10 Inventions That Were Stolen Ideas
The real inventors behind iconic devices
Published 3 months ago in Wow
Though capitalism may often be thought to breed innovation — at least according to one genre of meme — it also brings with it something else: A whole lot of theft. Just as the creators of Monopoly, the windshield wiper, and several other inventors whose ideas were snatched away in pursuit of cold hard cash ... and probably some bragging rights.
From whiskey to an entire animation studio, here are 10 inventions that were actually stolen ideas.
1
Monopoly
Long before folks ended friendships, severed familial ties and left their lovers over soured rounds of Monopoly, the classic board game was known as “The Landlord’s Game,” designed by a woman named Elizabeth Magie in 1904. Intended to warn of the dangers of capitalism, Magie learned this lesson the hard way, after her idea was stolen by entrepreneur Charles Darrow.
2
Desktop Interfaces
“Apple got the idea of a desktop interface from Xerox. Later, Steve Jobs accused Gates of stealing from Apple. Gates said, ‘Well Steve, I think it's more like we both had this rich neighbor named Xerox and I broke into his house to steal the TV set and found out that you had already stolen it.’”
4
Jack Daniel’s Whiskey
“Nathan ‘Nearest’ Green, a slave, taught Jack Daniel how to brew whiskey. He became Daniel's Master Distiller, and is now known as ‘The Godfather of Tennessee Whiskey.’ His son George also became a Master Distiller and some of his descendants STILL work for Jack Daniel's Whiskey to this day.”