Paddle ball

Paddle ball is a one-person game played with a paddle and an attached ball. Using the flat paddle with the small rubber ball attached at the center via an elastic string, the player tries to hit the ball with the paddle in succession as many times as possible.

The paddle is similar in size and shape to a table tennis racket. It is usually made from either wood or plastic, although other materials can be used.

Created and patented (U.S. Patent 1,529,600) in the 1920s, the paddle ball was one of the more whimsical products to follow the invention of soft rubber.

In 1937, the Fli-Back Company was founded in High Point, North Carolina with the paddle-ball as their sole product. The paddle logo depicted a cowboy playing paddle ball while riding a bucking bronco. This first successful mass-marketing of the toy allowed the company to diversify into a number of other toys including the yo-yo and spinning tops. In 1972, the Ohio Art Company, the makers of the popular Etch-A-Sketch, purchased the Fli-Back Company. They continued to make Fli-Back paddle ball games in High Point until 1983.

In 1931 the toy was featured in Newsweek.

In the 1950s Duncan Toys Company manufactured the "Hi-Li Paddle Ball Toy" that sold millions of units. The paddle reads “Duncan’s Official Hi-Li, Reg. U.S. Pat. Off., Champion No. 99.”

In 2000, Yomega received a trademark for "Extreme 180° APB", their paddle ball featuring adjustable cord lengths and ball types.

In 41: A Portrait of My Father, former US President George W. Bush recounts that his father, former President George H. W. Bush, often played paddleball with Mississippi Congressman Sonny Montgomery.

In an unforgettable early demonstration of 3-D effects, the carnival barker in House of Wax is shown doing tricks with a paddle ball to gain the attention of potential customers.

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Wikipedia