Monday, January 21, 2008

The History of Hula Hoops

The hula hoop is a toy hoop, usually made of plastic, that is twirled around the waist, limbs, or neck.

In Egypt around 3,000 years ago, hoops made out of grape vines were propelled around the ground with sticks. In the 14th century, "hooping" was popular in England and medics blamed it for heart attacks and back dislocations. The word "hula" was added in the early 18th century as sailors who visited Hawaii noticed the similarity between hula dancing and hooping.

In 1957 the hula (also frequently spelled "hoola") hoop was reinvented by Richard Knerr and Arthur "Spud" Melin, founders of the Wham-O toy company. (The two had founded the company in a Los Angeles garage in 1948 to market the "Wham-O" slingshot, which was originally invented to shoot pieces of meat into the air, as a training device for falcons). The idea came from an Australian who had visited California who told Knerr and Melin about children twirling bamboo hoops around the waist in gym class. The new Hula Hoops were made possible by Marlex, a recently invented durable plastic.

Knerr and Medlin were unable to patent their vastly profitable "re-invention", as it had been in use for thousands of years; making the device out of a new material did not meet patent requirements of originality. They were largely able, however, to protect their invention by trademarking "Hula hoop".

After the hoop was released in 1958, Wham-O sold over 100 million in two years. As the fad ran its course, Wham-O again struck lucky with the release of their Frisbee.

To relaunch the Hula Hoop in the late 1960s, Wham-O staged a national competition in the US in conjunction with the National Parks & Recreation Network. The National Hula Hoop Contest (subsequently re-named the World Hula Hoop Championships) grew in scope from 500 U. S. cities in 1968 to over 2,000 cities in 1980, with 2 million participants. Competitors were judged on their performance of compulsory maneuvers (Knee Knocker, Stork, Hula Hop, Wrap the Mummy, Alley Oop) as well as freestyle routines set to music, establishing the roots of the contemporary freestyle Hula Hoop movement.

Richard Knerr, co-founder of the company responsible for turning the Hula Hoop, Frisbee and many other ingenious creations into iconic toys died on Jan.14th at age 82. Find out more about a "fad" that is still around today at a website devoted to it:

Research info gathered at:

Now, here's a poem that knows how it hula:

"So Like You.Ever Predictable.Angel-Butch."

Just remember,

no one ever considered the power of change to be great enough
to become twin towers with a preference for redheads. Or
that the story would be so predictable it would float. Or
that the by-line of diplomacy would speak with a
lisp. That the forecast of bad memories would
be dressed to kill or even held tight against
a forever to come. Spilling out like a
liquid necklace with the jewels
ordinary cut glass. Or
perhaps just the
passage of an
assassin's bullet in
the middle of a Caribbean
cruise. Tangerine toast. Tar graves.
Galoshes that have never felt water. Either
way, we'll hold this fat ledger of the future up high
enough in the air that the world can see its faults, or at
least until the freight train passes or the shaman can
return with a fistful of the scared calf's heart.

Poem first published at:
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Copyright 2008 by Maurice Oliver. All Rights Reserved.


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