The Origin Of The Most Unusual Fad Of The 90s Proves It's Much More Than A Flash In The Pan

We all remember that one kid on the playground who was slapping around a stick as though it was the most impressive thing in the universe. Sure, it probably required a decent amount of skill, but the Devil Sticks fad died out fairly quickly and we all moved on to the next great craze.

But the truth is, Devil Sticks aren't just a 90s thing. They actually started over a century before they became a craze on every playground in the country.

The Origin Of Devil Sticks

It's hard to know the exact origin of Devil Sticks, mostly because they go back so far. They have been traced all the way back to the early 1800s, and it's suspected that they started somewhere in China.

The first official source with evidence of Devil Sticks dates back to 1820 in Prague. Two brothers named Mooty and Medua Samme from India, would travel around and perform what they called "Chinese Stickplay."

Throughout the 1800s, jugglers became increasingly popular, with many taking after the brothers, using their unique method.

It started to influence others, and by the late 1800s people started to expand on the act by adding a flaming stick into the mix.

The Evolution Of Devil Sticks

By 1939, people continued to change the way things were done. George Latour appeared on a television show to perform his act, but instead of using the regular types, he used pool cues. This made it much more difficult because of their length and weight, but it helped bring new interest to the performers.

In the late 80s, people were still using Devil Sticks, but now they were making it a lot more complicate by adding dancing into the mix.

But then came the 90s, and kids everywhere became obsessed...

Then came the 90s. People everywhere started to become obsessed with these flamboyant sticks. For some reason every single kid was asking for these for Christmas and their birthdays, much to the dismay of their parents.

It should have been one of those "outdoor only" toys, but instead, we all would play with them in the middle of the living room and knock over every lamp, knick knack, and decorative item in the house.

We thought we could get as good as the professionals as long as we practiced hard enough, but unfortunately it never happened.

Instead, our moms would get annoyed at us for breaking that weird decorative plate collection and put our Devil Sticks on the top shelf in her closet while we were asleep and just pretend like they were stolen. Oh... Did that only happen to me?

Do you think it's time for Devil Sticks to make a comeback? Probably not, right?

Source - Juggle.org / Wikipedia