Rubber duck: Difference between revisions
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The rubber duck can be referred to informally as a ''rubber duckie'' or a ''rubber ducky''. Amongst collectors of rubber ducks, the spelling ''rubber duckie'' has achieved prominence, but both spellings are considered acceptable. |
The rubber duck can be referred to informally as a ''rubber duckie'' or a ''rubber ducky''. Amongst collectors of rubber ducks, the spelling ''rubber duckie'' has achieved prominence, but both spellings are considered acceptable. |
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GAME,Great American Merchandise & Events reinvented fundraising in 1988 in Tempe, Arizona with a local, fun and unique event: Derby Duck Races. Since then, GAME www.game-group.com has remained committed to taking this fun, family event to higher levels by adding more tools and ongoing support to its “flock” of racers. With over 105 Races in the United States and 60 in 11 other countries |
GAME,Great American Merchandise & Events reinvented fundraising in 1988 in Tempe, Arizona with a local, fun and unique event: Derby Duck Races. Since then, GAME www.game-group.com has remained committed to taking this fun, family event to higher levels by adding more tools and ongoing support to its “flock” of racers. With over 105 Races in the United States and 60 in 11 other countries. |
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Rubber Duck Races are famous in which hundreds or thousands of rubber ducks are dumped into a river, pool, or other body of water and then are floated down a race course marked off with buoys. The first one to float past the finish line is a winner. (This is similar to the game [[Poohsticks]].) The rubber ducks are then retrieved and used again later. Due to environmental concerns, sites for duck races must be chosen with care. |
Rubber Duck Races are famous in which hundreds or thousands of rubber ducks are dumped into a river, pool, or other body of water and then are floated down a race course marked off with buoys. The first one to float past the finish line is a winner. (This is similar to the game [[Poohsticks]].) The rubber ducks are then retrieved and used again later. Due to environmental concerns, sites for duck races must be chosen with care. |
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One of these famous GAME rubber duck races is the [http://www.knoxvilleduckrace.com/ Great Knoxville Rubber Duck Race]. This race received attention when the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled that it was a lottery, which stopped the race for a few years. After the state amended their constitution to allow lotteries with special exceptions, the race was reinstituted.In 2006 the [[river Liffey]] in [[Dublin]] hosted the worlds largest duck race with 150,000 ducks dumped and 5000 adopted. |
One of these famous GAME rubber duck races is the [http://www.knoxvilleduckrace.com/ Great Knoxville Rubber Duck Race]. This race received attention when the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled that it was a lottery, which stopped the race for a few years. After the state amended their constitution to allow lotteries with special exceptions, the race was reinstituted.In 2006 the [[river Liffey]] in [[Dublin]] hosted the worlds largest duck race with 150,000 ducks dumped and 5000 adopted. |
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Rubber ducks are used in small quanties as hearding targets for radio controled [[model yacht]]s, the objective being to move all of the loose ducks into a floating pen |
Rubber ducks are used in small quanties as hearding targets for radio controled [[model yacht]]s, the objective being to move all of the loose ducks into a floating pen. |
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==Rubber ducks in movies and popular culture== |
==Rubber ducks in movies and popular culture== |
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Revision as of 21:18, 13 October 2006
A rubber duck, or rubber duckie, is a toy shaped like a duck that is made of rubber or rubber-like material such as vinyl plastic. Almost all modern rubber ducks are made out of vinyl plastic rather than rubber. Most commonly, rubber ducks are designed to be used as floating bathtub toys.
Not all rubber ducks are bath toys. Some rubber ducks are dolls or play figures similar to other squeeze or squeak toys typically given to children and sometimes dogs. Rubber ducks can be found in various colors, sizes, shapes, and outfits. Rubber ducks have achieved status as a popular icon and, while still primarily considered a children's toy, are used by people of all ages. Some adult stores now sell vibrating rubber ducks.
Rubber ducks may be equipped with a squeaker that makes a whistling or squeaking sound. More rarely the toy may have a squeaker that makes a sound resembling the quack of a real duck. Bath toy ducks sometimes have a hole in the bill which allows the toy to take in and then squirt water.
The rubber duck has become a popular form factor for USB flash drives. These devices are not intended to be used as bath toys.
The history of the first rubber duck is not known, but its history is inevitably linked to that of rubber manufacturing, the development of early rubber (and later synthetic rubber) toys including cars and dolls, and the advent of squeak toys which dates to at least the late 1800s. Although squeak toys are often thought of as dog toys, many people still enjoy the squeaking rubber duck. The earliest rubber ducks were made from harder rubber and lacked squeakers.
Ernie, a popular Muppet from Sesame Street, has helped to popularize the floating rubber duck bath toy with his song "Rubber Duckie", though rubber ducks existed long before the advent of this television show. The yellow rubber duck has achieved an iconic status in American pop culture. In the United States the rubber duck is often symbolically linked to bathing or bath tubs and to babies and toddlers.
As the rubber duck has grown in popularity over the years, many variants are sold including "devil ducks" and "dead ducks".
In 2001 a popular British tabloid newspaper reported that Queen Elizabeth II has a rubber duck that wears an inflatable crown in her bathroom. The duck was spotted by a workman who was repainting her bathroom and later reported it to The Sun newspaper. The story prompted sales of rubber ducks in the United Kingdom to increase by 80% for a short period.
Rubber ducks are collected by a small number of enthusiasts in countries including: Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, Singapore, New Zealand, the United States, and the Netherlands. The Guinness World Record for World's Largest Rubber Duck Collection numbered 1,437 unique rubber ducks in 2003.
The rubber duck can be referred to informally as a rubber duckie or a rubber ducky. Amongst collectors of rubber ducks, the spelling rubber duckie has achieved prominence, but both spellings are considered acceptable.
GAME,Great American Merchandise & Events reinvented fundraising in 1988 in Tempe, Arizona with a local, fun and unique event: Derby Duck Races. Since then, GAME www.game-group.com has remained committed to taking this fun, family event to higher levels by adding more tools and ongoing support to its “flock” of racers. With over 105 Races in the United States and 60 in 11 other countries.
Rubber Duck Races are famous in which hundreds or thousands of rubber ducks are dumped into a river, pool, or other body of water and then are floated down a race course marked off with buoys. The first one to float past the finish line is a winner. (This is similar to the game Poohsticks.) The rubber ducks are then retrieved and used again later. Due to environmental concerns, sites for duck races must be chosen with care.
One of these famous GAME rubber duck races is the Great Knoxville Rubber Duck Race. This race received attention when the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled that it was a lottery, which stopped the race for a few years. After the state amended their constitution to allow lotteries with special exceptions, the race was reinstituted.In 2006 the river Liffey in Dublin hosted the worlds largest duck race with 150,000 ducks dumped and 5000 adopted.
Rubber ducks are used in small quanties as hearding targets for radio controled model yachts, the objective being to move all of the loose ducks into a floating pen.
Rubber ducks in movies and popular culture
- In the country song Convoy (1975), by C. W. McCall, the truck driver protagonist uses the CB radio handle "Rubber Duck". In the 1978 film based on the song, the Rubber Duck character is played by Kris Kristofferson. McCall also did a sequel song, Round the World with the Rubber Duck, which appears on his 1976 album, Rubber Duck. In CB (and other types of radio) terminology, a "rubber duck" often refers to a compact, helical, antenna with a vinyl or rubber coating for protection against weather.
- In the movie Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), the character Arthur Weasley, on meeting Harry Potter for the first time, says: "Now, Harry you must know all about Muggles, tell me, what exactly is the function of a rubber duck?".
- In the video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2004), the character Truth says: "Don't look! Quick! Think of a yellow, rubber duck!"
- Megatron, leader of the Predacons in Transformers: Beast Wars, has a rubber duck that can be seen when he bathes.
- In "The Restaurant at the End of the Universe", of the "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" Series, the Captain of the "B" Ark (Who is constantly taking a bath) in the Golgafrincham Ark Fleet has a rubber duck. The Captain claims, "One's never alone with a rubber duck."
- The second album of Bootsy's Rubber Band includes a song, "Rubber Duckie".
- Sesame Street character Ernie has a rubber duck as his "bathtime friend", and has even composed two songs dedicated to his duck.
References
- Internet Movie Database page on Convoy
- Internet Movie Database quotes from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
- Internet Movie Database quotes from Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
External links
- Celebrity Rubber Ducks
- Rubber Ducks from all over the world!
- Photos of a rubber duck derby
- An accidental dumping of rubber ducks mid-ocean has helped teach us about ocean currents
- Article on the BBC website about Queen Elizabeth II's rubber duck
- Duckplanet.com: A popular website about rubber ducks and rubber duck collecting
- Rubber duck news, information, FAQs, and pictures
- Site with many product pictures of Rubber Duckies
- Duckies On The Web (a page that's been around over 10 years with all sorts of links to ducky things)
- Duck Race 2006, Hong Kong