{{Short description|Children's toy}} thumb|The original Wooly Willy was manufactured by the Smethport Specialty Company in 1955
'''Wooly Willy''' is a toy in which metal filings are moved about with a magnetic wand to add features to a cartoon face.<ref name=MentalFloss>{{Cite web|date=2020-09-29|title=The Magnetic Appeal of Wooly Willy|url=https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/632615/wooly-willy-toy-history|access-date=2021-07-29|website=www.mentalfloss.com|language=en}}</ref> The toy was originally manufactured in Smethport, Pennsylvania and was launched on the toy market in 1955.<ref name=MentalFloss/> It remains in production as of 2025.<ref name = Playmonster>{{cite web |url=http://www.playmonster.com/p/original-wooly-willy |title= Original Wooly Willy |publisher=Play Monster |date=2016 |accessdate=2025-06-02}}</ref>
Similar toys were made, some by the same company like the larger version, "Dapper Dan The Magnetic Man," which sold for three times as much.<ref name=MentalFloss/><ref name=Smethport>{{cite web |url=http://www.smethporthistory.org/smethportspeciality/wollypage.htm |title=Smethport's Wooly Willy |accessdate=2025-06-02|publisher=Planet Smethport}}</ref>
The Woolly Willy trademark is currently held by the Beloit, Wisconsin-based company PlayMonster, formerly known as Patch Products, which purchased the Smethport Specialty Company in 2008.{{Citation needed|date=September 2021}}
==Description== Wooly Willy is the smiling face of a man without hair, under a vacuum-formed clear plastic with a large number of magnetic shavings in it.<ref name=MentalFloss/> When the attached magnetic wand moves along the plastic or the cardboard back, the black shavings follow it and this "hair" can create features like beards, mustaches, and shaggy eyebrows on the face."<ref name=MentalFloss/><ref name="Waggoner">{{cite book|last=Waggoner|first=Susan|title=Under the Tree: The Toys and Treats That Made Christmas Special, 1930-1970|publisher=Stewart, Tabori & Chang|year=2007|isbn=978-1-58479-641-1|location=New York|page=111}}</ref> ==Creation== The brothers Donald and James Herzog developed Wooly Willy while working in the Smethport Specialty Company, their father's toy production company, in Smethport, Pennsylvania, United States.<ref name=MentalFloss/> James came up with the idea as a use for the magnetic filings that resulted from creating other toys; Donald learned about vacuum-forming.<ref name=MentalFloss/> "Leonard Mackowski, an artist from nearby Bradford, Pennsylvania, was recruited to create Willy’s face" and his hidden signature is still visible.<ref name=MentalFloss/><ref name=Smethport/>
==Launch== Priced at US$0.29, Wooly Willy was initially unsuccessful.<ref name=MentalFloss/> A buyer for G. C. Murphy dime store chain initially purchased six dozen of the toy and expected not to sell them for a year.<ref name=Smethport/> The buyer called Herzog just two days later and ordered 12,000 for nationwide distribution.<ref name=Smethport/><ref name=MentalFloss/><ref name=attoun>Attoun, Marti. "Wooly Willy Attracting Smiles for 50 years". ''American Profile'' Sep. 27 - Oct. 5, p 12.</ref> F. W. Woolworth Company also distributed the toy. More than 75 million Wooly Willies have been sold.<ref name=attoun/>
==Honors== Wooly Willy became a hit with young baby boomers, selling more than 75 million units<ref name = MentalFloss/>and remains in production as of 2025 by the Smethport Specialty Company, which is now owned by PlayMonster.<ref name = Playmonster/> In 2003, the Toy Industry Association added Wooly Willy to its "''Century of Toys List''", a roll call of the most memorable and creative toys of the 20th century.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.toymania.com/news/messages/2932.shtml |title=Toy Industry Assoc's Century of Toys |publisher=Raving Toy Maniac|date=2003-01-21 |accessdate=2025-06-02}}</ref> In 2006, ''I Love Toys'', the eighth in VH1's series of ''I Love…'' nostalgia shows, presented a countdown of the 100 greatest toys, chosen partially through public voting on vh1.com and also consideration of "sales, historical significance and longevity," according to VH1. Wooly Willy placed at #81.{{fact|date=June 2025}}
==References== <references/>
Category:1950s toys Category:Products introduced in 1955 Category:Magnetic devices Category:Toy brands Category:Smethport, Pennsylvania