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Invention of Lava Lamps
By Diane Downey
Lava Lamps came to light in the 60’s and continued to be popular through the 70’s. Edward Craven Walker, a “naturist” from Britain, was the inventor of these captivating blob-in-motion lamps. According to Craven, he was inspired by a certain “blob light” he saw in 1963 while having a brewsky in a local pub. This “blob light” consisted of old tins and a glass cocktail shaker having a mix of oil and water which was heated by a light bulb in the bottom. When he asked who invented this device, he was told it was a Mr. Dunnett who was no longer alive. Mr. Craven decided to try to create a better version of the lamp, replacing the oil with something more attractive. He ended up using fluorescent paraffin wax and oil which bent very nicely into different shapes. An American businessman, Adolph Wertheimer, noticed Walker’s light at a Hamburg, Germany show in 1965 and was instantly impressed. He knew that it would be a big hit with the current psychedelic generation. He was even quoted as saying, “If you buy my lamp, you won't need drugs." (However, from my own personal experience of coming from that generation, the pleasure of doing drugs and gazing captivatingly into those lamps went hand in hand.)
Wertheimer and his partner, Hy Spector, bought distribution rights in 1966 and named it the Lava Lite Lamp. They sold millions and started creating a fortune for themselves. Originally produced in Chicago, these original Lava Lites had a gold base with either white or red lava in blue or yellow liquid. During the 80’s the popularity of the Lava Lite started to diminish. However, later on Cressida Granger took over the rights and started a company named Mathmos which marketed to a whole new generation. The sales reached over $25 million in 1999. Currently the Lava Lamp is doing quite well. 400,000 sales a year have been reported.
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Edward Craven Walker
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I love Lava Lamps - have 2 in my home - groovy
Even though I was born as a result of the sixties hippy era, I still grew to appreciate the lava lamp for it's asthetic properties and hypnotic qualities.
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This intel was contributed by DLDowney
DLDowney
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May, 2012
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