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On this blog you I am going to share my world with you. What can you expect to find here -- First of all lots of sexy men, off all shapes and types, something for everyone, as I can find beauty in most men. You are going to find that I have a special fondness for Vintage Beefcake and Porn of the 60's, 70's, and 80's. Also, I love the average guy, and if you want to see yourself on here, just let me know. Be as daring as you like, as long as you are of age, let me help you share it with the world! Also, you are going to find many of my points of views, on pop culture, politics and our changing world. Look to see posts about pop culture, politics, entertainment, sex, etc. There is not any subject that I find as something I won't discuss or offer my point of view. Most of all, I hope you are going to enjoy what I post. ENJOY!

Monday, March 7, 2016

March 7th is Sock Monkey Day

Is it homemade toy, or a piece of folk art?

Is it a touch of the exotic in an American nursery, or corn-ball kitsch?

Yes, yes, yes, and yes.

Sock monkeys are of course, just as you would suspect, toy monkeys made from socks.

During the later years of the Victorian era, there was a craze for imitation stuffed animals for children. At around the same time, there was a huge Arts and Crafts Movement that elevated the decorative arts, AND there was a Scramble to colonize Africa, and therefore interest in African animals. So by the early 1900s, lots of nurseries had toy stuffed monkeys.

But those monkeys were not generally made of socks.

In the meantime, John Nelson, a Swedish immigrant to the United States, patented a sock-knitting machine that created seamless work socks. The Nelson Knitting Company's socks (called Rockfords, because the Nelson Knitting Company was located in Rockford, Illinois) were so popular, soon others copied the technology and started pumping out imitation seamless work socks. So Nelson trademarked a red heel to set their socks apart from the crowd.

The same year that the red-heeled socks appeared, the iconic sock monkey with a red mouth was introduced to the world. A variety of American crafters made sock monkeys from worn out red-heeled socks, but in 1955 Nelson Knitting was awarded the patent for the sock monkey doll.

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