In Hula Hoop Rebirth, A Fad Comes Full Circle

Gallery

Jamming and Gyrating: Summer Series Hula Hoop

Fifty years after the Hula Hoop burst onto the U.S. toy market and became a summertime sensation, the hippest toy that once was the province of children is enjoying a renaissance among adults. On Aug. 8, 2008, people in cities around the globe will celebrate World Hoop Day, a holiday on which hoopers give away Hula Hoops and spread their love of hooping.

» LAUNCH PHOTO GALLERY

* * *

The Hula Hoop wasn't supposed to be spiritual or meditative. It was supposed to sell. And it did.

When California toymaker Wham-O introduced the Hula Hoop in 1958, it sold 100 million in the first year, at $1.98 a piece. It became an instant icon, the granddaddy of all fads.

"It's got to be right up there with Monopoly and Barbie as one of the most ubiquitous toys there is," said toy historian Tim Walsh, who has written a book about Wham-O that will be published in October.

It was not surprising that the Hula Hoop would become popular in the United States. Earlier in the 20th century, children in Australia had loved playing with a similar hoop toy. Before that, the hoop existed for centuries in bamboo, wood and cane, Walsh said. As legend has it, ancient Greeks used the hoop as a form of exercise, and ancient Egyptians played with rings made out of grapevines. Native Americans were said to have used circular toys.

But almost as quickly as the Hula Hoop became an American sensation, demand fizzled, and a new idiom entered the vernacular: It went the way of the Hula Hoop.

Wham-O eventually brought it back, including a version with a ball inside the plastic cylinder that makes a shoop-shoop sound. (That one sells for $4.99.) Kids competed to set records for continuous revolution. (Eight-year-old Mary Jane Freeze of the United States reportedly hooped for 10 hours and 47 minutes straight in the summer of 1976.)

Then adults caught on to the craze and started making their own hoops. This introduced a catch. There's always a catch. Wham-O trademarked "Hula Hoop," naming it after the Hawaiian hula dance. Therefore, the patent lawyer inside each of us cautions that the hoops that Reid, Powers and Koissy use cannot be called Hula Hoops. (We'll ignore our inner lawyer.)

But some modern hoopers change the spelling to Hoola Hoop. Or drop Hula altogether.

"Some people, like myself, feel like it's culturally appropriating and not respectful to the Hawaiian dance form," Powers said.

But hooper Annie O'Keeffe said, "I do love the word hula."

* * *