16. An American toy company invented the hula hoop
In a manner of speaking, the Wham-O company did invent the hula hoop, but they adapted it from a manner of play popular on another continent. Hoops twirled around the waist by swiveling the hips were popular toys for centuries. In Native American rituals, they were used for symbolic purposes. In Europe, their use was documented in the 14th century. Hoops were made from a variety of materials; vines, metal hoops, rattan, leather, and whatever else was available which could be formed into a circle and sustain its shape. So, it is a stretch to call the toy, wildly popular in the 1950s, an American invention. But the manner in which it was manufactured, marketed, and swept the popular fancy is an American phenomenon. It began when an Australian hoop designed as exercise equipment was demonstrated to Arthur Melin, of California’s Wham-O Toys.
The hoop presented to Melin was of bamboo. He developed a method of manufacturing the hoop out of high-density polyethylene, a plastic known as Marlex. The hoop was 42 inches in diameter and entered the market in early 1958. By the end of the summer over 25 million hoops had been sold, within 2 years over 100 million hula hoops were swirling around hips around the world. Not all nationalities welcomed the toy. The Japanese banned it out of concern its use was sexually enticing. The Soviet Union sneered the hoop was an indication of the frivolous nature of American culture in general. The 1950s hula hoop fad ended as abruptly as it began, and Wham-O stopped manufacturing the hoop in the early 1960s, only to return to it in 1965 when they added ball bearings to the hoop, creating a swirling sound when it was used.
