Weebles are a line of roly-poly toys produced by Playskool that feature egg-shaped characters with a weighted bottom that, when pushed, always return to their upright position. Weebles were originally produced from 1971 to 1983 and were marketed with the popular catchphrase, “Weebles wobble, but they don’t fall down.” They were reintroduced in the 2000s with the Weebleville line of products and again in 2010 as larger figures. In 2011, TIME ranked Weebles among the 100 greatest toys of all time.[1]
History in the Macy's Parade[]
Weeble Balloon (1975-1978)[]
The Weeble balloon made its first appearance in the 1975 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade as a recreation of the Boy Weeble figure, complete with a white and red sweater, blue jeans, and a slingshot hidden in his back pocket.
Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company built the balloon at their plant in Rockmart, Georgia. It measured 40 feet tall and 25 feet in diameter, weighed 258 pounds, and required 14,500 cubic feet of helium and 37 handlers to stay true to the claim of not falling down.[2] Once completed, the Weeble was test flown just outside of the facility with musical accompaniment courtesy of the Rockmart High School Band.[3]
During its debut, rain and wind impacted the Parade. Weeble was one of three balloons pulled from the lineup that day, as he had been punctured by a utility pole at the 77th Street starting line and subsequently deflated.[4]
The Weeble balloon experienced troubles again in 1976 when it was punctured by a light pole and removed at Times Square, by which point it had lost half of its helium. Recalling the past year’s incident, one of the handlers was quoted as saying “I think it might be jinxed.”[4]
In order to reduce any further incidents, a “skirt”—a layer of fabric in a scallop shape—was added to the balloon for stability. The solution proved successful when the Weeble had its first successful flight the following year.
The Weeble balloon was retired after its fourth appearance in the 1978 Parade. Though most balloons of the time lasted five years,[5] executive producer Jean McFaddin later blamed the skirt for its early retirement and explained, “Weebles aren’t for girls. So it just sat in a box for years.”[6] The balloon was eventually recycled into the Humpty Dumpty balloon for the Parade’s 60th anniversary in 1986.
Weebles Balloonicles (2004-2006)[]
In 2004, the Weebles were reintroduced to the Parade as first-of-their-kind balloonicles (a combination balloon and self-propelled vehicle) to reflect their wobbly nature. Straight from Weebleville were Tibby (a purple elephant), Tooey (a turtle firefighter), and Bumpus (a mail delivery sheepdog), who wobbled down the Parade route with the help of a driver and a spotter at 26 feet tall and 18 feet wide.
The Tooey balloonicle experienced technical difficulties in its debut appearance, deflating once on 81st Street,[7] then again at 72nd Street.[8] The balloonicle was sidelined both times and consequently fell behind its intended position, but was able to catch up with Tibby and Bumpus by the time they reached Herald Square. Similarly, in 2006, the Bumpus balloonicle collided with trees on 77th Street and deflated.[9]
Following Playskool’s discontinuation of the Weebleville line, the Weeble balloonicles were retired after the 2006 Parade, and were last confirmed to exist in “Parade Ready” condition at the Macy’s Parade Warehouse in 2014.[10]
Trivia[]
- Costumed versions of several Weebles figures appeared alongside the original balloon, including Girl (1975), Dad (1975, 1978) Ghost (1976-1977), Indian Boy (1976), Scuba Diver (1976-1978), Pirate (1977-1978), Witch (1977), and Western Dad (1977).
- The Weeble is the first of three known balloons to be modified for stability purposes. The others being Olive Oyl in 1986 with the addition of Swee'Pea and the balloon bouquet, and Extaordinary Noorah in 2025 with the removal of her Scout Elf.
- Instead of Tooey, a Pendleton the Penguin balloonicle was depicted in the unit's initial concept art.
See also[]
References[]
- ↑ Townsend, Allie. "ALL-TIME 100 Greatest Toys." TIME. February 16, 2011.
- ↑ "Watch for the Weeble." York Daily Record. November 26, 1975.
- ↑ Associated Press. "It's a Weeble." The South Bend Tribune. November 27, 1975.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 UPI. "Parade a hit despite its wounded Weeble." The Times. November 26, 1976.
- ↑ Kelly, Michael. "The sky's the limit for this frog's leap down parade route." The Plain Dealer. November 24, 1977.
- ↑ Wloszczyna, Susan. "Real parade action is in the sky." The Tennessean. November 22, 1990.
- ↑ Image taken at 81st Street.
- ↑ Photo taken by David Pomponio near 72nd Street.
- ↑ File:Ripbumpus.png
- ↑ File:Balloon-Inventory-Chart-Nov2014.png
