Last week I was originally going to scan a Kodak book, How to Make Good Pictures, but first looked on the Internet Archive and found they have 10 different editions of the book. The oldest edition is this one from 1900. This edition from 1943 has to be “borrowed” to view even though it probably out of copyright. You can also borrow this edition from 1972.

Instead, I ended up scanning 14 issues of Kodak Highlights; a magazine published for the stockholders of the Eastman Kodak Company:
Vol. 25, No. 2, May 1972
Vol. 26, No. 1, Feb. 1973
Vol. 26, No. 3, Aug. 1973
Vol. 27, No. 1, Feb. 1974
Vol. 27, No. 2, May 1974
Vol. 27, No. 3, Aug. 1974
Vol. 27, No. 4, Nov. 1974
Vol. 28, No. 1, Feb. 1975
Vol. 28, No. 2, May 1975
Vol. 28, No. 3, Aug. 1975
Vol. 28, No. 4, Nov. 1975
Vol. 29, No. 1, Feb. 1976
Vol. 29, No. 2, May 1976
Vol. 29, No. 3, Aug. 1976

Some of these issues have financial data which will bore almost everyone. Then there is information on the Annual Meetings for the stockholders.

In Vol. 26, No. 1 there is a note that Kodak will add 800,000 square feet to the Apparatus Division, better known as the Elmgrove plant. That was because they were making their Pocket Instamatic camera there. It was very popular but I always thought the 110 size prints came out grainy.

The Vol. 27, No. 3 issue has some new microfilm products. I know when I started at Kodak in 1990 the largest purchaser of microfilm was the Genealogical Society of Utah (now FamilySearch). When they went over to all digital, it was a big blow to Kodak.

In the Vol. 28, No. 4 issue Kodak is introducing their Ektaprint Copier. I know by the mid 1990s Kodak was no longer producing a copier with just black toner. The ones that they were selling at that time were made by Xerox with the Kodak name on them. Kodak did produce lots of black toner some of which was in boxes marked “Xerox.” Kodak was making a color copier in the 1990s.

Then the Vol. 29, No. 2 issue introduces the Kodak Instant Camera. Polaroid would file for patent infringement. The case would go on for years and finally Kodak would have to pay Polaroid. Worse, was that Kodak had to buy back all their Instant Cameras. Not everyone sent their cameras back so some still show up at flea markets and antique shops.

I’ll scan more issues of this magazine sometime before the end of the year.

This magazine was originally called Highlights when it started in 1948. The name changed to Kodak Highlights in 1969. The Rochester Public Library appears to have an almost complete run from 1948 to 1986.