fuzzy dice
{{Short description|Automobile decoration}}
File:1958 Ambassador 4-d hardtop fuzzy dice.jpg
Fuzzy dice, also known as fluffy dice, soft dice, or stuffed dice, are an automotive decoration consisting of two oversized (usually six-sided) plush dice which hang from the rear-view mirror. The original fuzzy dice, first used in the 1950s, were white and approximately {{convert|3|in|cm|0}} across. Nowadays, fuzzy dice come in many colors and various sizes.{{cite book |last=Spicer |first=Stuart |title=Dream Schemes II: Exotic Airliner Art |year=2001 |publisher=Motorbooks International |isbn=0-7603-1196-X |page=77}} In Britain and other parts of the world it is considered kitsch to display such items in a car.{{cite web|date=1997-12-06|title=Style: Cheesy does it|url= http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/style-cheesy-does-it-1287053.html |access-date=2020-07-20|website=The Independent|language=en}}{{cite book |last=Vokins |first=Stephen |title=Nodding dogs & vinyl roofs: the weird world of quirky car accessories |date=2008 |publisher=Haynes |isbn=9781844254224 |quote=to the pure kitsch of nodding dogs and fluffy dice, the motoring world's most vital accessories are gathered here}}
Origin and history
The use of fuzzy dice is believed to be traced back to American fighter pilots during World War II.{{cite web|url= https://static.metro.se/fce/85d/20180503_Stockholm.pdf |first=Klara |last=Stefansson |title=Från ekorrsvans till doftgran – här är fem bilprylar vi minns |language=Swedish |work=Metro |date=3 May 2018 |accessdate=19 July 2019}}{{cite web|url= https://www.liveabout.com/history-of-fuzzy-dice-527558 |title=The Surprising History of Fuzzy Dice |first=Terri Lynn |last=Coop |website=LiveAbout |date=24 May 2019 |page=18 |accessdate=19 July 2019}} Pilots would hang the dice above their instruments displaying seven pips before a 'sortie' mission for good luck. It is also speculated that the dice represented a high degree of risk associated with the fighter sorties; hundreds of pilots were shot down each week. Upon returning after the war, many airmen continued the tradition.
In the 1950s, the fuzzy dice became one of the first items sold specifically to be hung from a rear-view mirror. The Encyclopedia of American Social History notes that during the 1950s, young adults were drawn to cars that were "customized for speed, painted with vivid colors, stripes, and flames, tuck-and-roll interiors, fuzzy dice suspended from the mirror, rock-and-roll on the radio...".{{cite book |last1=Cayton |first1=Mary Kupiec |last2=Gorn |first2=Elliott J. |last3=Williams |first3=Peter W. |title=Encyclopedia of American Social History |date=1993 |publisher=Scribner |isbn=9780684194578 |page=2345 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Z0MRAQAAMAAJ&q=Fuzzy+dice+history |volume=3|access-date=29 March 2021}}
Another explanation for hanging these in a car has been proposed that "displaying the dice meant the driver was ready and willing to be 'dicing with death' in the dangerous and unregulated world of street racing".{{cite news |title=The Rolling Story of Fuzzy Dice |url= https://thenewswheel.com/the-rolling-history-of-fuzzy-dice/ |publisher=The News Wheel |agency=ThoughtCo.com |date=26 April 2017 |access-date=29 March 2021}}
In some segments, such as the lowrider community, research indicated that even the most dedicated individuals "did not attach any significance to the dice" that were hung from their car's rearview mirror.{{cite book |title=Natural History |volume=91 |date=1981 |publisher=American Museum of Natural History |pages=31 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=YJxeiao20_UC&q=Even+the+most+dedicated+low+riders+I+interviewed+did+not+attach+any+significance+to+the+dice |access-date=29 March 2021}}
A 1993 study found no correlation between the use of fuzzy dice and the degree of a driver's reckless driving behavior.{{cite journal |last1=Hemenway |first1=David |last2=Solnick |first2=Sara J. |title=Fuzzy dice, dream cars, and indecent gestures: correlates of driver behavior? |journal=Accident Analysis & Prevention |date=1 April 1993 |volume=25 |issue=2 |pages=161–170 |doi=10.1016/0001-4575(93)90056-3 |pmid=8166776 |issn=0001-4575}}
In some jurisdictions, suspending objects from rear-view mirrors is illegal.{{cite news |last=Torres-Cortez |first=Ricardo |title=Think twice before hanging those fuzzy dice — here's why |url= https://lasvegassun.com/news/2016/jun/16/think-twice-before-before-hanging-those-fuzzy-dice/ |newspaper=Las Vegas Sun Newspaper |date=16 June 2016 |access-date=19 July 2019 }}{{cite web |last=Petrány |first=Máté |title=The Ten Most Obscure Car Laws in the US |url=https://jalopnik.com/the-ten-most-obscure-car-laws-in-the-us-1441966655 |website=Jalopnik |access-date=20 July 2020 |date=7 October 2013}}{{cite news |last=Mello |first=Michael |title=Fuzzy dice and the law |url= https://www.ocregister.com/2011/03/23/fuzzy-dice-and-the-law/ |work=Orange County Register |date=23 March 2011 |access-date=20 July 2020}}{{cite web |title=Window stickers, air fresheners and even fluffy dice: The long list of items that Australian drivers can get fined for having in their car - as yet another ludicrous road rule is exposed |url=https://www.msn.com/en-nz/news/world/window-stickers-air-fresheners-and-even-fluffy-dice-the-long-list-of-items-that-australian-drivers-can-get-fined-for-having-in-their-car-as-yet-another-ludicrous-road-rule-is-exposed/ar-AAFwFZU |website=msn.com |location=Australia |date=8 August 2019 |accessdate=20 July 2020}}{{cite web |title=How hanging an air freshener or fluffy dice from your mirror could cost you £1,000 |url=https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/news/motoring-news/how-hanging-an-air-freshener-from-your-mirror-could-cost-you-1000/ |website=rac.co.uk |agency=Press Association |date=9 August 2019 |accessdate=20 July 2020}}
A technology upgrade to the product includes illuminated LED plastic dice that change colors.{{cite web |last1=Hudson |first1=Travis |title=Fuzzy Car Dice Gets a Lame, 21st Century Upgrade |url=https://jalopnik.com/fuzzy-car-dice-gets-a-lame-21st-century-upgrade-379050 |publisher=Jalopnik |date=14 April 2008 |access-date=29 March 2021}}
See also
References
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