Editing Space hopper (section)

==History==
[[File:The Childrens Museum of Indianapolis - Hoppity horse.jpg|thumb|right|Sun's Hoppity Horse, from [[the Children's Museum of Indianapolis]] collection]]

The space hopper was invented by Aquilino Cosani of Ledragomma, an Italian company that manufactured toy rubber balls. He patented the idea in Italy in 1968, and in the United States in 1971. Cosani called the toy "Pon-Pon".

Space hoppers were introduced to the United Kingdom in 1969. The ''[[Cambridge News|Cambridge Evening News]]'' contained an advertisement for the hopper in November of that year<ref>{{cite web | url=http://space-hopper.blogspot.com/2006/08/1969-space-hopper-in-britain.html | title=1968 And 1969: The Space Hopper In Britain... | date=2 September 2006 | accessdate=19 October 2012}}</ref> and described it as a trend. The space hopper became a major craze for several years and remained widely popular through the 1980s. The toy is sometimes considered a symbol of the 1970s.

The original space hopper in the United Kingdom was manufactured by Mettoy ([[Mettoy-Corgi]]). Wembley made a similar model, which had smooth handles rather than the ribbed original. The orange kangaroo design is now available in adult-sized versions in the UK.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://jumping.toys/history-hopper-ball-space-hopper/ | title=Where did space hopper come from?: History of Space Hopper – Hopper Ball | website=jumping.toys | date=15 July 2019 | accessdate=20 August 2020}}</ref>

In the United States, the first mass-marketed hopping ball was a version of an earlier European toy—the Hoppity Hop, released by the Sun company after it introduced the ball in 1968 at the American International Toy Fair in New York.

Within the first three months, more than 300,000 units were sold across the country. Because of market and media saturation of this toy, any such ball, regardless of origin, is now generally known in the US by that name.

The earliest Hoppity Hops were made of rubber (usually red or blue) with a round ring handle on top and an automotive [[tire valve]] for inflation. In the 1970s, Sun introduced various character versions of the Hoppity Hop, such as the Hoppity Horse or Disney's [[Mickey Mouse]] and [[Donald Duck]] (with hard plastic versions of the character's head attached to the ball).

The Hoppity Hop sold steadily for decades, but by the 1990s, sales began to slip due to increased competition from foreign hoppers.

According to advertising materials, the Hoppity Hop's original targets were both adults and children. Since the balls only inflated to around {{convert|20|in|cm}}, however, it is doubtful that any but the shortest adults could have gotten much use out of one.

The European "Hop!" balls appeared in the beginning of the 1990s and are still available. Made by Italy's Ledragomma/Ledraplastic, these are essentially an [[exercise ball]] with a handle attached. The sizes of these balls range from the "Hop! 45" to the "Hop! 66" (66&nbsp;cm, about 26&nbsp;in).

The Hop! 66 is still primarily child-sized. Demand for truly adult-proportioned hopping balls was met with two notable items: The first was Kitt 2000 Velp, of the Netherlands Mega Skippyballs, a large hopping ball that, by virtue of its size, was intended only for adult use. It came in three sizes: {{convert|120|cm}}, {{convert|100|cm}}, and {{convert|80|cm}}.

The Mega Skippyballs are made of extra-strong vinyl, and in the Netherlands, there are various Skippyball races and championships.