Today In Black History: Dr. Lonnie Johnson
Aerospace Engineer and Inventor of the "Super Soaker"
Issue #746 Today In Black History, Monday, October 14, 2024
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Dr. Lonnie Johnson was born in Mobile, Alabama, on October 6, 1949. He demonstrated a keen interest in science from a young age, building a robot out of scrap metal during high school, which he entered into a science fair. Stating that he "always liked to tinker with things," Johnson earned the nickname "the Professor" from kids in the neighborhood. He once "tore up his sister's baby doll to see what made her eyes close.” He also tried to cook up rocket fuel in a saucepan but, in doing so, almost burned down the house.
A prolific inventor and visionary engineer, Dr. Johnson's work has revolutionized the toy industry and advanced energy technology.
Johnson's talents and determination led him to pursue a career in engineering. He attended Tuskegee University on a scholarship, earning mechanical and nuclear engineering degrees. He also holds an honorary Ph.D. in Science from Tuskegee University. He then worked for the U.S. Air Force, where he worked on the stealth bomber program, before eventually joining NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in 1979.
Johnson began his career at NASA, working on the Galileo mission to Jupiter and the Mars Observer project. However, a chance experiment in his home led to his most famous invention: the Super Soaker water gun. Launched in the early 1990s, the Super Soaker became one of the best-selling toys of all time.
Johnson first conceived the Super Soaker while working with the U.S. Air Force. When it first appeared in toy shops in 1990, it was initially called the "Power Drencher." After some tweaks and remarketing, it eventually got its trademark name.
In February 2013, Johnson filed suit against Hasbro after he discovered that he was being underpaid royalties for the Super Soaker and several Nerf toys. In November 2013, Johnson was awarded nearly $73 million in royalties from Hasbro Inc. in arbitration. According to Hasbro, the Super Soaker is approaching sales of $1 billion.
Beyond his work in the toy industry, Dr. Johnson has been a pioneer in energy technology. He founded Johnson Research & Development Co. and has been actively engaged in developing advanced energy systems. His efforts include the Johnson Thermoelectric Energy Converter (JTEC), a device designed to convert heat into electricity with high efficiency, potentially redefining the landscape of renewable energy.
Dr. Johnson holds over 250 patents, most of which are for his Super Soaker. Johnson was awarded the Air Force Achievement Medal and the Air Force Commendation Medal. He received several awards from NASA for his work in spacecraft system design at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. In 2008, he was awarded the Breakthrough Award from science magazine Popular Mechanics for his work related to JTEC. He was inducted into the State of Alabama Engineering Hall of Fame in 2011. In 2015, the Super Soaker was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame.
In 2022, Dr. Lonnie Johnson was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame.
Today In Black History
In 1834, Black inventor Harry Blair patented his corn-planting machine, becoming the 2nd African-American inventor to receive a patent from the U.S. Patent Office.
In 1864, the first African American daily newspaper, the New Orleans TribuneI, was published in English and French.
In 1958, the District of Columbia Bar Association voted to accept African Americans as members.
In 1964, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. became the youngest man ever to win the Nobel Peace Prize.
In 1964, Indigenous American Billy Mills scored a major upset by winning the 10,000m race at the Tokyo Olympics. He became the only American to win that event.
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