By 1939, though it was only 17, the success of Reader’s Digest was secure and well-established. There had been enough drama at its origin, which highlighted the typical American enterprise. Wallace and his wife, Lila, from humble surroundings, read hundreds of magazines, selected those which would appeal to American readers, condensed, rewrote and edited them to about four or five pages and produced a no-frills magazine where only the contents counted. Again, by themselves, he couple pooled in all their resources, solicited subscribers and the 5,000 copies of first issue in February 1922 were sold out. As the couple nervously waited, in the days to come no one cancelled their subscriptions.