Census Bureau Daily Feature for Monday, January 12: Frisbees

WASHINGTON--(Business Wire)--
Profile America - Monday, January 12th. The Frisbee as we know it was introduced
this week in 1957, giving people of all ages, along with some talented dogs, an
excuse for hours of fun. The name is thought to have come from the Frisbee
Baking Company, which baked pies for colleges in New England for many years.
Students soon discovered the empty pie tins could be sailed through the air. In
1948, Walter Morrison invented a plastic version, which he called the "Pluto
Platter," to cash in on the UFO craze. Today, the Frisbee is an established part
of the inventory of the nation`s more than 45,000 sporting goods stores, which
ring up sales of over $26 billion annually. You can find these and more facts
about America from the U.S. Census Bureau online at www.census.gov.

Sources: Famous First Facts, 7585, p. 577
2002 Economic Census, NAICS 451110
http://www.census.gov/econ/census02/data/industry/E451110.HTM

Profile America is produced by the Public Information Office of the U.S. Census
Bureau. These daily features are available as produced segments, ready to air,
on a monthly CD or on the Internet at http://www.census.gov (look under the
"Newsroom" button).

U.S. Census Bureau
Rick Reed, 301-763-2812
fax: 301-763-3762
richard.thomas.reed-at-census.gov

Copyright Business Wire 2009