When were yellow rubber ducks invented?
The origin of the rubber duck is not known, but its history is inevitably linked to the emergence of rubber manufacturing in the late 1800s. The earliest rubber ducks were made from harder rubber and lacked squeakers. The yellow rubber duck has achieved an iconic status in American pop culture and is often symbolically linked to bathing or bath tubs and bubbles and to babies and toddlers. Jim Henson popularized rubber ducks in 1970, performing “Rubber Duckie” as Ernie, a popular Muppet from Sesame Street. The song had two follow-ups, “Do de Rubber Duck” and “DUCKIE,” and Ernie frequently spoke to his duck and carried it with him in other segments of the show. As the rubber duck has grown in popularity over the years, many variants are sold, including “devil ducks,” “dead ducks,” and “bride and groom” ducks. This person poses with a rubber duck.
