Bob Rule, (1936-2024), of Duluth, known worldwide as “Mr. Yo Yo,” died Oct. 29,He was also one of the seminal figures of the commercial slot-racing industry and hobby. He died at Northside Gwinnett Medical Center after recent triple bypass surgery. Funeral services are planned at Bill Head Funeral Home in Duluth on Sunday, Nov. 3, at 2 p.m.
Rule
Bob was a native of Nashville, Tenn., but grew up in Detroit, Mich. He began yo-yoing as a boy in 1948. He entered his first yo-yo contest in 1949 and in 1952, began working part-time for Donald F. Duncan, Incorporated, managing yo-yo contests and demonstrations in the Detroit area.
In 1955, he went to work full-time for Duncan as a professional yo-yo demonstrator. In this role, he traveled across the United States and to Canada, Puerto Rico and Mexico demonstrating yo-yo tricks, managing yo-yo contests, and appearing on local television stations to promote the Duncan line of yo-yos and spinning tops.
The Smithsonian Institution has an extensive collection of his personal papers and yo-yo materials. He was the last employee of Duncan before it went out of business. At the Smithsonian, his collection is listed as the Bob Rule Papers, 1950-1999, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. The collection is divided into five series.
A more complete obituary will be included in the Nov. 5 issue of GwinnettForum.
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