Head, Howard, 1914-1991 (inventor, business executive) Search this
Extent:
4 Cubic feet (11 boxes, 5 map folders)
21 Film reels
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Film reels
Drawings
Correspondence
Photographs
Business records
Audiovisual materials
Financial records
Blueprints
Date:
1954 - 1977
Summary:
Papers relate to John Bucheimer's work as manager of new product manufacturing in the Engineering Department at Head Ski Company.
Scope and Contents:
These records were assembled and saved by John Bucheimer in conjunction with his work at Head Ski Company. The bulk of the records relates to engineering matters and detail how the skis were manufactured. The records also provide insight into the daily operations and activities of the Head Ski Company factory.
Series 1, Operational Records, 1967-1973, include an organizational chart, company and management profile, annual reports, inter office correspondence, memoranda, management notes, the Management News Bulletin, and plant information. The organizational chart of 1969 provides the job title and name of the employee for specific positions within Head Ski Company, Head Ski and Sportswear, American Athletic Equipment, Wayne Plastics, Wing Archery, and Head International AG.
This series contains the Management News Bulletin, 1967-1970. An internal communication from the president, the news bulletin provided a forum for announcements, resignations, work plans, reorganizations, organizational charts, employee changes, and general work flow issues. While small in size, the content is rich for getting a sense of the management style at Head Ski Company.
The management notes, 1968-1971, are handwritten by Bucheimer and contain information on training, responsibilities, manufacturing expenses, production schedules, regional sales meetings, and job postings. There are a few management pamphlets published by the Economic Press, Inc. These pamphlets provided "tips" to managers. Also, the management notes contain two union fliers addressing the issue of union dues. Both fliers urge employees to "keep your take home pay free from Union dues. Vote no union." Other materials include inventories of office surplus and plant information. There are instructions of how to conduct a tour of the plant and ADT protective service documentation. Bucheimer was the designated ADT card holder for the company.
Series 2, Employee Records, 1957-1973, consist of employee handbooks and insurance materials, a job description for manager of manufacturing projects, and vacation schedules for several employees. Some salary information is here.
Series 3, Marketing/Sales Records, 1969-1972, includes one catalog from 1972, three news releases, sales information, and ski show and shipment information. The ski show materials document specific shows—Canada, Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York—and the ski models displayed and, in some instances, orders placed. The special shipments, 1969-1971, include invoices, correspondence, notes, and material move tickets for companies such as Cell Pack, Ltd., Standard Metalwerke, Dura Fiber Corp., and United Shoe Machinery Corp.
Series 4, Financial/Accounting Records, 1967-1971, contains reports, inventories, expenses, and some payroll information. The majority of these records date from September 1969 to October of 1969. The expense statements reveal how much was budgeted and spent for materials, direct labor, payroll taxes, Christmas bonuses, travel, postage, maintenance, and ski parts, to name a few categories. There is some payroll information with the payroll control sheets.
Series 5, Engineering/Manufacturing Records, 1956-1977, comprise the largest and richest series within the collection. The records are subdivided into seven subseries: inventories, instructions, repair information, reports, drawings and specifications, testing information, and miscellaneous.
The inventories provide valuable information on the types of materials used, the quantities, and in some instances the cost. The raw material inventory of 1967 details material types (e.g. glue, plywood, aluminum, poles, saw blades), account numbers, date, quantity, price and actual cost. Like the raw material inventory, the perpetual inventory of 1966 is divided according to material type (e.g. aluminum, plastic, cloth tape, wood, rubber, steel) unit measure (typically in pounds), conversion factor, dates, and a balance amount.
The instructions include detailed information on "how to" for a variety of operations such as aluminum sandblasting bottom ski skin assembly, degreasing nosepieces, and sanding, gluing, and cutting "L" steel edges. The instructions consist of a workplace layout diagram, tools needed, and step by-step instruction elements. Of note is the material flow processes for the company. There are flow charts for each operational sequence performed. There are photographs of equipment with the flow charts, but they are not keyed to specific operational tasks.
The repair information contains procedures and lists of parts for skis. The repair procedures describe the repair needed and what model ski is affected. A detailed description of the repair is documented along with the materials required, tools, and how effective the repair was. The repairs documented here include finishing, grinding, bottom waxing, replacing edges, inlays, and remolding. The company had a program titled "rework" that handled returned skis. Many of the skis documented appear to have had cavity problems and were sent back to be remolded. There is some ski rejection analysis documentation citing why skis are being sent to the rework program. Additional information on cavity problems and production is also here. The parts list, 1969-1970, details various parts used on ski models JR-90, JR-60, 720-TA, 320-W, 240-B, K-short ski, deep powder-DP, Giant Slalom, slalom, 360-AR, 320-E and the downhill models. The part number and name, quantity, and any remarks are provided.
The reports, logs, and notes subseries contain manufacturing and production notes, and a variety of reports documenting engineering department activities. The inter-shift reports, 1963-1967, were maintained in spiral bound shorthand notebooks. They detail daily activities, operational suggestions, reminders to staff, materials available, and what work needs to be completed. Other reports include accidents, 1958-1961, and quality control reports, 1970-1971, which were created daily to provide detailed information on all aspects of the skis at final inspection time. The number of skis inspected with percentage information is summarized. The non-conforming material recovery reports, 1970, give the reasons why skis were rejected and indicate if skis were returned to vendors or used "as is."
The drawings and specifications, 1964-1970, are comprised of oversize drawings ranging from 8" x 10" to 34" x 43 _". The drawings are copies and include information on the short, slalom, giant slalom, downhill, and deep powder skis. The finished ski specifications, 1964-1967, document material types, assembly and subassembly procedures, ski data, ski poles, packaging material, and miscellaneous material. For each specification there is a corresponding instruction/narrative and, in some instances, a drawing.
The testing documentation is material specific (rubber, steel, plastic, adhesives) or ski model specific. It provides some insight into what materials the company worked with and under what conditions, such as, pulling, heating, or actual pilot ski runs. The suppliers, 1971-1973, include forms, receipts, bills, invoices, correspondence, receiving tickets, and descriptive inventories from companies that Head Ski Co. purchased supplies from.
Series 6, The General Files, 1954-1977, cover a variety of miscellaneous topics, such as the National Ski Patrol and postage, and are arranged alphabetically.
Series 7, Moving Image, no date, consists of twenty-one reels of 16 mm film which are unprocessed.
Series 8, Personal Materials, circa 1960s, contain greeting cards and notes and a photograph of Bucheimer with Howard Head.
Arrangement:
Collection organized into eight series.
Series 1: Operational Records, 1967-1973
Series 2: Employee Records, 1957-1973
Series 3: Marketing/Sales Records, 1969-1972
Series 4: Financial/Accounting Records, 1967-1971
Series 5: Engineering/Manufacturing Records, 1956-1977
Subseries 1, Inventories, 1966-1971
Subseries 2, Instructions, 1967-1970
Subseries 3, Repair Information, 1969-1971
Subseries 4, Reports, logs, and notes, 1956-1971
Subseries 5, Drawings and Specifications, 1964-1970
Subseries 6, Testing Information, 1963-1970
Subseries 7, Miscellaneous, 1967-1973
Series 6: General Files, 1954-1977
Series 7: Moving Image, no date
Series 8: Personal Materials, circa 1960s
Biographical / Historical:
John Bucheimer was born on December 7, 1919. During the 1940s, he worked with Howard Head at Glenn L. Martin Company, an aircraft company founded by aviation pioneer Glenn L. Martin (1886-1955) in Middle River, Maryland. At Martin, Bucheimer supervised work on planes and oversaw structural testing. Primarily self taught, he learned electronics and drafting skills on the job. Head left the Glenn L. Martin Company to start his own company, Head Ski Company in 1948, and Bucheimer joined him.
Head, a former aircraft engineer, developed, designed, manufactured, and marketed the first metal laminate skis in 1950 called the "Head Standard. These skis revolutionized the industry. They were made of two layers of aluminum bonded around a core of plywood at very high pressure; the outer layer was made of plastic. By 1952, Head introduced skis with edges made of tempered steel. His skis were lighter and faster than wood and earned the nickname "cheaters" by the industry. In 1969, Head introduced a fiberglass/metal ski, but this ski combined with a diversified product line of javelin and aluminum tennis rackets could not strengthen his company nor stop a takeover by AMF in 1970.
At Head Ski Company, Bucheimer held the position of manager of new products manufacturing. He trained employees on every aspect of work flow.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center
Howard Head Papers, 1926-1991, AC0589
Materials in the National Museum of American History
The Division of Culture and the Arts (now Division of Cultural and Community Life), formerly the Division of Music, Sports, and Entertainment, holds artifacts related to the Howard Head Papers. These artifacts include downhill skis, ski poles, ski boots, ski bindings, and cross sections of downhill skis.
Provenance:
The collection was donated by John Bucheimer on April 26, 2005.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Videotapes, internal and external company publications, product catalogs and business files relating to Nike's domestic and international marketing and promotions.
Arrangement:
The collection is arrangedinto three series.
Series 1: Videotapes, 1983-1992
Series 2: U.S. Marketing and Promotion, 1970-1989
Series 3: International Marketing and Promotion, 1979-1989
Biographical / Historical:
Rob Strasser (19xx-1994), a sports fan and native Oregonian, began his association with Nike (then named Blue Ribbon Sports) in 1972 as the junior lawyer in the young company's gutsy, and successful, anti-trust suit against Japanese athletic shoe manufacturer Onitsuka Tiger. Rob Strasser was [title] at Nike from [197x] until his resignation in 1987. He played a major role in establishing an international presence for both the sale and manufacture of Nike athletic wear. After resigning from Nike in 1987, he worked as [title] for rival Adidas atheltic shoes. Julie Strasser (b. 19xx) was Nike's first advertising manager. She married Rob Strasser in 1982. She is co-author of Swoosh: The Unauthorized Story of Nike and the Men Who Played There, published in 1991.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center
Nike Advertising History Collection (AC0448)
Provenance:
Collection donated by Julie Strasser,1995.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The collection documents S. Newman Darby's development of the sailboard, which became known as the windsurfer through sketches, mechanical drawings, plans, patent specifications, legal documents, photographs, correspondence, notebooks, clippings, periodicals, and an 8mm film.
Scope and Contents:
The S. Newman Darby Windsurfing Collection, 1946-1998, documents the body of Newman Darby's inventive output as well as the development of the windsurfing industry. It consists of sketches, mechanical drawings, plans, patent specifications, legal documents, photographs, correspondence, notebooks, clippings, periodicals, an 8mm film and a videocassette. The collection is particularly rich in the material related to the development of the sailboard, including Darby's personal memoirs. It contains U.S. and foreign patents related to windsurfing as well as records and reports related to Darby's testimony in litigation and the recognition of the priority of his invention. the collections research value lies in the documentation of the invention of the windsurfer and the industry and culture it spawned. It documents the processes of invention and marketing of new devices. It is evidence of the full range of S. Newman Darby's imagination, life and career.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into six series.
Series 1: Biographical materials, 1969-1982
Series 2: Inventions and designs, 1953-1990
Series 3: Darby Industries, 1982-1983
Series 4: History of windsurfing, 1944-1998
Series 5: Photographs, 1946-1997
Series 6: Audio-Visual materials, 1965-1997
Biographical / Historical:
S. Newman Darby is recognized as the first person in the United States to conceive of connecting a hand-held sail rig fastened with a universal joint to a floating platform for recreational use. He called it sail boarding in 1965, when he published his designs in Popular Science Monthly magazine. Although he and his brothers Ronald and Kenneth began manufacturing the boards through their company Darby Industries, they never applied for a patent.
S. Newman Darby (1928-2016) was born in West Pittston, Pennsylvania. He graduated from West Pittston High School in 1946. A sign painter and artist, like his father Sidney Darby, he studied drafting at the Pennsylvania State University extension school where he took chemistry, business, art, and photography courses for one year. His first invention, the Darby Dory, a folding rowboat dates from 1953. The sailboard developed out of Darby's experiments with a personal pontoon catamaran, each hull being big enough for one foot and designed to be operated with a hand-held sail and no rudder. By 1964 he had designed a universal joint that connected a mast to a flat bottom sailing scow. This board had a centerboard, tail fin and kite shaped free sail. Early tests were conducted on Trailwood Lake and the Susquehanna River, near West Pittston.
Today sail boarding is known as windsurfing. It adopted its name from Windsurfer International, a company Hoyle Schweitzer and Jim Drake established on the basis of a patent granted to them in 1970 for a "wind-propelled apparatus." In all essential qualities, their claims duplicated Newman Darby's earlier work.
After Schweitzer bought out Drake's share in 1973, he energetically promoted the sport and licensed manufacturing rights to more than 20 companies around the world. Schweitzer forcefully prosecuted patent infringements he perceived among windsurfer manufacturers and he threatened to sue the 1984 Olympic Committee should it authorize a board produced by a manufacturer not licensed by Windsurfer International.
Although he was aware of the growth of the sport and the profits flowing into Windsurfer International through its licensing activities, Darby was unable to mount a legal challenge to Schweitzer. His priority in the invention of the sport was overlooked and almost forgotten.
In the late 1970's, Mistral, a Swiss manufacturer sued by Windsurfer International in Germany, located Darby and presented his "prior art" as a defense. In the early 1980's, courts in the United States were asked to rule on the validity of the Windsurfer International patent. Newman Darby's prior art was at the center of the controversies. The court voided Windsurfer's original patent and Schweitzer was forced to apply for a reissue based on severely limited claims. He lost the use of "windsurfer" as a trademark. Schweitzer retained the reissued patent through further challenges until it expired in 1987. The example of Newman Darby has become a textbook case of the importance of thorough searches for "prior art" for patent attorneys.
Following completion of the patent litigation Darby designed original sail rigs for Mistral in Europe and Horizon in the United States. In 1982 Newman entered into a new partnership with his brothers Ronald and Kenneth and formed NRK, Inc., to design and manufacture windsurfing boards, training devices and to produce written and video documentaries of his contributions to the history of the sport.
Naomi Albrecht Darby, Newman's wife, sewed the first sails for the boards and participated in their testing and marketing. She documented Darby's inventions through the years in photographs and moving images. Over the years, Darby has worked on numerous inventions--most of them related to wind propulsion. Like many independent inventors, Newman Darby conceives of his ideas, executes all of the mechanical plans, builds his own prototypes and tests them. Darby continues to research improvements in windsurfing and to teach courses in boat building and design.
Related Materials:
An original sailboard, rig, mast and daggerboard from the same period are also housed in the Pennsylvania State Museum at Harrisburg.
Separated Materials:
The Division of Culture and the Arts (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) holds artifacts relating to S. Newman Darby and his invention of the windsurfer, including an original board, boom and mast, and sail dating from 1964. See accessions #1998.0086 and #1998.0323.
Provenance:
Most of the collection was donated to the Archives Center of the National Museum of American History by S. Newman Darby and his wife Naomi on February 3, 1998.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Laher Spring & Tire Corp., Electric Car Div. ; Laher Tire & Rubber Co., Inc ; Laher Battery Production Corp. ; Lasco Brake Products Corp., Ltd. : Laher Spring Corp. ; Search this
Notes content:
Electric vehicles including cars , trucks , personnel carriers , fork lifts , golf carts, country club service car, delivery vehicles, and police patrol vehicles ; automotive springs ;
Includes:
Trade catalog and price lists
Black and white images
Color images
Physical description:
6 pieces; 1 box
Language:
English
Type of material:
Trade catalogs
Trade literature
Place:
New Albany, Mississippi, United States
Date:
1900s
Topic (Romaine term):
Automobiles and automotive equipment (including trucks and buses) Search this
Fork lifts, hand operated elevators, stackers, hydraulic lift tables, lift trucks, platform lift trucks. "Weld-Bilt" hand-operated and electric elevators ; skids ; total gym pro plus exercise system...this comprises the uncataloged portion.
Includes:
Trade catalog
Black and white images
Physical description:
6 pieces; 1 box
Language:
English
Type of material:
Trade catalogs
Trade literature
Place:
West Bend, Wisconsin, United States
Date:
1900s
Topic (Romaine term):
Materials handling equipment (includes barrels; bottling and filling; casters; chains; etc.) Search this
Darby, S. Newman, 1928-2016 (inventor) Search this
Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation. Search this
Extent:
18 Videocassettes
1 Electronic discs (CD)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Videocassettes
Electronic discs (cd)
Oral history
Videotapes
Interviews
Date:
April 9, 1999
Scope and Contents:
Presentation by Newman Darby discussing windsurfing and his invention and development of the sailboard. Materials include original, master and reference videotapes and photographs.
Biographical/Historical note:
Newman Darby, born in West Pittston, Pennsylvania, invented windsurfing in 1964 when he connected a sail to a board by means of a universal rope joint. The windsurfer was ultimately patented by Hoyle Schweitzer and Jim Drake in 1970 and became known as windsurfer.
Provenance:
Collection transferred by Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation
Restrictions:
Unrestricted research access on site by appointment.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The collection documents the invention of the Jogbra and includes biographical materials, business records, photographs, promotional, marketing and advertising materials, correspondence and audiovisual materials.
Scope and Contents:
The collection documents the invention of the sports bra primarily through marketing and promotional materials. The collection also documents the Jogbra, Inc. company activities, and includes biographical materials, business records, promotional, marketing and advertising materials, photographs, patent records, and audiovisual materials.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into six series.
Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1980-2006
Series 2: Business Records, 1979-1999
Subseries 2.1: JBI, Inc., 1979-1996
Subseries 2.2: Champion Jogbra, 1988-1999
Series 3: Photographs, 1978-2008
Series 4: Promotional and Marketing Materials, 1979-2000
Series 5: Patent Records, 1978-2003
Series 6: Audiovisual Materials, 1993
Biographical / Historical:
Lisa Lindahl was frustrated by the inadequacy of her everyday bra when she began jogging in the early 1970s. When her sister, Victoria Woodrow began jogging she met with the same issues and called Lisa to ask what she did about it. Commiserating over their problems, Victoria asked, "What do you do about all the breast movement? It's so uncomfortable." And Lisa said, "I don't know. It really is uncomfortable." Victoria said, "Why isn't there a jock strap for women?" Lisa laughed back and said, "Yeah, same idea, different part of the anatomy. Wouldn't that be great?" The sisters hung up laughing and Lisa sat down and opened up a spiral notebook to record her thoughts and design criteria for this "jock bra." "Here's a bra made just for jogging. What would it do?" And Lindahl wrote, "Okay, the straps would not fall off my shoulders and there wouldn't be any hardware to dig in and it would be comfortable and maybe even breathable, and it would stop my breasts from bouncing."
Lindahl engaged her childhood friend Polly Palmer Smith in her effort to solve the bra problem. They found no suitable products in retail stores, but were inspired by Lisa's husband, Al Lindahl, who took a jock strap and pulled it over his head and down over his chest and said, "Hey ladies, here's your jock bra." Lisa said, "I had to get into the act, so I jumped up and said, "Let me try it. Let me try." And I pulled his jock strap up and over my head and pulled the pouch over my breast and the waistband of the jockstrap went around my rib and I kind of jumped up on bed and I said, "Polly, Polly, look at this, look at this." They went to multiple stores and inquired but could not find a bra that fit their needs--a bra that kept the breasts pressed flat against the chest and eliminated motion. They also wanted something without seams and hooks, wire or other metal elements. Lindahl, along with Polly Palmer Smith, a childhood friend from New Jersey, sewed a pair of jockstraps together creating a few prototypes.
Smith introduced Lindahl to Hinda Schreiber, a fellow costume designer and classmate at New York University. Schreiber worked as an assistant to Smith at the Champlain Shakespeare Festival held at the University of Vermont in the summer of 1977. With interest in and enthusiasm for the idea of creating more jogbras, Schreiber joined Lindahl and Smith. They called their product the "jockbra" but later changed it to "Jogbra," figuring that the word "jock" might be a turn-off for some women. On November 20, 1979, US Patent 4,174,717 for an athletic brassiere was issued to the three co-inventors. Subsequent US patents include:
Eugenie Z. Lindahl, Hinda S. Schreiber, and Polly P. Smith, Des. 259,370 for a brassiere, 1981; and US 4,311,150 for an athletic brassiere, 1982.
Eugenie Z. Lindahl and Hinda Schreiber, Des. 260,445 for an athletic shirt, 1981 and Des. 301,518 for a brassiere, 1989.
LaJean Lawson and Hinda Miller, US 6,083,080 for a protective brassiere with local energy absorption, 2000.
Lesli R. Bell and Eugenie Z. Lindahl, US 6,860,789 for a compression garment, 2005.
Lindahl started the company Jogbra, Inc. in 1977 and then re-named it SLS, Inc. (for Smith, Lindahl, Schreiber) in early 1978. As President of the company, Lindahl issued equal shares to herself, Smith and Schreiber. The name changed again to Jogbra Inc., for a brief time, before finally becoming JBI, Inc. in the early 1980s. Marketing their new product (with start-up capital lent by Miller's father, Bruce L. Schreiber) was a challenge. According to Lindahl, buyers for sporting goods stores were "squeamish" about displaying bras, which did not look like lingerie, but an athletic garment. Stores that did feature the jogbra were pleased by how well it sold. Miller placed strong emphasis on the point of purchase advertising and packaging. The jogbra line of products expanded to include a women's and men's sport brief, the Thermobra and Thermobrief. Soon, a number of other manufacturers, including Vanity Fair, Olga, and Warner, were entering the sports bra market.
JBI, Inc. was bought by Playtex Apparel, Inc. in 1990 and Playtex Apparel sold it to the Sara Lee Corporation in 1991. Throughout these transitions, Schreiber served as began as Vice-President and, in 1983, became President of the then JBI, Inc. when Lindahl became CEO and Chair of their Advisory Board of Directors. Smith was never active in the company and had become a minority shareholder. When JBI, Inc. was sold to Playtex Apparel, Miller and Lindahl became co-presidents of the new Jogbra Division until Lindahl left the company in 1991. Miller (née Schreiber) continued to serve as president and became CEO of the Champion Jogbra Division of Sara Lee in 1994. Miller left the company in 1997 to pursue other interests.
Lisa Z. Lindahl (November 23, 1948-) was born Eugénie Louise Zobian in Montclair, New Jersey to Florence and Ernest Zobian. The Zobians had four children, Ernest Jr., Mark, Victoria, and Eugénie, known as "Lisa." Lindahl graduated from Vernon Court Junior College in Newport, Rhode Island (1968), the Katherine Gibbs Secretarial School (1969), and later graduated from the University of Vermont with a bachelor's degree in education [1977]. She received a master's degree in culture and spirituality from Holy Names University in California in 2007. In 1970, Lindahl married Alfred Lindahl and divorced in 1978. Lindahl was diagnosed with epilepsy at age four and would later serve as Senior Vice President of the Board of Directors of the Epilepsy Foundation from 1991 to 2000 where, as Chair of the Women and Epilepsy Task Force she brought legitimacy to the gender differences in epilepsy and epilepsy treatments. In 2001, Lindahl co-founded, with Dr. Lesli Bell, the Lightning2 Company (dba Bellisse) to design and market their patented Compressure Comfort Bra, a compression garment for women suffering from lymphedema. Lindahl is the author of two books: Beauty As Action, The Way of True Beauty and How Its Practice Can Change Our World (2017) and Unleash the Girls, The Untold Story of the Invention of the Sports Bra and How It Changed the World (And Me), (2019). She continues to write and pursue other artistic interests.
Hinda Schreiber Miller (April 18, 1950-) was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. She graduated from the Parsons School of Design (B.F.A., 1972) and from New York University (M.F.A., 1976). A costume designer by training, Miller taught costume design at the University of South Carolina. Miller later became a Vermont state senator (2002-2013) representing the Chittenden District which includes all of Chittenden County. Miller ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Burlington, Vermont in 2006. She is presently president of DeForest Concepts, a consulting firm specializing in small business and the promotion of women entrepreneurs. Miller is married to Dr. Joel Miller and has two children.
Polly Palmer Smith (November 10, 1949-) was raised in Montclair, New Jersey. She graduated from the Moore College of Art & Design with a (B.F.A., 1971) and New York University (M.F.A., 1975). She joined the Jim Henson Company in 1978 where she worked as a costume designer for twenty-five years. Smith worked on films such as the Dark Crystal, The Muppets Take Manhattan, and Labyrinth. Some of her television work includes Fraggle Rock and Muppet Treasure Island. Smith received Emmy nominations for her designs for The Jim Henson Hour (1988) and Muppets Tonight (1996) and she received seven Emmy awards for her designs on Sesame Street. Smith also co-designed costumes for the television series The StoryTeller (1986-1988) which won a British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) award for Best Costumes in 1989.
Historical:
The introduction of the sports bra made greater sports participation possible for many American women. Many women were reluctant to engage in sports such as running, basketball, and tennis because of the embarrassment and discomfort associated with excessive breast motion. The passage of Title IX (1972) and James Fixx's popular 1977 book, The Complete Book of Running, contributed to the increased popularity of sports for women. This increase in women's sports exposed the inadequacies of conventional brassieres for athletic use: weight shifts from bouncing caused straps on ordinary brassieres to slip around or off the shoulder; excessive motion caused friction and chafed skin; and hooks or other metallic elements tended to poke into the skin; and excessive bouncing caused soreness.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Division of Cultural and Community Life
Prototypes and finished Jogbras and Olympic pins. See accession: 2013.0322.
Materials at Other Organizations
Vermont Historical Society
Champion jogbra [publicity folder], 1988-2004
Summary: This packet of information contains photocopies and reprints of articles and advertisements from various publications, and press releases, published or released between 1988-2004, about the creation and development of the women's sports bra, Jogbra, by its inventors Hinda Miller and Lisa Lindahl.
Original jogbra
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Jogbra Brassiere, 1979. See Accession: 1980.51.
Separated Materials:
The Division of Culture and the Arts (now Division of Cultural and Community Life), National Museum of American History, holds JogBra-related artifacts. See accession 2013.0322.
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Hinda Miller in 2013.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.Collection is open for research.
Social Security numbers are present and numbers have been rendered unreadable and redacted. Researchers may use the photocopies in the collection. The remainder of the collection has no restrictions.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The Head Papers, 1926-1991, consist of correspondence, calendars, notes, company records (Head Ski Company and Prince Manufacturing Inc.), drawings, sketches, advertisements, product information, photographs, and slides documenting the development and design of both the Head ski and Prince oversized tennis racket. The collection is arranged into eight series:
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into eight series.
Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1926-1991
Series 2: Correspondence and Writings, 1943-1991
Series 3: Head Ski Company Records, 1943-1990
Series 4: Head Ski Company Reunion Materials, 1986
Series 5: Prince Manufacturing, Inc. Records, 1971-1991
Series 6: Historical Collection Materials, 1986-1991
Series 7: Posters, undated
Series 8; Audiovisual Materials, 1940s-1991
Biographical / Historical:
Howard Head was born July 31, 1914 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He attended William Penn Charter and graduated from Harvard in 1936 with a degree in engineering. From 1939 to1947, Head worked for Glenn L. Martin Company as a riveter and engineer. He left Martin and founded the Head Ski Company in Timonium, MD in 1948. The former aircraft engineer, developed, designed, manufactured, and marketed the first metal laminate skis in 1950 called the "Head Standard" which revolutionized the ski industry. These skis were made of two layers of aluminum bonded around a core of plywood at very high pressure; the outer layer was made of plastic. By 1952, Head introduced skis with edges made of tempered steel. His skis were lighter and faster than wood and earned the nickname "cheaters" by the industry. In 1969, Head introduced a fiberglass/metal ski, but this ski combined with a diversified product line of javelin and aluminum tennis rackets could not strengthen his company nor stop a takeover by AMF in 1970. In 1968, Head formed a tennis division of Head Sports Inc., to develop a metal tennis racket which he introduced at the U.S. Open in 1969. After Head sold his interests in Head Sports Inc., he became chairman of the board for Prince Manufacturing Inc., in 1971. He decided to enlarge the width and length of the traditional tennis racket, more than doubling its "sweet spot." He developed and patented a line of new aluminum rackets and introduced the "Prince Advantage" in 1976. The Prince racket company was sold to Cheesebrough Ponds in 1982. Head, who died in 1991, revolutionized both the ski and tennis industries.
Related Materials:
Artifacts donated to the National Museum of American History, Division of Cultural History (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) on May 19, 1997, include downhill skis, ski poles, ski boots, ski bindings, cross sections of downhill skis, competition medals, Prince tennis rackets, and racket covers.
Separated Materials:
Materials at the National Museum of American History
Artifacts were donated to the Division of Cultural History (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) on May 19, 1997,and include downhill skis, ski poles, ski boots, ski bindings, cross sections of downhill skis, competition medals, Prince tennis rackets, and racket covers.
Provenance:
This collection was donated to the National Museum of American History by Martha Head and The Howard and Martha Head Fund, Inc., May 19, 1997.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for redsearch. No reference copies of audiovisual materials available at this time.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Consists of some of the earliest examples from the late 19th century of paper dolls used to sell products and services. Businesses used the reverse side of the doll to print pertinent information relating to the product or service, location of the company, and brand messages. Clothing companies first used dolls in women's magazines and then later in clothing catalogues to promote ready to wear apparel and sewing patterns. Businesses involved in the food and beverage, personal care products, patent medicine, household goods, and sporting goods industries also used paper dolls to sell products and to create brand loyalty by offering different sets with purchases. Some of the earliest major American companies to use paper dolls as advertisements include Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company (A&P), Behr-Manning Company, Campbell's Soup Company, Coco-Cola Company, General Electric Company, and Quaker Oats Company. In addition, there is information about antique advertisements. Materials are arranged in alphabetical order by the name of the company.
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
The Carolyn and Donald Grepke Paper Doll Collection, 1800s-1998, undated, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
