The Rabbit :- Everything you’ve ever wanted
To know about the best sex toy ever invented, the wonderful Rabbit
We have just stocked up on lots of the popular choices so thought it’s the perfect opportunity to honor the revolutionary Rabbit, which changed female masturbation—and the sex toy industry—forever. Here’s a look at the story behind this now-iconic vibrator.
1983: The Advent of Animal Vibrators
Sex toy company Vibratex becomes the first to bring dual-action vibrators (with internal and external components) to the U.S, says the company’s owner, Shay Martin. Because the toys were made in Japan, where manufacturers weren’t actually allowed to make vibrators, the devices were shaped to look like animals and came in bright colors as to trick the ol’ no-sex-toys-allowed rule enforcers. (Other companies made their products in China, which didn’t have the same restrictions, making these happier, friendlier alternatives to the standard vein-y penis dildo appealing to the ladies.) In ’83, the Beaver, the Kangaroo, and the Turtle (now defunct) debuted, and they all had an internal, penis-like component, along with different types of ticklers for external stimulation.
1984: The Rabbit Debuts
The designers at Vibratex had been working on a new vibrator that featured revolutionary rotating pearls in the shaft for added stimulation. They settled on a rabbit as the animal for toy, since the rabbit is a lucky charm in Japan, and in honor of Martin, who was born in the year of the rabbit on the Chinese calendar. Sales of the toy were strong when it debuted, but the Rabbit Pearl—the very first rabbit vibrator—didn’t have widespread notoriety…yet.
1993: Early Adopters and Innovations
Famed sex shop Babeland opened its doors in Seattle this year and began selling the Rabbit Pearl from the very beginning, says store co-founder Claire Cavanah. In 1997, the store opened its New York City location and began offering the next model of the toy, the Rabbit Habit, which had its battery pack and controls in the base of the toy, rather than a separate attachment. This was kind of a big deal when you think about how annoying it would be to have a cord flapping around—and potentially getting tangled—while you’re trying to get yourself off.
1998: Rabbit, Meet Charlotte
Wanting to tie-in some kind of vibrator in an upcoming episode of Sex and the City, representatives from HBO visited The Pleasure Chest in New York City to find out what the store’s best-selling vibrator was. They were told, the Rabbit Pearl, obviously, and soon the teams at HBO and Vibratex connected. HBO sent Vibratex the script for the episode to make sure the toy was depicted properly. In “The Turtle and the Hare,” which first aired on August 2, Miranda lends Charlotte her Rabbit, rendering Charlotte unwilling to leave the house. And thus, the Rabbit Pearl became as coveted as Carrie’s Manolos.
1999: Sex Toys Go Viral
Copycat rabbits started cropping up immediately as sex companies rushed to capitalize on the buzz (heh) surrounding the Sex and the City episode, creating toys with the same dual-action innovation and recognizable bunny-eared shape. But the Rabbit’s crazy success can also be attributed to the beginning of online shopping, which completely changed the sex toy industry by making vibrator buying discreet. Sales soared for sexy products overall, one UK-based adult toy store reported that it sold one million Rabbits in just 12 months when it started its dot com.
2005: A-List Endorsement
Then-Desperate Housewife Eva Longoria further upped the Rabbit’s cred by mentioning her love for the toy in an interview with a national women’s magazine. “I give Rabbit vibrators to all my girlfriends,” she had said. “They scream when they unwrap it. The best gift I can give them is an orgasm.” (Her praise for the device boosted Babeland’s sales of the toy alone 30 percent.)
2006: The Big O
In June 2006, the Rabbit Habit got the magic fairy dust of solidified success (i.e. Oprah’s stamp of approval) when it was billed in O, the Oprah Magazine as the “Rolls Royce of sex toys.” Baller.
2006: The (Pseudo) Hollywood Treatment
, a little-known UK mockumentary, “followed” the lives of so-called Rabbit Addicts, as in women who found the world’s best-selling vibe so addictive that they literally couldn’t stop using it. Unfortunately, The Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw gave the film one out of five stars, calling it “tacky and depressing,” while the BBC found the depictions of female masturbation “embarrassingly inadequate.” What a buzz kill, man.
2008: A Chic Makeover
Stylish sex toy company Jimmyjane added the “Iconic Rabbit” to its lineup of sleek sex toys, borrowing the original Vibratex design but manufacturing the toy all in white. This shiny new Rabbit became part of the company’s “Usual Suspects” line, which features the best of the best from other sex companies but with Jimmyjane’s elegant spin.
2008: Kill the Rabbit
Alabama Attorney General Troy King announced that he was going to single-handedly enforce his state’s “official” sex toy ban, which no doubt would have affected the Rabbit, the top-selling toy of the time. King, who’s a Republican (surprise, surprise…), believed that sex toys were immoral and it was his duty to arrest—yes, really—anyone who used them. In response, former Alabama gubernatorial candidate Loretta Nall started a counter-campaign called Toys for Troy, which encouraged women to mail their vibrators and dildos directly to the attorney general’s office. In. Yo. Face.
2009: Take Your Rabbit To-Go
Savvy, jet-setting types could finally take their solo sex acts on the road with the new Rabbit Dancer, a mini version of the original rabbit that comes with a detachable rabbit for compact storage. Though, its small size doesn’t mean some clueless TSA agent won’t fish it out of your bag for further examination.
2010: The Rabbit Gets Social
Fans of the toy could now follow @RabbitVibe on Twitter to KIT with their favorite masturbatory tool. #Unnecessary?
2014: The Rabbit Today
Since 1984, the types of Rabbits have multiplied…like rabbits (ba-dum-ching!), with new iterations in different shapes like the Dolphin and the Butterfly. Conservative estimates show that over five million dual-action vibrators (often called “twice as nice” toys) are now sold each year.
Still, the original Rabbit design remains a number-one-selling vibe and companies continues to make modifications to improve the original, including the addition of a cordless battery pack, as well as more vibration options. And given that 2014 will be the 30th anniversary of the toy’s release, there just may be a special edition of the classic toy on the horizon.
