and the surrounding crowds increasing. For example, Wally’s average size reduced from 0.99 square centimeters in the first book to between 0.20 and 0.17 square centimeters in later editions, while the number of accompanying characters expanded significantly. The franchise has diversified into various media, including two animated television series, a comic strip, and several video games. Notable acquisitions of the ‘Where’s Wally?’ franchise include Entertainment Rights in 2007, followed by Boomerang Media in 2009, Classic Media in 2012, and ultimately NBCUniversal in 2016 through DreamWorks Animation.
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