The Story Behd Gay Bob, the World's First Out-And-Proud Doll - Atlas Obscura

WHAT ABOUT GAY BOB?
GAY BOB
MEET GAY BOB, THE 1977 DOLL THAT URGED PEOPLE TO COME OUT OF THE CLOSET
1977 ORIGAL GAY BOB DOLL - RARE - ANATOMILLY RRECT
THE STORY BEHD GAY BOB, THE WORLD’S FIRST OUT-AND-PROUD DOLL
GAYBOB
BEG GAY WAS THE GRAVT S WASHGTON
THE PROFSNAL ATHLETE WHO CAME OUT AS A GAY MAN— 1989

WHAT ABOUT GAY BOB?

The First Openly Gay Doll (for everyone) Was a Trailblazer Toy * gay bob *

Thirteen ch tall and plastic, Gay Bob was marketed as the first openly gay doll and ma his retail but mail-orr talogs.

GAY BOB

In 1977, the world's first gay doll was lnched. And to play wh him, you had to lerally take him out of his closet. * gay bob *

Gay Bob's packagg proudly (and wordily) explaed what “g out of the closet” meant:.

At face value, Gay Bob’s msage about the mers of g out seems earnt, pog the valu of urage, honty, and livg thentilly; however, the brandg and sign of the Gay Bob doll are brash. Rosenberg put $10, 000 of his own money to gettg Gay Bob manufactured through his pany, Gizmo Development. We had somethg to learn om the gay movement, jt like we did om the black civil rights movement, and the women’s movement and that is havg the urage to stand up and say, ‘I have a right to be what I am.

While Rosenberg did not intify as gay, he stated that he had created the doll to liberate men om tradnal sexual rol. Acrdg to Rosenberg, regardls of a person’s sexualy, Gay Bob uld serve as an example for havg the urage to “e out of the closet” and be your te, thentic self.

MEET GAY BOB, THE 1977 DOLL THAT URGED PEOPLE TO COME OUT OF THE CLOSET

1977 Origal Gay bob Doll - RARE - wh origal shippg box * gay bob *

Durg a prs blz for the doll’s release, Rosenberg also dited that Gay Bob was a spoof of other “amorpho, sexls dolls, ” which was undoubtedly a reference to Mattel’s KenTM and BarbieTM. He had plans to release addnal dolls that would have ma up the rt of Gay Bob’s fay (a mother, father, and two brothers); however, the other dolls were never produced.

Gay Bob dolls were sold via mail-orr advertisements gay magaz and a few boutique shops New York Cy and San Francis. Consequently, ten thoand more dolls were produced, and Gay Bob was btowed wh Esquire magaze's "Dub Achievement Award" 1978.

A handsome and mascule doll, Gay Bob had a short feathery blon crew cut and was signed to look like a cross between Pl Newman and Robert Redford. He had a preprogrammed voice rerdg that played the earnt msage, “Gay people are no different than straight people… if everyone me ‘out of their closets, ’ there wouldn’t be so many angry, trated, ightened people.

1977 ORIGAL GAY BOB DOLL - RARE - ANATOMILLY RRECT

Democratic printial ndidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has a history of repeatedly sharg unfound nspiraci that man-ma chemils the environment uld be makg children gay or transgenr and g the femizatn of boys and masculizatn of girls. * gay bob *

” This reerated msagg om his fashn talog that fed “g out of the closet” as what uld be scribed as Gay Bob’s manifto—be urageo by g out of your closet and livg hontly, like Gay Bob! Perhaps most notably the sign of Gay Bob is that he has anatomilly rrect genals.

THE STORY BEHD GAY BOB, THE WORLD’S FIRST OUT-AND-PROUD DOLL

Iger fend Disney's right to speak out agast a ntroversial Florida bill dubbed "Don't Say Gay" by crics, a moved that sparked backlash om DeSantis. * gay bob *

When Gay Bob was removed om the slidg se packagg, he was, effect, g out of the closet. Gay Bob was, acrdg to Rosenberg himself, a “cheaply” ma doll, packaged cleverly.

But Gay Bob was more than jt clever packagg; he also promoted the ia that g out of the closet, beg open and hont wh the people your life, was a powerful and urageo act. “It’s a real giggle and kd of fun, ” said Bce Voeller, executive director of the Natnal Gay Task Force said at the time, “I thk we should al wh lightly and enjoy .

GAYBOB

* gay bob *

Gay Bob entered the world 1977 after the Stonewall Rt took place New York Cy 1969. Many nsir Stonewall, a New York Cy uprisg to prottg police harassment at the Stonewall Inn, as the start of the Gay Rights movement the Uned Stat. Los Angel has a long history of Gay Rights Protts and anti-gay ordanc, such as the Anti-Masqueradg Ordance of 1898.

BEG GAY WAS THE GRAVT S WASHGTON

The rtrictive anti-gay Hays Co, which forba and then limed the way LGBTQ+ characters uld be seen on film, was disband the early 1960s. Gay Rights and Gay Inty had entered more mon areas the cultural nversatn, but LGBTQ+ people were still discrimated agast, stigmatized, and legislated agast on large and small sl. In 1977, Harvey Milk was the first openly gay elected official California, and 1978 was assassated.

THE PROFSNAL ATHLETE WHO CAME OUT AS A GAY MAN— 1989

At the same time Gay Bob h the mail-orr adult-centric talogs (and a uple of biastal boutique shelv) sger and anti-gay rights activist Ana Bryant found Save Our Children, Inc, which opposed the gay rights movement. When Da County, Florida, passed a gay-rights ordance protectg gay civil rights passed early 1977, Save Our Children rpond wh a mpaign to repeal the ordance.

Bryant’s fear-mongerg rhetoric gaed tractn, and June 1977, the Da County gay rights ordance was repealed and would rema until the 1990s. This lead to more gay rights protectns beg repealed and other loss to the LGBTQ+ muny across the untry.

The Story Behd Gay Bob, the World's First Out-And-Proud Doll - Atlas Obscura

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Contents:

WHAT ABOUT GAY BOB?

GAY BOB

MEET GAY BOB, THE 1977 DOLL THAT URGED PEOPLE TO COME OUT OF THE CLOSET

1977 ORIGAL GAY BOB DOLL - RARE - ANATOMILLY RRECT

THE STORY BEHD GAY BOB, THE WORLD’S FIRST OUT-AND-PROUD DOLL

GAYBOB

BEG GAY WAS THE GRAVT S WASHGTON

THE PROFSNAL ATHLETE WHO CAME OUT AS A GAY MAN— 1989

BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM GAY BOB

The Story Behd Gay Bob, the World's First Out-And-Proud Doll - Atlas Obscura

Recent Posts

Tags

Contents:

WHAT ABOUT GAY BOB?

GAY BOB

MEET GAY BOB, THE 1977 DOLL THAT URGED PEOPLE TO COME OUT OF THE CLOSET

1977 ORIGAL GAY BOB DOLL - RARE - ANATOMILLY RRECT

THE STORY BEHD GAY BOB, THE WORLD’S FIRST OUT-AND-PROUD DOLL

GAYBOB

BEG GAY WAS THE GRAVT S WASHGTON

THE PROFSNAL ATHLETE WHO CAME OUT AS A GAY MAN— 1989

*BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM* GAY BOB

BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM GAY BOB