Sarah Palin Has Balls -- Big, Plushy, Pink Ones

(Oct. 18) -- Sarah Palin recently expressed her desire for President Barack Obama to grow a pair of "cojones." Now, one quirky toy company is making sure the outspoken politician has a portable pair of her own.

In August, Palin made an appearance on "Fox News Sunday" and said that, compared to Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, she didn't think Obama had "the cojones" to effectively deal with illegal immigration issues.

While her sassy statement may have angered some Americans, it inspired Emil Vicale, a Connecticut toymaker who runs HeroBuilders.com, a company that specializes in novelty political toys and personalized action figures.

"I almost died when I heard Palin say that," Vicale told AOL News. "After that, I knew I had to give Palin the cojones she wanted."

Vicale went nuts quickly drawing up the prototype of a new -- and topical -- political toy to add to his online store. A short time later, Sarah's Talking Cojones were born.

The toy, which sells for $24.95 a pop or $21.95 if you buy in bulk, is a pink, plushy pair of "cojones" topped with coarse black hair and a loop, making it easy to hang on a key chain, car rear-view mirror, or, as Vicale suggests, "on the Christmas tree."

The plush toy is embroidered with a cheerful face -- eyes, nose, mouth and all -- and, when squeezed, it plays a short sound bite of the former Alaska governor's now-infamous "cojones" quote.

"It's the exact clip of her talking. It's weird to say, but the cojones are actually very cute," Vicale said.

In fact, the toy turned out to be so adorable, Vicale said, that when his own young daughter saw the finished product, she begged for it.

"My daughter had no idea what they were, she just knew it was a toy she liked. They're fuzzy, supersoft, and have that squishy Beanie Baby feel, so they're fun to play with."

The toymaker insists he was never out to make an offensive product, but rather more concerned about making a product that can be given as a lighthearted gag gift.

"Being a man, I know the value of proper-looking cojones," Vicale said. "I wanted to make them appropriate and more importantly, squeezable."

Vicale hopes the product takes off during the upcoming holidays but admits he won't be sending a complimentary pair to Palin herself anytime soon.

"I'd love to, but I think that would break some sort of obscenity law. I can just see it now, [Palin] unwrapping the package and her husband going crazy," Vicale joked.

So instead of attempting to appeal to Palin or any other politicians, Vicale hopes the toy is a hit with everyday folks. If his plush gets enough of a push, he figures the cojones could replace those standard fuzzy dice that people sometimes hang on the rear-view mirror of their cars.

Oddly enough, there is a solid market out there for car decorations featuring dangling testicles.

Just ask John Saller, creator of the original Bull's Balls, the plastic balls that can often be seen hanging from the rigs of trucks, SUVs, cars and motorcycles on the highway.

Saller told AOL News that when he founded "the foremost truck ball company in the world" in 1995 as a member of a 4x4 Jeep club, the balls business was tough.

Over time, however, his arguably offensive product was able to gain a strong fan following.

Now, he gets daily orders from around the world from "women, men and old guys" who want nothing more than to strap a pair of plastic balls on their trucks to make a statement.

"Customers relate Bull's Balls to being macho, like they can do whatever they want," Saller explained. "I just see them as a being a fun and funny novelty toy for people's cars."

Today, Saller's company boasts truck testicles in multiple colors, sizes and designs, including diamond-plated or camouflaged "Designer Balls," and mini danglers for Segways.

Still, Saller said the biggest sellers are the standard, oval-shaped, original pair of Bull's Balls in either chrome or flesh tone.

Judging by the hundreds of "Testes-Monials" featured on his website, the balls are here to stay.

Saller doesn't consider Vicale's Palin-inspired "cojones" to be direct competition and sees them as more of a "conversation piece" rather than a rig decoration.

"Being plush, I don't think they'd hold up too well on the road. Mine are made from a very strong plastic and though they do take a beating, they're very durable," Saller said.

Regardless, the purveyor of Bull's Balls believes there is room for all kinds of testicle toys in the novelty industry, so he's not opposed to giving Vicale a couple of marketing pointers.

"He needs to keep promoting the product on his website and really cater to online shoppers. Keeping the cost low is also important and so is selling the product with conviction," he recommended.

Sounds like the key to breaking into the oddball business is, in fact, about really going balls out.