I remember that Mom and Dad bought each of my brothers and me a Duncan yo-yo as a stocking stuffer for some mid-1960s Christmas. I remember trying to play with it but never being able to figure out how to do any sort of tricks (such as 'walk the dog'). My yo-yo was soon banished to the bottom drawer of my dresser along with other items that I had lost interest in, such as old comic books, card games, etc.
According to its Wiki entry, yo-yos date back to the Ancient Greeks. They made it to the United States in the early 1920s.
Thanks to television marketing, yo-yos enjoyed a burst of popularity in the early 1960s, reflected below in the Hills ad that ran in the Journal on May 26, 1962.
Did you ever play with a yo-yo – as a kid or adult? If so, be sure to leave a comment!
Around 1975-1976 at East Carlisle School on Grafton Rd, a yo-yo trick artist did a demonstration for us in the gym. After that, our gym teacher had us all bring in yo-yos for a few weeks and we all seemed to have aspirations to be the next yo-yoi sensation. 🙂 I found mine at my mom's house a few months ago!
ReplyDeleteI had a couple as a kid, but I was doing good if I could get it to go up the string properly.
ReplyDeleteIIRC, there was a brief resurgence of interest in the Seventies, perhaps coinciding with the Osmond Brothers hit, "Just Like a Yo-Yo".
I was a pretty good yo-yo-er. Tricks and everything. I preferred the Ducan Butterfly, in red, of course. https://duncantoys.com/products/butterfly - Mine was wood, not plastic, and heavy. I could make that baby sleep forever. But my skill-level stopped with one hand. I tried throwing two at once and after a couple attempts whacked myself in the forehead so hard I never did it again. I was doggone lucky I didn't bust my teeth, break my nose, or put out an eye!
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