Deely bopper
Encyclopedia
A deely bobber is a novelty item of headgear comprising a headband
to which are affixed two springy protrusions resembling the antennae
of insects or of stereotypical little green men
. 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, bonce boppers, or space boppers; In June 1982, The New York Times
headline called them Martian antennae.
of 1980. Askin made prototype Deely Bobbers in his kitchen and test-market
ed them at the Los Angeles
Street Fair
of summer 1981, selling 800 at US$5 each. He sold the invention to the Ace Novelty Co. of Bellevue, Washington
, which launched it in January 1982 at the California Gift Fair
. The name "Deely Bopper" was suggested by the wife of John Minkove, an Ace marketer; it had been her schoolfriend's word for "thingamajig"
. It was previously a brand of toy block
sold 1969-73. Deely boppers began retailing in April 1982 at US$3. They quickly became a fad
in the United States
, before reaching the United Kingdom
in July. At the 1982 World's Fair
in Knoxville, Tennessee
, 10,000 a day were sold; total sales by August were estimated at 2 million, with Askin getting 5% of the wholesale price. Imitations costing $1–2 undercut the original, though Askin applied for a patent
. The original decorations for the antennae were polystyrene
shapes covered in sparkles
: spheres, stars, hearts. Flashing lights were added to cash in on the hit movie E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
, with seasonal themes for later holidays.
may wear similar deely bobbers. Similar headband-based novelties include Playboy-style bunny
ears on hen nights, or reindeer antler
s at Christmas parties.
Headband
A headband is a clothing accessory worn in the hair or around the forehead, usually to hold hair away from the face or eyes. Headbands generally consist of a loop of elastic material or a horseshoe-shaped piece of flexible plastic or metal...
to which are affixed two springy protrusions resembling the antennae
Antenna (biology)
Antennae in biology have historically been paired appendages used for sensing in arthropods. More recently, the term has also been applied to cilium structures present in most cell types of eukaryotes....
of insects or of stereotypical little green men
Little green men
Little green men is the stereotypical portrayal of extraterrestrials as little humanoid-like creatures with green skin and sometimes with antennae on their heads. The term is also sometimes used to describe gremlins, mythical creatures known for causing problems in airplanes and mechanical devices...
. 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
Genericized trademark
A genericized trademark is a trademark or brand name that has become the colloquial or generic description for, or synonymous with, a general class of product or service, rather than as an indicator of source or affiliation as intended by the trademark's holder...
; other names include deely-boppers, bonce boppers, or space boppers; In June 1982, The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
headline called them Martian antennae.
Origin
Stephen Askin invented the original deely bobber in 1981, inspired by the "Killer Bees" costumes on Saturday Night Live. Askin (b. 1938/9) was a serial entrepreneur who had sold dartboards depicting Ayatollah Khomeini during the Iran hostage crisisIran hostage crisis
The Iran hostage crisis was a diplomatic crisis between Iran and the United States where 52 Americans were held hostage for 444 days from November 4, 1979 to January 20, 1981, after a group of Islamist students and militants took over the American Embassy in Tehran in support of the Iranian...
of 1980. Askin made prototype Deely Bobbers in his kitchen and test-market
Test market
A test market, in the field of business and marketing, is a geographic region or demographic group used to gauge the viability of a product or service in the mass market prior to a wide scale roll-out...
ed them at the Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
Street Fair
Street fair
A street fair is a fair that celebrates the character of a neighborhood. As its name suggests, it is usually held on the main street of a neighborhood....
of summer 1981, selling 800 at US$5 each. He sold the invention to the Ace Novelty Co. of Bellevue, Washington
Bellevue, Washington
Bellevue is a city in the Eastside region of King County, Washington, United States, across Lake Washington from Seattle. Long known as a suburb or satellite city of Seattle, it is now categorized as an edge city or a boomburb. The population was 122,363 at the 2010 census.Downtown Bellevue is...
, which launched it in January 1982 at the California Gift Fair
Trade fair
A trade fair is an exhibition organized so that companies in a specific industry can showcase and demonstrate their latest products, service, study activities of rivals and examine recent market trends and opportunities...
. The name "Deely Bopper" was suggested by the wife of John Minkove, an Ace marketer; it had been her schoolfriend's word for "thingamajig"
Placeholder name
Placeholder names are words that can refer to objects or people whose names are either temporarily forgotten, irrelevant, or unknown in the context in which they are being discussed...
. It was previously a brand of toy block
Toy block
Toy blocks , are wooden, plastic or foam pieces of various shapes and colors that are used as building toys...
sold 1969-73. Deely boppers began retailing in April 1982 at US$3. They quickly became a fad
FAD
In biochemistry, flavin adenine dinucleotide is a redox cofactor involved in several important reactions in metabolism. FAD can exist in two different redox states, which it converts between by accepting or donating electrons. The molecule consists of a riboflavin moiety bound to the phosphate...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, before reaching the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in July. At the 1982 World's Fair
1982 World's Fair
The 1982 World's Fair, formally known as the Knoxville International Energy Exposition, was held in Knoxville, Tennessee, in the United States. The theme of the exposition was "Energy Turns the World."...
in Knoxville, Tennessee
Knoxville, Tennessee
Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...
, 10,000 a day were sold; total sales by August were estimated at 2 million, with Askin getting 5% of the wholesale price. Imitations costing $1–2 undercut the original, though Askin applied for a patent
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
. The original decorations for the antennae were polystyrene
Polystyrene
Polystyrene ) also known as Thermocole, abbreviated following ISO Standard PS, is an aromatic polymer made from the monomer styrene, a liquid hydrocarbon that is manufactured from petroleum by the chemical industry...
shapes covered in sparkles
Glitter
Glitter describes an assortment of very small pieces of copolymer plastics, aluminum foil, titanium dioxide, iron oxides, bismuth oxychloride or other materials painted in metallic, neon and iridescent colors to reflect light in a sparkling spectrum...
: spheres, stars, hearts. Flashing lights were added to cash in on the hit movie E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is a 1982 American science fiction film co-produced and directed by Steven Spielberg, written by Melissa Mathison and starring Henry Thomas, Dee Wallace, Robert MacNaughton, Drew Barrymore, and Peter Coyote...
, with seasonal themes for later holidays.
Variants
Deely bobbers remain a common party favour; for example all the revellers on a pub crawlPub crawl
A pub crawl is the act of one or more people drinking in multiple pubs or bars in a single night, normally walking or busing to each one between drinking.-Origin of the term:...
may wear similar deely bobbers. Similar headband-based novelties include Playboy-style bunny
Playboy Bunny
A Playboy Bunny is a waitress at the Playboy Club. The Playboy Clubs were originally open from 1960 to 1988. The Club re-opened in one location in The Palms Hotel in Las Vegas in 2006...
ears on hen nights, or reindeer antler
Antler
Antlers are the usually large, branching bony appendages on the heads of most deer species.-Etymology:Antler originally meant the lowest tine, the "brow tine"...
s at Christmas parties.