Silly as they are , some bobbleheads have been sell forcrazy sum of money . The tchotchkes are a theme song piece of sports memorabilia , but their account dates back far beyond the world of athletics .
An early reference to the figurines we do it as " bobbleheads " appeared in Nikolai Gogol ’s 1842 brusk story “ The Overcoat . ” According toBobblehead.com , the tale features a fictitious character whose neck was " like the neck of plaster cat which wag their head . ” Bobbleheads — or " nodders " or " bobbers , " as they were originally known — were produced in Germany in the mid-18th century . These early incarnations fend about six to eight inches magniloquent , with heads that were impound to their bodies with a spring .
Bobbleheads as sports memorabilia first attain the scene in the 1920s . accord toSB commonwealth , the first squad - come to figurine was a generic Knicks hoops player . Bobbleheads did n’t reach baseball game until the 1960 World Series , when fans could corrupt papier - mâché bobbleheads honoring Mickey Mantle , Roger Maris , Willie Mays , and Roberto Clemente ( because of their slight mental synthesis , few remain ) .
Bobbleheads dipped in popularity , and they did n’t become a ballpark staple again for decade . SB Nation credit the San Francisco Giants for avail revive the tradition when the squad had a Willie Mays bobblehead publicity in 1999 . The statuette became an instant aggregator ’s item , and a fad was ( re)born . garish fabrication methods also meant that teams could regularly include bobbleheads as free giveaways , adding incentive for fans to buy tickets .
Between 2010 and May 2013 , SB Nation reports , there were 334 bobblehead promotional giveaways at major conference ballparks . Of those furtherance , the Giants have hosted the most , with 34 in that three - twelvemonth twosome and 77 in amount since 1999 .
The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum is coiffure to open in 2016.Newsweekreports that the museum ’s founding father , Phil Sklar and Brad Nova , already have 4000 bobbleheads and hope to have 6000 more by the time it opens .
