Top 5 Weird Facts About Sex Toys

Sears: one of the biggest names in home appliances. A great place to get a nice pair of pants, an electric range, and the latest device for some good vibrations -- and no, we don’t mean sitting on the washer during spin. At least that was the case in the early 1900s. Patented in 1902 by Hamilton Beach, the vibrator was one of the earliest domestic appliances, predated by household mainstays like the electric teakettle, toaster, and fan. In 1918, this personal massager was featured in the home appliance section in the Sears catalogue. Talk about a one-stop shop! When these appliances were seen in pornography in the 1920s, they were immediately pulled from the ads... which makes you wonder, who exactly saw them?

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#4: There’s a Company That Makes Dragon-Themed Sex Toys

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It’s fun to imagine fantasy worlds full of wondrous, mythical creatures. Did you know you could bring those creatures into the bedroom? Companies like “Bad Dragon” think outside the box with their sex toys, because why settle for a rabbit when you could be slayed by a dragon? Though it’s not really fair to discount our cuddly little friends, after all, their creation in 1983 was due to Japanese manufacturers not being allowed to make sex toys that looked like penises. Sound familiar? If this is too much for you, you can settle for something more sophisticated, like the white gold vibrator that’s worth $55,000. We’ve come a looooong way from ancient stone objects in German caves and the olisbokollikes of Ancient Greeks -- they really do look like dildo breadsticks...

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#3: Men Aren’t as Intimidated by Vibrators as You Think

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Yeah yeah, we’ve heard it all before: men aren’t into sex toys, or rather, they don’t know the first thing about them. And why would they? With a fist at the end of either arm, they have most of their bases covered. Conversely, there's also the stereotypical worry that women are using toys to replace men. Consider this an honorable mention for our myths series. According to a study by researchers at Indiana University, about 70% of men don’t care if their female partner uses sex toys, and in fact, 81% of women and 91% of men have done so with a partner.

Could you imagine being able to call in “sex deprived” from work? And actually getting a doctor’s note for it? The first electric vibrator is credited to Dr. Joseph Mortimer Granville in the 1800s. Its purpose? To relieve muscle aches... oh, and cure hysteria in women. The -- ahem -- medical tool weighed forty pounds and needed to be operated by two people! That’s surprisingly not as intimidating as Dr. George Taylor’s steam-powered “Manipulator”. These physicians were kiiiiinda on the right track -- minus the hysteria. Orgasms are credited as being great for a range of things: stress relief, relieving cramps, morning sickness, the common cold, and even lowering the risk of breast cancer for women AND men.

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#1: Sex Toys are Illegal in Some Places

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Of course, someone has to ruin all the fun. We’ve already touched on the interesting laws in Japan, but at least you can get something there– no such luck if you’re in India, who has completely outlawed sex toys. Don’t laugh, Americans, especially if you live down South. Places like Alabama have banned sex toys from shops because, according to the assistant attorney general in 1999, “There is no fundamental right for a person to buy a device to produce orgasm.” And then there’s Texas, a state that limits your dildo ownership to six... unless you’re on a college campus, then they’re not allowed at all– whether concealed or not.

Did you enjoy our sex toy crash course? What are some interesting facts about the goodies in your nightstand? For more hysterical top 10s and steam powered top 5s, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.