RealDoll

The RealDoll is a life-size sex doll (also considered a mannequin) manufactured by Abyss Creations in San Marcos, California, and sold worldwide. It has a durable, posable Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) skeleton with steel joints and silicone flesh, which is arguably the state-of-the-art for life-like human body simulation. Prices begin at around $6500 US, with some models costing over $10,000 US.

RealDoll by Abyss Creations

The RealDoll is designed to recreate the appearance, texture and weight of the human female form. Owners of such dolls generally use them as sex partners. This activity can be accompanied by certain preparations such as dressing them up in different types of clothing, changing wigs or makeup, and even adjusting body temperature by use of electric blankets or baths.

Early prototypes were made from solid latex with an interior skeleton, but construction of the outer material was later switched to more realistic silicone. Recent innovations in silicone formulae, skeletal elements and storage methods now allow for a doll that is less prone to tears and compression marks than older dolls, although they are by no means indestructible.

The current incarnation of the female RealDoll product was introduced in the mid-1990s. It is now available in 10 customisable body styles, with a choice of 15 faces and five skin tones. Unusually coloured skin - blue for example - is also available as an option, as are tan lines. In 2003, Abyss introduced the "Face-X" system, allowing any face to be interchangeable with any body. Multiple faces can then be attached one at a time to a single doll by the owner.

"Charlie", a male RealDoll, is also available. "Shemale" dolls may also be purchased from the company, although these must be custom ordered. Abyss also sells silicone body parts, such as partial torsos, breasts and male genitalia.

For a time, the company also offered customisations such as robotic hip actuators and computer controlled speech feedback. These expensive options appear to be no longer available, but RealDoll creator Matt Mc has stated a desire to keep working in the areas of robotics and artificial intelligence.

Use of RealDolls is not exclusively sexual. Some owners use the dolls merely as stand-ins for human models in photography or other visual art. Some owners also use the dolls as non-sexual companion substitutes, rarely - if ever - having intercourse with them. Still other owners buy the dolls simply because they consider them to be beautiful works of art.

Most RealDoll owners are men but some women own them too, and they are shared by couples as well. The perceived stigma of owning a "sex doll", along with the realistic weight of the product have been cited as reasons why ownership by women is not more widespread.

RealDolls in popular culture

• Shock jock Howard Stern has given a personal endorsement of the product after an on-air test.
• The doll was featured on Home Box Offices Real Sex show where a couple was filmed having a ménage à trois with one of the mannequins.
• Mötley Crüe singer Vince Neil showed off his RealDoll in an April, 2005, episode of MTV Cribs.
• Glamour and high fashion photographer Helmut Newton also photographed RealDolls. A sample can be found in his Autobiography. In an example of how disturbing RealDolls can be even to supposedly sexually liberal-minded people, Playboy magazine reportedly refused to publish Newton's RealDoll photo shoot, considering it too weird, according to his account.
• In a June, 2003, article, San Francisco Chronicle reporter Kenneth Baker described a photograph of the RealDoll "Rebecca" by Bay Area photographer Elena Dorfman as "an image of eerie, Johannes Vermeer-like stillness that brings us almost cheek to cheek with a silicone beauty. Freckles of imperfection or wear in her synthetic skin induce an improbable refracted sympathy for her unseen owner." The owner of "Rebecca" and a handful of other RealDolls uses photographs of his dolls to construct visual narratives.
• A RealDoll played the central role in the 2002 French sex farce Monique, which starred Albert Dupontel and Marianne Denicourt, as well as a "Julie" RealDoll as Monique, the perfect doll-woman for whom Dupontel (in his role as Alex, a husband undergoing a mid-life crisis) develops an overwhelming passion.
• Graphic novelist Guy Colwell has written a series of illustrated stories involving a RealDoll-like synthetic woman, chronicled in The Adventures of Doll and The Further Adventures of Doll.

Similar products

• Several Japanese companies produce life-size dolls that rival the US-made RealDoll in price and quality. Among them are Orient Industries' CandyGirl and 4Woods/AI. Although manufactured for the Japanese market, they may be exported on a retail basis.
• The Mechadoll company once offered a model named Sophie and now produces one called Leeloo. These are considered by some to be at least as good as a RealDoll in reproducing the female anatomical shape and feel. As of mid-summer 2006, the Leeloo doll was to be manufactured by MyPartyDoll of Lakewood, California.
• SuperBabe, by N/C Dimensioning, was at one time the closest competitor in the U.S. to the RealDoll. However, the company has temporarily ceased doll manufacture. In comparison to RealDoll, SuperBabe did not offer extensive customization of its doll, but it was slightly less expensive.
• The CybOrgasMatrix doll, created from a lifecasting of the body of Pandora Peaks, is made of an elastomeric gel. This material has significant advantages over silicone in softness, elasticity, tear resistance, and shape memory.
• Silicone Doll Works is another manufacturer of dolls based in the U.S. Similar to Abyss Creations, they offer torsos and the option of exchangeable heads. Their Sexy 18 doll uses a Fleshlight as the receptacle for the user's penis.

References

1. Future sex, Stephen Lemons, Salon.com 26 Feb 2000 (web page).
2. Just Like a Woman, Meghan Laslocky, Salon.com 11 Oct 2005 (web page) longer version (web page).
3. Flexible friendship, Lisa Scott, Metro.co.uk 22 Feb 2006 (web page).
4. Abyss Creations website, product news (web page).
5. "ASFR", documentary short by Allison de Fren (streaming video)
6. Internet Archive page cache of Realdoll website offering robotics and interactivity features, 21 Sept 2003 (web page)
7. Real Doll, Michael Lane, Monk Magazine 15 June 1999 (web page).

See also

• Artificial vagina
• Robot fetishism
• Sex doll
• Statuephilia
• Agalmatophilia
• Galatea (mythology)
• Gynoid
• Pygmalion (mythology)
• Robot fetishism
• Technosexual
• Uncanny valley
• Weird Science (film)

External links

• RealDoll - Abyss Creations' official site
• GlobalSecurityReport.com - BioErotica Turns Corner, June 12th, 2006 ( X Site down 03/21 R/ )
• Metroactive - Statuesque babe seeks financially secure partner for 10-year sexual liaison
• The Dollforum - International discussion about all kind of Realdolls and other

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