Burt Meyer, the inventive mind behind some of America's most iconic toys, has died at the age of 99. A rep for the King-Bruwaert House retirement community in Burr Ridge, Illinois, where Meyer resided, says he died on Oct. 30, reports the AP. His son Steve also confirmed his death to the New York Times. Meyer's legacy includes household classics such as Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots, Lite-Brite, Mouse Trap, and Toss Across—games that lit up the childhoods of baby boomers and Gen Xers and remain in circulation today, per the Wall Street Journal.
As a leading designer at Chicago's Marvin Glass & Associates, the nation's preeminent toy design firm during the postwar era, Meyer helped shape the landscape of American playtime in the pre-digital age. His breakthrough came in the early 1960s, when he sketched out Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots after seeing an arcade boxing game. Real-life boxer Davey Moore's death, the pope's denouncement of the sport, and a Bob Dylan protest song about Moore led Meyer and his boss, Marvin Glass, to decide it was the wrong time to introduce a toy featuring human boxers.
Meyer soon whipped up the idea to feature robots instead, and the rest is history. But Meyer considered Lite-Brite, inspired by a New York City window display, to be his favorite invention. Meyer joined Marvin Glass in 1959 and later launched his own firm, Meyer/Glass Design, which produced hits like Gooey Louie. Meyer, an Illinois native, served as a Navy aircraft mechanic in World War II and earned a product design degree before entering the toy business. He lived a life as adventurous as his toys, flying planes, competing in ski races, and even journeying to the North Pole at 69. Meyer is survived by three children, six grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren. His wife, Marcia, died in 2001.
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