Silly String - History

History

A United States Patent was issued to the founders of Silly String in 1972 as a "foamable resinous composition". The invention of the original silly string was accidental. The founders were inventor, Leonard A. Fish and chemist, Robert P. Cox. The partners initially wanted to create a can of aerosol that you would be able to spray on a broken/sprained leg or arm and turn into an instant cast. The invention was a success. But when it came down to packaging the can, the founders had to go through a box of 500 different kinds of nozzles. After going through about 30 or 40, Fish pressed one nice string that shot about 30 feet across the room. From there Fish came up with an idea to make the string less sticky and add different colors. Because none of the founders knew how to sell toys, they made an appointment with Wham-O in California. In that meeting, Fish described spraying the can all over the person he had the meeting with and all over his office. This person got very upset and asked him to leave the premises. One day later Fish gets a Western Union Telegram that said to please send 24 cans of "Squibbly" for a market test immediately, signed by the same guy that kicked him out. He called them back the guy explained that after he cleaned everything up in the office, the two owners of Wham-O came back to talk to him and one noticed a piece of silly string on a lamp shade that he missed while cleaning up. He explained where the string came from and the owners quickly asked him to send samples over for a market test. Two weeks later Wham-O signed a contract with the founders to license what we now know as Silly String.

Silly String and its imitators are reputed to be the largest selling novelty toy in the world because people buy multiple cans and use the product quickly. It is polymer-based, likely 11-16% polyisobutyl-methacrylate and 0.5 to 4% sorbitan trioleate dissolved in a solvent that evaporates in the air and acts as a foaming agent. The pressure in the can propels the mixture a distance of up to 20 feet (6.1 m). Other alleged ingredients are a small amount of isopropyl alcohol and plasticizers like dibutyl phthalate.

Silly String was licensed to and produced by Wham-O, in a range of colours including blue, red, and green, until the Car-Freshner Corporation, the maker of Little Trees, acquired the Silly String trademark in 1997. Silly String Products, a division of Car-Freshner Corporation, manufactures Silly String in the United States and distributes Silly String in North America through select big box stores, party supply stores, toy stores and drug stores. The U.S. Patent #3705669 includes a clear description of preferred implementations. Similar toys are Goofy String, Streamer String, Wacky String and Nickelodeon Smatter.

The can is advertised as containing "over 400 feet (120 m) of string." One measurement has shown over 1,600 feet (490 m).