Throughout his life, Warrick insisted that he and his colleague, Rob Roy McGregor, received the patent for Silly Putty before Wright did; but Crayola’s history of Silly Putty states that Wright first invented it in 1943. Both researchers independently discovered that reacting boric acid with silicone oil would produce a gooey, bouncy material with several unique properties. The non-toxic putty would bounce when dropped, could stretch farther than regular rubber, would not go moldy, and had a very high melting temperature. However, the substance did not have all the properties needed to replace rubber.
In 1949, Ruth Fallgatter, the owner of a toy store, came across the putty. She contacted Peter Hodgson, a marketing consultant. The two decided to market the bouncing putty by selling it in a clear case. Although it sold well, Fallgatter did not pursue it further. However, Hodgson saw its potential.
Already $12,000 in debt, Hodgson borrowed $147 to buy a batch of the putty and packed 1 oz. portions into plastic eggs for $1, calling it Silly Putty. Initially sales were poor, but after a mention in an article in The New Yorker, Hodgson sold over 250,000 eggs in three days. However, Hodgson was almost put out of business in 1951 by the Korean War, when silicone, a main ingredient in the product, was put on ration, harming his business.
A year later the restriction was lifted and the production of Silly Putty resumed. Initially, it was primarily targeted towards adults. However, by 1955 the majority of its customers were aged 6 to 12. In 1957, Hodgson produced the first televised commercial for Silly Putty, which aired during the Howdy Doody Show.
In 1961, Silly Putty went worldwide, becoming a hit in the Soviet Union and Europe. In 1968, it was taken into lunar orbit by the Apollo 8 astronauts.
Peter Hodgson died in 1976. A year later, Binney & Smith, the makers of Crayola products, acquired the rights to Silly Putty. As of 2005, annual Silly Putty sales exceeded six million eggs.
Silly Putty was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame on May 28, 2001.
