Everybody knows Fiesta dinnerware, those bright, chunky plates and cups decorated with concentric circles that come in rainbow colors. Moderately priced and made to be mixed and matched, Fiesta is the best-selling dinnerware in American history.

The first piece was introduced by The Homer Laughlin China Company in 1936 at the Pittsburgh China & Glass Show, but the plates were actually created nearly a decade before by the company’s design director, Frederick Rhead. There have been 47 Fiesta colors through the years; turquoise, which was added in 1937, has been a consistent favorite.

Fiesta was retired in 1972, causing great demand and inflated prices in the world of collectibles. In 1985, Bloomingdale’s approached the Laughlin firm about jointly reviving Fiesta, and they did. A year later Fiesta was in production again, but with lead-free glazes and trendy colors such as apricot, sunflower and lemongrass. Today the Fiesta tabletop line has expanded to include holiday Fiesta collections, glassware, cookware, flatware, canisters, pitchers, every size bowl imaginable and even collections for the bath. Fiesta is as popular today with buyers as it was in their grandmothers’ era.