For Pi Day, let's circle in on some history of a recreational product that was once linked to pie plates but has become an international sports business.
I speak of — as you probably already guessed — the Frisbee or what's generically termed a flying disc. Its origin story involves pie tins used by Connecticut-based Frisbie Pie Co., although whether the bakery was just an inspiration for the name or the true central starting point of the disc isn't quite clear.
Brand owner Wham-O Inc. credits Walter Morrison as the inventor. He called the toy the Pluto Platter, but sales didn't take off until he sold the rights to Carson, Calif.-based Wham-O in 1957. Wham-O gave it the name Frisbee in 1958 to honor the East Coast fans of Frisbie pie tins who said they were tossing the shallow dishes for decades before Morrison's invention.
The Frisbee joins a range of other products from Wham-O whose brand names dominate their markets. The plastics-heavy company catalog also includes Hula-Hoops, the Super Ball, Slip-n-Slide and Boogie Boards.
What may be unexpected is that while the bulk of brand-name Frisbees are manufactured internationally now, there still is some U.S. production for specialty flying discs.
Hero Disc USA of Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., for example, makes products for disc golf and dog acrobatics in the U.S. And Prodigy Disc has international sourcing but also has increased manufacturing in Dalton, Ga., in recent years.
