RICHARD JAMES/BETTY JAMES By: Kyle Boing... Boing... Boing... Richard (the inventor of the slinky now) was starting to notice the tossing springs across the floor. Two years later something amazing happened… The production of the slinky! Richard developed the slinky with his wife using a machine he invented himself as well! Richard was born in Philadelphia Pennsylvania in 1914, Betty in Pennsylvania Altoona, February 13, 1918. He did not know Betty as a kid, he grew up to marry her, and she helped him make the slinky. During the time of the slinky being invented, (1945) World War II was still happening. (Almost over.) An engineer in the United States Navy was on a new ship's run. As he worked, a torsion spring suddenly fell to the floor. The spring flip-flopped as the ingenious man watched. The naval engineer's name was Richard James, and when he returned home, he remembered the spring and the interesting way it flip-flopped. James and his wife Betty perfected a long steel ribbon tightly coiled into a spiral. When they started making the Slinkys, Richard and Betty borrowed $500.00. They started a company called James Spring And Wire Company. With the production of the slinky, the crazy story behind it and the great imagination of Richard came a great American toy for all. From that spring's accidental fall led to a toy Americans have enjoyed for over fifty years, the Slinky. The non-electrical, no-battery-required, non-video toy has fascinated three generations of children and adults alike. According to one estimate more than 300 million Slinkys have been sold and the only change in the original design has been to crimp the ends as a safety measure. James and his wife also funded the James Spring & Wire company to produce mass quantities of the slinky. But knowing that James moved away to Bolivia from his wife and 6 kids, He suffered through the mid-life crisis having leaving his wife Betty and the 6 kids to later die in 1974. His moving then death immediately promoted Betty to CEO in the company. 34 long years after Richards death, and the kids where grown, betty passed away. Boing… Boing… Boing… Unlike Richard and Bettys death, the slinky lived for all the world to see and is still played with to the day. boing…boing…boing.
Works Cited "Richard T. James (1914-1974)." History of Science 2011 v. 1. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013. <www.ideafinder.com/history/inventions/slinky.htm>. "Slinky History - Invention of the Slinky." The Great Idea Finder - Celebrating the Spirit of Innovation . N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013. <http://www.ideafinder.com/history/inventions