* texts collaged from numerous sources.
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Chronologically
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8 AD.— The First Sex Doll Story Told. In Metamorphoses, Ovid wrote of a myth involving a woman sculpted from ivory by Pygmalion. Her name was Galatea and he became so obsessed with her, bathing her feeding her and of course sleeping with her, eventually Aphrodite made her into a real woman.
![]()
11th to 12th Century— Touching of Naked Statues Encouraged. Naked women made of marble, called “Sheela-na-gigs,” were carved into the sides of English and Irish churches to ward off evil spirits. The carvings had exaggerated vulvas and a legend at the time said caressing these sexy busts gave you the power to heal others.
![]()
15th Century— The First Sex Dolls at Sea. Called “Dame De Voyage” in French, “Dama De Vinje” in Spanish or “Seemannsbraut,” in German, these female dolls made out of sewn cloth were used by sailors aboard their ships to occupy their time (and bodies) on long trips at sea.
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1941— Nazis Invent the Modern Sex Doll. The world’s first sex-dolls as we know them were created in Nazi Germany at the request of the SS leader, Heinrich Himmler. Called the “Borghild Field-Hygiene Project,” Himmler came up with the concept to stop the “unnecessary losses” of Nazi soldiers due to STD’s. The Project was considered ”Geheime Reichssache,” translated: ”More secret than top secret.”
The sculptor on the project, Arthur Rink, created three dolls. Typ A: 168 cm bust. Typ B: 176 and Typ C: 182 cm. According to Rink, The SS wanted the breasts “round and full” and SS Dr. Olen Hannussen insisted on “a rose hip form, that would grip well.” As for the face, the team agreed it needed a cheeky and naughty look. They asked to borrow the face of an actress of the time, Käthe von Nagy, for the doll, but she declined. Dr. Hannussen suggested an “artificial face of lust”, which he thought would be more appealing to the soldiers. Technician, Franz Tschakert agreed saying, “The doll has only one purpose and she should never become a substitute for the honorable mother at home… When the soldier makes love to Borghild, it has nothing to do with love. Therefore the face of our anthropomorphic sexmachine should be exactly how Weininger described the common wanton’s face.”
Going along with the Nordish Nazi vision of beauty, a tall leggy blonde rounded out the form. The first model of Borghild, Typ B, was completed in September 1941. Later, this blonde life-sized woman would inspire Ruth Handler to create the Barbie Doll for girls.
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1955 -- Bild Lilli. The first sex doll is marketed, which is 11.5 inches of plastic and is named Bild Lilli.
1975— The Stepford Wives. A film about the quaint town of Stepford, Connecticut where men have beautiful robot wives that are all absolutely perfect … except for the fact that they’re creepy. Trivia: Diane Keaton turned the role of Joanna down the night before signing her contract, because her analyst got “bad vibes” from the script.
![]()
1977 -- Hohoemi. The history the best Japanese sex dolls brand started in 1977 when the future CEO of Orient Industry decided to make the kind of doll that he knew men needed. He came up with Hohoemi. She's a simple lady compared with the sophisticated silicone dolls of today but she certainly was a popular and durable creation. Made from urethane and PVC, Hohoemi was essentially a head, bust and waist with hole ... and that's it.
![]()
Early 80’s— The First Sex Robot is invented. British Company, Sex Objects Ltd. creates a sex robot, named “36C,” for obvious reasons. “She” also had a 16-bit microprocessor and voice synthesizer that allowed primitive responses to speech and push button inputs.
![]()
1985 — The Term “Gynoid” Coined. The term “Gynoid” was a name given to a female robot designed to look like a human female. It was given to us by Gweyneth Jones in her 1985 novel, Divine Endurance.
![]()
1987– Britain Lifts Prohibition on Importing Sex Dolls. In 1982 a blocked attempt to import sex dolls into Britain began a court case about whether or not to lift the import ban on all “Obscene or Indecent” items. The sex companies finally won the case in 1987, lifting all prohibitions. This opened the floodgates to all perversity in England.
![]()
1994 - Fleshlight. Back in 1994, Steve Shubin had a problem -- his wife was pregnant with twins and, being over 40, her health was a concern. Sex was off limits during the course of the pregnancy so Shubin had to take matters into his own hands. But not by using his hand. Deciding he needed something else to use, he started daydreaming. Eighteen months and $750,000 later, the Fleshlight was born.
![]()
1995— The Inflatable Sex Sheep Sold. Muttonbone Productions, Inc. creates a life-sized, anatomically correct inflatable sheep called the Love Ewe. It is sold mainly as a gag gift.
![]()
1996– First “Realistic” Sex Doll Created. At 29 years-old, Matt McMullen stops making scary Halloween masks for a living and creates the first female sex doll that is anatomically correct in look and feel. Her name is Leah. McMullen goes on to create the company Real Dolls, one of the most popular sex doll companies in the world. The dolls have a poseable PVC skeleton with steel joints and silicone flesh, which is advertised as “the state-of-the-art for life-like human body simulation”. They are now available in 10 customizable body styles, with a choice of 15 faces and five skin tones. Prices begin at around $6500, with some models costing over $10,000.
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2001 -- Joe.
2002 - Guys and Dolls. The BBC produces a documentary called "Guys and Dolls." It chronicles the industry and the men who buy life-size dolls them. A California company called Realdoll began making realistic, lifesized dolls back in 1996. Since then, they've sold thousands of them for upwards of $10,000 each. The men interviewed in the documentary talk about how the dolls influence their lives. While they sometimes feel isolated from real life, they say the companionship they feel with the dolls is worth it.
![]()
2004 - Inflatable Sex Doll Raft Race. Today (August 21st, 2004) the second annual Inflatable Sex Doll Raft Race will be organized in North Russia/Leningrad region. Anyone over 16, and of either sex, is allowed to take part in this second competition. The participants will have to swim in the complicated Losevsky rapids of the Vuoksa river near St. Petersburg. The rapids are usually used for rafting in canoe and catamarans. This competition isn't a sexually chauvinistic event; in last year’s edition (real) women rafted on the dolls. All participants stated that these rubber ‘products’ are economical in usage, they float wonderfully. They gave some pet names to their dolls: Mary and her Poppins; Speedy Sterlet, Cleopatra... All participants must wear a helmet and a life vest. They also have to remain sober and those who are seen drunk are disqualified.
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2005— Japanese Company Begins Renting Out “Dutch Wives.” Dutch Wives is the Japanese term for high quality silicone sex dolls. By the end of 2005 the Japanese company Forest Dolls had over 40 shops nationwide. The hourly rental rate, in 2005 was 13,000 yen an hour, or $146.00. Wigs and costumes were also available to rent.
![]()
2007— Lars and The Real Girl. A film about a man in relationship with a sex doll, nominated for an Oscar for its screenplay written by Nancy Oliver.
![]()
2007— The “Sexual Audio System” Is Invented. A Japanese company adds an mp3 player attached to a built-in pressure sensor in the chest of its sex dolls. It takes 4 AAA batteries. The dolls also come with real pubic hair and detachable heads.
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2006 - 2008 - Sex Doll becomes Art. Artist Amber Hawk Swanson commissioned the production of a life-like sex doll, a RealDoll, made of a posable PVC skeleton and silicone flesh, in her exact likeness. Her doll, Amber Doll, began as a Styrofoam print-out of a digital scan of her head. Her face was then custom-sculpted and later combined with the doll manufacturer's existing, "Body #8" female doll mold. After completing, "The Making-Of Amber Doll" and "Las Vegas Wedding Ceremony" (both 2007), Amber Doll and Swanson went on to disrupt wedding receptions, roller-skating rinks, football tailgating parties, theme parks, and adult industry conventions. In the resulting series, "To Have, To Hold, and To Violate: Amber and Doll," ideas surrounding agency and objectification are questioned, as are ideas about the success or failure of negotiating power through one's own participation in a cultural narrative that declares women as objects. Swanson's work with Amber Doll, herself a literal object, deals with such themes through an oftentimes-complicated feminist lens.
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2009— The First Male Android-Sex Doll. Germans make the first male Android-Sex doll, named “Nax.” It has an “automatically soaring penis” and “artificial automatic ejaculation.” It costs $10,000.
2009 - Air Doll. Air Doll is a 2009 Japanese drama film directed by Hirokazu Koreeda. It is based on the manga series Kuuki Ningyo by Yoshiie Gōda, which was serialized in the seinen manga magazine Big Comic Original, and is about an inflatable doll that develops a consciousness and falls in love. The movie debuted in the Un Certain Regard section at the 62nd Cannes Film Festival. It opened in Japanese cinemas on 26 September 2009. Director Koreeda has stated that the film is about the loneliness of urban life and the question of what it means to be human.
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2010— The First Sex Doll with a “Customizable Personality.” At the Adult Entertainment Expo in Las Vegas, Doug Hines, owner and designer for TrueCompanion, revealed Roxxy. She costs a mere $7,000 and reacts to tactile and verbal stimulation. Personalities range from “Wild Wendy,” an outgoing party girl to “Frigid Farrah,” the shy librarian type. Her interests can be modified according to the owner’s conversation preferences.
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2010 - Sex Doll Fashion. A Dutch artist named Sander Reijgers is recycling inflatable sex dolls into the most bizarre clothing. Perfect for a rainy weather, these waterproof hoodies were made by customizing existing tracksuit tops with heads, breasts and other pieces from 50 blow-up dolls that Sanders received from a “sponsor”.
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2011 - A music teacher has been arrested after he was caught in a sex act with a child-like doll outside an elementary school. Officers were called to the school in Tennessee, following reports of a naked white male on school property. Daniel Torroll, 56, a private music teacher, was seen performing sex acts on the doll under a bridge that links the Spring Hill school from the main road. The responding officer said he could be seen by people driving to the school. Police later discovered Torroll had cut holes into the doll, News 2 reported. Torroll claimed he did not know he was on school grounds.
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2011 - These high-heeled shoes that look like inflatable sex dolls are part of a collection of footwear by Tel Aviv designer Kobi Levi. The Blow shoes were designed to highlight how high heels are synonymous with sex and accompany a second pair where the heel illustrates the act of sex itself.
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2012 - Just-in Beaver. US adult toy manufacturer Pipedream Products has produced an unofficial Justin Bieber blow-up sex doll. Named 'Just-in Beaver', the not-related-to-Mr-Bieber-in-any-way product retails at around $26. The company's advertising blurb – which rather dubiously fixates on 'Beaver' recently turning 18 – describes 'Beaver' as a "barely legal boy-toy who’s waited 18 long years to stick his lil’ dicky in something sticky! When he’s not busy beating up paparazzi or beating off, he’s up to his high-tops in hot Hollywood tail!" The company also produces a 'Dirty Christina' doll modelled on Christina Aguilera, and a doll named 'Finally Miley' modelled on Miley Cyrus.
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2012 - Dollstories.net."Doll fetish is the desire to be transformed in to a doll or transforming someone else into a doll. This can be a living being such as a rubber doll or an inanimate object such as a lovedoll. The attraction may include the desire for actual sexual contact with a doll, a fantasy of a sexual encounter with an animate or inanimate doll, encounters between dolls themselves, or sexual pleasure gained from thoughts of being transformed or transforming another into a doll. This website was born out of a love of reading doll stories, and the thoughts, fantasies and desires to become one. Whilst this site deals mainly with Doll transformations and people turning into dolls, there are a few mannequin, fembot & objectification stories here."
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2012 - Turkish rescue workers rushed to retrieve an inflatable sex doll from the Black Sea after panicked residents mistook it for a woman’s body floating offshore. The country’s Milliyet newspaper said police cordoned off a wide stretch of beach in northern Samsun province and sent a team of divers into the water to rescue what appeared to be a drowning woman. The team quickly discovered it was in fact a blow-up doll, which they tactfully deflated before throwing it away.
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2013 - Missy is launched into space. An inflatable sex doll named Missy was recently launched into space making history as the first sex doll to have entered the earth’s outer atmosphere. Check out the video and watch Missy being hooked to a hydrogen-filled balloon then shot towards the cosmos at a speed of 426 metres per minute when, at an altitude of 31,090 metres, her balloon burst and she shot straight back down to the ground.
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2013 - Student arrested for posing by Russian WWII memorial with an inflatable sex doll. A university student has been jailed in Russia for posing for a photograph in front of a Second World War memorial – arm in arm with a blow-up sex doll. Anastasia Polnikova, 23, was charged with hooliganism after she and three friends took the inflatable sex aid to the memorial near the Federal University in Stavropol, Russia. Wearing WWII head gear and waving a Russian flag, the drunk students borrowed the doll from a friend and walked through the park to take the pictures before posting them on the internet. Detectives are hunting Miss Polnikova’s three unnamed friends who went on the run after police issued arrest warrants for them all. Stavropol’s Ministry of Internal Affairs spokesman Eugene Nuykin said: ‘The identities of all the people who appeared in this photo are known to us and they will all be punished.
2013 - Sex Doll Commits Suicide In Czech Online Dating Ad. An ad for the popular Czech dating site Lidé is called "the bleakest thing you’ll see this side of an Ingmar Bergman film". It features a sex doll, devastated now that her man has found a real human to have sex with, jumping off a balcony as she replays in her mind the bittersweet moments the two of them had shared.
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2013 - Chinese Site Sells 'Child-Sized' Sex Doll: Protest Group Launched. A Chinese website is under fire for selling disturbingly life-like child-size, sex dolls. The disturbing advert, spotted by an advocacy group on Facebook called Dining for Dignity, shows the model of a girl, who does not look much older than 9 or 10. Described as a “beautiful young girl sex doll for men,” the item costs $178 and is available to ship worldwide. Worryingly 57 of them have been sold so far to customers in the US, UK, Japan, Germany, and more, the advert shows. The product listing boasts that it is highly flexible, and that "all three holes can be used." Dining for Dignity has now set up a protest page to pressure DHgate – one of China’s top global merchants platforms – into removing the item or banning the seller. Its petition reads, ”This negligence is fueling human sex trafficking, pedophilia, violent rape, and more.”
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2014 - Synthetics. Synthetics launches a new line of male sex dolls with removable parts depicting the various boner stages. "We are proud of the beautiful, hand-crafted items we produce," writes Synthetics publicity department, "and we want them to be appreciated as multifunctional rather than simply pigeon-holing them into the easy go-to connotation of the word 'sexdoll.' We view our products as usable art, and our clients as art collectors."
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2014 - Sexflesh Full Sized Sammy Sex Doll. There are a lot of positive things going on with this sex toy. First of all, washboard abs. While not structurally relevent it’s a nice touch and speaks to the meticulous detail molded into the rest of the toy. The penis is stiff but moldable, which is a VERY nice touch. It’s 7.5 inches in length, 5.75 inches in circumfrance and 1.8 inches diameter – a nice large penis without being a monster! There are two holes for fucking. The anus and mouth. Both are ribbed and both have “exit holes”. This means the tubes you fuck on the doll are open ended. This makes cleaning it VERY easy and is definatley something you should look for in any high end sex doll (ie. more than $150). The anus is tight and gives a great amount of pleasure. One of the best things about it is that when it gets lubed up, SexFlesh feels very close to the real thing. The outer layer is covered in it, which gives the whole thing a nice skin like feel. Admittedly, the eyes are a little shocking, but if you’re looking for a high end men’s sex doll, this is the one.
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2014 - New Japanese sex doll looks just like a real woman with ‘new level’ of realistic artificial skin. A new sex doll has been created in Japan that is so realistic they are ‘barely distinguishable from real women’. The £1,000 doll, made by Orient Industry, is made from a high-quality silicon, hailed as the ‘next level’ in artificial skin. This gives each figure an unbelievably realistic look, especially in the eyes – previously a problem area for doll-makers. The fake women also have moveable joints so they can be placed in any position and owners are even able to tailor their woman in bust size, hair colour, and physical appearance. Company spokesman Osami Seto said: "The two areas we identified as really needing improvement were the skin and the eyes. We feel we have finally got something that is arguably not distinguishable from the real thing."
*
p.s. Hey. ** Jeffrey Coleman, Hi, Jeff. Ian William Craig: Thank you! I don't know his stuff at all. I'll start with whatever's at the end of that link. Much appreciated, man. ** L@rstonovich, Larsty! What a great pleasure! Hey, man! I still haven't read Bolano. It's getting pathological or something. Ugh, on the maladies that your summer brought along. But awesome about the inspiring newcomers, and the new poetry and continued novel attention. Great! Yeah, that ooioo track is very cool. It's a fresh album in general. I will check out that podcast and look for familiarity. Thanks! Yeah, L., very, very nice to have you here. I've missed you. ** Thomas Moronic, Hi, T. Yeah, I think I'm raring to go on the novel. That's the good thing about being forced to put it aside. I've built a lot of stuff in my head for the novel that hopefully I can just start implementing. Glad you dug the gig. Yeah, Warren rules in so many ways, through his music and of course through his label Orchid Tapes, which is just about the mostly reliably interesting label going. Thanks about that TAR thing. I appreciate it. Cheers to you! ** Hyemin Kim, Hi. In the interviews I've read, Ashbury never talks much about 'Shadow Train'. It's like a shadowy piece of his oeuvre. I agree about the hard cover jacket, yeah. Well, Zac and I are going to NYC for the 'Kindertotenlieder' shows at the end of October, so we'll go to Iceland either on the way there or on the way back, depending on whether one time slot or the other is preferable for any reason. My only contact with Starry was around the blog post. Hopefully, we'll get lucky and she'll get a new guest post idea. ** David Ehrenstein, Hi, D. ** Etc etc etc. Hi! I emailed you back this morning. It looks like we'll able to sort it out for later today. Like I wrote therein, I'll be in touch again this afternoon. ** Kier, Aw, thanks a lot, K-ster! The Pallbearer album is really good. Fantastic that the referral is almost done! Was the eating disorder diagnosis one of the things that was preventing the referral from happening? Films in development! I love that you develop your films and don't just iPhone everything, even though that's what I do, and it serves my non-artistic purposes, I guess. So maybe you're with the curator right now. I mean as I type. Okay, how did it go? How deeply did he bow? We don't start filming until Sunday. Today's our last full get-ready day, and it's full of meetings and last minute errand running, and then tomorrow we start three days of full day rehearsals. The scene we're shooting on Sunday through Tuesday is the 3rd scene. Then, at the beginning of September, we'll be shooting the 2nd scene. Love, me. ** Steevee, Hi. The Pallbearer album is excellent. Probably their best, I think. ** Damien Ark, Hi, Damien! Excellent to see you! Lucky you to have seen Puce Mary and Pharmakon live. I almost got to see Puce Mary when they opened for Iceage here, but we ended up getting there just as the applause at the end of her set subsided. Wow, so cool about PM yelling at you. If you ever feel like scanning that photo, I'd love to see it. Me too, about the new Pharmakon. Oh, man, thank you a lot about 'My Loose Thread'. That's super kind of you. It's up there among my very favorites of my novels, but it's kind of been my most overlooked one as far as readers and critics go for whatever reason. I'm glad you're trying not to fall. Big strength to you in that preventative effort. Have you been writing? I hope the money stress hasn't interfered too much. Money stress has a horrible habit of killing off creativity or whatever, or it does for me. Have there been positive things about the move? Is there anything new that's been, I don't know, exciting or promising in the change for you? ** _Black_Acrylic, Hi, Ben. Thanks about the gig. Cannibal Movie is really cool. The only organ plus drums thing works strangely well and has such an odd quality. Hooray about the Art101 progress at long fucking last! May the exciting updates continue. ** Chilly Jay Chill, Hi, Jeff. Thanks re: the gig. For some reason, I'm particularly really loving the new Martyrdöd album. Its fierce and pretty-ish in some very addictive way for me. The new Eno with Karl Hyde, you mean? I really need to get that. The new Spoon didn't do much for me on one listen, but I'm not done with it yet. Things are feeling more settled with the film, yeah. Not settled, mind you, but more so. Awesome re: the guest post if that pleases you and is okay, time-wise. ** Misanthrope, I didn't know that about Lesnar's ups and downs. I'm way behind on him. I think the last time I saw Lesnar do anything was when he pushed that kid with one leg down the stairs. Ages an ages ago. I've never found Cena to be anything but totally irriating. Like Kier said, LPS's knowing you're there if he needs you is huge. ** MyNeighbourJohnTurtorro, Thanks, man. It's always happy to me when you and I are on the same musical page. Developments? Everything has pretty much been about the film project for me, and that's been a situation of unending developments, I guess. Relevant to yesterday: we've finally figured out the live music component of the club/concert scene, which is the scene we're shooting. That was incredibly hard. We started out long ago wanting Iceage to appear/play in the scene. But our very limited resources killed that off. Then we wanted an Iceage-like band, since the scene was originally written to be kind of Iceage gig gone apocalyptic. But we couldn't find a band. Then we changed it to a laptop/noise guy with a singer. But we couldn't sort that out either, so now it's a guy playing laptop/noise guy with a great donated track and a spoken word accompaniest, which we hope will work. That scene has been a virtual hell to figure out and cast and organize. Anyway, that's happening. Thank you so, so much about 'My Lose Thread'! That's so good to hear. Like I said to Damien, it's one of the two novels of mine that I'm proudest of (along with 'The Marbled Swarm'), and, for whatever reason, it doesn't seem to be much of a favorite outside my own head, which is partly the fault of it having been completely fucked over by its publisher maybe. Anyway, blah blah, thank you a lot! I did read through the Pitchfork list, yeah. It's very Pitchfork-y. I remember being pleasantly surprised a few times, but I can't remember why at the moment. What do you think of it? Have a superb day! ** Matthew, Oh, I felt weird mentioning my own book, but, yeah, thank you for seeing why I did. I still haven't come up with suggestions, but my head is not at its clearest right now. I'll keep thinking/trying, and if something springs to mind, I'll shoot it out. Best to you! ** Kyler, Nice re: your beautiful day. Oh, sure, I ride everything that doesn't spin in a circle because I get motion sick when things revolve. But, yeah, I'm all over the rides. I'm not creaky at all. I'll tell you for sure when the film comes out, but it'll be quite a while from now. ** Sypha, Hi. Yeah, I tend limit my intake when I'm making something, but, in my case, of course, it's fiction I limit rather than music. Cool that you're recording new stuff! ** Bill, Hey! Ha ha, yeah, about the ooioo, kind of, that's good, I want to go find that deserted Belgian restaurant. Belgium is strangely good and full of abandoned cool things: chateaux, buildings, theme parks. I imagine that Zac and I will be doing a Haunted Belgoum tour at some point. Oh, man, no sweat about the blog post. I understand things being 'crazy around here' very, very well. ** Okay. I'm off to a day of film prep stuff. Today's post is another one where I can not remember for the life of me how and why it happened, but there it is. Cool or not, you decide. See you tomorrow.
Chronologically
8 AD.— The First Sex Doll Story Told. In Metamorphoses, Ovid wrote of a myth involving a woman sculpted from ivory by Pygmalion. Her name was Galatea and he became so obsessed with her, bathing her feeding her and of course sleeping with her, eventually Aphrodite made her into a real woman.
11th to 12th Century— Touching of Naked Statues Encouraged. Naked women made of marble, called “Sheela-na-gigs,” were carved into the sides of English and Irish churches to ward off evil spirits. The carvings had exaggerated vulvas and a legend at the time said caressing these sexy busts gave you the power to heal others.
15th Century— The First Sex Dolls at Sea. Called “Dame De Voyage” in French, “Dama De Vinje” in Spanish or “Seemannsbraut,” in German, these female dolls made out of sewn cloth were used by sailors aboard their ships to occupy their time (and bodies) on long trips at sea.
1941— Nazis Invent the Modern Sex Doll. The world’s first sex-dolls as we know them were created in Nazi Germany at the request of the SS leader, Heinrich Himmler. Called the “Borghild Field-Hygiene Project,” Himmler came up with the concept to stop the “unnecessary losses” of Nazi soldiers due to STD’s. The Project was considered ”Geheime Reichssache,” translated: ”More secret than top secret.”
The sculptor on the project, Arthur Rink, created three dolls. Typ A: 168 cm bust. Typ B: 176 and Typ C: 182 cm. According to Rink, The SS wanted the breasts “round and full” and SS Dr. Olen Hannussen insisted on “a rose hip form, that would grip well.” As for the face, the team agreed it needed a cheeky and naughty look. They asked to borrow the face of an actress of the time, Käthe von Nagy, for the doll, but she declined. Dr. Hannussen suggested an “artificial face of lust”, which he thought would be more appealing to the soldiers. Technician, Franz Tschakert agreed saying, “The doll has only one purpose and she should never become a substitute for the honorable mother at home… When the soldier makes love to Borghild, it has nothing to do with love. Therefore the face of our anthropomorphic sexmachine should be exactly how Weininger described the common wanton’s face.”
Going along with the Nordish Nazi vision of beauty, a tall leggy blonde rounded out the form. The first model of Borghild, Typ B, was completed in September 1941. Later, this blonde life-sized woman would inspire Ruth Handler to create the Barbie Doll for girls.
1955 -- Bild Lilli. The first sex doll is marketed, which is 11.5 inches of plastic and is named Bild Lilli.
1975— The Stepford Wives. A film about the quaint town of Stepford, Connecticut where men have beautiful robot wives that are all absolutely perfect … except for the fact that they’re creepy. Trivia: Diane Keaton turned the role of Joanna down the night before signing her contract, because her analyst got “bad vibes” from the script.
1977 -- Hohoemi. The history the best Japanese sex dolls brand started in 1977 when the future CEO of Orient Industry decided to make the kind of doll that he knew men needed. He came up with Hohoemi. She's a simple lady compared with the sophisticated silicone dolls of today but she certainly was a popular and durable creation. Made from urethane and PVC, Hohoemi was essentially a head, bust and waist with hole ... and that's it.
Early 80’s— The First Sex Robot is invented. British Company, Sex Objects Ltd. creates a sex robot, named “36C,” for obvious reasons. “She” also had a 16-bit microprocessor and voice synthesizer that allowed primitive responses to speech and push button inputs.
1985 — The Term “Gynoid” Coined. The term “Gynoid” was a name given to a female robot designed to look like a human female. It was given to us by Gweyneth Jones in her 1985 novel, Divine Endurance.
1987– Britain Lifts Prohibition on Importing Sex Dolls. In 1982 a blocked attempt to import sex dolls into Britain began a court case about whether or not to lift the import ban on all “Obscene or Indecent” items. The sex companies finally won the case in 1987, lifting all prohibitions. This opened the floodgates to all perversity in England.
1994 - Fleshlight. Back in 1994, Steve Shubin had a problem -- his wife was pregnant with twins and, being over 40, her health was a concern. Sex was off limits during the course of the pregnancy so Shubin had to take matters into his own hands. But not by using his hand. Deciding he needed something else to use, he started daydreaming. Eighteen months and $750,000 later, the Fleshlight was born.
1995— The Inflatable Sex Sheep Sold. Muttonbone Productions, Inc. creates a life-sized, anatomically correct inflatable sheep called the Love Ewe. It is sold mainly as a gag gift.
1996– First “Realistic” Sex Doll Created. At 29 years-old, Matt McMullen stops making scary Halloween masks for a living and creates the first female sex doll that is anatomically correct in look and feel. Her name is Leah. McMullen goes on to create the company Real Dolls, one of the most popular sex doll companies in the world. The dolls have a poseable PVC skeleton with steel joints and silicone flesh, which is advertised as “the state-of-the-art for life-like human body simulation”. They are now available in 10 customizable body styles, with a choice of 15 faces and five skin tones. Prices begin at around $6500, with some models costing over $10,000.
2001 -- Joe.
2002 - Guys and Dolls. The BBC produces a documentary called "Guys and Dolls." It chronicles the industry and the men who buy life-size dolls them. A California company called Realdoll began making realistic, lifesized dolls back in 1996. Since then, they've sold thousands of them for upwards of $10,000 each. The men interviewed in the documentary talk about how the dolls influence their lives. While they sometimes feel isolated from real life, they say the companionship they feel with the dolls is worth it.
2004 - Inflatable Sex Doll Raft Race. Today (August 21st, 2004) the second annual Inflatable Sex Doll Raft Race will be organized in North Russia/Leningrad region. Anyone over 16, and of either sex, is allowed to take part in this second competition. The participants will have to swim in the complicated Losevsky rapids of the Vuoksa river near St. Petersburg. The rapids are usually used for rafting in canoe and catamarans. This competition isn't a sexually chauvinistic event; in last year’s edition (real) women rafted on the dolls. All participants stated that these rubber ‘products’ are economical in usage, they float wonderfully. They gave some pet names to their dolls: Mary and her Poppins; Speedy Sterlet, Cleopatra... All participants must wear a helmet and a life vest. They also have to remain sober and those who are seen drunk are disqualified.
2005— Japanese Company Begins Renting Out “Dutch Wives.” Dutch Wives is the Japanese term for high quality silicone sex dolls. By the end of 2005 the Japanese company Forest Dolls had over 40 shops nationwide. The hourly rental rate, in 2005 was 13,000 yen an hour, or $146.00. Wigs and costumes were also available to rent.
2007— Lars and The Real Girl. A film about a man in relationship with a sex doll, nominated for an Oscar for its screenplay written by Nancy Oliver.
2007— The “Sexual Audio System” Is Invented. A Japanese company adds an mp3 player attached to a built-in pressure sensor in the chest of its sex dolls. It takes 4 AAA batteries. The dolls also come with real pubic hair and detachable heads.
2006 - 2008 - Sex Doll becomes Art. Artist Amber Hawk Swanson commissioned the production of a life-like sex doll, a RealDoll, made of a posable PVC skeleton and silicone flesh, in her exact likeness. Her doll, Amber Doll, began as a Styrofoam print-out of a digital scan of her head. Her face was then custom-sculpted and later combined with the doll manufacturer's existing, "Body #8" female doll mold. After completing, "The Making-Of Amber Doll" and "Las Vegas Wedding Ceremony" (both 2007), Amber Doll and Swanson went on to disrupt wedding receptions, roller-skating rinks, football tailgating parties, theme parks, and adult industry conventions. In the resulting series, "To Have, To Hold, and To Violate: Amber and Doll," ideas surrounding agency and objectification are questioned, as are ideas about the success or failure of negotiating power through one's own participation in a cultural narrative that declares women as objects. Swanson's work with Amber Doll, herself a literal object, deals with such themes through an oftentimes-complicated feminist lens.
2009— The First Male Android-Sex Doll. Germans make the first male Android-Sex doll, named “Nax.” It has an “automatically soaring penis” and “artificial automatic ejaculation.” It costs $10,000.
2009 - Air Doll. Air Doll is a 2009 Japanese drama film directed by Hirokazu Koreeda. It is based on the manga series Kuuki Ningyo by Yoshiie Gōda, which was serialized in the seinen manga magazine Big Comic Original, and is about an inflatable doll that develops a consciousness and falls in love. The movie debuted in the Un Certain Regard section at the 62nd Cannes Film Festival. It opened in Japanese cinemas on 26 September 2009. Director Koreeda has stated that the film is about the loneliness of urban life and the question of what it means to be human.
2010— The First Sex Doll with a “Customizable Personality.” At the Adult Entertainment Expo in Las Vegas, Doug Hines, owner and designer for TrueCompanion, revealed Roxxy. She costs a mere $7,000 and reacts to tactile and verbal stimulation. Personalities range from “Wild Wendy,” an outgoing party girl to “Frigid Farrah,” the shy librarian type. Her interests can be modified according to the owner’s conversation preferences.
2010 - Sex Doll Fashion. A Dutch artist named Sander Reijgers is recycling inflatable sex dolls into the most bizarre clothing. Perfect for a rainy weather, these waterproof hoodies were made by customizing existing tracksuit tops with heads, breasts and other pieces from 50 blow-up dolls that Sanders received from a “sponsor”.
2011 - A music teacher has been arrested after he was caught in a sex act with a child-like doll outside an elementary school. Officers were called to the school in Tennessee, following reports of a naked white male on school property. Daniel Torroll, 56, a private music teacher, was seen performing sex acts on the doll under a bridge that links the Spring Hill school from the main road. The responding officer said he could be seen by people driving to the school. Police later discovered Torroll had cut holes into the doll, News 2 reported. Torroll claimed he did not know he was on school grounds.
2011 - These high-heeled shoes that look like inflatable sex dolls are part of a collection of footwear by Tel Aviv designer Kobi Levi. The Blow shoes were designed to highlight how high heels are synonymous with sex and accompany a second pair where the heel illustrates the act of sex itself.
2012 - Just-in Beaver. US adult toy manufacturer Pipedream Products has produced an unofficial Justin Bieber blow-up sex doll. Named 'Just-in Beaver', the not-related-to-Mr-Bieber-in-any-way product retails at around $26. The company's advertising blurb – which rather dubiously fixates on 'Beaver' recently turning 18 – describes 'Beaver' as a "barely legal boy-toy who’s waited 18 long years to stick his lil’ dicky in something sticky! When he’s not busy beating up paparazzi or beating off, he’s up to his high-tops in hot Hollywood tail!" The company also produces a 'Dirty Christina' doll modelled on Christina Aguilera, and a doll named 'Finally Miley' modelled on Miley Cyrus.
2012 - Dollstories.net."Doll fetish is the desire to be transformed in to a doll or transforming someone else into a doll. This can be a living being such as a rubber doll or an inanimate object such as a lovedoll. The attraction may include the desire for actual sexual contact with a doll, a fantasy of a sexual encounter with an animate or inanimate doll, encounters between dolls themselves, or sexual pleasure gained from thoughts of being transformed or transforming another into a doll. This website was born out of a love of reading doll stories, and the thoughts, fantasies and desires to become one. Whilst this site deals mainly with Doll transformations and people turning into dolls, there are a few mannequin, fembot & objectification stories here."
2012 - Turkish rescue workers rushed to retrieve an inflatable sex doll from the Black Sea after panicked residents mistook it for a woman’s body floating offshore. The country’s Milliyet newspaper said police cordoned off a wide stretch of beach in northern Samsun province and sent a team of divers into the water to rescue what appeared to be a drowning woman. The team quickly discovered it was in fact a blow-up doll, which they tactfully deflated before throwing it away.
2013 - Missy is launched into space. An inflatable sex doll named Missy was recently launched into space making history as the first sex doll to have entered the earth’s outer atmosphere. Check out the video and watch Missy being hooked to a hydrogen-filled balloon then shot towards the cosmos at a speed of 426 metres per minute when, at an altitude of 31,090 metres, her balloon burst and she shot straight back down to the ground.
2013 - Student arrested for posing by Russian WWII memorial with an inflatable sex doll. A university student has been jailed in Russia for posing for a photograph in front of a Second World War memorial – arm in arm with a blow-up sex doll. Anastasia Polnikova, 23, was charged with hooliganism after she and three friends took the inflatable sex aid to the memorial near the Federal University in Stavropol, Russia. Wearing WWII head gear and waving a Russian flag, the drunk students borrowed the doll from a friend and walked through the park to take the pictures before posting them on the internet. Detectives are hunting Miss Polnikova’s three unnamed friends who went on the run after police issued arrest warrants for them all. Stavropol’s Ministry of Internal Affairs spokesman Eugene Nuykin said: ‘The identities of all the people who appeared in this photo are known to us and they will all be punished.
2013 - Sex Doll Commits Suicide In Czech Online Dating Ad. An ad for the popular Czech dating site Lidé is called "the bleakest thing you’ll see this side of an Ingmar Bergman film". It features a sex doll, devastated now that her man has found a real human to have sex with, jumping off a balcony as she replays in her mind the bittersweet moments the two of them had shared.
2013 - Chinese Site Sells 'Child-Sized' Sex Doll: Protest Group Launched. A Chinese website is under fire for selling disturbingly life-like child-size, sex dolls. The disturbing advert, spotted by an advocacy group on Facebook called Dining for Dignity, shows the model of a girl, who does not look much older than 9 or 10. Described as a “beautiful young girl sex doll for men,” the item costs $178 and is available to ship worldwide. Worryingly 57 of them have been sold so far to customers in the US, UK, Japan, Germany, and more, the advert shows. The product listing boasts that it is highly flexible, and that "all three holes can be used." Dining for Dignity has now set up a protest page to pressure DHgate – one of China’s top global merchants platforms – into removing the item or banning the seller. Its petition reads, ”This negligence is fueling human sex trafficking, pedophilia, violent rape, and more.”
2014 - Synthetics. Synthetics launches a new line of male sex dolls with removable parts depicting the various boner stages. "We are proud of the beautiful, hand-crafted items we produce," writes Synthetics publicity department, "and we want them to be appreciated as multifunctional rather than simply pigeon-holing them into the easy go-to connotation of the word 'sexdoll.' We view our products as usable art, and our clients as art collectors."
2014 - Sexflesh Full Sized Sammy Sex Doll. There are a lot of positive things going on with this sex toy. First of all, washboard abs. While not structurally relevent it’s a nice touch and speaks to the meticulous detail molded into the rest of the toy. The penis is stiff but moldable, which is a VERY nice touch. It’s 7.5 inches in length, 5.75 inches in circumfrance and 1.8 inches diameter – a nice large penis without being a monster! There are two holes for fucking. The anus and mouth. Both are ribbed and both have “exit holes”. This means the tubes you fuck on the doll are open ended. This makes cleaning it VERY easy and is definatley something you should look for in any high end sex doll (ie. more than $150). The anus is tight and gives a great amount of pleasure. One of the best things about it is that when it gets lubed up, SexFlesh feels very close to the real thing. The outer layer is covered in it, which gives the whole thing a nice skin like feel. Admittedly, the eyes are a little shocking, but if you’re looking for a high end men’s sex doll, this is the one.
2014 - New Japanese sex doll looks just like a real woman with ‘new level’ of realistic artificial skin. A new sex doll has been created in Japan that is so realistic they are ‘barely distinguishable from real women’. The £1,000 doll, made by Orient Industry, is made from a high-quality silicon, hailed as the ‘next level’ in artificial skin. This gives each figure an unbelievably realistic look, especially in the eyes – previously a problem area for doll-makers. The fake women also have moveable joints so they can be placed in any position and owners are even able to tailor their woman in bust size, hair colour, and physical appearance. Company spokesman Osami Seto said: "The two areas we identified as really needing improvement were the skin and the eyes. We feel we have finally got something that is arguably not distinguishable from the real thing."
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p.s. Hey. ** Jeffrey Coleman, Hi, Jeff. Ian William Craig: Thank you! I don't know his stuff at all. I'll start with whatever's at the end of that link. Much appreciated, man. ** L@rstonovich, Larsty! What a great pleasure! Hey, man! I still haven't read Bolano. It's getting pathological or something. Ugh, on the maladies that your summer brought along. But awesome about the inspiring newcomers, and the new poetry and continued novel attention. Great! Yeah, that ooioo track is very cool. It's a fresh album in general. I will check out that podcast and look for familiarity. Thanks! Yeah, L., very, very nice to have you here. I've missed you. ** Thomas Moronic, Hi, T. Yeah, I think I'm raring to go on the novel. That's the good thing about being forced to put it aside. I've built a lot of stuff in my head for the novel that hopefully I can just start implementing. Glad you dug the gig. Yeah, Warren rules in so many ways, through his music and of course through his label Orchid Tapes, which is just about the mostly reliably interesting label going. Thanks about that TAR thing. I appreciate it. Cheers to you! ** Hyemin Kim, Hi. In the interviews I've read, Ashbury never talks much about 'Shadow Train'. It's like a shadowy piece of his oeuvre. I agree about the hard cover jacket, yeah. Well, Zac and I are going to NYC for the 'Kindertotenlieder' shows at the end of October, so we'll go to Iceland either on the way there or on the way back, depending on whether one time slot or the other is preferable for any reason. My only contact with Starry was around the blog post. Hopefully, we'll get lucky and she'll get a new guest post idea. ** David Ehrenstein, Hi, D. ** Etc etc etc. Hi! I emailed you back this morning. It looks like we'll able to sort it out for later today. Like I wrote therein, I'll be in touch again this afternoon. ** Kier, Aw, thanks a lot, K-ster! The Pallbearer album is really good. Fantastic that the referral is almost done! Was the eating disorder diagnosis one of the things that was preventing the referral from happening? Films in development! I love that you develop your films and don't just iPhone everything, even though that's what I do, and it serves my non-artistic purposes, I guess. So maybe you're with the curator right now. I mean as I type. Okay, how did it go? How deeply did he bow? We don't start filming until Sunday. Today's our last full get-ready day, and it's full of meetings and last minute errand running, and then tomorrow we start three days of full day rehearsals. The scene we're shooting on Sunday through Tuesday is the 3rd scene. Then, at the beginning of September, we'll be shooting the 2nd scene. Love, me. ** Steevee, Hi. The Pallbearer album is excellent. Probably their best, I think. ** Damien Ark, Hi, Damien! Excellent to see you! Lucky you to have seen Puce Mary and Pharmakon live. I almost got to see Puce Mary when they opened for Iceage here, but we ended up getting there just as the applause at the end of her set subsided. Wow, so cool about PM yelling at you. If you ever feel like scanning that photo, I'd love to see it. Me too, about the new Pharmakon. Oh, man, thank you a lot about 'My Loose Thread'. That's super kind of you. It's up there among my very favorites of my novels, but it's kind of been my most overlooked one as far as readers and critics go for whatever reason. I'm glad you're trying not to fall. Big strength to you in that preventative effort. Have you been writing? I hope the money stress hasn't interfered too much. Money stress has a horrible habit of killing off creativity or whatever, or it does for me. Have there been positive things about the move? Is there anything new that's been, I don't know, exciting or promising in the change for you? ** _Black_Acrylic, Hi, Ben. Thanks about the gig. Cannibal Movie is really cool. The only organ plus drums thing works strangely well and has such an odd quality. Hooray about the Art101 progress at long fucking last! May the exciting updates continue. ** Chilly Jay Chill, Hi, Jeff. Thanks re: the gig. For some reason, I'm particularly really loving the new Martyrdöd album. Its fierce and pretty-ish in some very addictive way for me. The new Eno with Karl Hyde, you mean? I really need to get that. The new Spoon didn't do much for me on one listen, but I'm not done with it yet. Things are feeling more settled with the film, yeah. Not settled, mind you, but more so. Awesome re: the guest post if that pleases you and is okay, time-wise. ** Misanthrope, I didn't know that about Lesnar's ups and downs. I'm way behind on him. I think the last time I saw Lesnar do anything was when he pushed that kid with one leg down the stairs. Ages an ages ago. I've never found Cena to be anything but totally irriating. Like Kier said, LPS's knowing you're there if he needs you is huge. ** MyNeighbourJohnTurtorro, Thanks, man. It's always happy to me when you and I are on the same musical page. Developments? Everything has pretty much been about the film project for me, and that's been a situation of unending developments, I guess. Relevant to yesterday: we've finally figured out the live music component of the club/concert scene, which is the scene we're shooting. That was incredibly hard. We started out long ago wanting Iceage to appear/play in the scene. But our very limited resources killed that off. Then we wanted an Iceage-like band, since the scene was originally written to be kind of Iceage gig gone apocalyptic. But we couldn't find a band. Then we changed it to a laptop/noise guy with a singer. But we couldn't sort that out either, so now it's a guy playing laptop/noise guy with a great donated track and a spoken word accompaniest, which we hope will work. That scene has been a virtual hell to figure out and cast and organize. Anyway, that's happening. Thank you so, so much about 'My Lose Thread'! That's so good to hear. Like I said to Damien, it's one of the two novels of mine that I'm proudest of (along with 'The Marbled Swarm'), and, for whatever reason, it doesn't seem to be much of a favorite outside my own head, which is partly the fault of it having been completely fucked over by its publisher maybe. Anyway, blah blah, thank you a lot! I did read through the Pitchfork list, yeah. It's very Pitchfork-y. I remember being pleasantly surprised a few times, but I can't remember why at the moment. What do you think of it? Have a superb day! ** Matthew, Oh, I felt weird mentioning my own book, but, yeah, thank you for seeing why I did. I still haven't come up with suggestions, but my head is not at its clearest right now. I'll keep thinking/trying, and if something springs to mind, I'll shoot it out. Best to you! ** Kyler, Nice re: your beautiful day. Oh, sure, I ride everything that doesn't spin in a circle because I get motion sick when things revolve. But, yeah, I'm all over the rides. I'm not creaky at all. I'll tell you for sure when the film comes out, but it'll be quite a while from now. ** Sypha, Hi. Yeah, I tend limit my intake when I'm making something, but, in my case, of course, it's fiction I limit rather than music. Cool that you're recording new stuff! ** Bill, Hey! Ha ha, yeah, about the ooioo, kind of, that's good, I want to go find that deserted Belgian restaurant. Belgium is strangely good and full of abandoned cool things: chateaux, buildings, theme parks. I imagine that Zac and I will be doing a Haunted Belgoum tour at some point. Oh, man, no sweat about the blog post. I understand things being 'crazy around here' very, very well. ** Okay. I'm off to a day of film prep stuff. Today's post is another one where I can not remember for the life of me how and why it happened, but there it is. Cool or not, you decide. See you tomorrow.