About Us
Flipper Fanny's Cookies grew out of Catherine Graham's desire to be a baker when she grew up. When she informed her parents of this decision, the news was greeted with the enthusiasm one might expect upon the announcement that one's teenage daughter aspired to opening a brothel.
So.instead of culinary academy, she went to the University of California at Santa Cruz and graduated with honors with the dubious degree in Aesthetic Studies: Film, and began a career in journalism, writing for various publications. While at the San Francisco Examiner, she met her future husband, Jerry. Eventually they collaborated on a series of guidebooks based on the San Francisco-based television program "Bay Area Backroads."
Over the years, Catherine developed a recipe for a chocolate chip oatmeal cookie that was the hit of pot lucks, bake sales and, holiday gift packages. Over and over people would say she ought to "sell that cookie," and so Flipper Fanny's Cookies was born.
About the logo: In the 1940's when Catherine's mother was a single gal in her twenties, she was quite a beauty. While hanging around poolside in Miami Beach, a photographer took her picture and ran it in the local paper with the headline, "Flipper Fanny Flaps For Fun." The article went on to explain that the real name of this "fish-footed lass" was Mary Lou, visiting from Chicago. Later that year, Mary Lou met her husband, Roger. They had four children, Roger, Jr., John, Ed, and Catherine and were married for 56 years. This picture of her mother is Catherine's favorite.
With her baking company based in the original Surf City, Catherine wanted a logo to reflect the beachy environment in which she works, and the retro influence on her simply fabulous desserts. This photo of her mother embodies both.