Who doesn’t love a disco ball? It signifies the party is on and it’s time to hit the dance floor and cut a rug (sorry, that’s a hangover from the last blog post on idioms). The mirrored ball, spinning and reflecting lights is often thought to be inextricably linked to the disco era of the 1970s. Think John Travolta, Saturday Night Fever, Donna Summers and bell bottom pants. So, would you be shocked to learn the disco ball has it’s first mentions of the originally called “mirror ball” in 1897 by an electrician’s union?
In Charlestown, MA some electricians got their party on for their annual ball and made the issue of the Electrical Worker magazine. They did some fancy incandescent lamps of various colors and a carbon arc that reflected off their mirror ball.
Mirror balls were used here and there for social functions and in 1917 Louis Bernard Woeste filed a patent for a “myriad reflector” with the intent to fill dance halls with “dancing fireflies of a thousand hues.” The patent filing describes a “sphere, yet any other geometrical form may be substituted therefor, which is perfectly hollow and has its surface covered with a multitude of mirrors.” Unfortunately, the mirror balls lost their shine during the Great Depression and didn’t really become super popular again until the 1970s. The era of disco was born, and the mirror ball had a rebirth as the disco ball. Disco balls have held on to their popularity, despite disco itself waning, and today is still popular both in clubs and homes. Even your blogger has disco ball earrings!
Shine On!
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I can’t believe they are that old! It fun to think that mirrors can be used to multiply (like disco balls,) or reflect but also distort #funhousemirrors!
I needed to thank you for this wonderful read!! I absolutely loved every bit of it. I have you saved as a favorite to check out new things you postÖ