First Use of the Word "Frisbee" by NYT

The New York Times as part of 'First Glimpses' feature researched their archives for the first instance of the term "Frisbee" in print. A June 1957 article describing Princeton University - one of the schools at the first intercollegiate ultimate frisbee game - graduates involved in "frisbee-throwing sessions" was determined as the first publishing by The New York Times.

1957 is the same year Wham-O gained contractual rights to the Pluto Platter flying disc, which would be officially renamed Frisbee in 1958.

The NYT's research continued with another instance, later in 1957, with a delightful perspective on toys and the phenomenon of fads - including the Frisbee.

Screengrab of NYT article

Article copy: "Like most other fast-selling pieces of goofy merchandise, the Frisbee is novel, portable and cheap (79¢). Neither stamina nor brains are needed to make it work. Most manufacturers do not know why people buy the disks, how the craze got started or who the hell Frisbee is...."

"Somebody discoverd a pie-plate-pitching game and it was found that our [Frisbie Pie Company] tin plates were excellent for scaling," a company official said. "During that fad we lost about 5,000 tin pie plates." 

Cartoon in NYT's "Frisbees, Yo-Yo's, Goo-Goo's, Etc." [1957]