I‘m sure you don’t give much thought to who invented things like the telephone or lasers…

But, the story behind some of history’s greatest inventions is pretty crazy! Just imagine coming up with a billion dollars idea just to have it stolen by some company… or even your friend!

From the light bulb to Monopoly… Find out who was lying and who won recognition for something they didn’t invent!

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1. Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone… or didn’t he?

Did you know that in 2002 the US congress stated that phone’s real inventor was a poor Italian man? Antonio Meucci demonstrated his “teletrófono” in New York 16 years before Bell showed the telephone!

He sent his invention to the Western Union, trying to bring it to the market… But, guess what happened? The Western Union “lost” his invention… Meucci sued Bell but died in the process…

Next inventor was betrayed by his teacher!

2. Beware of jealous teachers: The Laser

Gordon Gould had to fight his right to own the patent for lasers for 30 years! His college’s teacher, Charles H. Townes, stole his idea after Gould discussed it with him…
2 years after that, his teacher patented his idea! When Gould heard about this he sued Townes…
It wasn’t until 1988 that Gould won the trial and earned millions of dollars!
Next up: Shame on you Galileo Galilei!

3. Bad Galileo!

Galileo Galilei earned fame in history for inventing the telescope… But, he didn’t invent it! A dutch eyeglass maker called Hans Lippershey did it!
He was the first person to apply for the telescope patent back in 1608…
Galileo heard the news about this invention and improved the magnification of the lenses…
Next inventor is the one with the biggest amount of stolen inventions… Poor guy!

4. Poor Nikola Tesla: The Radio

Guglielmo Marconi won a Nobel Prize for his work on “long- distance communications”…
But, he stole this invention from poor Nikola Tesla! Rich and powerful sponsors helped him improve his model in the US…
The saddest part is that Tesla had the legal rights to the patents! But, after this the US Patent Office gave Marconi the patent…
Next inventor was clever and simple!

5. The anyway up cup…

Mandy Haberman was an amateur inventor… She came up with an idea to make a cup with a slit valve and prevent spills! She patented her idea and showed it to a lot of big brands, trying to sell it… But, she got rejected…
One of the companies (Tommy Tippee) stole her invention and started selling it! When she found out about this, she sued the company and won!
Now, she’s earning 10 million dollars a year!
You’ll never imagine what famous board game was stolen!

6. Monopoly

Charles Darrow is supposed to be the designer of this famous game… He sold the rights of “his invention” in 1935… But, guess what?
The boardgame was already patented in 1904! A woman called Lizzie Maggie invented this game and named it “The Landlord’s Game…
The company that bought “Monopoly” paid Lizzie Maggie only $500 dollars for the patent…
Next invention is so random you wouldn’t believe it!

7. Intermittent windshield whippers

Robert Kearns lost his job, wife and mental health after 3 big auto makers stole his invention… Ford, General Motors and Chrysler refused to buy his invention… But, guess what?
They started to install Kean’s mechanism in all their cars! After 20 years of fighting these companies in court, Kearns won tens of millions of dollars!
Next up: another smart female inventor without recognition…

8. Brown Paper Bag Machine

Margaret Knight was a famous female inventor… When she was working at a paper bag plant she designed a machine that produced bags with a flat bottom… This way they could pack more.
But… A man called Charles Anan stole her idea! She sued him and proved that it was her idea!
Next stolen invention was stolen by… guess who! Naughty naughty…

9. Naughty Edison Part I: The light bulb

Thomas Edison was a rich inventor known for “inventing” the indoor light bulb…
But, what you didn’t know is that British inventor Joseph Swan already had a version of it….
He allowed Edison to sell the bulbs in America and maintain his reputation…
Next up: Seriously? This man stole another invention?

10. Naughty Edison Part II: The “moving picture”

Edison strikes again! During the 1980’s Edison developed his “Edison Vitascope”… But, the idea actually came from inventor Francis Jekins who was working in the project.
Thomas Armat was Jekins’ partner during the project but… he left and started working with Edison!
Next stolen inventions is one of your favorite items ever!

11. Television

Philo Taylor Farnsworth was a brilliant American inventor… but, you probably don’t know that!
In 1927 he developed a piece of technology that made modern television possible! But, in 1930 Vladimir Zworykin visited his lab and sold Fansworth’s idea to a company called RCA.
Fansworth sued the company and won the case… But, he didn’t achieve the wealth or recognition he deserved…
Next up: The brand that stole this invention is still famous!

12. The Sewing Machine

A man called Elias Howe patented the design for sewing machines in 1846… But, Isaac Singer (Yes, the same Singer that keeps on selling sewing machines) stole his idea!
Howe sued and he and Singer came to a private arrangement…
Next stolen inventions show how science books are lying to you!

13. Penicillin

History gives credit to Alexander Flemming for “discovering” penicillin…
But, in fact, he wasn’t the first person to use it!
A scientist called Ernest Duchesne was the first to use the mold penicillum glaucoma to cure typhoid in guinea pigs!!

Next stolen invention comes from Germany… not from the US!

14. Cars are a German invention

The year: 1885

The location: Germany

The invention :The first automobile powered by his own four-stroke cycle gasoline engine.

Karl Benz is the man behind the idea, which he patented in 1886! Yet, Henry Ford appears as the inventor in many books… Weird uh?

15. Powered Flight

The Wright Brothers are famous for doing the first heavier-than-air human flight…

But, only 9 months earlier Richard Pearse did the same thing in New Zealand! Pearse model was even more modern than The Wright Brother’s design…

Next stolen invention is the reason why you’re here!

16. The freaking internet dude

Al Gore said: “During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet.”

But, the father of internet is Vinton Cerf… He developed the idea with Lawrence Roberts, Leonard Kleinrock and Robert Kahn.

Next up: guess who’s back? Naughty man!

17. Naughty Edison Part III: Recorded Audio

Thomas Edison started developing the principle of recording and reproducing sound in 1877…
But, 17 years before a French man called Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville invented the phonautograph!
The apparatus transcribe sound to a visible medium…
Next one is a shocker…

18. Seriously Einstein? The Theory of relativity

Every single science book says that Albert Einstein invented the theory of relativity… So, it must be true, right?

In fact, Henri Poincaré was the first person to present the theory of relativity in a formal way…

He even published more than 30 books and 500 papers about it! But, Einstein doesn’t even quote him!

Next one is the most unexpected thing EVER…

19. Omg… The Moonwalk

Yes, this is some shocking freaking information but Michael got the idea from a Soul Train dancer…

… and this Soul Train dancer actually got the idea from a tap dancer named Bill Bailey!

Still, Michael owned the moved and made it his own!

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