{"id":16392,"date":"2022-09-07T12:40:38","date_gmt":"2022-09-07T16:40:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/?post_type=toys&p=16392"},"modified":"2025-03-26T09:42:52","modified_gmt":"2025-03-26T13:42:52","slug":"nerf-toys","status":"publish","type":"toys","link":"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/toys\/nerf-toys\/","title":{"rendered":"Nerf Toys"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Inducted Year: 2023<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the late 1960s, game designer Reyn Guyer and his co-workers at Winsor Concepts developed a game idea inspired by the popular Stone Age characters from The Flintstones<\/em> television series. Guyer\u2019s game required players to toss foam \u201crocks\u201d at their opponents while protecting their own piles of ammo. Guyer offered the game to Parker Brothers, but the toy giant tossed out the game and kept the foam, preferring the notion of a ball that kids could play with indoors. Parker Brothers produced a four-inch polyurethane ball, which it called Nerf, slang for the material used by off-road drivers to pad their vehicles\u2019 roll bars.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Group<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

The Nerf Ball debuted in 1969 as the first indoor ball with a slogan that thrilled kids and attempted to comfort their parents: \u201cThrow it indoors. You can\u2019t damage lamps or break windows. You can\u2019t hurt babies or old people.\u201d Parker Brothers sold four million Nerf Balls in its first year. The company expanded the line by issuing Nerf Balls for every popular sport including football, basketball, pool, hockey, and table tennis. At the height of its popularity, Parker Brothers even tried to market Nerfuls, anthropomorphic Nerf Balls, and Nerf Critters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 1989, Parker Brothers launched the first of a continuing line of weaponry: Blast A Ball, a small pink cannon, that air-pumped foam projectiles into the air. When Hasbro, Inc. acquired the Nerf line in 1991, the company expanded the foam fun products, including a football, bow and arrow set, and slingshot. Nerf blasters soon followed. In 2013, Nerf\u2019s Rebelle bow was marketed directly to heroines. New design innovations and compelling marketing strategies have kept Nerf in front of kids and adults for more than 50 years.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Inducted Year: 2023<\/strong>
\nIn the late 1960s, game designer Reyn Guyer and his co-workers at Winsor Concepts developed a game idea inspired by the popular Stone Age characters from The Flintstones television series. Guyer\u2019s game required players to toss foam \u201crocks\u201d at their opponents while protecting their own piles of ammo. Guyer offered the game to Parker Brothers, but the toy giant tossed out the game and kept the foam, preferring the notion of a ball that kids could play with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":81,"featured_media":21325,"template":"","year_inducted":[492],"class_list":["post-16392","toys","type-toys","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","year_inducted-492","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nNerf Toys - The Strong National Museum of Play<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/toys\/nerf-toys\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Nerf Toys - The Strong National Museum of Play\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Inducted Year: 2023 In the late 1960s, game designer Reyn Guyer and his co-workers at Winsor Concepts developed a game idea inspired by the popular Stone Age characters from The Flintstones television series. 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