The story of Gay Bob, the ntroversial 1970s doll that would be jt pla offensive today

Contents:

• MEET GAY BOB, THE 1977 DOLL THAT URGED PEOPLE TO COME OUT OF THE CLOSET
• WHAT ABOUT GAY BOB?
• THE STORY BEHD GAY BOB, THE WORLD’S FIRST OUT-AND-PROUD DOLL
• 1977 ORIGAL GAY BOB DOLL - RARE - ANATOMILLY RRECT
• OUT AND PROUD: GAY BOB DOLLS AND THEIR PLACE HISTORY
• TAG ARCHIV: GAY BOB
• HOW GAY BOB, THE WORLD’S FIRST OPENLY GAY DOLL, CAME TO BE
• GAY BOB AND EARRG MAGIC KEN: A SHORT HISTORY OF GAY DOLLS
• #FLASHBACK: 1979, THE GAY BOB DOLL
• THE STORY OF GAY BOB, THE NTROVERSIAL 1970S DOLL THAT WOULD BE JT PLA OFFENSIVE TODAY
• TOM OF FLAND GAY DOLL FIGURE 001 REBEL ~COLLECTIBLE ~
• REMEMBERG BOB, THE WORLD’S FIRST GAY DOLL, WHO WANTED TO BE A HERO
• MIB VTAGE GAY BOB DOLL 1977 LGBTQ ANATOMILLY CORRECT - MUST SEE
• GAY BOB DOLL

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

Jun 12, 2020Failed to save articlePlease try agaThis article is more than 3 years 1860s Germany, Karl Herich Ulrichs urged other gay people to publicly reveal their sexual orientatn. Digned to look like a batn of Pl Newman and Robert Redford and packed to his own rdboard closet, Gay Bob was the brachild of former advertisg executive Harvey Rosenberg.

In an terview to promote Gay Bob, Rosenberg once said, “Bob’s perfect for an executive’s sk, dash board ornament, the attache se, the bathtub rim, a health club gym bag. Edward Rowe, the executive director of Protect Ameri’s Children, was quoted a 1978 issue of the Ptsburgh Post-Gazette scribg Gay Bob as “another evince of the speratn the homosexual mpaign has reached s effort to put homosexual liftyle, which is a ath style, across to the Amerin people.

WHAT ABOUT GAY BOB?

Two thoand people snapped up their own Gay Bobs the first two months of the doll beg available, and Bob was later stocked San Francis and New York boutiqu. 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.

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. 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. 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. 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. ” 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!

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

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 .

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. 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.

1977 ORIGAL GAY BOB DOLL - RARE - ANATOMILLY RRECT

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. Rowe lled the Gay Bob dolls, “evince of the speratn of the homosexual mpaign has reached s effort to put the homosexual liftyle, which is a athstyle, across to the Amerin people. I n only hope that the children who are given the Gay Bob dolls will not prehend the meang and tent of the mpaign that is behd their manufacture and distributn.

OUT AND PROUD: GAY BOB DOLLS AND THEIR PLACE HISTORY

That changed 1997 wh Totem Internatnal’s troductn of the Billy doll who claimed to be the first “Out and Proud Gay Doll”—although that distctn clearly belongs to Gay Bob.

TAG ARCHIV: GAY BOB

While fans celebrated the cln of Mamie and Lyte as reprentatn and clivy, also led to homophobic backlash straight out of Ana Bryant’s book several s after Save the Children began. It would be easy to look at the story of Gay Bob and thk was simply a novelty em that got ught up the polics of the time for a brief moment and is now largely fotten. “Gay people, ” Bob said, “are no different than straight people… if everyone me ‘out of their closets’ there wouldn’t be so many angry, trated, ightened people.

Gay Bob explaed: “It’s not easy to be hont about what you are — fact tak a great al of urage… But remember if Gay Bob has the urage to e out his closet, so n you. The doll’s creator, Harvey Rosenberg, a former advertisg executive who veloped marketg mpaigns for var rporatns, wanted Gay Bob to “liberate” men om “tradnal sexual rol.

HOW GAY BOB, THE WORLD’S FIRST OPENLY GAY DOLL, CAME TO BE

Though Gay Bob was certaly humoro—the doll was signed to be anatomilly rrect, and proment gay activists such as Bce Voeller told reporters that people should “al wh [the doll] lightly and enjoy ”—Rosenberg’s tentns seem to have been scere.

When asked why he would pour $10, 000 of his money to the Gay Bob’s productn, he replied, “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. When Gay Bob h stor 1978, that right to be gay and equal was once aga unr attack, most notably om Ana Bryant, a sger and well-known brand ambassador who mobilized opposn to a Da County, Florida ordance that outlawed discrimatn on the basis of sexual orientatn.

And, turns out, those nsumers who feared the troductn of more “disgtg” dolls were partially rrect—Rosenberg soon gave Gay Bob a fay of his own, wh brothers Marty Macho, Executive Eddie, Anx Al, and Straight Steve (who lived the suburbs and wore blue sus), and sisters Fashnable Fran, Liberated Libby, and Nervo Nelly. Billy was troduced 1997, he was based on drawgs created by artist John McKterick and marketed the Uned Stat by London-based Totem Internatnal as “the first out and proud gay doll”, although that distctn actually belongs to Gay Bob, troduced 1977. Billy and Carlos donned drag 1999, wh Billy drsed a ggham checkered pantsu as “Dolly” and Carlos as “Carmen” a polka dot outf remiscent of those worn by Carmen Miranda to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Stonewall Rts, an event which lnched the gay liberatn movement the Uned Stat.

GAY BOB AND EARRG MAGIC KEN: A SHORT HISTORY OF GAY DOLLS

Gay Bob, as he was dubbed, wore tight jeans and wboy boots, and was by no means your average Ken (he sported a ltle extra, if you tch our drift), so his mere existence was a bold statement a world not yet ready to accept the LGBTQ+ muny. Dpe beg somewhat tongue--cheek both name and sign—and spe beg wily cricized and eher rejected or banned by most retailers—Gay Bob did mark a step forward visibily and acceptance for the gay populatn, offerg a glimmer of hope for those fightg for equal rights and reprentatn 1970s Ameri. In June 1970, on the anniversary of the Stonewall rts, the first gay pri para was held several Amerin ci, wh participants marchg to memorate the events of the prev year and to ll for equal rights and regnn.

In July 1974, the Amerin Psychiatric Associatn voted to remove homosexualy om the Diagnostic and Statistil Manual of Mental Disorrs, a major step toward stigmatizg homosexualy. Durg the 1970s, sodomy laws, which crimalized homosexualy, were still place many Amerin stat; Harvey Milk was assassated jt one year after beg elected; and 1977, the Save Our Children mpaign, led by Christian pop sger Ana Bryant, succsfully repealed a newly enacted ordance Da County, Florida, that prohibed discrimatn based on sexual orientatn.

So, he broke ti wh all the rporatns he had prevly worked wh and vted $10, 000 of his own money (equivalent to about $50, 000 today) to fund the velopment of the Gay Bob doll, which he knew would be a dissent act.

#FLASHBACK: 1979, THE GAY BOB DOLL

When asked about the fancial grounds unrpng this cisn, he supposedly said nothg of the market at all, but simply replied wh, “I’m not gay, but 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.

THE STORY OF GAY BOB, THE NTROVERSIAL 1970S DOLL THAT WOULD BE JT PLA OFFENSIVE TODAY

An expensively ma doll, Gay Bob was packaged que genly—his box was signed to look like a closet, featurg an illtrated wardrobe on the si, and a simulated closet door on the outsi.

Wh a pact, mcular stature of 13 ch (33 cm) and a price range of $15 to $20, Gay Bob was envisned as a blend of the dashg charm of Pl Newman and the sophistited elegance of Robert Redford. Wh his well-groomed, short and feathery blon hair, the gold cha around his neck and a sgle pierced ear wh a blue earrg, he embodied a nfint and stylish appearance, oozg wh mascule energy while nveyg the bold and adventuro spir of the ntemporary homosexual liftyle. A host of other accsori and outfs were further scribed the acpanyg fashn talog, showsg Gay Bob’s wi range of styl, om the adventuro and gged “Gay Mounta Climber” ensemble to the preppy “Gay Polo Club Member” attire to the laid-back “Gay Suburbane” and “Gay Farmer” looks.

TOM OF FLAND GAY DOLL FIGURE 001 REBEL ~COLLECTIBLE ~

” A few months later, Edward Rowe, the executive director of Protect Ameri’s Children, told a Ptsburgh Post Gazette reporter the followg wh regard to Gay Bob:. On the pl si, Gay Bob earned himself an explic reference Frank Zappa’s 1979 three-part rock opera, Joe’s Garage, more particularly the first scene of Act II, “The Closet. ” In the song tled “Sy B, ” around the 3 mute mark, a robotic voice tells Joe, the protagonist of the story, “I share this apartment wh a modified Gay Bob doll.

On paper, Heavy Harry and Fat Pat were supposed to be his parents; Marty Macho, Executive Eddie, Straight Steve and Anx Al were tend to be his four brothers, each one the embodiment of a different stereotype; fally, Fashnable Fran, Liberated Libby, and Nervo Nelly were meant to be Gay Bob’s three ltle sisters, their characters engraved their nam. Thgs changed a b 1993, when Mattel released Earrg Magic Ken who—spe beg signed to be Magic Barbie’s boyiend—looked too stereotypilly feme and flamboyant to not be dubbed “a closeted gay. “IT’S ANOTHER EVIDENCE OF THE speratn the homosexual mpaign has reached s effort to put homosexual liftyle, which is a athstyle, across to the Amerin people.

The story behd a Gay Bob, the world’s first out-and-proud doll, Atlas Obscura, 10 January 2017, by Michael Waters Meet Gay Bob, “the world’s first gay doll, Huffgton Post, 26 April 2015 updated 7 December 2017, by Noah Michelson. Acrdg to the anti-gay lobby group Protect Ameri’s Children, Bob was “evince of the speratn the homosexual mpaign has reached s effort to put the homosexual liftyle across to the Amerin people. ” Funny enough, Bob’s “g out” party cid directly wh the righteo prence of the “Save Our Children” mpaign, a movement led by sger and polil activist, Ana Bryant, that manufactured an atmosphere of hatred on the basis that gay people were recg children.

REMEMBERG BOB, THE WORLD’S FIRST GAY DOLL, WHO WANTED TO BE A HERO

“I thk every gay man was aware of Gay Bob, ” says Chris Byrne, a 30-year-pl veteran of the toy dtry, thor of five books on toy history, and a featured expert on Netflix’s h documentary, The Toys That Ma Us.

Photo Cred: Gizmo Development via WikimediaThe pot of Gay Bob, then, beme a mix between unorthodoxy and the brilliant satirizatn of 1970s aggro-machismo culture. The fal mol of the doll effectively exaggerated that penis, turng to both a parative crique of “real men” as well as an unmistakably unfortable jab at anti-gay activists. Dark Wch Willow actn figureIf you want to hunt down a figure of Willow, everyone's favore Buffyverse lbian, you may as well go wh this Cequt exclive Dark Wch Willow, sce she was the first gay pictn of the character on the show.

Rort Smhers -- and if you want your toy llectn to be extra gay, you have to get the Smhers om his vis to a Fire Island-style vatn the classic episo "Homer the Smhers" -- me wh a phone and a bag of peappl among his props, and he would teract wh Mister Burns's fireplace if you happened to have the set. Gandalf the GreyOK, so Gandalf technilly exhibed no sexual orientatn the Lord of the Rgs books or films, but he isn't not gay, and actor Ian McKellen certaly is sure gay.

MIB VTAGE GAY BOB DOLL 1977 LGBTQ ANATOMILLY CORRECT - MUST SEE

Wrten by B | 18th June 2020 | Updated June 13th 2022LGBTI+ people have loved and llected dolls for jt as long as heterosexual cisgenr llectors, but gay dolls have tradnally occupied an extremely niche sectn of the toy market. From cursy to mastream staple and highly valued llectabl, this is the evolutn of the gay doll, cludg the rise and rise of Ken – or at least Earrg Magic Ken as he's known some parts.

He was sold a rdboard box signed to look like a closet, along wh a leaflet tailg his other outfs, and llectors even had the optn to purchase a send Gay Bob at a rced price. While some fans were exced to add a new, relatively rare, doll to their llectns, others were quick to ri Gay Bob as “gay propaganda” and nservative mentators voiced ncerns that Gay Bob would lead to children viewg homosexualy as a normal part of were a number of factors that marked Gay Bob as an adult-only doll.

At the time, homosexualy was still illegal many of Gay Bob’s markets and while owng a gay doll was not illegal, many nsired homosexualy to be a taboo topic for children. This adult ra stroyed some of Gay Bob’s allure for llectors, as the limed dience meant that Gay Bob lacked the iends, ho, outfs, pets and flashy rs of popular dolls like Bob wh his clothg talogue and closet boxThe doll that accintally beme a gay inThe var attempts to create and market gay dolls to the gay market were met wh some succs but they missed out on the mastream appeal that many doll llectors vet.

GAY BOB DOLL

Ken’s new highlights, his lavenr mh vt, the earrg his left ear and the fact that he wore a silver circle charm around his neck (siar appearance to a popular sex toy) meant that Earrg Magic Ken was quickly hailed as a gay in and rapidly eclipsed his girliend (who hopefully found love the arms of one of her other Earrg Magic iends). Billy doll was created by a pair of artists, John McKterick and Juan Andr, who wanted to draw attentn to social issu that disproportnately impact the LGBTI+ muny: gay visibily, safe sex, AIDS rearch and the need for diverse voic. The Billy doll le tered to a much broar dience than the Gay Bob dolls: Billy had a Puerto Rin boyiend and an Ain Amerin iend, he had g out parti at exclive (human) clubs and a dance mic album, he appeared galleri and science mms, and had a number of legal disput.

In 2004, McKterick and Andr announced that the Billy dolls had performed their origal aim of raisg awarens and that the le would be has bee somethg of a gay in, at least the toy worldEnterg the mastreamEven if Earrg Magic Ken wouldn’t have looked out of place a gay bar, why were LGBT+ llectors so keen to claim him as one of their own?