0 At Fifty, Etch-A-Sketch Sales Are Still Shaking
July 12, 2010
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| Vincent van Gogh's "Starry Night" rendered on an Etch-A-Sketch. Photo credit: thestylehouse.ca |
The drawing toy was first conceived in the basement of French electrician André Cassagnes. But lacking funds for a patent, Cassagnes borrowed from an investor who sent his treasurer, Arthur Granjean, to pay the fee. Granjean's name ended up on the patent, and over the years he has been wrongly credited with the invention (which he originally called L'Ecran Magique, or Magic Screen).
The investor, Paul Chazeto, took the toy to the International Toy Fair in Nuremburg, Germany and Ohio Art Company eventually bought the rights to the idea. The first Etch-A-Sketch was manufactured on July 12, 1960 and over 100 million have been sold since they first went on sale fifty years ago. In fact, according to The Telegraph, the toy has seen a 20% rise in worldwide sales this year, perhaps attributed to the recent promotion of Toy Story 3 and the character Etch.
An amazing Etch-A-Sketch artist George Vlosich was recently featured on The Oprah Show; watch the artist work his magic here.
[via Scripps News]
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July 12, 2010
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