I think I might be in some sort of trouble since my wife announced the other day she's now making all her decisions with the help of the "Magic 8 Ball".

If you think about it, it's a pretty weird toy. If you're not that familiar with the Magic 8 Ball, it's an ink filled oversized billiards ball that is suppose to predict the future when you shake it. Now, that may sound kind of silly, but don't let it fool you, the Magic 8 Ball has been one of the most successful product designs of it's kind.

Get our free mobile app

Developed in 1946 by Abe Bookman of the Alabe Crafts Company of Cincinnati, the Magic 8 Ball continues to sell over a million units each year, and most of us have either owned one or came across one over the years. The product was initially a big hit with children, and then the Magic 8 ball went from novelty store to toy store. Today it's owned by Mattel, and it's just been inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame.

Now to base some of your most important life decisions on what the Magic 8 Ball has to say seems a little crazy to me, but I have to admit it is kind of fun to do, and deep down I've always had a tendency to like it when an answer was favorable to what I had asked it.

I've done some research about this powerful prognostication tool and here's what I've learned.

There are 20 possible answers in a Magic 8-Ball. 10 of the options give you a YES to your question, five give you a NO, and five say the 8-Ball is uncertain.  So when you ask it a question, there's only a 25% chance you'll get a "no."

Those are not bad odds when you think about it, and maybe this will lead to more "yes" answers when my wife asks it a question, and that could be a good thing for me.

So for now, I'll let her have her fun, but if the Magic 8 Ball turns against me, I'll have my own question for it. "Will the Magic 8 Ball wind up in the trash?" And I won't stop shaking it until the answer is "YES".

If you're interested in getting your own Magic 8 Ball just visit Ball Magic on Amazon.

KEEP READING: Check out these totally awesome '80s toys

SEE: 30 Toys That Defined the '70s

MORE: See 30 toys that every '90s kid wanted

More From The Wolf