Callaway Arts & Entertainment

In 2000, one year after acquiring Callaway Golf Media Venture,[6] Callaway Editions moved from being a "book packager" to a publishing house. According to its founder, one of the reasons for the change was "the new channels of distribution", which would allow it to reach broader markets, while still serving the US region through specialty retailers. In its publishing list were included 20 titles, ranging from children's books to photography, fashion and art, among other areas. These also included books under their new imprint, Callaway Golfer.[7]

That same year, the company's website was launched, and Callaway announced his company would soon begin working on e-books, focusing on titles for children.[7]

The company changed its name to Callaway Arts & Entertainment in 2005, to signify the company's change of direction. Two years later, after having watched a speech by Steve Jobs and spending some time in Silicon Valley, Nicholas Callaway noticed the importance of technology for business. He then adopted a model he called "a platform-agnostic intellectual property and production company."[2]

In 2011, Callaway said the company had stopped publishing books directly, instead choosing to license the company's titles to other publishers. This included the ending of his business that was responsible for selling products such as backpacks and watering cans. Callaway also said at the time that the company's intention when signing new books is to produce an interactive app, instead of a physical book.[8]

In 1991, Callaway met David Kirk after buying one of his toys, "Sneaking Baby Alligator with Spinning Eyes".[9] Callaway, who, at the time, was looking to expand the catalog of the company, saw Kirk's drawings in the toy's box and tracked him down to make a publishing deal.[10] Kirk, who had been working as a toymaker for some years, mostly making toys for "Peter-Pan adults" and selling them for a higher price, also had been considering writing a children's book.[9]

Kirk, whose idea to create Miss Spider came from his daughter's interest on insects,[11] had already made a deal with Rizzoli International Publications, for $5,000 in advance, but Callaway offered a new deal of $20,000. After being rejected by several publishers, Scholastic accepted Callaway's terms of a large printing volume, in part due to the publisher's large distribution channels of schools and fairs. In 1994, the first Miss Spider book, called Miss Spider's Tea Party, was released.[10]

The first book had a successful launch, with Madonna reading on a live broadcast in 1995.[9] On that same year, the Callaway & Kirk Company was created to manage Kirk's creations.[12] By 1999, they had already published eight children's books, with the most recent one being Nova's Ark (1999), which utilized 3D art for its illustrations, instead of the usual paintings. The book sold 400 thousand copies in its release year.[11]

In 2003, a one-hour special was released on Nickelodeon, called Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Kids. The special, which aired on 31 March, was co-produced by Nelvana, and had actress Brooke Shields as the voice of Miss Spider.[13] In September 2004, a new television show, Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Friends, debuted on the same channel, with a daily average viewership of around one million children. The show was the Nick Jr. Channel's highest rating premiere since 2001, when Bob the Builder premiered.[9]

In early 1998, it was announced that Callaway Editions and Callaway Golf Company, headed by Nicholas' father, Ely Callaway Jr.,[4] had created a new joint venture, called Callaway Golf Media Venture. The venture was focused on making and publishing books about golf with the help of well-known writers.[1] On November of the same year, the Callaway Golf Company announced that, due to financial difficulties and after downsizing, they would be selling their shares of the venture to Callaway Editions.[14][6]

During the acquisition, Nicholas Callaway announced the rebranding to Callaway Golfer, and would work as an imprint of the company. The company also retained part of the original board, which included Ed Brash and golfer journalist, Larry Dorman.[14] The acquisition was finalized in April 1999,[6] and its first books were published in 2000, coinciding with the company's change of direction to work as a full-on publisher.[7]

In August 2010, the company established the Callaway Digital Arts, Inc.,[15] with offices in New York City and San Francisco. This division is responsible for developing and publishing apps on the iPad.[16] Callaway Digital Arts was funded after Apple's CEO, Steve Jobs, showed interest in a mobile app that had been released earlier in the year by Callaway Arts & Entertainment.[17] The app was an interactive version of the Miss Spider's Tea Party book from 1994.[15] Callaway Digital Arts received a total of $6 million in funding, which included financing by Ram Shriram and Mark Pincus.[17]

One of its first partnerships was with a company headed by Martha Stewart,[17] with whom Callaway struck a deal to publish some of her recipes on the iPad.[18] They've also partnered with the company behind Sesame Street to release a digital version of the book The Monster at the End of this Book, as well as apps focused on the Thomas and Friends series.[17]

In October 2011, the company announced the appointment of Rex Ishibashi as its CEO.[19] In February 2012, it was announced that Lisa Holton, CEO and founder of Fourth Story Media had been named VP of content development for Callaway Digital Arts. This move was done to help develop an interactive educational program that was being funded by the Department of Education, but it also resulted in the acquisition of some properties that were held by Holton's former company.[20]