Deely bobber explained

A deely bobber (also deeley bobber or deeley bopper) is a novelty item of headgear comprising a headband to which are affixed two springy protrusions resembling the antennae of insects.[1] These "antennae" may be topped with simple plastic shapes or more elaborate and fanciful decorations, such as mini pom poms or light-emitting diodes. The name "deely bobber" is a genericized trademark; other names include deely-boppers,[2] bonce boppers, head boppers, or space boppers. The product was introduced in 1981 and quickly became a fad of the 1980s. In June 1982, a headline of The New York Times called them Martian antennae.[3]

Origin

Stephen Askin invented the original deely bobber in 1981, inspired by the "Killer Bees" costumes on Saturday Night Live.[4] Askin was a former stockbroker and serial entrepreneur who had sold dartboards depicting Ayatollah Khomeini during the Iran hostage crisis of 1980.[5] [6] Askin made prototype Deely Bobbers in his kitchen and test-marketed them at the Los Angeles Street Fair of summer 1981, selling 800 at $5 each.[5] He sold the invention to the Ace Novelty Co. of Bellevue, Washington, which launched it in January 1982 at the California Gift Fair.[4] [5] The name "Deely Bobber" was suggested by the wife of John Minkove, an Ace marketer; it had been her schoolfriend's placeholder name for "thingamajig".[4] The name "deely bopper" had previously been used for a brand of toy block sold between 1969 and 1973.[7]

Deely bobbers began retailing in April 1982 at US$3.[4] They quickly became a fad in the United States,[8] before reaching the United Kingdom in July. At the 1982 World's Fair in Knoxville, Tennessee, 10,000 a day were sold;[5] total sales by August were estimated at 2 million,[1] with Askin getting 5% of the wholesale price.[5] Imitations costing $1–2 undercut the original,[4] though Askin applied for a patent.[5] The original decorations for the antennae were polystyrene shapes covered in sparkles: spheres, stars, hearts.[4] [5] Flashing lights were added to cash in on the hit movie E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,[5] with seasonal themes for later holidays.[5]

Notes and References

  1. August 9, 1982. Hard-Times Baubles . Time. https://web.archive.org/web/20080127154103/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,925661,00.html. dead. January 27, 2008.
  2. Book: Ayto, John . Twentieth century words . Oxford University Press . 2002 . 531 . 0-19-860230-8 . registration .
  3. News: A new fad invades: Martian antennae . Alexander . Ron . June 7, 1982. The New York Times . B11. 8 February 2010.
  4. News: It's the umbrella that fits on your head . Associated Press. July 2, 1982. The Tuscaloosa News . 12 . 8 February 2010.
  5. Lester. Peter . July 26, 1982 . They're Called Deely Bobbers and They Mean $$ for Gizmo King Stephen Askin . People . 8 . 4 .
  6. News: Wadler . Joyce . 1982-06-30 . 'Deely-Bobbers' Springing Up in Summer Silliness . en-US . Washington Post . 2023-03-21 . 0190-8286.
  7. http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=Deely-bobber "Deely-bobber"
  8. Barry . John . August 2, 1982. Computer concocts hyphenation. . 4 . 30 . 34. 'deely bopper' (those springy cranial antennae that are taking the country by storm) .