A plate lifter or plate wobbler is a novelty item consisting of a tube with a small flat bladder on one end and a bulb on the other. The bladder is to be placed under a plate; inflating it will make the plate wobble. This fake demonstration of psychokinesis is intended to provoke surprise and merriment.
A free plate wobbler was included with the first issue of the British comic magazine Monster Fun and promoted as a "monster mirth maker".
In industry
"Plate lifter" is the name of various devices used in industry for handling heavy metal plates.
References
- ^ Stringer, Lew (3 December 2010). "Blimey! It's another blog about comics!: Free Inside! - Part 5". Retrieved 12 February 2013.
- ^ Jillette, Penn (1992). Penn and Teller's How to Play with Your Food. Villard Books. p. 66. ISBN 978-0679743118.
- Nyberg, Tim (2004). The Practical Joker's Handbook. Andrews McMeel Publishing. p. 160. ISBN 0740741985. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
Get a 'plate lifter' at your local joke/novelty shop. This is a long tube with a little bladder on one end and a bulb on the other. The original joke was to hide the bladder under the table cloth under plates to make them jump up and down when the bulb was squeezed.
- Kibble-White, Graham (2005). The Ultimate Book of British Comics. Allison & Busby. p. 175. ISBN 9780749082116.
- "Plate Lifter KA94". Fright Depot. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- "Plate Lifter". The Joke Shop. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- "Sheet Lifter and Plate Lifters". Bushman Equipment, Inc. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- "Plate Lifter". Caldwell Lifting Solutions. Retrieved February 13, 2013.