Bobble-head doll

A bobblehead, also known as a nodder, wobbler or bobble head, is a type of collectible toy. Its head is often oversized compared to its body. Instead of a solid connection, its head is connected to the body by a spring or hook in such a way that a light tap will cause the head to bobble, hence the name.

During the seventeenth-century, figurines of Buddha and other religious figures called "temple nodders" were produced in Asia. The earliest known Western reference to a bobblehead is thought to be in Nikolai Gogol's 1842 short story "The Overcoat", in which the main character's neck was described as "like the necks of plaster cats which wag their heads". During the nineteenth-century, bisque-based bobbleheads were being made in limited quantities for the US market. Many of the bobbleheads in the US were produced in Germany, with an uptick in imports during the 1920s and 30s. By the 1950s, bobbleheads had a substantial surge in popularity, with items made of either plastic or bisque.

By 1960, Major League Baseball had gotten in on the action and produced a series of Papier-mâché bobblehead dolls, one for each team, all with the same cherubic face, and a few select players over time. The World Series held that year brought the first player-specific baseball bobbleheads, for Roberto Clemente, Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, and Willie Mays, still all with the same face. Over the next decade bobbleheads were also created with ceramics. Within a few years, they would be produced for other sports, as well as cartoon characters. One of the most famous bobbleheads of all time also hails from this era: The Beatles bobblehead set, which is a valuable collectible today.

The next increase in popularity took place during the late 1990s. Although older bobbleheads like the baseball teams and The Beatles were sought after by collectors during this period, new bobblehead dolls were few and far between. What finally prompted their resurgence was cheaper manufacturing processes, and the main bobblehead material switched, this time from ceramic to plastic. It was now possible to make bobbleheads in the very limited numbers necessary for them to be viable collectibles. On Aug. 2, 1997, the minor league Birmingham Barons gave away Barons Bobblehead Doll bobbleheads at a game. The first major league baseball team to offer a bobblehead giveaway was the San Francisco Giants, which distributed 35,000 Willie Mays head nodders at their May 9, 1999 game.[1]

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