But knock-off artists had smelled opportunity. Potato Heads can be worth from $200 to $695 dollars. Wham-O also benefited from the relative economic sense of advertising nationally. Wham-Os Pluto Platter, meant to capitalize on the 1950s obsession with space and flying saucers, had a wobbly motion to it. I thought you might like to see a memorial for Arthur Kelso Spud Melin I found on Findagrave.com. Which memorial do you think is a duplicate of Arthur Melin (27070295)? Spud Melin's genius saw the potential, and, after prototype trials with Pasadena children, manufactured, with Knerr, a hollow cylinder in light, durable polyurethane. Almost certainly not, Vanessa Hudson to replace Alan Joyce as Qantas chief, Covid graduates struggle with teamwork - Deloitte and PwC, Godfather of AI Geoffrey Hinton quits Google and warns over dangers of machine learning, Permanent TSBs interest income jumps 86% on Ulster Bank deal and rising rates, Ukrainian forces shell village in Bryansk region, says Russian governor. Please reset your password. Your account has been locked for 30 minutes due to too many failed sign in attempts. Wham-O named them for the Hawaiian-dance-like hip rotations needed to keep them aloft. The Frisbee and Hula Hoop created fads. We wanted it to be a sport.. Youre never going to see a toy that costs a dollar on television again. The success of the Super Ball and Frisbee largely made up for Wham-Os misadventures with the Hula Hoopwhich, contrary to belief, wound up being a steady seller over time. Family members linked to this person will appear here. 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. March 5, 1963: the Hula Hoop, a hip-swiveling toy that became a huge fad across America when it was first marketed by Wham-O in 1958, is patented by the In 1955 inventor Fred Morrison began marketing a plastic flying disc called the Pluto Platter. They knew if they spent the money, theyd see a return on their investment, Walsh says. Retailers in the United States were skeptical, but the two sensed a hit. It did not sell well, but Morrison demonstrated it to Wham-O in 1955, as the pluto platter; Spud Melin and Knerr bought the novelty for $1 million (plus lifetime royalties for Morrison), and marketed the toy as the Fling Saucer. Nevertheless, the public of all ages also adopted them, buying more than 100 million Frisbees in 30 years. [5] When they outgrew the garage, Knerr and Melin rented a building on S. Marengo Ave in Alhambra, California; and then, in 1955, moved their manufacturing plant to neighboring San Gabriel, California where they remained until 1987, when they sold the plant to Huy Fong Foods. Left strictly to their own sensibilities, items like the Bowmatic bow-making machine and the Super Foam Machine probably wouldn't have kept the lights on. This page was last edited on 12 December 2022, at 22:20. ). Mr. Melin became active in conservative causes like immigration reform, but continued to pursue inventions. Kids, with their resistant vertebrae, had an easier go of it than some adults, who suffered hernias and slipped discs. 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. 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. With Dorothy Kilgallen, John Payne, Arlene Francis, Bennett Cerf. ''Mr. Services are being planned in Newport Beach on Tuesday. Before the elephant arrived, he sent a telegram posing as his partner: Am sending live animal home, please feed it and take care of it until I get home. Its first hit toy, a flying plastic disc known as the Frisbee, debuted in 1957. In 1982, Melin and Knerr sold Wham-O to the Kransco Group for $12m, but Melin kept up his interest in gadgets - at one point, he In 1962, they sold a limbo dance kit to take advantage of that fad; and in 1975, when the movie Jaws was released, they sold plastic shark teeth. All rights reserved. When the rains came, the eggs hatched and fish emerged overnight. He is survived by his wife and five daughters. Wham-O was also responsible for a few ideas that did not etch themselves into popular history as indelibly as the Frisbee, the Hula Hoop or the Superball. It became Wham-O's long, slow seller, with its own plant in San Gabriel, California, taking off in the 1960s as a counter-cultural exercise, the toy of hippies and of guys trying to impress their girls with Frisbee flips - "Flat flip flies straight. Kids would just throw it on the ground and it would just take off to the ceiling, into lights.". Are you adding a grave photo that will fulfill this request? While visiting that continent he saw a little fish that buried its eggs in mud during the dry season. He gave company officials an impromptu lesson in how to use a rattan hoop imported from Australia. Richard Knerr (19252008[2]) and Arthur "Spud" Melin (19242002[3]), two University of Southern California graduates who were friends since their teens, were unhappy with their jobs and decided to start their own business. [6][7] 25 million were sold in four months, and in two years sales reached more than 100 million. They balanced and complemented each other.. Include gps location with grave photos where possible. But as quickly as it started, it was over. Their first major development was a buy-in - the Frisbee. The company ended 1958 with losses of $10,000. Tiring of business, Mr. Melin persuaded Mr. Knerr to sell the company in 1982 to the Kransco Group Companies for $12 million. Their Air Blaster could blow out a candle at 25 feet. Knerr and Melin left behind a considerable legacy in the toy world. Verify and try again. Arthur Spud Melin, co-founder of Wham-O Inc., which gave the world such leisure icons as the Frisbee, the Hula Hoop and the Superball--along with such duds as Instant Fish--has died. To add a flower, click the Leave a Flower button. Please ensure you have given Find a Grave permission to access your location in your browser settings. 2019 TIME USA, LLC. Real devotees were dubbed Frisbyterians.. But Melin and Knerr didnt seem wired for conventional products. In the early 1960s Wham-O created the Super Ball, a high-bouncing ball made of a hard elastomer Polybutadiene alloy, dubbed Zectron, with a 0.92 coefficient of restitution when bounced on hard surfaces. "Then their barber recommended they put an ad in a magazine and try mail order," he says. Wham-O co-founders Arthur Melin (left) and Richard Knerr try out their toy company's Hula Hoop, a plastic version of a rattan hoop popular in Australia. Water Wiggle (1962), a plastic-enclosed curved nozzle that, when powered by a garden hose, became airborne. You have chosen this person to be their own family member. The ball was uninjured. The sponsor of a memorial may add an additional. Failed to delete flower. Around 20 million Super Balls were sold that decade, and the NFL named the Super Bowl games after it.[10]. You can customize the cemeteries you volunteer for by selecting or deselecting below. Ten years ago, he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. Guest panelist John Payne identified the inventor and manufacture of the Hula Hoop. Richard A. Johnson, author of the book American Fads, declared the Hula Hoop the undisputed granddaddy of American fads. No sensation has ever swept the country like the Hula Hoop, he wrote. There is a problem with your email/password. The cause was Alzheimer's disease, his wife, Suzy, said. To use this feature, use a newer browser. Wham-O's most famous contribution to silliness, the Hula-Hoop, was born in 1957. This relationship is not possible based on lifespan dates. The companys name, Wham-O, came from the sound the slingshots supposedly made. For about a year in the 1950s, the company markets their sporting goods under the name WAMO. There is 1 volunteer for this cemetery. Frisbie.. The retail price for the rubber-band-powered toy was $3 (about $24 in 2020 money). Please enter your email address and we will send you an email with a reset password code. This flower has been reported and will not be visible while under review. In 1982, Spud Melin and Knerr sold Wham-O to the Kransco Group for $12 million, but Spud Melin kept up his interest in gadgets - at one point, he patented a two-handed tennis racket with an adjustable handle. Melin retired when Wham-O was sold to Kransco Group Cos. in 1982. One bowling ball-sized promotional Super Ball wreaked havoc in an Australian hotel, putting a hole in the wall before accidentally falling out a window, bouncing 15 stories, and then crashing into asports carparked on the street below. They showed little regret. They just banned Elvis Presley's hips from the Ed Sullivan show.' The adolescent appetite for dangerous weapons and sporting goods was so large that the two were soon grossing $100,000 in annual revenue. "(It) remains the standard against which all national crazes are measured.". Knerr and childhood buddy Arthur "Spud" Melin started a slingshot-selling business in 1948 in Pasadena and called their company Wham-O after what they said was the sound a slingshot made when it hit something. In 1958, the founders of Wham-O toys, Richard Knerr and Arthur "Spud" Melin, Vintage plastic Mr. Once perfected, the berserk Super Ball sold six million units in 1965 alone. In 1982, Spud Melin and Knerr sold Wham-O to the Kransco Group for $12 million, but Spud Melin kept up his interest in gadgets - at one point, he patented a two TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. Number of Founded Organizations 1. But nothing could compare to the whirlwind force of the Hula-Hoop, which Wham-O introduced the next year. (modern). And like his father, Arthur Smith excels at his job. If it was good, the company would license it and pay out a royalty. 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. Wham-O took a fair share of wild swings in the marketplace. Everyone is just too litigious. There was a problem getting your location. Edit Overview Section. 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. I once asked Rich Knerr about stuff like the Mr. Hootie egg rake, Walsh says. If you have questions, please contact [emailprotected]. A full body orgasm at the L.A. Phil? Within six months, they sold 7 million Superballs. For many years, the company's strategy was to maintain eight to twelve simple, inexpensive products such as Frisbees, Super Balls, and Hula Hoops. But I think this country gave us more than we gave it. Headrick was in charge of sifting through ideas, of which one in a thousand might be viable enough to pursue. WebRichard Knerr and Arthur Spud Melin, founders of the Wham-O Company, are the architects of the biggest fad of all time the hula hoop! 1957: WHAM-O acquires the rights to the Pluto Platter from Fred Morrison and renames it Frisbee. Quickly see who the memorial is for and when they lived and died and where they are buried. Following the Hula Hoop, Wham-O continued to produce a steady stream of wacky and beloved novelty items, including the Superball, Water Wiggle, Silly String, Slip n Slide and the Hacky Sack. Their research and development team consisted of their kids. Becoming a Find a Grave member is fast, easy and FREE. Compared by many to be two sides of the same coin, Merlin and Arthur's relationship was at the heart of the show. Wham-O's initial success was a result of its founders' insight. The kinetic energy in the material was substantial: it could bounce over a two-story home. Today, Woodmans net worth is estimated at $800 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth, which is actually much lower than his peak valuation of $4.5 billion. Old ones were retired, for a few years or permanently, as their popularity waned. Wham-O was also enjoying the creative freedom that came from the plastic injection molding process, a relatively recent innovation in the wooden toy business. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate, or jump to a slide with the slide dots. Copyright 2023 Deseret News Publishing Company. About 600,000 were made. Save . The enterprise ended with the oysters being dumped into a nearby bay because they could not get the venture off the ground. (It was later sold to Mattel, which then sold it to a group of investors.). Their projectile launcher was a home-made version of one of man's oldest weapons, the slingshot. But the connection was not coincidental to the success of the Frisbee, which found its earliest acceptance at Eastern colleges. After two years of development, its tendency to fly apart was overcome and its 92 per cent recovery rate realised for the springy Superball. It is known for creating and marketing many popular toys for nearly 70 years, including the Hula hoop, Frisbee, Slip 'N Slide, Super Ball, Trac-Ball, Silly String, Hacky sack, Wham-O Bird Ornithopter and Boogie Board,[1] many of which have become genericized trademarks. ''He said it would be huge. Anyone, anywhere, could submit an idea to them and potentially get a royalty deal. Try again later. Melin and Knerr were boyhood friends, mugging for cameras and dreaming up ideaslike a mink button that could cover a womans naveltoo ridiculous for larger companies to ever consider. There are no volunteers for this cemetery. We have set your language to You may request to transfer up to 250,000 memorials managed by Find a Grave. cemeteries found within kilometers of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. In 1959 Wham-O marketed a slightly modified version, which they had renamed the "Frisbee" two years earlier in 1957 - and once again a Wham-O toy became a common part of life through the 1960s. Over the years, Wham-O churned out 25 million Hula Hoops. The enterprise ended with the oysters being dumped into a nearby bay because they could not get the venture off the ground.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. 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. 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. Frisbee grew so popular that associations and canine variations became commonplace; the Navy experimented on them to see if they could keep flares in the air longer. An email has been sent to the person who requested the photo informing them that you have fulfilled their request, There is an open photo request for this memorial. Soon, crowds of teenagers rotating their hula hoops were featured in Life magazine and on the Dinah Shore Show. Wham-O was resold to Mattel Inc. in 1994 and to a group of investors in 1997. WebArthur Spud Melin has recently died. He was born in Los Angeles Nov. 16, 1922, to Della Kelso Melin and Charles Raymond Melin., and was the elder brother to Arthur Spud Melin. In a testament to his marketing aptitude, the stunt was picked up by local press. Melin and Knerr shrugged. Most wont even look at an idea unless it comes through an agency. In the toy business, we aspire to create fun for people. Year should not be greater than current year. Both born in 1925, Knerr made rubber band guns out of apple crates and peddled them at the age of 9; Melin caught and sold halibut door to door. In the height of the Cold War, when families were building backyard bunkers to live in following nuclear attack, Wham-O marketed Do-It-Yourself Fallout Shelters for $119. 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 At first business was slow and the pair struggled to get by on just a couple dollars a day but gradually the orders were pouring in. Knerr and Melin devised a test of an early version of the hula hoop in 1958 by holding demonstrations at parks. The pair, who would remain lifelong pals and business partners, attended the University of See the article in its original context from. Tens of millions of hoops were snapped up, with Wham-O racing to meet demand. Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel. Rare was the tag line that didn't abuse exclamation marks. Failed to report flower. If subjects mastered the swing of it, they got to keep the toy. The name Wham-O was meant to evoke the noise a slingshot made.At first, they focused on sporting goods, rather than toys, but they kept an eye out for unusual items like boomerangs and crossbows.Early on, they tried some other, ill-fated endeavors. Flowers added to the memorial appear on the bottom of the memorial or here on the Flowers tab. Today in History: March 5, 1963. It was inexplicable. Melina and Knerr were inspired to develop the Hula Hoop after they saw a wooden hoop that Australian children twirled around their waists during gym class. After selling more than 100 million Hula Hoops in 16 months, Arthur Spud Melin and Rich Knerr took a look at their books. COSTA MESA, Calif. Arthur "Spud" Melin, co-founder of the toy company that introduced the world to the Frisbee, Hula Hoop and other faddish gems of American Nonetheless, Hula-Hoops remain the most extraordinary US global imposition - travelling faster in two years than Coca-Cola in decades. You are nearing the transfer limit for memorials managed by Find a Grave. The 76-year-old also built a large family. By Melins estimate, the fad started in January 1958 and ended that October. One hundred million platters have been sold, and as Spud Melin hoped, they became a sport - the basis of the team game Ultimate, with world championships, and disc golf on 500 courses worldwide. Increasingly, kids were turning less to outdoor play and more toward higher-priced electronic offerings, which meant bigger profit margins for companies. Are you sure that you want to delete this flower? A toy maker from Australia gave Mr. Mullin and Mr. Knerr a wooden exercise hoop used in gymnastics classes. Promoting the creations was a family affair. They were more of an old-school company. New products were developed for tryout periods. READ MORE: The History of Must-Have Holiday Toys. And in answer to a music and dance fad of the era, it also marketed Chubby Checker Limbo sets. In 1957, they purchased the rights to Morrisons toy. His great success story was the Hula Hoop. Many products were not successful. But I said, 'You can't put that on television. 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. Were it not for a chemist and a former World War II spy, things might have stopped being fun. His battles with the church arent over, How Palm Springs ran out Black and Latino families to build a fantasy for rich, white people, Decades of failures leave L.A. County facing up to $3 billion in sex abuse claims, China to scrap PCR test requirement for inbound travelers starting Saturday, Down to our final hill: Ski season (finally) winding down at Big Bear resorts, If Its a Small World isnt the best ride at Disneyland, what is? Articles with the HISTORY.com Editors byline have been written or edited by the HISTORY.com editors, including Amanda Onion, Missy Sullivan and Matt Mullen. They were flat broke. The two never publicly commented on the injuries, but for a company that was built on levity, it had to be sobering. He patented a design for a two-handed tennis racket with an adjustable handle. 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. 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. During the first half of the 20th century, the best way to see someone use a hula hoop was to watch Chinese acrobats twirl multiple hoops on their arms, legs and torsos. Read more:12 WackyProducts from Wham-O You Have to See to Believe.. Bookbinding! In fact, the company was named for the spectacular They just banned Elvis Presley's hips from the Ed Sullivan show.' 3 1 greengrenades To be the man, you gotta If they liked an idea, it could be implemented immediately. But Wham-O continued to make other novelties, like Silly String and the Slip 'n' Slide.Tiring of business, Mr. Melin persuaded Mr. Knerr to sell the company in 1982 to the Kransco Group Companies for $12 million. The panel were stumped by the chief painter at the White House. Oops, we were unable to send the email. (They couldnt.) Youd never see a company making both toys and weapons now. For memorials with more than one photo, additional photos will appear here or on the photos tab. Ed Headrick looked over the leftover plastic from the Hula implosion and had an idea. You are only allowed to leave one flower per day for any given memorial. To view a photo in more detail or edit captions for photos you added, click the photo to open the photo viewer. All Knerr's creations had a way of bringing out the most mysterious aspects of physics, Knerr says. Since then, he has been involved in several experimental treatments, Mrs. Melin said, and he has willed his brain to the University of California at Irvine, where he was treated.Besides his wife, he is survived five daughters, Linda Melin, Sally Melin, June Macy-Melin, Carol Denham and Della Peterson; a brother, Tom Melin; and 11 grandchildren.
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