George Lerner (1922–1995) was an American inventor known for inventing Mr. Potato Head.

Biography

Lerner was born in Brooklyn, New York and worked during his lifetime as an artist, graphic designer, and model maker. In 1949, he designed and produced a first generation set of plastic face pieces. The push pin shaped noses, ears, eyes, and mouth parts could be pushed into fruits or vegetables to transform the food into playmates. The toy did not take off at first because post-

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

consumers didn't like the idea of wasting food by playing with it. Lerner finally sold the toy for $5,000 to a cereal company. The toys were planned to be a premium giveaway in cereal boxes. But when Lerner found a better deal offered by toy manufacturer Hassenfeld Brothers (now

Hasbro Hasbro, Inc. (; a syllabic abbreviation of its original name, Hassenfeld Brothers) is an American multinational conglomerate holding company incorporated and headquartered in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Hasbro owns the trademarks and products of K ...

), Lerner and the manufacturer bought the rights back for $7,000. Hasbro officially named the toy, Mr. Potato Head. In 1964 and 1975, George Lerner's original designs got their plastic head and size upgrades respectively, in order to comply with government issued safety regulations. Lerner died in 1995.

Personal life

Lerner was

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

, and was of

Romanian-Jewish The history of the Jews in Romania concerns the Jews both of Romania and of Romanian origins, from their first mention on what is present-day Romanian territory. Minimal until the 18th century, the size of the Jewish population increased after ...

descent.

References

Toy inventors 1922 births American people of Romanian-Jewish descent 1995 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American inventors 20th-century American Jews Mr. Potato Head American inventors {{US-business-bio-1920s-stub