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As it was, it took the flop of a large birthday party in her neighborhood to turn Dorothy Hochman's hobby into money. She had stopped by a friend's house to leave a birthday gift for the five-year-old son of the family. Something called a birthday party was in progress. It might better have been called pandemonium. Two little girls screamed at each other for possession of a toy. A small boy cried all alone in a corner. Several children jumped up and down, tearing gift wrappings to bits. The young mother, on the verge of tears, vainly tried to organize a game.

Dorothy Hochman recognized the situation instantly. It was one she had seen all too often at children's parties, and it wasn't necessary. Usually it grew out of two factors—lack of planning, and an overworked, tense mother trying to run the party. "Mothers," she thought, "really need help at this time. I've always enjoyed giving children's parties—it's been sort of a hobby with me. Why don't I offer some sort of children's party service?"

The idea grew in her mind. Her husband thought there was something to it—provided she could still stay home and see to their own children.

THERE WERE three things Mrs. Hochman had to decide. 1. What kind of a party service she would offer. 2. How much of their small savings they could invest, and 3. How to go about introducing this new business.

So far as the service went, she felt that only a very limited number of parents would want to call in outside people to supervise their children's parties. A child's birthday party, after all, should be a special family matter. She believed, however, that many mothers would be interested in having someone help them plan their children's parties and also help in providing unusual but suitable entertainment and games. She thought too that most mothers would welcome an opportunity to procure the necessary party supplies—the favors, the prizes, the decorations, and the refreshments with the least trouble and expense.

Her best bet then seemed to be to offer two services. Service one would be specialist supervision at the parties themselves. Here Dorothy Hochman would take over the entire party. All, the mother would have to do would be to smile at the youthful guests. For service two, Mrs. Hochman decided to make up a special party package which would contain every single item to be used at the party, including refreshments if the parent so wished. A parent could, of course, buy this party kit (or package party, as Mrs. Hochman called it) without hiring the supervisory service.

WITH THE type of service her new business would offer decided upon, Dorothy Hochman's second problem—how much money she could invest, was easily answered. She had $50 to spend—and the use of the family car. Of the $50, she decided to spend $5 on mimeographed advertising, and $45 on material for the package parties and birthday cakes.

Making up the package parties presented a problem. Mrs. Hochman didn't want to use the same sort of favors and knickknacks which could be picked up at most dime or notion stores. She wanted something the child would like to keep, and she felt that everything should be of good quality. Flimsy favors and prizes wouldn't last until the child took them home.

Fortunately, Washington has a fair-sized wholesale toy and novelty shop. Mrs. Hochman went directly to the owner and persuaded him to let her have at wholesale prices a small amount of material—enough for eight kits. She agreed that if her idea caught on, she would give this firm most of her business. (For women who do not live near a wholesale novelty store, Mrs. Hochman suggests that they write the Toy Center in New York City with the request that this organization get various wholesalers to send them catalogs. They can then select material for their own party kits.)

Into the Hochman party package went: 1. An attractive table cover with napkins, cups and plates to match. 2. Plastic spoons and forks. 3. Cute plastic nut or candy cups. 4. Plastic candle holders in the form of animals. 5. Candles. 6. Snappers. 7. A game and prize for the winner. 8. Unusual favors for each child, and 9. Balloons. All these were put up in a useful polythene bag which she delivered to the customer if requested.

The party kits were made up along the line of the party theme the mother wanted to follow. A party with a "magic" theme, for example, had as favors ingenious little plastic top hats out of which rabbits mysteriously hop. Other party themes followed were Halloween, Valentine, circus, cowboy, and general birthday.

WITH EIGHT party kits ready, Mrs. Hochman was ready to put out her $5 on mimeographed advertising. The mimeographed sheet with Kids' Parties in large letters featured a quaint drawing of a child's birthday party. Below, simply told, was an explanation of what Kids' Parties Service had to offer. The prices started with a complete package party for eight at $5.95, and a complete package party for twelve at $8.95. This did not include refreshments which could be ordered separately. The supervisory service fee itself varied from $10 to $25, depending upon the elaborateness of the entertainment furnished.

Mrs. Hochman's next step was to get her party kit and Kids' Party Service known to as many mothers as possible. She lived in a suburban neighborhood where most of the young mothers did their marketing in a large supermarket.

The owner of this grocery was a friendly individual. Mrs. Hochman asked if she might put a small table in one corner of the store, hand out her mimeographed advertising, and display her package party to the customers. She also baked two eye-catching birthday cakes, one for decoration, and one for prospective customers to taste. Incidentally, in baking her birthday cakes, Mrs. Hochman thinks a particularly tasty cake, not too rich for children, can be made by adding an egg to the prepared mixes.

As the customers passed her table, she introduced herself and handed them her literature. If they showed any interest, she took the child's name, birth date, and telephone number.

The response was immediate. She sold all eight of her package parties and received orders to supervise two parties. Then she took all her receipts and ordered more material for additional package parties. (For the first few months, Mrs. Hochman's policy was to re-invest all her profits in the business.)

Since her appearance in the first grocery was so successful, she journeyed over the city asking permission to appear in various large markets where she repeated the routine of the first. She also visited children's shops where mothers of party-age youngsters gather, showed her wares, and handed out her mimeographed advertising.

AFTER THE first six months, Mrs. Hochman found she did not have time for personal appearances in groceries and other shops. Instead she tried several different methods of getting business. One method was advertising in suburban papers, papers for Army-Navy officers, and local shopping newspapers. She also tried advertising in the classified section of the large city papers, but her response from this was very poor. "With this type of thing," she asserts, "you have to appeal to certain groups, not the general public."

Accordingly, she went through the directory of doctors, dentists, lawyers, and other professional people, and mailed them her circular. Through her connection with her children's Parent-Teacher Associations, she was also able to compile a list of parents with children at the party age. These also received her circular. She feels that names procured in this fashion were much more profitable than any mailing list she could have bought.

Perhaps her greatest response came from planned publicity. She talked with the food and woman's page editors of local newspapers and asked if they wouldn't like to observe a supervised children's party. In most cases, some member of the editorial staff accepted and found the proceedings interesting enough to comment about somewhere on the woman's page. (After all, a woman's page editor has to fill up certain columns day after day, and is always on the lookout for helpful material.) In Mrs. Hochman's experience, any mention of Kids' Parties in such columns proved invaluable in attracting customers.

Another satisfactory approach to customers was through women's radio and television programs. She telephoned or personally called on the individual in charge of these programs and presented Kids' Parties as either the development of a hobby (which it was) or as an unusual public service feature.

Mrs. Hochman then suggested that she be a guest on the program and tell about or show some of her wares and give helpful suggestions about running a successful children's party. "Do not be timid," she cautions, about approaching the directors of these women's programs. Without exception, I have found them to be friendly and interested in adding anything to their programs which will help and interest their audience. Of course, you must work up an interesting talk and demonstration first, and be sure you are really giving your audience something useful."

DOROTHY HOCHMAN believes that handling the parties themselves is something that any energetic woman with a real liking for children can manage. She herself learned, after a certain amount of trial and error, that the following procedure works best.

At any party, first open the gifts. For children, this is one of the high points of the party, and it should be done as soon as all the children arrive because the small guests are as eager as the host to see what's in those packages. They'll be better able to concentrate on other party entertainments once the opening is out of the way. If you have a tape recorder, the time to use it to interview the children is while they sit around waiting for the last one to arrive. When all the gifts are opened, the children gather and sing happy birthday—while mother hastily gathers up discarded wrapping paper, etc.

Incidentally, Mrs. Hochman thinks that if possible, a child's party should begin about 2 o'clock or right after the afternoon nap for young children. Festivities then will be over in time for the youngsters to calm down for their evening meal.

The second highlight of any party is the refreshments. If Mrs. Hochman supervises the party, she makes sure the table is all set and in readiness before the party starts. Then when the gifts are opened, the children gather around the table and mother brings in the lighted birthday cake. The honoree then blows out the candles and makes a wish. Never overlook this ritual, however small or large the affair.

For small children—up to six, Mrs. Hochman has a large birthday cake which the adults can eat, and each child has his own cup cake at his place with a candle which he can blow out himself. Larger children may be served dishes of ice cream but the little ones do better with Dixie cups or individual molds. If a drink is needed, a simple fruit punch seems to be the least upsetting.

With the refreshments over, the excited youngsters can bear to settle down for a few games—about three is plenty, Mrs. Hochman thinks. She has found from experience that the old-fashioned games have the most appeal. Pussy-in-the-corner, musical chairs, spin-the-bottle, Bingo, treasure hunts—whether for peanuts or shiny new coins, all have great appeal for the up to ten-year-olds. Small tots still go in big for "drop the handkerchief" and similar games. They also love "Keep the balloons in the air" which simply consists of batting the balloons from one child to another for about five minutes. This, naturally, is best played outside.

For children over eleven years, Mrs. Hochman finds that the most successful party is a luncheon party. For these youngsters she has more sophisticated favors, such as a simple manicure set for the girls or an inexpensive mechanical gadget for the boys. The games are likely to be anagrams or monopoly—(they still like musical chairs), ending up with, if available, a movie or magician.

Space here does not permit detailed description of many other suitable games and entertainment for parties. There are, however, a number of good books such as "The Complete Book of Children's Parties," (Garden City Publishing Co.) which will give you many ideas.

Mrs. Hochman emphasizes that no party should last longer than two and one-half hours. The small guests should not be allowed to linger around. After the final event, and make sure the youngsters know it is the final event, a polite but firm good-bye ends the affair at the happy point.

MRS. HOCHMAN uses several "tricks" to make her parties interesting. One idea which pleases the younger children is balloons on the ceiling. Sometimes, she covers the whole dining room ceiling with them. After the balloons are blown up and the ends tied, you simply rub the end of the balloon against anything wool (your dress or a man's coat). Enough static electricity will be generated to make the balloons stick to the ceiling. They will stay "put" for an hour to an hour and a half which is just about enough time for the children to finish their ice cream and cake. As the room temperature and humidity change, the balloons come a-tumbling down.

Another plan is to give each child a "loot bag," which is an ordinary grocery bag with his name printed on it in bright colors. Into this bag go his favors, prizes, and any refreshments he wants to take home. For an additional fillip, if the parents don't mind the extra expense, Dorothy often has two grab baskets—one for boys and one for the girls. Each child blindfolds himself with a paper napkin and then gathers in a circle around his respective basket. At a given signal, all grab. Their treasure then goes into the loot bag. For parties which have only games as entertainment—that is, no magician, puppet show, movie, etc., Mrs. Hochman finds this a good way to bring the festivities to a close.

KIDS' PARTIES has been in existence only since October, 1950, but already the business has grown to the point where Dorothy's husband Paul, a former air-base commander in China, has to help out with the Supervisory Service. His aid is particularly valuable when a mother wants one of the more elaborate parties. Paul operates the tape recorder and the movie machine, although Dorothy has carried on by herself at parties when necessary. As indicated earlier, the tape recorder interviews the children as they come to the party. Later, during the party, the record may be played back. The children get a real thrill as they recognize their own voices. If the child sings or recites, and the parents want a permanent souvenir of the occasion, Kids' Parties can furnish a record. This brings in a little more income.

Although the party service started with just Dorothy herself, and then added her husband Paul, it now has on call a magician, a puppet show, and an Indian chief. The magician is a young student who was once a polio victim. The puppet show is run by two high school girls, and the Indian chief earns his living as a minor government employee. (At the party he fascinates the youngsters by doing Indian dances, singing, emitting lusty war whoops, etc.) Mrs. Hochman thinks part of the success of her enterprise is due to the fact that she uses young, non-professional talent who bring real enthusiasm to the parties and are able to get right down to the level of the youngsters themselves. Naturally, too, their fees are low.

From her experience, Mrs. Hochman believes that any woman (or man—or husband and wife) with a knack for party giving can succeed in the supervisory service. Certainly the initial investment need not be large. So far as the package parties go, these too are readily profitable, but there is a definite business angle in promoting their sale which may not appeal to some women.