In 1984, Gemmy introduced its first product line—ballpoint pens. An entrepreneurial company at heart, Gemmy soon found its creative legs and began developing novelty items that mirrored cultural trends in music and movies like Dancing Hamsters, Frogz, Pete the Repeat Parrot, Douglas Fir the Talking Tree and Big Mouth Billy Bass®. In 2000, Gemmy first released Big Mouth Billy Bass®, a sound and motion activated talking fish on a trophy plaque. The novelty item became a cultural sensation, with owners including the Queen of England. The first iteration of the animatronic fish featured the popular songs "Don't Worry, Be Happy” by Bobby McFerrin and "Take Me To The River” by Al Green. Subsequent versions were made for Christmas and later the iconic singing fish went high-tech with an Alexa-compatible version that responds to voice commands. In 2001, Gemmy introduced the Airblown® Inflatable brand, changing the way America decorates for the holidays. The popular line of yard décor includes items for Christmas, Halloween, and a variety of other holidays. In 2008, Gemmy launched its LightShow® brand which now includes light strings, yard décor, and Projection™ spotlights for virtually any holiday imaginable. The LightShow® line of products included innovations in LED lighting and has grown into a large array of branded lighting technologies like ColorChanging™, Shooting Star®, ColorMotion™, Fire & Ice™, Kaleidoscope™, and Whirl-A-Motion™. The company continues to add technology and products to its extensive line of LightShow® holiday lighting. In 2015, Gemmy introduced ™, an outdoor spotlight with 98 effects and dozens of color options. Featured on TV in 2016, the lighting technology became a holiday favorite, selling out quickly. Also introduced in 2015 was the Dancing Twerking Fox, called one of the must-have toys of 2015. In 2017 and 2018, Gemmy continued to develop products with the latest technology used by consumers, introducing brands like AppLights™ and SmartLights™, as well as Alexa-compatible lighting technologies and animated characters. Gemmy also partners with the most recognized and beloved brands—such as Disney, Star Wars, Marvel, Peanuts, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, and many more—to create licensed versions of their most popular products.
Gemmy products have appeared in a host of TV shows, movies, news publications, and media outlets. In 2000, Big Mouth Billy Bass® was featured on The Daily Show With Jon Stewart as the daily Moment of Zen. In 2014, a parody of Big Mouth Billy Bass® was featured on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon when singer Lance Bass impersonated a real-life, life-size version of Billy, hanging over a fireplace on a trophy plaque, complete with the red button for activation. In 2015, the animated plush Dancing Twerking Fox was featured on Live With Kelly and Michael as one of the must-have toys of the year. In 2018, Halloween Airblown® Inflatables will be in the feature films “Halloween” and “Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween”.
In addition to creating trendsetting novelty characters and seasonal décor, Gemmy helped found Varidesk, notable for producing adjustable desks and office furniture, in 2013. In 2017, Varidesk was recognized as EY Entrepreneur Of The Year® in the Emerging category for the U.S. The company is now a globally recognized office furniture company with products in more than 130 countries.
