Like fine wine Betty White just gets better with age.
And goodness knows she’s given us so many reasons to love her. And, thankfully, she’s had plenty of time to do so.
White turns 99 on Jan. 17. Happy birthday to the Golden Girl.
All of this got us to thinking (and certainly no offense to her): That’s a long time.
And while that would make her older than a lot of modern-day things we take for granted everyday — like microwaves, digital cameras or Post-It Notes, there were a few things we discovered that she’s older than that quite surprised us.
Like what, you ask? Like:
1. Sliced bread
Metro Creative
You might be inclined to say Betty White is the greatest thing since sliced bread. Of course, you’d be wrong — sliced bread is the greatest thing since Betty White.
On July 7, 1928 — over six years after White was born — Otto Frederick Rohwedder’s bread-slicing machine was put to use at a bakery in Chillicothe, Mo., reports Time magazine.
His machine not only sliced the bread, but wrapped it as well.
2. Masking tape/transparent tape
APWe’re not quite sure how White’s parents wrapped their daughter’s birthday presents for her first few years, because they certainly didn’t have any Scotch tape.
In the early 1920s, while delivering sandpaper samples to auto shops, salesman Richard Drew would listen as detailers cursed while trying to mask off parts of the cars they were working on. Drew vowed he would help.
After two years of trial and error, he invented masking tape in 1925 — coming up with, as Smithsonian Magazine puts it, “crepe paper backed with cabinetmaker’s glue mixed with glycerin.”
Improvements were made, as was a waterproof transparent version of his sticky stuff. He got a patent for both in 1930.
3. Television
APIt’s interesting to think that the medium that made White America’s Sweetheart wasn’t around when she was born.
While the root concept of transmitting images over distances can be traced back to as early as 1872, the real idea of television didn’t show up until at least 1925, when John Logie Baird was successful at transmitting a live human face. White would have been 3 years old.
But the TV we all know today didn’t show up until a few years later, when Philo Farnsworth in San Francisco and Vladimir Zworykin in Pittsburgh would take the concept to new levels.
4. Frozen food
Metro CreativeWe’re certain that, as a child, White was never served defrosted veggies for dinner. That’s because frozen food wasn’t a thing yet.
Oh sure, those in the arctic regions of the world have always had frozen food. But for those in warmer climates, the idea didn’t show up until 1924, when Clarence Birdseye dreamed up the cold meal we know today.
As a fur trader in Canada, Birdseye would see that the fish caught by the local Inuit froze upon being pulled out of the water, but still tasted great when he thawed it out months later. He was able to figure out a way to freeze rapidly, which preserved the taste.
5. The cheeseburger
Metro CreativeYou might already know that White didn’t get Happy Meals as a child. But did you know she couldn’t even snag a cheeseburger?
It’s unclear who first thought to drop a slice of cheese on a sizzling beef patty. However, even the earliest claim to the cheesy treat comes from 1928, when Lionel Sternberger was playing around with putting a slice of American cheese on a burger at his dad’s sandwich shop. That’s a good six years after White was born.
The other folks who lay claim to the cheeseburger come from a Louisville restaurant in 1934 and a Denver drive-in in 1935.
6. Sunglasses
Metro CreativeShades? For a young Betty White? Nope.
While the Inuit may have donned sun-shielding eyewear in prehistoric times, their sunblockers were merely walrus ivory with slits in them.
For the sunglasses we all know and love, you’d have to go to when White was 7 years old and Sam Foster turned what was only available through prescription into a most affordable fashion fad.
In 1929, because Hollywood starlettes started wearing their hair short, celluloid comb makers took a massive hit. So, Foster decided to mass-produce sunglass frames instead. He sold his first 10-cent shades to a Woolworth’s store on the Atlantic City boardwalk.
7. Bubble gum
Metro CreativeYoung Betty would have been able to chew gum as a child, but blowing bubbles? Not until she was at least 6.
In 1928, Walter Diemer — who worked for the Fleer gum company — came up with a formula to create a chewing gum that wasn’t so sticky and could be blown into bubbles. In crafting his invention, Diemer used the only food coloring he had available: pink. Thus, Dubble Bubble was born.
8. The ballpoint pen
Metro CreativeWriting wouldn’t have been so smooth for the first 18 years of Betty White’s life. That’s because it wasn’t until 1938 when Laszlo Biro patented his invention of the ballpoint pen.
Until then, writers mainly used fountain pens, which could be refilled but suffered from leakage. Biro took notice of how newspaper ink dried quickly and was resistant to smudging. He wanted to come up with a pen that could use the same type of ink.
To do so, Biro took advantage of a defunct 1888 patent by John Loud for a pen made to mark leather that used a ball bearing in the tip.
9. Penicillin
Metro CreativeIt’s lucky that White didn’t get a bad infection as a young child, because penicillin wasn’t around.
That didn’t get invented until 1928, when Scottish physician Alexander Fleming returned from vacation to find one of the staphylococcus culture plates he was using in his influenza research was contaminated with mold. It turned out to be a happy accident, because Fleming found that the mold prevented the growth of the bacteria.
The antibiotic has since been used to treat millions over the years since.
10. Aerosol cans
APSpray cans weren’t in the White household in the actress’ youth.
The first aerosol can with a valve wasn’t created until late 1927 by Norwegian engineer Erik Rotheim. He was commemorated on a stamp in 1998 by the Norwegian post office. We’re pretty sure someday White’s face will find its way on a stamp.
But not for many more years, we hope.
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