In 1974, a fictional cat was created, however, this isn’t any ordinary fictional feline, however. This feline would go down in pop culture for many years to come. Her name is Hello Kitty! Many people know the name and face but do they know her backstory? How she launched to stardom? Her many franchises? Her many friends? Her merch? Today I will be diving into the world of Sanrio’s most popular character to date and the many influences she had on the entire world!

Hello Kitty, created by Yuko Shimizu and designed by Yuko Yamaguchi, was the profit solution for ex-rubber sandal making Japanese company, Sanrio. Hello Kitty started off as a nameless cat until Shimizu got the name from Lewis Carol’s Through the Looking Glass. He took a social communication term and the name from Through the Looking Glass and combined it to make the iconic name, Hello Kitty!

Is it an iconic character without an interesting piece of lore to accompany said character? According to the 2011 Sanrio website using a web archive page, Hello Kitty’s real name is Kitty White, she was born in London, England, her birthday is on November 1st and her blood type is A! She even has a boyfriend named Dear Daniel! She’s been described as a gijinka which means she is anthropomorphic (personified). The Sanrio site gives a little more insight about the Anthro cat during it’s Sanrio Friend of The Month newsletter, which gives recognition and background to Sanrio Characters. They say she: iss a bright little girl with a heart of gold, hails from the suburbs of London, England, is as tall as five apples, and as heavy as three, has a twin sister named Mimmy, dreams of one day becoming a pianist or maybe even a poet, has a soft spot for Mama's apple pie, and always says, "you can never have too many friends!"

She has a MASSIVE list of animated series such as Hello Kitty's Furry Tale Theater (1987), Hello Kitty and Friends (1989–2000), Hello Kitty's Paradise (1999), Growing Up with Hello Kitty (2001), Hello Kitty's Animation Theater (2001), Hello Kitty's Stump Village (2005), Hello Kitty: Ringo no Mori (2006–2008), The Adventures of Hello Kitty & Friends (2008–2009), and even more!

Her face is plastered on multiple articles of merchandise including Comics, Video Games, a Hello kitty Dreamcast, a few films, a plane, clothes, piggy banks and much, much more! Even getting her own page on Times magazine!