You Can't Pluck a Rubber Duck - Ken Boddie - Australia

Ken Boddie

4 years ago · 2 min. reading time · ~100 ·

Blogging

Ken blog

You Can't Pluck a Rubber Duck

If it looks like a duck, takes to water like a duck, but is as smooth as a baby's bottom in the bath, then you can de-duck-t it's a rubber ducky and not a contender for canard à l'orange.

So what's the goss' on this perhaps most famous of the 'rubber ducky' phenomena, the cute little yellow hollow floaty that decorates the water of many a babe at bath time?

Well, it appears that the birth of the rubber ducky toy dates back to the days of Charles Goodyear and vulcanised rubber. But the original rubber duck, unlike the many companies that profited from latex and its various rubber products, didn't float, and was a solid chew-toy. Then along came the sculptor, Peter Ganine, in the 1940s, who, doubtless with his mind firmly fixed on future generations of bubs-in-tubs, was the first to produce the concept of a floating hollow rubber ducky toy, modelling it after his sculpture of a duck, and with its bottom as flat as a pancake, a flounder, a witch's tit, or a monster-truck roadkill (take your pick).

Whatever the original looked like, it couldn't have been half bad, as he patented it and reportedly sold 50 million.

So next time you listen to the splishes, splashes and squeals of your babe in the bath, and laugh at the squeak of the yellow rubber floaty, accompanied by a jet of water and bubbles emanating from its bum-crack, spare a though for the far-sighted founder of this fickle floating phenomenon and his fortuitous fortune.

Or perhaps you'd rather sing along to the strains of Ernie from Sesame Street, warbling to the following:

Oh, Rubber Duckie, you're the one,
You make bath time so much fun!

http://ken-boddie.squarespace.com

The author of the above, Ken Boddie, besides being a sometime poet and occasional writer, is an enthusiastic photographer, rarely leisure-travelling without his Canon, and loves to interact with other like-minded people with diverse interests.

Ken's three day work week (part time commitment) as a consulting engineer allows him to follow his photography interests, and to plan trips to an ever increasing list of countries and places of scenic beauty and cultural diversity.

#Rubber Duck #Ernie #Peter Ganine #Sesame Street #Charles Goodyear

Comments

Ken Boddie

4 years ago #24

#27
Not sure if I should congratulate or commiserate, Jim. Depends whether or not you subscribe to the old adage “A duck in the hand’s worth poop by the pool”. 🤗

Jim Murray

4 years ago #23

A pair of beautiful mallard adopted my pool earlier this spring. Evidently they crap pretty freely and on more than on occasion I found myself wishing they were indeed rubber ducks. My sister gave me an inflatable unicorn to scare them away. Good post, Ken.

Ken Boddie

4 years ago #22

#25
Your talk of friendly Canucks, Randy, Is quite riveting, I swear, And varied wildlife, though quite handy, Seems to be too much to ‘bear’. 🐻🦆🐻

Randall Burns

4 years ago #21

Well Ken Boddie This is a very important piece; some true history for us; You've reminded us of the importance of the lowly Duck You're article has left me just awestruck And while I'm saying this as a Canuck We do have higher priorities, like hockey pucks Speaking of which I hope that this is read by Kevin Pashuk I'm sure that he will be thunderstruck But getting back to the point before I get stuck We have so many ducks here, they just run amok Amongst all the other fauna here, from antelopes to woodchucks I better quit while I'm ahead, I'm throwing in the towel I just hope that you don't think that this quick verse is fowl

Ken Boddie

4 years ago #20

#21
Not to mention Daffy Duck either, John. 🦆

Ken Boddie

4 years ago #19

#21
Not to mention Daffy Duck either, John. 🦆

John Rylance

4 years ago #18

As Kenneth Grahame writes in Wind in the Willows. All along the backwater, through the rushes tall, ducks are a dabbling up tails all Why? Probably embrassed by all these duck puns, thankful nobody has mentioned Donald Duck, or Huey Louey and Dewey.

Ken Boddie

4 years ago #17

#17
My de-duck-tion, Prav, is that the duck-tionary should be de-duck-ated to ducks. I’d duck-ument more but my hand’s tired and I can’t find anybody to take duck-tation. 🤣😂🤣

Ken Boddie

4 years ago #16

#16
Sure thing, Prav. No score at the crease is quite a pre-duck-ament. 🤣

Ken Boddie

4 years ago #15

#15
Sounds too raduckal for me, Prav.

Ken Boddie

4 years ago #14

#6
And then there's cricket, John, when “out for a duck” definitely doesn’t in-duck-ate you've gone shopping for dinner.

Ken Boddie

4 years ago #13

#10
Ah, Jerry Fletcher, to share or not to share, now that’s quite a pre-duck-ament. 🤣

Ken Boddie

4 years ago #12

#9
Always happy to assist with the daily dopamine dose, Ian Weinberg. They make them in chocolate also. 🤣😂🤣

Ken Boddie

4 years ago #11

#8
I just had a look at the Florence Duck Store website, Pascal Derrien. Now I remember that you in-duck-ated this to me previously. Pity Florence isn’t closer, or I’d duck in and have a gander. 🤣

Jerry Fletcher

4 years ago #10

Ken, I hail from Oregon where the University teams are known as the Fighting Ducks. I would share your latest with folks here but I might wake up In-duck-ted to the injuries list. keep on punnin' buddy. The world should not be allowed to duck out on the fun.

Ian Weinberg

4 years ago #9

Rubber-necked this one along the wayKen Boddie. Sure kwacked me up Uncle Ken

Pascal Derrien

4 years ago #8

Oky ducky Doc Ken. Boddie there is famous rubber duck shop in Florence Italy you would love it

Ken Boddie

4 years ago #7

#6
it's a paraducks, John. 🤣

John Rylance

4 years ago #6

Opposing ducks. In parts of England calling someone ducks is a term of endearment. In American football calling someone a duck is to politely (or not so) say that they are rubbish at the game.

Ken Boddie

4 years ago #5

#3
Thanks for your pro-duck-tive contributions, John. Of course the duck-filled-fatty-pus is quite rare here in Oz, possibly because it's natural habitat is slowly being era-duck-ated and so it tends to lead a noma-duck lifestyle. 🤣

Ken Boddie

4 years ago #4

#1
Looking forward to a duckumentary on your travels, Paul Walters.

John Rylance

4 years ago #3

Two true duck facts. DuckDuckGo a search engine to ensure your privacy online. Duck Doughnuts a fast growing USA doughnut franchise. Unfortunately they don't seem to be duck shaped. Now a duck joke. What do you call a cat who swallows a duck? A duck-filled-fatty-pus With that I will duck out before you can say I'm quackers.

John Rylance

4 years ago #2

Two true duck facts. DuckDuckgo is a search engine that allows you privacy to search the web.Duck doughnuts, a fast growing doughnut franchise in the USA. A duck joke for

Paul Walters

4 years ago #1

Greetings from Africa rubber ducky

Articles from Ken Boddie

View blog

1 year ago · 4 min. reading time

Related professionals

Paul Walters

Travel Blogger

Marketing / Advertising / Public Relations

Denpasar - Provinsi Bali

Jerry Fletcher

Consultant Messaging Master, Professional Speaker

Marketing / Advertising / Public Relations

Portland - Oregon

Jim Murray

Helping businesses send the right messages in a consistent voice.

Marketing / Advertising / Public Relations

St. Catharines - Ontario

You may be interested in these jobs

Director - Real Estate Advisory & Project Management

Found in: Jobs Search AU C2 - 2 days ago

Longreach Recruitment Perth, Australia Full time

Our client is a multinational professional services giant offering audit, tax, consulting, and advisory services. · An opportunity has become available in the Real Estate Advisory & Project Management team for a director to play a key leadership role, managing and building client ...
Technical Director

Found in: Talent AU C2 - 15 hours ago

SYSTRA Brisbane, Australia Permanent

The SYSTRA Scott Lister Group provides comprehensive consultancy services to a variety of industry verticals including; Rail Transport and Defence sectors. As part of SYSTRA's global footprint, we help clients deliver complex engineering projects that require our consulting servi ...
Experienced Mechanical Engineer

Found in: Talent AU C2 - 7 hours ago

Ausenco South Brisbane, Australia Full time

Experienced Mechanical Engineer - (AUS0008ZO) · Ausenco is a fast-growing company with big ideas. We redefine what's possible in some of the world's most complex projects and toughest environments. Delivering innovative, value-add consulting, project delivery, asset operations an ...