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[[File:Deely Bobbers.JPG|thumb|right|A woman wearing a deely bobber]]
[[File:Deely Bobbers.JPG|thumb|right|A woman wearing a deely bobber]]
[[File:Cat deely bopper.png|thumb|right|This [[cat]]'s head is too small for this deely bobber, but its body is not.]]
[[File:Cat deely bopper.png|thumb|right|This [[cat]]'s head is too small for this deely bobber, but its body is not.]]

A '''deely bobber''' (also '''deeley bobber''' or '''deeley bopper''')<ref name="time" /> is a [[novelty item]] of headgear comprising a [[headband]] to which are affixed two springy protrusions resembling the [[Antenna (biology)|antennae]] of insects.<ref name="time">{{cite magazine|date=August 9, 1982|title= Hard-Times Baubles |magazine=Time|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,925661,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080127154103/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,925661,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 27, 2008}}</ref> These "antennae" may be topped with simple plastic shapes or more elaborate and fanciful decorations, such as mini [[pom pom]]s or [[light-emitting diode]]s. The name "deely bobber" is a [[genericized trademark]];<ref name="etymonline" /> other names include '''deely-boppers''',<ref>{{cite book |last=Ayto |first=John |title=Twentieth century words |publisher=Oxford University Press |date=2002 |page=[https://archive.org/details/twentiethcentury00ayto/page/531 531] |isbn=0-19-860230-8 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/twentiethcentury00ayto/page/531 }}</ref> '''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'''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/06/07/style/a-new-fad-invades-martian-antennae.html|title=A new fad invades: Martian antennae |last=Alexander |first=Ron |date=June 7, 1982|work=The New York Times |pages=B11|access-date=8 February 2010}}</ref>
A '''deely bobber''' (also '''deeley bobber''' or '''deeley bopper''')<ref name="time" /> is a [[novelty item]] of headgear comprising a [[headband]] to which are affixed two springy protrusions resembling the [[Antenna (biology)|antennae]] of insects.<ref name="time">{{cite magazine|date=August 9, 1982|title= Hard-Times Baubles |magazine=Time|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,925661,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080127154103/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,925661,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 27, 2008}}</ref> These "antennae" may be topped with simple plastic shapes or more elaborate and fanciful decorations, such as mini [[pom pom]]s or [[light-emitting diode]]s. The name "deely bobber" is a [[genericized trademark]];<ref name="etymonline" /> other names include '''deely-boppers''',<ref>{{cite book |last=Ayto |first=John |title=Twentieth century words |publisher=Oxford University Press |date=2002 |page=[https://archive.org/details/twentiethcentury00ayto/page/531 531] |isbn=0-19-860230-8 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/twentiethcentury00ayto/page/531 }}</ref> '''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'''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/06/07/style/a-new-fad-invades-martian-antennae.html|title=A new fad invades: Martian antennae |last=Alexander |first=Ron |date=June 7, 1982|work=The New York Times |page=B11|access-date=8 February 2010}}</ref>


==Origin==
==Origin==
Stephen Askin invented the original deely bobber in 1981, inspired by the [[The Killer Bees (SNL)|"Killer Bees"]] costumes on ''[[Saturday Night Live]]''.<ref name="askin">{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1817&dat=19820702&id=VScdAAAAIBAJ&pg=5272,325519|title=It's the umbrella that fits on your head |agency=Associated Press|date=July 2, 1982|work=The Tuscaloosa News |pages=12 |access-date=8 February 2010}}</ref> Askin was a former stockbroker and serial entrepreneur who had sold [[dartboard]]s depicting [[Ayatollah Khomeini]] during the [[Iran hostage crisis]] of 1980.<ref name="people">{{cite journal|last=Lester|first=Peter |date=July 26, 1982 |title=They're Called Deely Bobbers and They Mean $$ for Gizmo King Stephen Askin |journal=People |volume=8 |issue=4 |url=http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20082738,00.html}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Wadler |first=Joyce |date=1982-06-30 |title='Deely-Bobbers' Springing Up in Summer Silliness |language=en-US |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1982/06/30/deely-bobbers-springing-up-in-summer-silliness/56ffa367-205f-4bf0-a5ef-3cc0e3661d50/ |access-date=2023-03-21 |issn=0190-8286}}</ref> Askin made prototype Deely Bobbers in his kitchen and [[Test market|test-marketed]] them at the [[Los Angeles]] [[Street fair|Street Fair]] of summer 1981, selling 800 at $5 each.<ref name="people"/> He sold the invention to the Ace Novelty Co. of [[Bellevue, Washington]], which launched it in January 1982 at the California Gift Fair.<ref name="askin"/><ref name="people"/> 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".<ref name="askin"/> The name "deely bopper" had previously been used for a brand of [[toy block]] sold between 1969 and 1973.<ref name="etymonline">[http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=Deely-bobber "Deely-bobber"] Online Etymology Dictionary, Douglas Harper</ref>
Stephen Askin invented the original deely bobber in 1981, inspired by the [[The Killer Bees (SNL)|"Killer Bees"]] costumes on ''[[Saturday Night Live]]''.<ref name="askin">{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1817&dat=19820702&id=VScdAAAAIBAJ&pg=5272,325519|title=It's the umbrella that fits on your head |agency=Associated Press|date=July 2, 1982|work=The Tuscaloosa News |pages=12 |access-date=8 February 2010}}</ref> Askin was a former stockbroker and serial entrepreneur who had sold [[dartboard]]s depicting [[Ayatollah Khomeini]] during the [[Iran hostage crisis]] of 1980.<ref name="people">{{cite journal|last=Lester|first=Peter |date=July 26, 1982 |title=They're Called Deely Bobbers and They Mean $$ for Gizmo King Stephen Askin |journal=People |volume=8 |issue=4 |url=http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20082738,00.html}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Wadler |first=Joyce |date=1982-06-30 |title='Deely-Bobbers' Springing Up in Summer Silliness |language=en-US |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1982/06/30/deely-bobbers-springing-up-in-summer-silliness/56ffa367-205f-4bf0-a5ef-3cc0e3661d50/ |access-date=2023-03-21 |issn=0190-8286}}</ref> Askin made prototype Deely Bobbers in his kitchen and [[Test market|test-marketed]] them at the [[Los Angeles]] [[Street fair|Street Fair]] of summer 1981, selling 800 at $5 each.<ref name="people"/> He sold the invention to the Ace Novelty Co. of [[Bellevue, Washington]], which launched it in January 1982 at the California Gift Fair.<ref name="askin"/><ref name="people"/> 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".<ref name="askin"/> The name "deely bopper" had previously been used for a brand of [[toy block]] sold between 1969 and 1973.<ref name="etymonline">[http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=Deely-bobber "Deely-bobber"]. ''[[Online Etymology Dictionary]]'', Douglas Harper.</ref>


Deely bobbers began retailing in April 1982 at US$3.<ref name="askin"/> They quickly became a [[fad]] in the United States,<ref>{{cite journal|last=Barry |first=John |date=August 2, 1982|title=Computer concocts hyphenation|journal=[[InfoWorld]] |volume=4 |issue=30 |pages=34|quote='deely bopper' (those springy cranial antennae that are taking the country by storm) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NjAEAAAAMBAJ&q=%22deely+bopper%22&pg=PA34}}</ref> before reaching the United Kingdom in July. At the [[1982 World's Fair]] in [[Knoxville, Tennessee]], 10,000 a day were sold;<ref name="people"/> total sales by August were estimated at two million,<ref name="time"/> with Askin getting 5% of the wholesale price.<ref name="people"/> Imitations costing $1–2 undercut the original,<ref name="askin"/> though Askin applied for a patent.<ref name="people"/> The original decorations for the antennae were [[polystyrene]] shapes covered in [[glitter|sparkles]]: spheres, stars, hearts.<ref name="askin"/><ref name="people"/> Flashing lights were added to cash in on the hit movie ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial]]'',<ref name="people"/> with seasonal themes for later holidays.<ref name="people"/>
Deely bobbers began retailing in April 1982 at US$3 ({{Inflation|US|3|1982|fmt=eq}}).<ref name="askin"/> They quickly became a [[fad]] in the United States,<ref>{{cite journal|last=Barry |first=John |date=August 2, 1982|title=Computer concocts hyphenation|journal=[[InfoWorld]] |volume=4 |issue=30 |pages=34|quote='deely bopper' (those springy cranial antennae that are taking the country by storm) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NjAEAAAAMBAJ&q=%22deely+bopper%22&pg=PA34}}</ref> before reaching the United Kingdom in July. At the [[1982 World's Fair]] in [[Knoxville, Tennessee]], 10,000 a day were sold;<ref name="people"/> total sales by August were estimated at two million,<ref name="time"/> with Askin getting 5% of the wholesale price.<ref name="people"/> Imitations costing $1–2 undercut the original,<ref name="askin"/> though Askin applied for a patent.<ref name="people"/> The original decorations for the antennae were [[polystyrene]] shapes covered in [[glitter|sparkles]]: spheres, stars, hearts.<ref name="askin"/><ref name="people"/> Flashing lights were added to cash in on the hit movie ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial]]'',<ref name="people"/> with seasonal themes for later holidays.<ref name="people"/>

== See also ==
⚫
* {{Portal inline|1980s}}


==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}
⚫
{{Portal|1980s}}


{{Parties}}
{{Parties}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Deely Bopper}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Deely Bopper}}
⚫
[[Category:Headgear]]
[[Category:1980s fads and trends]]
[[Category:1980s fads and trends]]
[[Category:Party equipment]]
[[Category:Headgear]]
[[Category:Novelty items]]
[[Category:Novelty items]]
⚫
[[Category:Party equipment]]
[[Category:Products introduced in 1981]]
[[Category:Products introduced in 1981]]

Revision as of 14:55, 17 November 2024

A woman wearing a deely bobber
This cat's head is too small for this deely bobber, but its body is not.

A deely bobber (also deeley bobber or deeley bopper)[1] 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;[2] other names include deely-boppers,[3] 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.[4]

Origin

Stephen Askin invented the original deely bobber in 1981, inspired by the "Killer Bees" costumes on Saturday Night Live.[5] Askin was a former stockbroker and serial entrepreneur who had sold dartboards depicting Ayatollah Khomeini during the Iran hostage crisis of 1980.[6][7] 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.[6] He sold the invention to the Ace Novelty Co. of Bellevue, Washington, which launched it in January 1982 at the California Gift Fair.[5][6] 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".[5] The name "deely bopper" had previously been used for a brand of toy block sold between 1969 and 1973.[2]

Deely bobbers began retailing in April 1982 at US$3 (equivalent to $9 in 2023).[5] 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;[6] total sales by August were estimated at two million,[1] with Askin getting 5% of the wholesale price.[6] Imitations costing $1–2 undercut the original,[5] though Askin applied for a patent.[6] The original decorations for the antennae were polystyrene shapes covered in sparkles: spheres, stars, hearts.[5][6] Flashing lights were added to cash in on the hit movie E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,[6] with seasonal themes for later holidays.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "Hard-Times Baubles". Time. August 9, 1982. Archived from the original on January 27, 2008.
  2. ^ a b "Deely-bobber". Online Etymology Dictionary, Douglas Harper.
  3. ^ Ayto, John (2002). Twentieth century words. Oxford University Press. p. 531. ISBN 0-19-860230-8.
  4. ^ Alexander, Ron (June 7, 1982). "A new fad invades: Martian antennae". The New York Times. p. B11. Retrieved 8 February 2010.
  5. ^ a b c d e f "It's the umbrella that fits on your head". The Tuscaloosa News. Associated Press. July 2, 1982. p. 12. Retrieved 8 February 2010.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Lester, Peter (July 26, 1982). "They're Called Deely Bobbers and They Mean $$ for Gizmo King Stephen Askin". People. 8 (4).
  7. ^ Wadler, Joyce (1982-06-30). "'Deely-Bobbers' Springing Up in Summer Silliness". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2023-03-21.
  8. ^ Barry, John (August 2, 1982). "Computer concocts hyphenation". InfoWorld. 4 (30): 34. 'deely bopper' (those springy cranial antennae that are taking the country by storm)
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