THE 100 MOST INFLUENTIAL INVENTORS OF ALL TIME

7 The 100 Most Influential Inventors of All Time 7

from Asian camphor trees), and alcohol and then pressing
the mixture in a heated mold. The solid solution was
kneaded into a doughlike mass to which colouring agents
could be added either in the form of dyes for transparent
colours or as pigments for opaque colours. The coloured
mass was rolled, sheeted, and then pressed into blocks.
After seasoning, the blocks were sliced; at this point
they could be further fabricated, or the sheeting and
pressing process could be repeated for various mottled
and variegated effects. The plastic, which softened at the
temperature of boiling water, could be heated and then
pressed into innumerable shapes, and at room temperature
it could be sawed, drilled, turned, planed, buffed, and
polished.
Hyatt and his brother Isaiah first attempted to market
the plastic, which they patented in 1870 as celluloid, as a
substitute for hard rubber in denture plates. In 1872 they
moved their Celluloid Manufacturing Company from
Albany to Newark, N.J., where they put numerous patents
to work in building up what became the premier celluloid
company in the world. The Hyatts concentrated on
forming celluloid into sheets, rods, and other unfinished
shapes, usually leaving their fabrication into practical
objects to licensed companies such as the Celluloid
Brush Company, the Celluloid Waterproof Cuff and
Collar Company, and the Celluloid Piano Key Company.
A tough, flexible, and moldable material, resistant to
water, oils, and dilute acids, and capable of low-cost pro-
duction in a variety of colours, celluloid was made into many
other mass-produced goods. In all of these applications
celluloid was marketed as an affordable and practical sub-
stitute for natural materials such as ivory, tortoise shell,
and horn. Beginning in the 1880s celluloid acquired one
of its most prominent uses as a substitute for linen in
detachable collars and cuffs for men’s clothing. Over the