Iowa Almanac
Iowa Almanac -- Tuesday, July 23, 2024
a new way of shaving. More from the Iowa Almanac in a moment. Aloha! Attached at the island. Right here in Iowa. Hi there. Andy Peterson, joined Gary Dolphin and I as we host the annual Tate and Dottie Cummins Memorial Pineapple Gala to benefit Camp Courageous. It's Friday August 16th at 6 p.m. at the Double Tree Convention Center in downtown Cedar Rapids. Enjoy a Hawaiian dinner live inside of auction and more. Two view auction items or for tickets simply go to kibkerages.org and we'll see you there. Jacob's check was born in a tumwa on September 16th of 1877. He served in the army in the Philippines in the late 1800s and early 1900s and returned to service during World War I, eventually becoming a lieutenant colonel. In between those army stints, check staked mining claims in Alaska and Canada. During one particularly cold winter there with temperatures reaching 40 degrees below zero, he noticed he had a difficult time trying to shave with a conventional razor and shaving cream. Due to an ankle injury, he had to remain in camp alone for several months and it was during that time he first thought of the idea of a shaver that could be used without water or lather, a dry shaver. But when he returned to the continental U.S. after the war, no one was interested in his idea of a dry shaver. So in 1921, he invented a new type of safety razor inspired by the army repeating rifle. The magazine repeating razor had replacement blades stored in the handle, ready to be fed into shaving position without fear of a cut from a sharp blade. But Jacob Schick did not give up on his original idea and on July 23, 1929, he received a patent for the first electric razor, one which would shave without water or lather. He was so confident that the product would be a success he sold his interest in the magazine repeating razor company and founded a new one to produce and sell Schick electric razors. He also invented a boat for use in shallow water and an improved pencil sharpener. But a tum was Jacob Schick is probably best known for inventing the first electric razor, which received its patent on this date in 1929. And that's Iowa Almanac for July 23, follow us on Twitter @IowaAlmanac. Until tomorrow, I'm Jeff Stein.