A spring changes jobsSourced
A shipboard spring suggested a toy
In 1943 Richard T. James worked on springs for supporting sensitive instruments aboard ships. Watching a dropped spring keep moving reportedly suggested a toy. He and his wife Betty developed the idea into the Slinky.
Equipment research took a playful turn.
Summary / translation: Unbubly · CC BY-SA 4.0
Source and reuse details
Richard T. James · Wikimedia contributors
Adapted, summarized and translated from the source. Adapted text is also available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Reviewed: 2026-10-05