Fred Morrison didn't cure a disease, go to the moon, or invent some high-tech gadget. But he made many of our lives just a bit happier with a simple toy that prompted dreams of flying saucers and sparked intramural games.


According to his son, "old age caught up" with Morrison as he dealt with a battle against cancer. Yet somehow, this remark appears to be the only sad line in Morrison's obituary.

The man's life sounds like it contained as much joy as he brought to children and adults around the world with his invention. In fact, even the events which led to the creation of what is now known as a Frisbee sound happy:

Morrison and his future wife, Lu, used to toss a tin cake pan on the beach in California. The idea grew as Morrison considered ways to make the cake pans fly better and after serving as a pilot in World War II, Morrison began manufacturing his flying discs in 1948.


From there the simple plastic disc would change name from "Pluto Platter" to "Frisbee," but it would remain an staple in memories of summers in the park, beach games of Frisbee golf, and late night Ultimate Frisbee competitions.

So, while Fred Morrison's passing is a sad event, it's heartwarming to hear that he led a good life as he gave us an excuse to laugh and giggle as we send pieces of plastic whizzing through the air. [Yahoo]

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Picture from Wikipedia