1 00:00:00,280 --> 00:00:02,000 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of I 2 00:00:02,080 --> 00:00:15,120 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hello and welcome to This Day in History Class, 3 00:00:15,120 --> 00:00:18,680 Speaker 1: a show for those interested in the big and small 4 00:00:19,200 --> 00:00:24,200 Speaker 1: moments of history. I'm Gay Bluesier, and today we're looking 5 00:00:24,239 --> 00:00:27,440 Speaker 1: at how an empty dessert plate inspired one of the 6 00:00:27,480 --> 00:00:38,080 Speaker 1: most iconic toys in the history of outdoor play. The 7 00:00:38,159 --> 00:00:45,960 Speaker 1: day was January seven, the Whammo Toy Company produced its 8 00:00:46,000 --> 00:00:50,200 Speaker 1: first batch of plastic flying discs, now known to fans 9 00:00:50,240 --> 00:00:55,080 Speaker 1: of all ages as Frisbees. The idea of throwing around 10 00:00:55,160 --> 00:00:58,400 Speaker 1: a flat flying disc goes all the way back to 11 00:00:58,480 --> 00:01:02,760 Speaker 1: the discus in Anxious, Greece, but for the modern incarnation 12 00:01:03,120 --> 00:01:06,800 Speaker 1: we can look to nineteen thirty seven. That's the year 13 00:01:06,880 --> 00:01:10,840 Speaker 1: when a seventeen year old named Walter Fred Morrison and 14 00:01:10,920 --> 00:01:13,840 Speaker 1: his girlfriend were playing a game of catch with the 15 00:01:13,920 --> 00:01:18,080 Speaker 1: lid from a popcorn tin. Apparently, they had such a 16 00:01:18,080 --> 00:01:20,760 Speaker 1: good time with the game that they started looking for 17 00:01:20,840 --> 00:01:24,560 Speaker 1: something more durable to toss back and forth. That's when 18 00:01:24,600 --> 00:01:28,240 Speaker 1: they came across one of Fred's mom's pie tins, which 19 00:01:28,319 --> 00:01:32,399 Speaker 1: quickly became the couple's disc of choice. In fact, it 20 00:01:32,560 --> 00:01:35,319 Speaker 1: was that very pie plate that they were playing with 21 00:01:35,440 --> 00:01:38,520 Speaker 1: on a beach When a passer by noticed how much 22 00:01:38,560 --> 00:01:41,640 Speaker 1: fun they were having, he asked Fred if he'd be 23 00:01:41,680 --> 00:01:44,160 Speaker 1: willing to part with the pie tin for a quarter, 24 00:01:44,680 --> 00:01:47,119 Speaker 1: and since it had only cost a nickel to buy 25 00:01:47,200 --> 00:01:52,440 Speaker 1: brand new, Fred happily agreed. Soon after the encounter, the 26 00:01:52,520 --> 00:01:57,280 Speaker 1: teen went into business selling flying cake pans all along 27 00:01:57,320 --> 00:02:02,240 Speaker 1: the beaches of southern California. Fred's beach side business had 28 00:02:02,280 --> 00:02:04,880 Speaker 1: to be put on whold during World War Two so 29 00:02:04,920 --> 00:02:07,920 Speaker 1: that he could serve overseas as a fighter pilot, but 30 00:02:08,040 --> 00:02:11,120 Speaker 1: all the while he kept thinking of ways to improve 31 00:02:11,200 --> 00:02:14,640 Speaker 1: the flying disks that he and his girlfriend, who was 32 00:02:14,800 --> 00:02:17,359 Speaker 1: now his wife by that point, had had so much 33 00:02:17,400 --> 00:02:21,120 Speaker 1: fun with. By the time the war was over, Fred 34 00:02:21,200 --> 00:02:25,120 Speaker 1: had his answer. He found that by adding a sloped edge, 35 00:02:25,480 --> 00:02:28,520 Speaker 1: his disks would fly better and stay in the air 36 00:02:28,560 --> 00:02:33,440 Speaker 1: longer too. Today, that same slope is found on all 37 00:02:33,560 --> 00:02:38,200 Speaker 1: official Frisbees, and it's still known as Morrison's Slope in 38 00:02:38,280 --> 00:02:43,080 Speaker 1: Fred's honor. Of course, the famous frisbee name was still 39 00:02:43,120 --> 00:02:46,080 Speaker 1: a few years off at that point, though Fred did 40 00:02:46,120 --> 00:02:49,360 Speaker 1: try a couple different names in the meantime, Hoping to 41 00:02:49,400 --> 00:02:52,640 Speaker 1: take advantage of the growing space craze in the US. 42 00:02:53,000 --> 00:02:57,320 Speaker 1: He dubbed his new disc the Flying Saucer, before eventually 43 00:02:57,400 --> 00:03:02,519 Speaker 1: changing that to the much more alliterative Pluto Platter. Armed 44 00:03:02,560 --> 00:03:06,280 Speaker 1: with this far catchier brand name, Fred traveled up and 45 00:03:06,360 --> 00:03:10,480 Speaker 1: down the California coast, peddling Pluto Platters out of the 46 00:03:10,480 --> 00:03:15,360 Speaker 1: back of his station wagon at beaches and local fares. Then, 47 00:03:15,639 --> 00:03:20,079 Speaker 1: in nineteen fifty five, his fairly modest sales caught the 48 00:03:20,120 --> 00:03:23,800 Speaker 1: attention of the founders of the Whammo Toy Company, the 49 00:03:23,880 --> 00:03:27,080 Speaker 1: proud creators of the sling Shot and the Hula Hoop. 50 00:03:27,680 --> 00:03:30,800 Speaker 1: They quickly snapped up the rights to Fred's disk and 51 00:03:30,880 --> 00:03:34,360 Speaker 1: released their own plastic version of the Pluto Platter on 52 00:03:34,480 --> 00:03:39,280 Speaker 1: January twenty three, nineteen fifty seven. Within the year, the 53 00:03:39,360 --> 00:03:44,800 Speaker 1: company had sold a million discs. Wammo kept Fred Morrison's 54 00:03:44,800 --> 00:03:48,480 Speaker 1: space theme name during the first year of production, but 55 00:03:48,560 --> 00:03:51,640 Speaker 1: in nineteen fifty eight they decided it was time for 56 00:03:51,680 --> 00:03:56,440 Speaker 1: a change. According to legend, the Wammo founders were interested 57 00:03:56,480 --> 00:03:59,880 Speaker 1: in Fred's disc partly because they had recently taken a 58 00:04:00,040 --> 00:04:02,920 Speaker 1: trip to New England, where they had witnessed some Yale 59 00:04:03,040 --> 00:04:07,360 Speaker 1: students playing catch with pie pans from the local Frisbee 60 00:04:07,360 --> 00:04:11,320 Speaker 1: Baking company. The students would take the empty pans from 61 00:04:11,360 --> 00:04:14,360 Speaker 1: the dining hall and toss them back and forth while 62 00:04:14,440 --> 00:04:19,360 Speaker 1: yelling Frisbee to warn of an incoming pan. The practice 63 00:04:19,400 --> 00:04:23,000 Speaker 1: supposedly dates as far back as the nineteen twenties and 64 00:04:23,120 --> 00:04:26,560 Speaker 1: was pretty common in both Connecticut and New York. But 65 00:04:26,680 --> 00:04:30,839 Speaker 1: that said, even Wammo's own website admits that the founders 66 00:04:31,000 --> 00:04:34,000 Speaker 1: might just as easily have been inspired by a comic 67 00:04:34,080 --> 00:04:38,480 Speaker 1: strip from the era called Mr. Frisbee. Whatever the reason, 68 00:04:38,880 --> 00:04:42,520 Speaker 1: Wammo relaunched their flying disc under the name Frisbee in 69 00:04:42,640 --> 00:04:46,680 Speaker 1: nineteen fifty eight, and it immediately caught on at playgrounds 70 00:04:46,720 --> 00:04:51,560 Speaker 1: and college campuses all over the country. In the following decade, 71 00:04:51,839 --> 00:04:55,800 Speaker 1: Wammo began marketing frisbee playing as a whole new sport, 72 00:04:56,320 --> 00:04:59,320 Speaker 1: leading to sales of over a hundred million units by 73 00:04:59,360 --> 00:05:05,600 Speaker 1: nineteen Today, the official Frisbee is owned by the Mattel Company, 74 00:05:05,839 --> 00:05:10,640 Speaker 1: who bought the toy from Whamo in According to them, 75 00:05:10,839 --> 00:05:14,599 Speaker 1: more than three hundred million discs have been sold since 76 00:05:14,640 --> 00:05:18,480 Speaker 1: the product's debut in the nineteen fifties, which is pretty 77 00:05:18,480 --> 00:05:24,360 Speaker 1: impressive for a pastime that got its start as aerodynamic garbage. 78 00:05:25,360 --> 00:05:28,880 Speaker 1: I'm gay Bluesier and hopefully you now know a little 79 00:05:28,920 --> 00:05:33,200 Speaker 1: more about history today than you did yesterday. If you 80 00:05:33,320 --> 00:05:37,279 Speaker 1: enjoyed today's show, consider following us on Twitter, Facebook, and 81 00:05:37,360 --> 00:05:42,160 Speaker 1: Instagram at t d I HC Show. You can also 82 00:05:42,240 --> 00:05:45,120 Speaker 1: drop us a line by writing to this Day at 83 00:05:45,160 --> 00:05:49,400 Speaker 1: I heart media dot com. Thanks to Chandler Mays for 84 00:05:49,480 --> 00:05:52,839 Speaker 1: producing the show, and thank you for listening. I'll see 85 00:05:52,880 --> 00:06:00,359 Speaker 1: you back here again tomorrow for another day in history Class. Yeah. 86 00:06:04,000 --> 00:06:06,320 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from I Heeart Radio, visit the iHeart 87 00:06:06,360 --> 00:06:08,840 Speaker 1: Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your 88 00:06:08,839 --> 00:06:09,520 Speaker 1: favorite shows.