It was a naval engineer’s experiment that led to the development of the Slinky. Richard James was conducting experiments using torsion springs, when one of them fell and began to “walk” across the floor. He decided to take the spring home and show it to his wife. She thought it had potential as a toy item, and searched for a name in the dictionary. Eventually, they found a name that was both cute and described what the spring did — and the world was introduced to the Slinky.

The toy premiered in 1945 in Philadelphia at Gimbel’s Department Store. No one was quite sure how it would sell, but after 400 units disappeared off the shelves in 90 minutes, the Jameses knew they had a winner. Over 250 million Slinky toys have been sold throughout the world since then, making it one of the most popular toys over the last 60 years.

It’s appeared in various versions over the years — plastic, metal, and in alternate formats. The late Jim “Ernest P. Worrell” Varney portrayed Slinky Dog in Disney’s Toy Story series of films. If this isn’t enough for you, we’ll alert you to the fact that the Slinky was named the Official State Toy of Pennsylvania in 2001. Isn’t it good to see that our country’s state legislators are spending time and money doing such important stuff?