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Inventors of America
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teams & other inventions
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"All our civilization is based on invention; before invention, men lived on fruits and nuts and pine cones and slept in caves."
— Reginald Fessenden [1866-1932]
@ @ @ @ @ @ @
Teams & Other Inventions
![Apple Computer Inc. [est. 1976]](images/apple-logo.gif){kind=logo}
Steve Wozniak [b. 1950] & Steve Jobs [1955-2011]
co-founded Apple Computer, Inc. in April 1976
"Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and the Personal Computer" graphic-novel 9/2006
by Donald B. Lemke (Author), Tod G Smith (Illustrator), Al Milgrom (Illustrator
http://www.amazon.com/Wozniak-Personal-Computer-Inventions-Discovery/dp/0736896503/
"Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak: Geek Heroes Who Put the Personal in Computers" (9/2010] by Mike Venezia (Author, Illustrator)
http://www.amazon.com/Steve-Jobs-Wozniak-Computers-Scientists/dp/0531223515/
The Atomic Bomb [b. 1945]
Created during World War II by the very secret Manhattan Project based in very secret
Los Alamos, New Mexico.
Spirit of America Bookstore's Los Alamos, NM & The Manhattan Project Pages
Spirit of America Bookstore's Atomic U.S.A. Pages
Spirit of America Bookstore's Atomic U.S.A. Books Page
Spirit of America Bookstore's Atomic Film Festival
Spirit of America Bookstore's J. Robert Oppenheimer [1904-67] Page
The first atomic explosion in history occurred at Trinity Test Site, White Sands Missile Range [est. 1942] in New Mexico on 16 July 1945.
The U.S. dropped a 20-kiloton atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan (killing an estimated 140,000 people) on 6 August 1945.
The U.S. dropped a second atomic bomb on Nagasaki, Japan (killing an estimated 74,000 people) on 9 August 1945.
The first U.S. underground nuclear test occurred in the Nevada desert on 19 September 1957.
Start-up of America's first full-scale commercial nuclear power facility at the 60-megawatt Shippingport Atomic Power Station
in Pennsylvania on 2 December 1957; operation ended in 1982.
America's last nuclear test detonation took place in September 1992.
Bell Labs [est. 1925]
Researchers working at Bell Laboratories are credited with the development of radio astronomy, the transistor, the laser, the charge-coupled device (CCD), information theory, the UNIX operating system, and the C programming language, S programming language, and C++ programming language; eight Nobel Prizes have been awarded for work completed at Bell Labs.
http://www.bell-labs.com/ + http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_Labs
 | "Bell Labs: Life In The Crown Jewel" [2003] by Narain Gehani Kindle Edition from Silicon Press [2007 edition] for $17.26 Silicon Press 9¼x6¼ hardcover [1/2003] for $39.95 |
 | "Bell Labs Memoirs: Voices of Innovation" [2011] by A. Michael Noll & Michael Geselowitz Kindle Edition from I.E.E.E. History Center [10/2011] for $9.95 CreateSpace 8x5 pb [10/2011] for $15.22 |
 | "The Idea Factory: Bell Labs and The Great Age of American Innovation" [N.Y. Times bestseller 2012] by Jon Gertner Kindle Edition from Penguin Books Group [3/2012] for $13.99 Penguin Books 8¼x5½ pb [2/2013] for $14.17 Penguin Press 9¼x6 hardcover [3/2012] out of print/70+ used |
The Computer
This section grew and grew and so was cut to its own page in late 2015.
top of page • general books • Ancient Times • Historical Computers • Mainframe Computers •
Personal Computers • A Few Important People • other media • image gallery • links
'computer' entry at Wikipedia
'personal computer' entry at Wikipedia
Cyber Film Festival at Magic Lantern Video & Book Store
D.A.R.P.A. - the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency [est. 1958]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DARPA
 |
"The Department of Mad Scientists: How DARPA Is Remaking Our World, From The Internet To Artificial Limbs" [2008] by Michael Belfiore
Kindle Edition from HarperCollins Reference [9/2009] for $9.99 Harper Perennial 8x5¼ pb [11/2010] for $12.68 Smithsonian 9¼x6¼ hardcover [10/2009] out of print/40+ used Smithsonian hardcover [10/2008] out of print/used |
 | "The Pentagon's Brain: An Uncensored History of D.A.R.P.A., America's Top-Secret Military Research Agency" [2015] by Annie Jacobsen Described as a 'definitive history of DARPA' (the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency) from its Cold War inception in 1958 to the present by the author of New York Times bestsellers "Area 51" and "Operation Paperclip" Kindle Edition from Little, Brown/Hachette [9/2015] for $14.99 Little, Brown & Co. 9½x6½ hardcover [9/2015] for $21.01 |
The Internet [est. 1969] / World Wide Web [est. 1989]
Working Minds / Things To Worry About / Internet Freedom Page
29 Oct 1969 - Birth of The Internet: ARPAnet, precursor to the internet, went live with transmissions between
U.C.L.A.'s Boelter Hall in Los Angeles and Stanford Research Institute in Menlo Park, California
1971: introduction of e-mail by Ray Tomlinson
1971: TCP invented & co-developed by Vinton Cerf for transmitting data files
1989: ARPAnet switched over to the 'World Wide Web'; actual internet in place by Feb 1990 (and ARPAnet hardware removed)
more detail on the Working Minds / Things to Worry About / Internet Freedom Page / Timeline
 | "Where Wizards Stay Up Late: The Origins of The Internet" [1996 bestseller] by Katie Hafner & Matthew Lyon Kindle Edition from Simon & Schuster Digital Sales [1999 edition] for $10.99 Simon & Schuster 8½x5½ pb [1/98] for $13.53 Simon & Schuster 9½x6½ pb [8/96] out of print/100+ used San Val library hardcover [1/98] out of print/used |
 | "The Tyranny of E-mail: The Four-Thousand-Year Journey To Your Inbox" [2009] by John Freeman Kindle Edition from Scribner/Simon & Schuster Digital Sales [10/2009] for $12.99 Scribner 8½x5½ pb [1/2011] for $16.00 Scribner 8½x5½ hardcover [10/2009] for $25.00 |
"Computer Networks: The Heralds of Resource Sharing" documentary film [1972]
Wonderful compilation of home-movie quality footage of internet pioneers produced by Steven King (not the famous one); directed & edited by Peter Chvany;
featuring F.J. Corbato [MIT], Donald W. Davies [NPL UK], Frank Heart, Robert E. 'Bob' Kahn [MIT, DARPA], J.C.R. Licklider [BBN, ARPA & MIT], George W. Mitchell (Federal Reserve Board), physicist John R. Pasta (NSF), Lawrence G. Roberts [ARPA, later Telenet], William R. 'Bert' Sutherland [BBN, ARPA] & Richard W. Watson (SRI) • not listed at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia • watch full film [26:15] online at YouTube
"The Virtual Revolution" [BBC2 June 2010]
    | Hosted by Dr. Aleks Krotoski; featuring Kudjo Agbevi, Chris Anderson (of Wired), Ross Anderson, John Perry Barlow (of the Grateful Dead band), John Battelle, web co-inventor Sir Tim Berners-Lee, Jeff Bezos (of Amazon), Dana Boyd (of Harvard University), Stewart Brand (of The Well), Nicholas Carr, web co-inventor Vinton G. Cerf, Shami Chakrabarti, U.S. Army LtCol Greg Conti, Chris Cox (of Facebook), Robin Dunbar (of Oxford University), Shawn Fanning (of Napster), Bob Finch, Martha Lane Fox (of travel site LastMinute.com), actor Stephen Fry, David Gallagher (of New York Times), Frank Gardner, Bill Gates (of Microsoft), Kenneth Geers, Seth Goldstein (of Attention Trust), Konstantin Goloskokov of Russia, Al Gore, Jr., neuroscientist Baroness Susan Greenfield, Reed Hastings (of Netflix), Austin Heap (of Haystack), Arianna Huffington, Chris Hughes (of Facebook), Chad Hurley (of YouTube), Toomas Hendrik Ilves of Estonia, author Steven Johnson, Mitch Kapor (of Electronic Frontier Foundation), Andrew Keen, Lina Khatib, Einar Kvaran of New Mexico, Charlie Leadbeater, James Marcus (of Amazon), Marissa Mayer (then of Google), Paul Meijer (of Verisign), Leo Murray, Prof. David Nicholas, Ory Okolloh of Kenya, Rainer Ottis of Estonia, Jonah Peretti (of Huffington Post & Buzzfeed), Macon Phillips, Xio Qiang (of China Digital Times), David Runciman (of Cambridge University), Douglas Rushkoff, Eric Schmidt (CEO of Google), Daniel Schmitt (of Wikileaks), Prof. Nigel Shadbolt, Clay Shirky, Master Shortie, Lee Siegel, Biz Stone (of Twitter), Peter Andreas Thiel (of PayPal), Sherry Turkle (of M.I.T.), Jimmy Wales (of Wikipedia), Evan Williams (of Twitter), Prof. Terry Winograd (of Stanford University), Steve Wozniak (of Apple Computer), Hu Yong (of Beijing University), Koh Young-Sam of Korea, blogger Wen Yunchao, and Mark Zuckerberg (of Facebook)
British DVD sold out (2014); DVD not available in USA; known as "Internet Revolution" to the Spanish market series credits at IMDb • official B.B.C. series site • series entry at Wikipedia watch official trailer [0:30] online at YouTube Episode 1 "The Great Levelling?": watch online [58:59] at YouTube Episode 2 "Enemy of The State?": watch online [59:06] at YouTube Episode 3 "The Cost of Free": watch online [58:55] at YouTube Episode 4 "Homo Interneticus?": watch online [59:21] at YouTube |
: : :
The four men considered the 'fathers of the Internet' are Vinton Cerf, Robert E. Kahn, Leonard Kleinrock, and Lawrence Roberts
Vinton Gray 'Vint' Cerf [b. 1943]
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vint_Cerf
Robert Elliot 'Bob' Kahn [b. 1938]
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bob_Kahn
Leonard Kleinrock [b. 1934] of U.C.L.A.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonard_Kleinrock
Lawrence G. Roberts [b. 1937]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Roberts_(scientist)
The Maser [1953] & The Laser [1957]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser#History
laser co-creator Charles H. Townes, PhD [1915-2015]
Nobel laureate in physics in 1964
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_H._Townes
"Making Waves" [American Institute of Physics Press, 1995] by Charles Townes ISBN 978-1-56396-381-0
"How The Laser Happened: Adventures of A Scientist" [Oxford Univ Press 1999] by Charles Townes ISBN 978-0-19-512268-8
laser co-creator Arthur Leonard Schawlow, PhD [1921-99]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Leonard_Schawlow
physicist Theodore H. Maiman, PhD [1927-2007]
operated the first functioning laser at Hughes Research Laboratories in Malibu, California on 16 May 1960.
The Microchip or Integrated Circuit [b. 1959]
'integrated circuit' entry at Wikipedia
1959 March: First public showing of the silicon integrated circuit ('microchip') at a New York City radio engineers trade show,
by inventor Jack Kilby. Kilby's chip was made of germanium. Kilby shared the 2000 Nobel Prize in Physics for his part in the invention of the integrated circuit.
Robert Noyce also came up with his own idea of an integrated circuit half a year later than Kilby; produced at Fairchild Semiconductor, it was made of silicon.
 | "The Chip: How Two Americans Invented The Microchip and Launched A Revolution" [1985] by T.R. Reid Kindle Edition from Random House [2007 edition] for $11.84 Random House Trade 8x5¼ pb [10/2001] for $13.04 Simon & Schuster 9½x6¼ hardcover [1985] out of print/used |
Jack Kilby [], co-inventor of the Integrated Circuit
Robert Noyce [1927-90], co-inventor of the Integrated Circuit
2005 bio •
official booksite •
P.B.S. bio page •
Noyce Foundation
 | "The Man Behind The Microchip: Robert Noyce and The Invention of Silicon Valley" [2005] by Leslie Berlin Kindle Edition from Oxford Univ Press [2005 edition] for $11.89 Oxford Univ Press 8¾x6 pb [11/2006] for $20.99 Oxford Univ Press hardcover [6/2005] out of print/50+ used |
Quirky, The Mother of Online Invention [est. 2009]
Quirky was founded in 2009 by Ben Kaufman, and has received $80M in venture funding thru 9/2012. The team allows inventors to apply for
development and marketing help, and are known for the Thursday staff meeting where employees vote on candidate products.
Company has partnerships with Best Buy, Home Depot & General Electric, and is based in New York City.
official website •
entry at Wikipedia
'CBS Sunday Morning' report, uploaded 3/2014 [4:52] at YouTube
Morse's Telegraph [patented 1837]
The first commercial electrical telegraph was co-developed by Sir William Fothergill Cooke and Charles Wheatstone in England. Their needle-and-wires system
was demonstrated in 1837, but was rejected and replaced by a pneumatic system. An improved needle-and-wires system was installed in 1838 along 13 miles
of the Great Western Railway near London; at the end of the XIXth Century some 15,000 such sets were still in use.
In the United States, Samuel F.B. Morse patented his electrical telegraph in 1837, along with the dot-dash Morse Code; commercial use took off
after his 'What hath God wrought' demonstration from Washington, DC to Baltimore, Maryland on 24 May 1844.
Teleprinters began appearing around 1900; the Telex system of Germany began development in 1926 and became operational in 1933.
Western Union started to build a Telex network in the United States in 1958.
 | "The Victorian Internet: The Remarkable Story of The Telegraph and The Nineteenth Century's On-line Pioneers" [1998] by Tom Standage
Kindle Edition from Walker Books [2nd edition 5/2009] for $9.99 Bloomsbury USA 2nd edition 7¾x5 pb [2/2014] for $14.80 Walker Books 7½x5¾ pb [9/2007] out of print/70+ used Walker & Co. 8x5½ hardcover [9/1998] out of print/40+ used |
 | "Samuel Morse and The Telegraph" graphic nonfiction [ages 8-14; 2007] by David Seidman, Illustrated by Rod Whigham, Keith Williams & Charles Barnett III Graphic Library 9x7 pb [2007] for $8.10 Capstone Press 9x7¼ library hardcover [2007] for $29.99 |
Three-D Printing [b. 1980s]
The processes of 'additive manufacturing' – now popularly known as 3-D printing – were developed in the 1980s. Chuck Hull of 3D Systems Corp. invented the first stereolithography (SLA) rapid prototyping system in 1984; he also developed the STL file format now widely accepted by 3D printing software. Plastic extrusion technology was commercialized by Stratasys in 1990, under the name 'fused deposition modeling' (FDM); in 1995, Z Corporation commercialized a proprietary inkjet additive process developed at M.I.T; and the use of solid-state lasers was introduced in 1996. Industrial usage expanded rapidly and prices for equipment naturally dropped. Hobbyist and home use began in 2005 with the open-source RepRap project and the open-source Fab@Home Project; online services and supplies are available, and home-quality printers can now be purchased for under $1,000. Brick-and-mortar service & supplies stores are opening rapidly, such as The 3DPrinting Store [est. 2012], which has already grown to three locations in Colorado. The 3DPrintShow trade conferences in London in November 2013 and September 2014 were quite successful; further shows are scheduled for Paris, France in October 2014 and New York City in April 2015.
'3D printing' entry at Wikipedia
3D Systems Corp. [est. 1986] moved to Rock Hill, South Carolina, USA
3D Systems operates the Cubify hub website and manufactures the CubePro line of 3-D printers & accessories.
official website •
entry at Wikipedia
Stratasys, Ltd. [est. 1989] is based near Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
manufactures desktop-size to factory-size printers & supplies
official website •
entry at Wikipedia
http://www.amazon.com/CEL-RBX01-Extruder-Definition-Filament/dp/B00R1MJ8IA/
http://www.amazon.com/Dremel-Idea-Builder-3D-Printer/dp/B00NA00MWS/
http://www.amazon.com/FlashForge-Structure-Optimized-Platform-Extruder/dp/B00I8NM6JO/
http://www.amazon.com/FlashForge-3D-Printers-New-Model/dp/B016R9E7J2/
http://www.amazon.com/MakerBot-Replicator-Desktop-Printer-Generation/dp/B00SNM8VIK/
http://www.amazon.com/ROBO-3D-10x9x8-Inch-Printer-A1-0002-000/dp/B018E9T50Y/
http://www.amazon.com/ROBO-3D-A1-0006-000-Printer-Filament/dp/B01E8QR90U/
http://www.amazon.com/The-CubeX%C2%99-Duo-3D-Printer/dp/B00D45ZNKA/
http://www.amazon.com/The-CubeX%C2%99-Trio-3D-Printer/dp/B00D48MDNC/
http://www.amazon.com/Ultimaker-2-3D-Printer/dp/B00NJ6AMPA/
http://www.amazon.com/XYZprinting-Vinci-1-0-Printer-Grey/dp/B00T472C2Y/
![Make Magazine [est. 1/2005] subscription from Maker Media](covers2/mMakeMag201210.jpg) | Make Magazine: Technology On Your Time" bimonthly magazine [est. 2005] "focuses on D.I.Y. (do it yourself) and/or D.I.W.O. (do it with others) projects involving computers, electronics, robotics, metalworking, woodworking, and other disciplines" subscribe at Amazon: 6 issues/year for $34.95 magazine website • entry at Wikipedia |
 | "Fabricated: The New World of 3D Printing" [2013] by Hod Lipson & Melba Kurman "The Promise and Peril of A Machine That Can Make (Almost) Anything" Kindle Edition from Wiley [2/2013] for $15.49 Wiley 9x6 pb [2/2013] for $22.61 out of print/used |
 | "Make: Ultimate Guide To 3D Printing, 2014" [2013]
Kindle Edition from Maker Media [11/2013] for $6.99 Maker Media 10¾x8½ 116-page pb [12/2013] for $9.49 |
 | "Make: 3D Printing: The Essential Guide To 3D Printers" [2013] by Anna Kaziunas France Kindle Edition from Maker Media [12/2013] for $9.99 Maker Media 9¼x7½ pb [12/2013] for $15.13 |
 | "3D Printing For Dummies" [2014] by Kalani Kirk Hausman & Richard Horne Kindle Edition from Wiley/For Dummies [1/2014] for $16.49 Wiley/For Dummies 9¼x7½ pb [1/2014] for $20.72 |
 | "3D Printing: The Next Industrial Revolution" [orig 2013, rev 2014] by Christopher Barnatt Kindle Edition from author [11/2014] for $7.69 CreateSpace 2nd edition 8x5¼ pb [11/2014] for $14.39 author's official website |
 | "The A-Z 3D Printing Handbook: The Complete Guide To Rapid Proto-typing" [2016] by Sean Aranda
Kindle Edition from SD3D [1/2016] for $2.99 CreateSpace 9x6 pb [2/2016] for $6.99 |
 |
"The 3D Printing Handbook: Technologies, Design, and Applications" [2017] by Ben Redwood, Filemon Schöffer & Brian Garret, Foreword by Tony Fadell hardcover [8/2017] for $29.00 |
The Transistor [b. 1947]
developed in 1947 by American physicists John Bardeen, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley;
the three men shared the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transistor
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semiconductor
John Bardeen [1908-91]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Bardeen
http://www.amazon.com/True-Genius-Life-Science-Bardeen/dp/0309095115/
Walter H. Brattain [1902-87]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Houser_Brattain
William Bradford Shockley, Jr. [1910-89]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Shockley
"Broken Genius" [] by Joel N. Shurkin
http://www.amazon.com/Broken-Genius-William-Shockley-Electronic/dp/0230551920/
http://www.porticus.org/bell/belllabs_transistor.html
 | "Transistorized!" TV movie [P.B.S./KTCA-TV 1999] Directed by Gary Glassman; co-produced, co-written & hosted by Ira Flatow; featuring Michael Riordan & Joel Shurkin DVD available only under educational license P.B.S. Home Video color VHS [2/2000] out of prodn/scarce full credits at IMDb • official P.B.S. program site watch the full hour-long TV show at YouTube [uploaded 5/2010] Part 1 [9:43] • Part 2 [9:43] • Part 3 [9:40] • Part 4 [9:40] • Part 5 [9:38] • Part 6 [8:26] |
 | companion book "Crystal Fire: The Invention of The Transistor and Birth of The Information Age" [1997] by Michael Riordan & Lillian Hoddeson W.W. Norton & Co 8¼x5½ pb [12/98] for $13.59 W.W. Norton & Co 9½x6½ hardcover [1/97] out of print/50+ used |
Xerox P.A.R.C. [est. 1970]
P.A.R.C. (Palo Alto Research Center, Inc.) is an information technology research and development company in Palo Alto, California; it is a division of Xerox Corporation.
http://www.parc.com/ + http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PARC_(company)
 | "Fumbling The Future: How Xerox Invented, Then Ignored, The First Personal Computer" [1988] by Douglas K. Smith & Robert C. Alexander
Kindle Edition from iUniverse/toExcel [1999 edition] for $3.03 }sic} iUniverse 9x6 pb [6/99] for $17.95 William Morrow & Co. 9½x6 hardcover [9/88] out of print/40+ used |
 | "Dealers of Lightning: Xerox PARC and The Dawn of The Computer Age" [1999] by Michael A. Hiltzik Kindle Edition from HarperCollins e-books [5/2009] for $9.99 HarperBusiness 8x5¼ pb [4/2000] for $16.06 HarperBusiness pb [4/2000] out of print/used HarperBusiness pb [4/2000] out of print/many used HarperBusiness 9¼x6 hardcover [3/99] out of print/50+ used |
Kindle Editions
Nordell Bookstores Group Kindle Hardware & Content Page
with FREE Kindle Apps for PC, Mac, iPhone/iPod, iPad, Android & BlackBerry
 | "The Great Creators: Profiles of America's Remarkable Inventors and Innovators" for Kindle [2009] by Daniel Alef
Kindle Edition from Titans of Fortune Publng [6/2009] for $9.99 essays on 40 innovators of business & science, including Elizabeth Arden (cosmetics), Leo Baekeland (plastics), Jeff Bezos (Amazon, Inc.), William Edward Boeing (airplanes), Walter Chrysler (automobiles), Samuel P. Colt (firearms), John Deere (farm equipment), Walt Disney (movies), George Eastman (Kodak film), Thomas Alva Edison, Cyrus Field (telegraphy), Henry Ford (automobiles), Benjamin Franklin, Robert Fulton (steamboats), Amadeo P. Giannini (Bank of America™), Charles Goodyear (tires), Ruth Handler (Barbie™), Milton Snavely Hershey (candy), Howard Hughes (airplanes), Steve Jobs (Apple, Inc.), Clarence L. 'Kelly' Johnson, Dr. John H. Kellogg, Will Keith Kellogg (cereals), Charles F. Kettering, Ray A. Kroc (McDonald's, Inc.), Estée Lauder (cosmetics), Henry Martin Leland (automobiles), Henry Robinson Luce (magazines), Cyrus McCormick (farm equipment), Samuel F.B. Morse (telegraphy), Thomas Nast, Jack Knudson Northrup (airplanes), Ransom E. Olds (automobiles), Frederick Law Olmstead (landscape architect), George M. Pullman (railroad cars), David Sarnoff, Henry Steinway (pianos), Sam Walton (Wal-Mart, Inc.), The Wright Brothers (airplanes), and Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook, Inc.) |
 | "Great Inventors and Their Inventions: Gutenberg, Bell, Marconi, The Wright Brothers" for Kindle [2010] by David Angus
Kindle Edition 68-page document from Naxos Junior [10/2010] for $2.99 brief essays on Archimedes [287-212 BCE], Alexander Graham Bell [1847-1922], Thomas Alva Edison [1847-1931], Benjamin Franklin [1706-90], Johann Gutenberg [1400-68], Guglielmo Marconi [1874-1937], Alfred Nobel [1833-96], and Wilbur Wright [1867-1912] & Orville Wright [1871-1948] |
 | "How To Patent An Idea or Invention: A Step By Step Guide To Registering A Patent" for Kindle [2013] by Meir Liraz
Kindle Edition 25-page document from Amazon Digital Services [6/2013] for $2.99 author specializes in 'How To' books in Kindle format |
 | "An Amazing and Unexpected History of Inventors and Inventions" [2014] by Bob Shelley Kindle Edition 45-page document from Amazon Digital Services [3/2014] for $2.99 |
 | "47 Awesome Inventions Found In The Kitchen: Find Out Who Invented Cotton Candy, Chicken Nuggets, Ketchup & More" [ages 6-16; 2014] by Jodi Jill
Kindle Edition 49-page document from Amazon Digital Services [6/2014] for $1.99 also describes origin stories of bubble gum, caesar salad, California rolls sushi, Campbell’s Condensed Soup™, chocolate chip cookies, Coke™, corn flakes, Cracker Jacks™, cream cheese, dishwashers, frozen foods, garbage disposers, Gerber™ Baby Food, graham crackers, ham-burgers, hot dogs & corn dogs, instant mashed potatoes, Jell-O™, Kool-Aid™, Life Savers™, lunch boxes, marshmallow, McDonald's Happy Meals™, nachos, onion rings, Pepsi™, Pez™ candies & dispensers, Pop Rocks™, popcorn balls, Popsicle™, potato chips, Red Bull™ drink, refrigerators, Rice Krispies Treats™, sand-wiches, Slurpee™, Spam™, tea bags, tin cans & the can opener, Twinkies™ &ndash and more |
 | "The 12 Most Amazing American Inventions" for Kindle [ages 7-12; 2014] by Rebecca Rowell Kindle Edition 32-page document from 12-Story Library [8/2014] for $4.99 |
Movies, Stageplays, Other Media
 | "Mad Scientist Theater: 50 Movie MegaPack" DVD Box Set [2016]
Mill Creek Ent. DVD set [6/2016] 10 disks for $13.96 contains 50 mostly-b&w feature films: three silent feature films: "The Cabinet Of Dr. Caligari" [1920 silent]; "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" [1920 silent] starring John Barrymore; "Metropolis" [1927 silent] directed by Fritz Lang; and 47 mostly-b&w feature-length films: "The Amazing Transparent Man" [1960] directed by Edgar G. Ulmer; "The Ape" [1940] starring Boris Karloff; "The Ape Man" [1943] starring Bela Lugosi; "Atom Age Vampire" [Italy 1960]; "Bela Lugosi Meets A Brooklyn Gorilla" aka "The Boys From Brooklyn" [1952] starring Bela Lugosi; "The Brain That Wouldn't Die" [1962]; "The Corpse Vanishes" [1942] starring Bela Lugosi; "Counterblast" [1948]; "Crimson" [1973]; "Dead Men Walk" [1943] starring George Zucco {dual role}; "Death Warmed Up" [1984]; "The Devil Bat" [1940] starring Bela Lugosi; "Don't Look In The Basement" [1973]; "The Drums of Jeopardy" starring Warner Oland [1931]; "Embryo" [1976] starring Rock Hudson; "Frankenstein '80" [Italy 1972]; "Frozen Alive" [1964]; "The Head" [Germany 1959]; "Horror Express" [Germany 1972] starring Christopher Lee & Peter Cushing; "House of The Living Dead" [South Africa 1974]; "Invasion of The Bee Girls" [1973]; "Island of The Doomed" aka "The Bloodsuckers" [Spain 1967]; "Jesse James Meets Franken-stein's Daughter" [1966]; "The Killer Shrews" [1959]; "King of Kong Island" [Italy 1968]; "King of The Zombies" [1941]; "Lady Frankenstein" [Italy 1971]; "The |
| Lucifer Complex" color TV movie [1978] starring Robert Vaughn; "The Mad Monster" [1942] starring George Zucco; "Man In The Attic" [1953] starring Jack Palance; "Maniac" [1934]; "The Manster" [Japan 1959]; "Mesa of Lost Women" [1953]; "Metamorphosis" [1990 video]; "The Monster Maker" [1944] starring J. Carrol Naish; "Monstrosity" aka "The Atomic Brain" [1963]; "Nightmare Castle" [Italy 1965] starring Barbara Steele; "Panic" [Spain color 1982]; "The Phantom Creeps" [1949] starring Bela Lugosi; "The Phantom From 10,000 Leagues" [1955]; "The Revenge of Doctor X" [Japan 1970] written by Edward D. Wood Jr.; "Shadow of Chinatown" [1936] starring Bela Lugosi; "Son of Ingagi" [1940] with Afro-American cast; "Teenage Zombies" [1960]; "Torture Ship" [1939]; "The Wasp Woman" [1959] directed by Roger Corman; and "Zombie Bloodbath" aka "I Eat Your Skin" [1971] |
"The Eleventh Dimension" 25-minute silent short [Universal July 1915]
Described as Universal's first mad scientist movie; written & produced by Raymond L. Schrock; directed by Clem Easton;
starring William Welsh, Howard Crampton, Allen Holubar, Frances Nelson • bare credits at IMDb
"Jes' Call Me Jim" silent film [Goldwyn May 1920]
 | Jim Fenton rescues an inventor locked in an insane asylum and helps him get revenge and justice Location filming among the redwood forests in Santa Cruz, California; produced by Samuel Goldwyn; directed by Clarence G. Badger; adapted by Thompson Buchanan & Edward T. Lowe Jr. from James G. Holland's novel "Seven Oaks"; starring Will Rogers, Irene Rich, Lionel Belmore, Raymond Hatton, Jimmy Rogers, Bert Sprotte, Nick Cogley & Sidney De Gray VHS/DVD/Blu-ray not available • full credits at IMDb 24"x36" rolled canvas poster from Amazon for $39.99 |
"It's A Gift" silent comedy short [Hal Roach Studios/Pathé Oct 1923]
 | Oil barons wanting to increase business contact inventor Pollard . . . 14-minute silent comedy short produced by Hal Roach; directed by Hugh Fay; starring 'Snub' Pollard, Marie Mosquini, William Gillespie, Wallace Howe, Mark Jones & Eddie Dunn
VHS/DVD/Blu-ray not available • full credits at IMDb watch short film, with piano music [14:00] online at YouTube |
"The Big Idea" aka 'The Inventor' silent comedy short
[Hal Roach Studios/Pathé Jan 1924]
 | Snub comes up with an idea for a street-cleaning machine, but nothing runs smoothly when it's time to demonstrate it to the public. • Produced by Hal Roach; directed by George Jeske; starring 'Snub' Pollard, Blanche Mehaffey available as part of the "Snub Pollard Showtime" DVD [2010] with four other shorts Alpha Home Ent. b&w silent DVD [11/2010] for $5.98 full credits at IMDb watch 3 minutes worth at YouTube [final 2:57] |
"Super-Hooper-Dyne Lizzies" 2-reeler comedy [Sennett/Pathé June 1925]
An inventor's amazing radio-controlled automobiles cause nothing but chaos for their owners and just about everyone else.
Produced by Mack Sennett; directed by Del Lord; written by Frank Capra; starring Billy Bevan, Andy Clyde, Lillian Knight & Vernon Dent
credits at IMDb •
watch full movie [8/2012 upload; 22:01] online at YouTube
"So's Your Old Man" silent film
[Paramount/Famous Players-Lasky Oct 1926]
 | Filmed at Kaufman Astoria Studios in New York; a glazier invents unbreakable glass, but a mixup ruins his big chance at the auto show . . . Directed by Gregory La Cava; adapted by J. Clarkson Miller & Howard Emmett Rogers from a story by Julian Street; starring W.C. Fields, Alice Joyce, Charles 'Buddy' Rogers, Kittens Reichert, Marcia Harris, Julia Ralph, Frank Montgomery & Jerry Sinclair
VHS/DVD/Blu-ray not available • full credits at IMDb |
"A Wireless Lizzie" silent two-reeler
[Christie/Educational Film Exchanges March 1926]
![silent comedy actor Walter Hiers [1893-1933]](covers2/WalterHiers.jpg) | 19-minute comedy short; Walter invents an automatic remote control for his jalopy, but when he shows it to a potential buyer, his rival Bill 'switches the plug' and the vehicle goes out of control. Produced by Al Christie; directed by Earle Rodney; written by Robert Hall; starring Walter Hiers, [Ms.] Duane Thompson, Jack Duffy, William Irving & Lincoln Plumer • credits at IMDb
available on DVD as part of "Lost Comedy Classics of The Silent Screen" [2013] Alpha Home Ent. b&w silent DVD [7/2013] for $5.98 |
"Soup To Nuts" b&w feature film [Fox/Mentone Sept 1930]
 | Movie debut of 'The Three Stooges': A costume shop is failing because the owner spends his time building wacky inventions; a creditor sends an employee who falls for the owner's daughter; customers include a dictator and some firemen (Stooges); the store catches fire ... Directed by Benjamin Stoloff; written by Rube Goldberg; starring Stanley Smith, Lucile Browne, Ted Healy, Shemp & Harry/Moe & Larry, Fred Sanborn, Charles Winninger, Roscoe Ates, Billy Barty, Billy Bletcher, Heinie Conklin & Mack Swain; cameo by Rube Goldberg
Fox 70-minute colorized DVD [4/2005] for $7.00 full credits from IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia |
"Heroes of The Flames" 12-chapter b&w serial
[Universal Pictures June 1931]
 | A fireman invents an original chemical fire extinguisher, and the rival for his girlfriend wants the invention too; distri-buted in both silent and sound versions. Chapter Titles: 1. The Red Peril; 2. Flaming Hate; 3. The Fire Trap; 4. Death's Chariot; 5. The Avalanche; 6. The Jaws of Death; 7. Forest of Fire; 8. Blank Cartridges; 9. The House of Terror (per Copyright) aka The House of Horror (press book listing); 10. The Depths of Doom; 11. A Flaming Death; and 12. The Last Alarm • Directed by Robert F. Hill; starring Tim McCoy, Marion Shockley, Gayne Whitman, Bobby Nelson, William Gould, Grace Cunard, Andy Devine & Beulah Hutton
VHS/DVD/Blu-ray not available • credits at IMDb |
"Betty Boop's Crazy Inventions" animated sound short
[Fleischer Studios/Paramount Jan 1933]
 | 7-minute b&w cartoon short produced by Max Fleischer; directed by Dave Fleischer; starring Betty Boop {voice by Mae Questel}, assisted by Bimbo the Dog & KoKo the Clown
full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia watch full cartoon [6:40] online at YouTube |
"International House" sound feature [Paramount May 1933]
 | Inventor Prof. Wong offers his new 'radioscope' (television) to bidders who appear in person at the International House Hotel in the remote city of Wu-Hu, China. Assorted wacky characters converge there, the American breaks out in a rash and gets the hotel quarantined, and Prof. Quail (Fields) arrives in his gyrocopter; the new invention shows old vaudeville and then-popular radio acts, including Cab Calloway performing 'Reefer Man' • Directed by A. Edward Sutherland; screenplay by Francis Martin & Walter DeLeon from a story by Neil Brant & Louis E. Heifetz;
starring W.C. Fields, Peggy Hopkins Joyce, Rudy Vallee, Stuart Erwin, George Burns & Gracie Allen, Sari Maritza, Bela Lugosi, F. Chase Taylor {as Col. Stoopnagle}, Budd (Hulick), Cab Calloway and his orchestra, 'Baby Marie' Osborne, Franklin Pangborn, Edmund Breese, Lumsden Hare, Sterling Holloway, Lona Andre & Harrison Greene
Universal Studios b&w VHS [10/96] for $19.69 full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia available on DVD as part of "W.C. Fields Comedy Collection - Volume One" 5-film box set [2004] Universal Studios b&w DVD set [11/2004] 5 disks for $41.99 available on DVD as part of "W.C. Fields Comedy Favorites Collection" 10-film box set [2013] Universal Studios b&w DVD set [4/2013] 3 disks for $12.49 |
"You're Telling Me!" [Paramount April 1934]
 | Greatly-modified sound remake of Fields's 1926 silent film "So's Your Old Man"; an uncouth inventor messes up his daughter's chance to marry into a wealthy family, then botches a deal to make money from his latest invention; he takes a train trip to hide from his problems and meets a European princess . . . Directed by Erle C. Kenton; written by Walter DeLeon, Paul M. Jones & J.P. McEvoy from a story by Julian Street; starring W.C. Fields, Joan Marsh, Larry 'Buster' Crabbe, Adrienne Ames, Louise Carter, Kathleen Howard, Tammany Young, Dell Henderson, James B. 'Pop' Kenton, Robert McKenzie, Nora Cecil, George Irving, Vernon Dent & Billy Engle
Universal Studios b&w VHS [10/98] for $6.69 full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia available on DVD as part of "W.C. Fields Comedy Collection - Volume Two" 5-film box set [2007] Universal Studios b&w DVD set [3/2007] 5 disks for $29.54 available on DVD as part of "W.C. Fields Comedy Favorites Collection" 10-film box set [2013] Universal Studios b&w DVD set [4/2013] 3 disks for $12.49 |
"Super-Speed" [Columbia Pictures Dec 1935]
 | Science-fiction tale of a man who invents a device that provides super speed, triggering a battle for ownership {plot details scarce}. • Directed by Lambert Hillyer; written by Harold Shumate; starring Norman Foster, Florence Rice, Mary Carlisle, Charley Grapewin, Arthur Hohl, Robert Middlemass, George McKay, Thurston Hall & Franklyn Farnum
VHS/DVD/Blu-ray not available • credits at IMDb |
"Just My Luck" [indep Dec 1935]
 | A chemist at a tire factory gets fired, but he is certain that his Durex formula for 'indestructible' rubber is a winner. Protecting his invention is hard work, what with ruthless competitors, industrial espionage, a series of 'accidents', gangsters, and a mob of rioting strikers • Produced, co-written & directed by Ray Heinz; co-written by Wallace Sullivan & Scott E. Cleethorpe; starring Charles Ray, Anne Grey, Edward J. Nugent, Quentin Smith, 'Snub' Pollard, Lee Prather, Matthew Betz, Robert Graves, John Roche, Lillian Elliott, Paul Weigel, Henry Roquemore & Fred 'Snowflake' Toones
Alpha Video b&w DVD [11/2011] for $5.95 full credits at IMDb |
"Murder By Television" [Cameo/Imperial Oct 1935]
 | An inventor of a new television system refuses to sell the rights outright, and sets up a demon-stration from his home. The first broadcast is successful, but during the second the inventor falls dead. Murder suspects include the inventor's assistant, a corporate agent who tried to bribe the assistant, a television engineer, and a rival TV scientist • Co-produced & directed by Clifford Sanforth; starring Bela Lugosi, June Collyer, Huntley Gordon, George Meeker, Henry Mowbray, Charles Hill Mailes, Claire McDowell, Hattie McDaniel, Allen Jung & Charles K. French
Alpha Video b&w DVD [2/2003] for $7.65 Synergy Ent. b&w DVD [5/2007] for $9.99 full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia |
watch "Murder By Television" [54:03] free online at Internet Archive
"Trapped By Television" [1936] /tt0028405/
"Married Before Breakfast" [1937] /tt0029218/ starring Robert Young
"Dizzy Pilots" short [Columbia Sept 1943]
 | The three Wrong Brothers try to invent an airplane to sell to the Army so that they can avoid the draft. {Cobbled from footage of the 1940 short "Boobs In Arms"} Produced & directed by Jules White; starring 'The Three Stooges' (Moe & Larry & Curly) available on DVD as part of "G.I. Stooge" and other sets; full credits from IMDb |
"The Immortal Blacksmith" 10-minute short [1944] /tt0143297/
"The Big Noise" [1944] /tt0036644/ starring Laurel & Hardy
"So Goes My Love" [1946] /tt0038959/
"Free For All" [1949] /tt0041389/ gasoline from water - starring Robert Cummings
"The Yellow Cab Man" [MGM April 1950 ]
 | A clumsy, accident-prone taxicab driver, who has invented unbreakable Elastiglass, risks losing his valuable invention to a group of con-men led by a crooked lawyer, but the pretty lady-owner of the Yellow Cab Co. comes to his aid • Directed by Jack Donohue; written by Devery Freeman & Albert Beich; cinematography by Harry Stradling Sr.; starring Red Skelton, Gloria DeHaven, Walter Slezak, Edward Arnold, James Gleason, Jay C. Flippen, Paul Harvey, Herbert/Guy Anderson, Mae Clarke, Arthur 'Weegee' Fellig
Warner Archive b&w DVD [7/2012] for $11.94 MGM/Warner Home Video b&w VHS [1/93] out of prodn/used full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia watch 6/2012 official trailer [1:37] online at YouTube |
"The Man In The White Suit" [1951] /tt0044876/
"Excuse My Dust" [1951] /tt0043514/ directed by Roy Rowland & Buster Keaton, starring Red Skelton
"Carbine Williams" [1952] /tt0044480/ starring James Stewart
"The Absent-Minded Professor" [1961] /tt0054594/ starring Fred MacMurray
"Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" [1968] /tt0062803/
"Koska and His Family" 30-minute TV comedy [1973] /tt0460247/
"The Three Inventors" [1980] 13-minute cartoon /tt0216283/
"The Inventor" [Germany 1981] /tt0080691/
"Back To The Future Part I" []
"Back To The Future Part II" []
"Back To The Future Part III" [1990] /tt0099088/
"Flubber" remake [1997] /tt0119137/ starring Robin Williams
"The Greatest Canadian Invention" TV movie [2007] /tt2713988/
"Flash of Genius" [Universal Pictures Oct 2008]
 | "Based on the true story" 2-hour docudrama about one man's successful fight against Detroit automakers Ford and Chrysler for the rights to his invention, the intermittent windshield wiper Directed by Marc Abraham; written by Philip Railsback, based on an article by John Seabrook; starring Greg Kinnear, Dermot Mulroney, Lauren Graham, Alan Alda & Bill Smitrovich Robert Kearns [1927-2005] entry at Wikipedia Universal Studios widescreen color DVD [2/2009] for $8.59 Universal Studios color DVD [2/2009] for $5.95 full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia • |
"Father of Invention" [Europe 2010, USA Oct 2011]
 | Filmed around New Orleans, Louisiana; an eccentric inventor becomes an ego-maniacal infomercial guru, then loses everything when one of his inventions maims thousands of customers. After eight years in maximum security prison, he sets out to rebuild his billion-dollar empire. But first, he must convince his estranged 22-year-old daughter to let him live with her and her quirky, over-protective roommates • Co-written & directed by Trent Cooper; co-produced & co-written by Jonathan D. Krane; co-produced by & starring Kevin Spacey; also starring Camilla Belle, Heather Graham, Johnny Knoxville, Anna Anissimova, John Stamos, Red West, Michael Rosenbaum, Danny Comden, Jack McGee, Craig Robinson & Virginia Madsen
Anchor Bay widescreen color Blu-ray [10/2011] for $13.77 Anchor Bay widescreen color DVD [10/2011] for $15.49 full credits at IMDb • official movie site • movie entry at Wikipedia |
"American Genius" TV mini-series [National Geographic Channel June 2015]
 | Eight episodes that 'reveal the competitive forces behind history's most remarkable races for innovation': "Colt vs. Wesson" (firearms), "Tesla vs. Edison" (electric power), "Hearst vs. Pulitzer" (newspapers), "Wright vs. Curtiss" (aeroplanes), "Sarnoff vs. Farnsworth" (television), "Oppenheimer vs. Heisenberg" (the atomic bomb), "Space Race" (U.S.A. vs. Russia), "Gates vs. Jobs" {personal computers) • Then again, "This program includes dramatizations inspired by history. Some events have been altered for dramatic purposes." • series credits at IMDb Fox widescreen color DVD [10/2015] 2 disks for $16.98 Amazon Instant Video [2015] HD episode purchase $2.99 each, HD season purchase $14.99 {saves $8.93} |
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Episode #1: "Jobs vs. Gates"
Two visionaries with different theories about the coming computer revolution: one thinking that controlling the hardware and the operating system is the way to go, the other thinking that controlling the operating system is the way to go • Directed by Paul Abascal; written by Chelsea Coates & Nicholas Greene; narrated by Jeff Wilburn; starring Joseph Varca {as Steve Jobs [1955-2011]}, Artie Brennan {as Paul Allen}, Philip Rossi {as Bill Gates}, Evan I. Schwartz (author of "The Last Lone Inventor"), Scott Bolger, Vaughn Bullard, Ethan Dobler, Vince Eisenson, Dakota James Alden Lane, Johnna Leary, Benjamin Loeh, James Matthew Poole, William H. Powers, John Hawthorne Smith, Jake Swing, Chuck Taber, Richard Walz Sr., John Wilkins III, John A. Taylor • episode credits at IMDb watch full episode [10/2015 upload; 39:53] online at YouTube Episode #2: "Wright Brothers vs. Curtiss"
Episode #3: "Hearst vs. Pulitzer"
Episode #4: "Colt vs. Wesson"
Episode #5: "Farnsworth vs. Sarnoff"
Episode #6: "Oppenheimer vs Heisenberg"
Episode #7: "Space Race"
Episode #8: "Edison vs Tesla"
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"The Young and Prodigious T.S. Spivet" in 3-D
[indep USA July 2015]
 | Filmed in Canada & Washington, DC; 3-D train sequences filmed in British Columbia; a boy on a remote Montana ranch enters his invention in a national contest without telling anyone; when he wins, the folks at the Smithsonian don't yet know that he is a child . . . Co-produced, co-written & directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet; co-written by Guillaume Laurant; based on the novel by Reif Larsen; cinematography by Thomas Hardmeier; starring Kyle Catlett, Helena Bonham Carter, Judy Davis, Callum Keith Rennie, Niamh Wilson, Jakob Davies, Rick Mercer, Dominique Pinon, Julian Richings, Richard Jutras, Mairtin O'Carrigan, Michel Perron, Dawn Ford, Harry Standjofski, Susan Glover, James Bradford, Leni Parker, Kyle Gatehouse, Lisa Bronwyn Moore & Tapioca the Dog; won César Award & Lumiere CST Award for Best Cinematography
DVD/Blu-ray not yet available • full credits at IMDb • French-language official movie site • movie entry at Wikipedia watch 7/2015 official trailer [2:17] at YouTube |
 | "The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet" [2009] by Reif Larsen Penguin Books 9x7½ pb [4/2010] for $13.83 Penguin Books 9x7½ pb [4/2010] out of print/50+ used Penguin Press 9½x8¼ hardcover [5/2009] for $19.12 |
here on the Inventors of America Pages at Spirit of America Bookstore
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