Gender Male; Jobs. In 1957, an Australian visiting California told them offhand that in his home country, children The two never publicly commented on the injuries, but for a company that was built on levity, it had to be sobering. Read more:12 WackyProducts from Wham-O You Have to See to Believe.. The retail price for the rubber-band-powered toy was $3 (about $24 in 2020 money). They just banned Elvis Presley's hips from the Ed Sullivan show.' This browser does not support getting your location. The original Hula-Hoop girl is sitting in a caf wearing a leopard-lined jacket, gold-painted nails, and Revlon lipstick in a shade called Orange Flip. You may not upload any more photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 20 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 5 photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 30 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 15 photos to this memorial. In the summer of 1958, the craze hit the US, selling 40 million $1.98 hoops and producing $45 million in profits. And when the novelty products missedlike the "Mr. Hootie" egg rake, meant to help users pluck out bits of egg shell from a cracked eggat least Melin and Knerr managed to amuse themselves. Photos larger than 8Mb will be reduced. The California native was a teenager when he befriended Arthur Spud Melin outside a Pasadena movie theater. A group of investors then bought Wham-O back from Mattel in 1997 for about $20 million and relaunched many of its best-known toys, including the Slip 'N Slide. By 1948, they had moved into Knerr's Los Angeles garage, where Spud Melin cut slingshots with a handsaw, Knerr sanded, and both sold, personally first, then by mail-order and through dealers all over the United States. Many products were not successful. While visiting that continent he saw a little fish that buried its eggs in mud during the dry season. An estimated 25 million Hula-Hoops were sold in its first four months of production alone. The email does not appear to be a valid email address. Greatest toy invention in years! ad copy blared. We have set your language to Resend Activation Email. More than $1 million accepted in orders by Wham-O had to be refunded and the project was abandoned. cemeteries found within miles of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. He patented a design for a two-handed tennis racket with an adjustable handle. We wanted it to be a sport.. Wham-O Inc. is an American toy company based in Carson, California, United States. WebThe hoop has been a popular children's toy for thousands of years, and the introduction of the Hula Hoop in 1958 by the Wham-O toy company has been documented by sociologists as one of the biggest fads ever to take hold in America and one of the most significant events of the time. More importantly, they were actually having as much fun as people thought they were. He was 77 and had Alzheimer's disease. Are you sure that you want to delete this flower? Wham-O's first incursion into the mainstream came in 1955, when it bought the idea for a plastic flying disk from a building inspector named Walter Frederick Morrison. Melin, who had Alzheimers disease, died Friday in Newport Beach. Andersons husband consulted Arthur Melin, a business acquaintance, about partnering with Melins company, Wham-O, one of the biggest toy manufacturers at the Knerr, Walsh says, had sellers remorse right away. Melin and Knerr showed entrepreneurial spirit early on. The cause was Alzheimer's disease, his wife, Suzy, said.Born in Los Angeles, Mr. Melin, known by his childhood nickname Spud, formed Wham-O with a friend, Richard Knerr, in 1948, while they were working for their fathers and attending the University of Southern California.Their inspiration came from a slingshot they had made while hunting with falcons, which was used to shoot meat up to the birds. Millions of rings sat in piles like gargantuan wrist bracelets. They tried to sell their birds to enthusiasts, but got more interest for the shot, which they named Wham-O, for the sensation felt when it hit the target. An estimated 25 million Hula Hoops were sold in its first four months of production alone. He reportedly has a net worth of $5.6 billion. All rights reserved. Try again later. Born in Los Angeles, Mr. Melin, known by his childhood nickname Spud, formed Wham-O with a friend, Richard Knerr, in 1948, while they were working for their fathers and attending the University of Southern California. This is a carousel with slides. The Frisbee was originally marketed under a different name, the Pluto Platter, in an effort to capitalize on Americas fascination with UFOs. ''He said it would be huge. Neon bending! This flower has been reported and will not be visible while under review. They began demonstrating the toy in parks and on television, and the fad quickly went viral. [6][7] 25 million were sold in four months, and in two years sales reached more than 100 million. They did not know what to make of it until another friend from Australia showed them how to gyrate their hips, thus spinning the hoop. By Melins estimate, the fad started in January 1958 and ended that October. (It was later sold to Mattel, which then sold it to a group of investors.)Mr. Knerr and his partner, Wham-O co-founder Arthur "Spud" Melin, specialized in fun, with the Hula Hoop, Slip 'N Slide, Silly String and Super Ball, entertaining countless Tilted flip curves. Some versions say Knerr had become aware that the idea had come from flinging the Frisbie pie tins, and he changed the spelling slightly to trademark the name. Bubble Thing (1988), a flexible plastic strip attached to a wand, which was dipped in soap solution and waved through the air to create giant soap bubbles. Love, Spud., An hour later, she sees Dad and another man from work walking up her driveway, Knerr says.Then this fake delivery truck arrives, Suzy couldn't see what it was. 2023 Minute Media - All Rights Reserved, 12 Wacky Products from Wham-O You Have to See to Believe, 12 WackyProducts from Wham-O You Have to See to Believe. Anyone can read what you share. Sales skyrocketed, reaching 100 million before Mattel eventually bought out Wham-O. The technology allowed them to dream up all sorts of packaged nonsense. He patented a design for a two-handed tennis racket with an adjustable handle.Ten years ago, he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. Frisbie.. Within four months, 25 million hoops had been sold, according to Wham-O, and hooping was an integral part of American youth culture. Arthur 'Spud' Melin, novelty inventor, born December 30 1924; died June 28 2002, The man who brought us the Hula-Hoop and the Frisbee, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, 2023 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. But I said, 'You can't put that on television. Changing the day will navigate the page to that given day in history. They extensively researched new product ideas, including traveling around the world. Are you sure that you want to report this flower to administrators as offensive or abusive? He always had kids test his toys to see if they had play value. Long story short, after much effort and rejection, Spud finally got financing for his Hula Hoop, and Wham-O went on to sell some 25 million hoops the first year, making Spud tens of millions of dollars and making at least fifty bankers and investors sick. Your account has been locked for 30 minutes due to too many failed sign in attempts. Arthur Melin, the co-founder of Wham-O, which introduced fads like the Hula-Hoop and lasting diversions like the Frisbee, died on Friday at a care center in Costa Mesa, Calif. But they wanted to see what they could do with it.. Use the links under See more to quickly search for other people with the same last name in the same cemetery, city, county, etc. He sold the design to Wham-O in 1957. ''He said it would be huge. Rather, he said, the name came from a comic strip of the era called Mr. Frisbie.But the connection was not coincidental to the success of the Frisbee, which found its earliest acceptance at Eastern colleges. Its origins are disputed, but seem to have been in empty pie tins from the Frisbie Baking Company, of Bridgeport, Connecticut, tossed around the ivy-league campus of Yale - or Princeton, Dartmouth, Amherst and Middlebury, each of which claims to be its home. Ads claimed it could make bubbles "as long as a bus". Enter a date in the format M/D (e.g., 1/1), https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/hula-hoop-patented, Marvin Miller elected first full-time MLB Players Association executive director, Staff Sergeant Barry Sadler hits #1 with Ballad of the Green Berets, Impeachment trial of Andrew Johnson begins, Jim Morrison is charged with lewd behavior at a Miami concert. This relationship is not possible based on lifespan dates. If you notice a problem with the translation, please send a message to [emailprotected] and include a link to the page and details about the problem. When Hasbro tried to buy Wham-O in 1982, Melin and Knerr were responsive. They also offered mail-order sporting goods, such as pellet guns, crossbows and daggers. ''Spud brought it home and showed it to me,'' Mrs. Melin recalled yesterday. Tiring of business, Mr. Melin persuaded Mr. Knerr to sell the company in 1982 to the Kransco Group Companies for $12 million. "Superball was such a great one. Litigation, changing tastes, and corporate shrinkage would eventually undo Wham-O. Are you adding a grave photo that will fulfill this request? After all, the ball was unharmed. GREAT NEWS! Smith has 10 children, including a daughter who works as a film producer. This account has been disabled. Soon, Wham-O was producing 20,000 hoops a day. He was 77 and had lived in Irvine, Calif. In 1958, they renamed it the Frisbee, either because that was the phoneticisation of the trade name as heard by Knerr on a college tour, or after Mr Frisbie, a US comic strip. They were more of an old-school company. You can navigate days by using left and right arrows. If it was good, the company would license it and pay out a royalty. 1948: WHAM-O founded. WebArthur Spud Melin . Art (Spud) Melin and Richard (Rich) Knerr had a knack for fun, and an open door for outside inventor ideas. COSTA MESA, California, Jun 29, 2002 (AP WorldStream via COMTEX) -- Arthur "Spud" Melin, co-founder of the toy company that introduced the world to the Frisbee, Hula Hoop and other faddish gems of American pop culture, has died. With plastic molding so inexpensive, hoop hobbyists didnt necessarily have any brand loyaltyparticularly if the generic was cheaper. Wham-O, in fact, hired students to sell Frisbees on campuses until it could get distribution in stores. A local barber suggested they sell the contraption. [8] "Hula Hoop mania" continued through the end of 1959, and netted Wham-O $45million (equivalent to $418million in 2023[9]). In 1965, while Hula Hoops were still rolling out the door, Melin and Knerr introduced the Superball, a small rubber ball with an exceptionally high bounce invented and patented by chemist Norman H. Stingley. "We didn't want it used as a toy, we wanted it to be a sport," Melin said in a 1998 interview with the Pasadena Star-News.
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