More Morrison

Pictured: Walter "Fred" Morrison (1957)

The google machine has thrown much around re: the Frisbee inventor's passing earlier this month. More reading below & an earnest tip of the frisbee with his own SLOG label...

NPR: Frisbee Inventor Dies At 90 [broken link]

UPA: Frisbee Inventor Passes Away [broken link]

CNN: Frisbee inventor dies at 90

WaPo: Fred Morrison, inventor of the Frisbee, dies at 90

VfB: America's greatest inventor has tossed his last toss

The Inde: 'I never liked the name,' said Frisbee inventor who has died at 90

Options

Ultimate this Weekend: Play @ Saturday morning, 10am
/&-or/
Spectate @ Saturday nite, 9pm.

Similar post --> Weighty cartoon

Wind Chill

Issued by The National Weather Service. 3:04 am EST, Fri., Feb. 26

... HIGH WIND WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM EST THIS EVENING...

A HIGH WIND WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM EST THIS EVENING.

STRONG GUSTY NORTHWEST WINDS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH TODAY. NORTHWEST WINDS OF 25 TO 35 MPH WILL GUST BETWEEN 55 TO 60 MPH... WITH LOCALLY HIGHER GUSTS... ESPECIALLY LATE THIS MORNING.

WINDS THIS STRONG WILL CAUSE DANGEROUS TRAVEL CONDITIONS... AND LIKELY KNOCK DOWN TREES AND POWER LINES.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A HIGH WIND WARNING MEANS A HAZARDOUS HIGH WIND EVENT IS EXPECTED OR OCCURRING. SUSTAINED WIND SPEEDS OF AT LEAST 40 MPH OR GUSTS OF 58 MPH OR MORE CAN LEAD TO PROPERTY DAMAGE.

Fri$bee

Read the very charitable efforts honoring Frisbee inventor Fred Morrison by a shameless corporate shill. "Perhaps in some special way" your quote is especially out of line, Mister Biz Development VP!

ToyQuest marks Frisbee inventor's passing [Playthings. 02.24.10]

LOS ANGELES—ToyQuest says it will donate a portion of the 2010 proceeds from its new Banzai Yo-Be action toy to the American Cancer Society in memory of Frisbee inventor Fred Morrison.

The toy, which combines a yo-yo and a flying disc, was named the ToyAward winner in the Fun + Sport category at this month’s Spielwarenmesse International Toy Fair Nuremberg.

“Mr. Morrison and his invention of the Frisbee established an inspiring standard of excellence,” said Peter Magalhaes, Vice President Business Development, ToyQuest. “Perhaps in some special way, Mr. Morrison has passed the torch and it is now Banzai’s responsibility to deliver the next generation action toy to consumers worldwide.” (!!!)

Walter “Fred” Morrison, credited with inventing the Frisbee flying disc made famous by Wham-O, passed away February 9 at his home in Monroe, Utah, from cancer. He was 90 years old.

Note: 100% to disaster relief for this disc fundraiser.

Moving Target

Econcomics

Not as fiscally valued as the 1938 Superman comic book sold for $1 million (originally 10-cents), but informationally valuable...

SLUDGE was a comic book series from Malibu Comics, set in the Ultraverse. It was created by Steve Gerber, Gary Martin & Aaron Lopresti. SLUDGE ran for only 12 issues, with one special: Sludge: Red X-Mas. A second special, Sludge: Swamp of Souls, was planned but never completed.

How: Frank Hoag was a corrupt NYPD detective who finally grew a spine when he was asked by his mob bosses to kill a fellow dirty cop. When he refuses, his own murder is ordered; he dies by a hail of bullets as well as a bomb. The explosion covers him with chemicals, which combine with the sewage from where the mobsters dump his body. The chemicals had regenerative properties and tried to heal Hoag, but combined the sewer substances with his body, transforming him into a huge mass of living slime. He awakens with a raging anger against criminals and an inability to think and speak coherently.

Powers: Sludge has a tremendous regenerative ability, healing most wounds in seconds, and able to regrow large areas of body tissue. Submersion in water speeds up this ability. He does not require air & is immune to most chemical toxins.

Not your cup of tea? Go back to reading the Sunday comics.

Medal Metal Meddle

Time to call Frisbee Protective Services bcs frisbees should *never* be microwaved.

The 2010 Olympic medals all feature work by Canadian artists Corrine Hunt & Omer Arbel, and are each laser-etched with a unique design so that no two of the games’ medals will be the same. But perhaps most interestingly, the medals are made from materials reclaimed from used electronics. All that gold, silver, & brown-ish bronze used to be running something... and now it’ll all be part of some of the biggest and heaviest medals in Olympic history.

The medals for the Vancouver Games have a wavy design likened by some grumblers to microwaved Frisbees or melted 45s. This after the sleek look of the Olympic Torch prompted the nickname Olympic Toke to go with the host city's rep as the pot-smoking capital of Canada.

Poking fun at the prizes has been sport since the unorthodox design was unveiled in October. "Yuck," groaned one detractor. "Fancy a Pringle chip?"

To-Do List

GUVA Game

The Georgetown Men's Ultimate Club Team (Catholic Justice) will host the UVA Men's Ultimate Club Team (Night Train) in GU's football stadium.

WHEN: Saturday, Feb 27th
TIME: 9:00 - 11:00 pm
WHERE: Harbin Field/Multi-Sport Field is located at the center of campus (Seating capacity = 2,500). View Directions.

4 Sale 2 Benefit H8-e

FundRaISBsEE to support Haiti's relief efforts.

Haiti Disc

Info: These custom Discraft 175g discs are being sold in an effort to raise funds for those affected by the earthquake in Haiti on January 12th 2010. All proceeds will be donated to Doctors Without Borders in the name of each person who purchases a disc. These are currently in production & will ship mid-March.

Price: $20.00 ($15 + $5 s/h)

Yo BE Amazed

A non-invisible string attached to a flying sling disc costs a lot more than a dollar.

Banazi Yo-Be Flying Disk

Info: Strap on the wristband & get ready for a whole new way to play with the Banzai Yo-Be Flying Disk. Throw it like a flying disc & trick it like a yo-yo to make it come back to you with just flick of you wrist. Master the featured tricks or create your own!

Product Weight: 0.7 lbs. Product Dimensions: 14.3" x 11.7" x 2.2"

Price: $14.99 Buy here.

Frisbee Flick

New spin on old favorite: the Frisbee [Varietey . 02.15.10]
'Invisible String' revels in history of the flying disc

A group of Berlin filmmakers and Frisbee enthusiasts is bringing the long and colorful history of the iconic flying disc to the bigscreen.

Joroni Film, which is taking part in the Berlinale Talent Campus' Berlin Today Award, producing a short for next year's fest, is producing the "The Invisible String." Title refers to a marketing gag used by the Frisbee's late inventor Fred Morrison, who died Feb. 9 at the age of 90, when he first began hawking the discs at fairgrounds: Saying the flying discs glided on an invisible wire, Morrison offered the discs for free if a customer bought a string for a dollar.
...the doc tells the story of Frisbee culture from its early days in the 1950s to today, with particular attention the golden era of the 1970s, and profiles longtime and influential Frisbee players like John Kirkland, the top disc athlete of the '70s (who often showcased his talent at the Harlem Globetrotters' halftime shows), '80s Frisbee champ "Crazy" John Brooks and Dan "Stork" Roddick, who headed sports promotion at Frisbee-maker Wham-O and established performance-based sporting events dedicated to the flying disc.

Instead of traditional talking-head interviews, the filmmakers will play Frisbee with many of their subjects on Southern California beaches and evoke the 1970s with a classic soundtrack.

"The Invisible String" also traces the creation of the many new Frisbee-based competitive individual and team sports that have taken off in the past few decades. It will also explore the nostalgia and inherent fascination with the disc.

RE: big hello

Rob : far-flung :: here : emailed "hear".

*excerpted from actual email

Winter Games

Andrew shared photos for proof of Saturday's ultimate in 18" of snow...

This last one one looks familiar.

Xin Nian Kuai le

The Chinese New Year (year of the Tiger) officially started Sunday. Allow me to be the first to say: Gong Xi Fa Cai.

Where in the World?

Paying homage to the worldly mobility of Sludge...

Today's Features: Gayle & David

Q: Where in the World are they?

A: Gayle and David were in Tobago.

Frisbeeology

Five amazing secrets of the Frisbee [The Inde . 2.15.10]

The inventor of the Frisbee died last week. Walter Fredrick Morrison died at the grand old age of ninety at his home in Utah...Maybe there are differing views as to the exact history of the object? Surely the Ancient Greek use of the discus could be seen as a slightly earlier version of the flying disc? Perhaps there were opposing factions within the world of Frisbee who dispute the salient facts as much as people do those in the Kennedy assassination? I decided to dig a little deeper and, sure enough, uncovered a multitude of different Frisbee historical facts. I simply present them all for your delectation – it is up to a proper Frisbee historian to verify them...

1) Although the Ancient Greeks used a wooden discus in their athletic events, they also had a circular weapon that was used in battle. Known as the Frisbuskion, it was about two feet wide and took three Greeks to hurl at the approaching enemy. Although it did not fly on its own, it could travel up to nine feet if thrown correctly. The enemy would be squashed under the object and then finished off with a spear. This was the origin of the phrase "beware of Greeks bearing discs" that was later bastardised into gifts.

2) In areas of Aquitaine during the Middle Ages arose a curious tradition of patella throwing. The average kneecap, when removed and honed, is the perfect Frisbee shape. Although smaller than the average Frisbee, the locals became highly skilled at using these "frisknees" and a distance record of 122 metres was set in 1422. It has never been broken, possibly because the Pope declared the practice to be "immensely unseemly" and banned it under threat of excommunication.

3) Those of you who are James Bond fans will no doubt remember the infamous Oddjob and his razor-edged hat that he used to such great effect. A lot of Frisbee enthusiasts assumed that the idea had come from the Frisbee itself. Not so. Oddjob was supposed to be Korean and the practice of using hats as a weapon is a very ancient one in Korea. The original throwing hat – the chukka – was used by warrior monks in Nothern Korea in the 12th Century. This flat, almost beret-like head cloth had five spikes around the edge. Later on this was developed further into something that resembled a bowler hat. The top was hard and reinforced to be used as a helmet while the spike were retained for throwing purpose. The use of razor-blades on the edge was an idea had by Cubby Broccoli. Sadly, two props men were to lose several fingers while testing the device.

4) In Iraq people used to throw Arab mountain bread for sport. The bread is circular shaped and cooked over a boiling hot metal dome suspended over a fire. When the bread was ready it was whisked off the metal but was too hot to handle and would almost melt onto the skin if held for any length of time. Iraqi bakers, therefore, started the practice of throwing the boiling hot bread from person to person. This quickly developed into a craze and bread-throwing became the one of the most popular pastimes in the country until the early American sanctions after Gulf War I made bread too valuable to chuck about.

5) Walter Morrison was uncle to Doors' singer Jim Morrison and early royalties from the Frisbee paid for the band's first recording sessions.

Field of Freeze

The after effects of slowsnowultimate game which was played on a ice-crusted snowpack.
Reminds me of a ridiculous image...

Heartfelt

You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments when you have truly lived are the moments when you have done things in the spirit of love.
--Henry Drummond

Car-mune with Nature

Andrew's automobile seems to attract extreme weather. Dutifully, the Play Ultimate bumper sticker continues on even as the owner remains stuck in snow.

Quizzard

Directions: Here is a picture of two ghosts eating marshmallows during a raging blizzard. Can you tell what's wrong? Try your skill!

What's more unreal -- the recent weather /or/ snacking ghosts??

Neckligence

Last Thursday's episode of The Sarah Silverman Program entitled "Protect Your Neck!" (03:41) has a premise where Sarah St. Claire's show takes a dark turn after Sarah gets hit in the neck with a Frisbee. Spoiler: Wooden mittens are the solution.

Non-Stop Coverage

Don't let the recent non-stop news about Toyota recalls stop you to unrecall what was in the driver's seat for a previous recall -- sludge.

...Toyota suddenly looks pretty meek, thanks to a huge recall, an unprecedented production shutdown, and an ugly dent in a once sterling reputation...Beginning around 1999, thousands of Toyota owners complained about mysterious "sludge" buildup that wrecked their engines, prompting criticism that the company was growing too fast and skimping on quality, Toyota resisted the claims but settled a a class action lawsuit brought by owners in 2007.

Passing

Thank you, thank you, thank you, Mr. Morrison!

Frisbee creator Fred Morrison dies

Wham-O sold more than 200 million Frisbees, Morrison's best invention, before he died Tuesday [February 9, 2010] at his home in Monroe, Utah. Born and raised in Richfield, Morrison remained impressed by his invention's success throughout his life.

"Who could ever imagine this?" he said in 2007. "From such a simple beginning 50 years ago, to have it become what it has become. My goodness, it's amazing."

During a Thanksgiving Day family picnic in 1937, Morrison and his future wife Lu Nay tossed the lid of a popcorn tin back and forth for fun. The tin dented easily so they moved on to cake pans. Soon Morrison was selling "Flying Cake Pans" for 25 cents each on the beaches of Santa Monica, Calif.

After he learned aerodynamics as a bomber pilot in World War II, Morrison created the Whirlo-Way with another former pilot, Warren Franscioni. They changed the name to the Flyin-Saucer to take advantage of the UFO craze in the 1950s.

Morrison added a deeper, thicker rim in 1955 for the "Pluto Platter." In 1957, Wham-O, a hunting-goods company looking to expand into sporting-goods, picked up Morrison's invention and in 1959 registered the name Frisbee. The toy gave rise to popular new sports like Ultimate Frisbee and Frisbee Golf.

"The world has changed a lot in the past 50 years, but the original purpose of Frisbee has remained constant," Morrison said on the 50th anniversary of his invention in 2007. "Just seeing the smile on a child's face as he or she catches a soaring disc on a summer afternoon in the park, or a grown-up diving headfirst to grab a falling disc, that is what the spirit of the Frisbee is all about."

Utah House Rep. Kay McIff, R-Richfield, honored Morrison Wednesday on the House floor. McIff said Morrison's Frisbee found its way onto fields and playgrounds around the world and came with a set of simple instructions, written by his wife, who died in 1987: "Flip flap, flies straight."

But it was Morrison who created the iconic plastic model, according to Wham-O company history: "The Frisbee has not undergone many changes since its inception 50 years ago, with the exception of when Ed Headrick added the patented flight ridges to the top of the disc in 1964. This feature radically improved the disc's stability and speed, ushering in a new era of performance-based Frisbee and the creation of dozens of new Frisbee-based competitive individual and team sports."

"Not since the invention of the ball," the company history states, "have so many fun games and competitive sports been derived from such a simple object."

##

Unachievable Goal

Congrats to FPC.net for a fine Achievement in a thoughtful, yet incorrect portrayal of Ultimate Frisbee. Get rid of the goal!

Sports and academics are the focus of nearly 300 new free printable certificates recently added to the popular Web site (Kinda)FreePrintableCertificates.net. There are also new certificates in the arts and crafts category, including ceramics and sewing.

Where in the World?

Paying homage to the worldly mobility of Sludge...

Today's Feature: Patti

Q: Where in the World was Patti?

A: Patti was in Haiti.

Snow BL/EYE\ND

Olympic Spirit

And the gold medal in FrisBeeFRO goes to sludge -- 21 million!!!

Frisbee Quiz

Is a "rolling tray" like a lazy susan? Or did the rolling tray cause Susan to be lazy??

SeNcOreW

The next wave of the tsnownami approaches...

Issued by The National Weather Service (Baltimore/Washington, MD) -- Tue., Feb. 9, 2010

A WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 7 PM EST WEDNESDAY.

* PRECIPITATION TYPE... SNOW.

* ACCUMULATIONS... 10 TO 20 INCHES.

* TIMING... EARLY TO MID AFTERNOON TODAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY.

* TEMPERATURES... TEMPERATURES NEAR FREEZING AT THE ONSET THIS AFTERNOON. TEMPERATURES WILL DROP INTO THE UPPER 20S TONIGHT AND WEDNESDAY.

* WINDS... LIGHT SOUTHEASTERLY WINDS TODAY BECOMING NORTHWESTERLY 15 TO 25 MPH WEDNESDAY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A WINTER STORM WARNING MEANS SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF SNOW ARE EXPECTED OR OCCURRING. THE COMBINATION OF SNOW AND STRONG WINDS WILL MAKE TRAVEL VERY HAZARDOUS. STAY VIGILANT FOR SEVERE WEATHER.

My Oh Miami

Here are the final results of predicting the *Super* Bowl played in Miami, Fla:

Winning Team --- Qty

Saints --- 3
Colts -- 4

Saints won 31-17 over the Colts, so congrats to the 3 [Riles, Anonymous(2)] who ably predicted the correct side of a 50-50 question.

WhaT iF: Shoveling

Exploring the next (possible) bustle for Sludge.

Name: Snow Shoveling

Basics: Moving fallen snow usually by use of a hand tool consisting of a broad blade with edges or sides that is fixed to a medium-length handle.

Co-Ed [Y/N]? Yes.

Family-friendly [Y/N]? Can be.

Outdoors [Y/N]? Yes.

Local [Y/N]? Yes.

Cost [$-$$$$]: $

Time Commitment: Seasonal only.

tsnownami

Issued by The National Weather Service Baltimore/Washington, MD (whose ALL CAPS button is broken)

A WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM FRIDAY TO 10 PM EST SATURDAY.
* PRECIPITATION TYPE... HEAVY SNOW.
* ACCUMULATIONS... STORM TOTAL ACCUMULATIONS OF 18 TO 24 INCHES.
* TIMING... SNOW WILL BEGIN MID-MORNING FRIDAY... AND WILL CONTINUE THROUGH SATURDAY EVENING. CONDITIONS WILL DETERIORATE RAPIDLY FRIDAY AFTERNOON... WITH HEAVIEST SNOWFALL OCCURRING BETWEEN SUNSET FRIDAY TO SUNRISE SATURDAY. THE MOST HAZARDOUS WINTER WEATHER CONDITIONS WILL OCCUR FRIDAY NIGHT.
* VISIBILITIES... THE COMBINATION OF HEAVY SNOW AND STRONG WINDS WILL REDUCE VISIBILITIES TO BELOW ONE-QUARTER MILE... PRODUCING NEAR-BLIZZARD CONDITIONS AT TIMES FRIDAY NIGHT AND EARLY SATURDAY MORNING.
* TEMPERATURES... HIGHS IN THE LOWER 30S FRIDAY. TEMPERATURES WILL BE IN THE MID TO UPPER 20S FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY.
* WINDS... BECOMING NORTHEAST 10 TO 20 MPH FRIDAY WITH GUSTS TO 30 MPH FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
CONDITIONS IN THIS STORM ARE EXPECTED TO BE COMPARABLE TO THOSE IN THE STORM OF 19 DECEMBER. PLAN FOR SUBSTANTIAL DISRUPTIONS TO TRAVEL FRIDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH THE WEEKEND.

A WINTER STORM WARNING MEANS SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF SNOW ARE EXPECTED OR OCCURRING. STRONG WINDS ARE ALSO POSSIBLE. THIS WILL MAKE TRAVEL VERY HAZARDOUS OR NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE FRIDAY NIGHT.

Pickup Re-Lo

A forwarded email claims Saturday pickup - for this Saturday ONLY - will be played in a different location.

WHERE: National Mall, near Smithsonian METRO stop [Blue/Orange lines] - Mall EXIT

WHEN: 10am

Winter Tu Tu

Snow was no obstacle for MattHew, Christy, Bucci, David & Liz who attended the 2/2 stage performance by Stoney Lonesome.

They were all treated to front row table seats - all within heckling distance to the drummer, plus a view of the falling snow.

Thanks!
Photo Credit: Bucci

hOVER Here

The days of using a glow-in-the-dark frisbee to "set the mood" are over thanks to magnetizing elucidation.

Lamp Which Can Levitate

Employing magnetism technology, the UFO Lamp from Baita Design is an unconventional lighting that as its name suggest levitates in the air to illuminate your living place. Encasing a lens made in ABS plastic, bulb and magnets in an aluminum dome, the lamp works in tandem with a stainless steel base that also houses magnets & electronics. Featuring foot controlled buttons, including power, up, down and polarity inversion, the lamp floats above the magnetic base to set the mood with its magnetizing elucidation. Must see demo.

Up in the Air

Frisbee-related publishing, eh? Go on...

Flying Disc Magazine

If you love disc golf, ultimate, disc dogs, freestyle, guts, or any other disc pursuit, you should be a subscriber. Each issue is packed full of instructional articles, course and equipment reviews, travel stories, event recaps, and much more. Order now to get FDM delivered direct to your door.

FDM claims "All disc sports, all the time," but the copyright is still "2008" & the last news item was posted in March 2009! This other mag continues while THE SLOG keeps on keepin' on.

PrediXLIV

The matchup of NFL's Super Bowl XLIV on Sunday, February 7th, 2010 in Miami, Fla has the #1 seeds from the AFC & NFC -- the Indianapolis Colts vs New Orleans Saints.

Let the PREDICTIONS begin...
(Enter your picks in Comments)
1. Who wins the game - Colts /or/ Saints?
2. What's the final score??
+ include some sort of identifier +

History of Predictions: 2007 . 2008 . 2009

Punx Rock

"Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows!"

REMINDER: Hear what upheaval lurks in the guitar (& drums) of men. The band on stage with nary a light show - Tonite @ 9pm.

>>> Obtain Punxsutawney Phil' s Weather prognostication from Gobblers Knob.

Did You Know: Groundhogs are covered with coarse grayish hairs (fur) tipped with brown or sometimes dull red.

WhaT iF: Tough Guying

Exploring the next (possible) bustle for Sludge.

Name: Tough Guy Racing

Basics: A U.K.-unique blend of mud, freezing lakes, acrophobia, claustrophobia, barbed wire, fire and electro shocks. Their slogan: How much pain can you suck?

Co-Ed [Y/N]? Yes. Females are considered "one of the guys."

Family-friendly [Y/N]? No.

Outdoors [Y/N]? Yes.

Local [Y/N]? No

Cost [$-$$$$]: $$

Time Commitment: Once per year.

Do Over: January 2010

Catch up on last month's noteworthy posts you may have missed...

Matchmaker, Matchmaker

Public Option

Love Byte-n

Consludge-tion

Rewarding