Sea Monkeys are pretty much a staple of most people's childhoods, having been the perfect low-maintenance pet to gift a child, however, people are only just realizing there's a pretty dark truth behind the innocuous gift.
The kits would come with a little aquarium to house the sea monkey clan, as well as three sachets to pour into the water.
One of them would be the water purifying solution designed to create the perfect environment for the little creatures, then there was a packet of Sea Monkey eggs, and lastly, some food to scoop in there to keep them fed.
If all the steps were completed correctly, soon enough there would be a little gang of Sea Monkeys - also known as brine shrimp - to keep a child fascinated.
Many kids enjoyed watching the Sea Monkeys grow and develop and, if properly looked after, they could even live for a year or two in optimum conditions, growing to around an inch in size.
Sea Monkeys were first developed to be sold as novelty aquarium pets in the United States in 1957, gaining popularity in the 1960s and 1970s, and were heavily marketed in comic books for children.
They came after ant farms had exploded in popularity and were an easy and cheap way for kids to look after a new 'pet' without the commitment that comes with larger, furry animals.
Sea Monkeys are claimed to be an artificial breed of brine shrimp known as Artemia NYOS, created by hybridizing different species of Artemia, which the manufacturer claims grow bigger and lives longer than ordinary brine shrimp.
Their ability to dry out survive a period of apparent lifelessness before coming back to full vibrancy when immersed in water meant they were also an easy animal to distribute. They also hatch from eggs which can remain dormant for years until they are exposed to water, with the entire life cycle from egg to adult taking between eight and 10 weeks.
So all in all, pretty innocuous so far, right?
Well, that is until you look into the man who created and marketed Sea Monkeys so successfully.
The idea and the name 'Sea Monkeys' was created by Harold von Braunhut, who marketed the brand into being the enormous success it was.
Unfortunately, as well as inventing one of the most popular kids' toys of the last century, von Braunhut was also known for his association with white supremacist groups, including the Ku Klux Klan and the Aryan Nations.
Despite his Jewish upbringing, von Braunhut was a vocal supporter for the organizations, with The Washington Post reporting he bought firearms for a Ku Klux Klan faction and regularly attended the Aryan Nations annual conference.
In a 1988 interview with The Seattle Times, he appeared to double down on his views, being quoted as making a racist comment about a Korean shop owner's eyes, allegedly adding: "You know what side I'm on. I don't make any bones about it."
Understandably, this knowledge has made many rethink how they felt about their innocent childhood pets, tweeting: "Not the history of Sea Monkeys having ties to the KKK. What the hell?? I'm convinced everything in this country is racist," and: "bro nothing f**ked me up more this year than learning that the dude that made sea monkeys was a big racist that supported the KKK?? like HUH."
Others added: "today i learned that the inventor of sea monkeys was a white supremacist, childhood ruined once again," and: "today in another instalment of childhood ruined i found out that the guy who created sea monkeys was an extremely prolific neo nazi and he used all the profits from sea monkeys for his neo nazi organisations."
Featured image credit: JW LTD/Getty Images
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