Ultimate Frisbee Players Mourn the Death of Frisbee Inventor Walter Frederick Morrison

Ultimate players will continue to huck, flick, and pull, but they'll do so knowing that the inventor of the Frisbee that they have come to know and love is no longer with us.

Walter Frederick Morrison, the man who invented the Frisbee, died on February 9, 2010.

The Frisbee was conceived through a series of interesting events. Morrison claims that he first had the idea while throwing a popcorn can lid with his future wife in 1937. Later the couple began to sell cake pans as toys with the moniker "Flyin' Cake Pans." In the late 1940s, Morrison designed the first plastic flying disc, and gave it the name "Flyin Saucer." After changing the name to "Pluto Platter," Morrison sold the rights to Wham-O in 1957. Wham-O started selling the discs as "Frisbees" in 1958, and the rest, as they say, is history.

The invention of the Frisbee eventually led to the creation of the much-loved sport of Ultimate Frisbee in 1968. Ultimate Frisbee (or Ultimate, as it is often called) is played on a field roughly the size of those used for soccer by two teams of seven that attempt to transport the Frisbee down the field in a series of throws by stationary players.

The response in the Ultimate Frisbee community to Morrison's death was one of sadness and respect for the man who set the stage for the birth of their beloved sport.

Shea Gunther at the Mother Nature Network says "I'm a relatively hardcore ultimate frisbee player, so the news of Mr. Morrison's passing had a larger impact on me than the average Joe on the street. I'd like to take this opportunity to have a bloggy moment of silence for Mr. Morrison."

Greg Pike at gregpike.ca is also saddened by the recent new. "Without Fred Ultimate (Frisbee) would not exist, a sport that has been a huge part of my life for the past eight years... Thank you Fred."

Joe Gramm can't help but stray from his main focus at the Upholstery Blog to say a few words about Morrison. "I know this is a blog about upholstery, but I just love the sport of Ultimate Frisbee. I even schedule upholstery estimates around games on Cape Cod. If Fred Morrison and his girlfriend hadn't been throwing a pie plate around at Thanksgiving dinner back in 1937, Ultimate Frisbee may not be around today."

So here's to you, Fred. Thanks for making our lives all a little brighter - and full of days spent endlessly chasing Frisbees with our friends across green fields in the sun.

For more information, check out this How-to Guide: Ultimate Frisbee and Ultimate Frisbee: Greatest Sport Ever.