A Historical Perspective

The Great Depression

1930:   3M pours profits into R&D, yielding Scotch tape.
1931:   Sears Roebucks notes automobile's popularity and creates Allstate auto insurance subsidiary.
1932:   Revlon launches with long-lasting nail polish.
1933:   Miracle Whip is born.
1934:   Campbell's Cream of Mushroom and Chicken Noodle soups are introduced.
1938:   GE introduces fluorescent light bulb, which has twice the lifespan of incandescent but uses half the power.
1939:   Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard establish Hewlett-Packard.

Eisenhower Recessions

1954:   Texas Instruments introduces transistor radio.
1955:   The first McDonald's (owned by Ray Kroc) opens.
1958:   Hello, Hula Hoop.
1960:   Medtronic purchases the rights to produce an implantable pacemaker.
1961:   Procter & Gamble tests Pampers disposable diapers.

Vietnam, Stagflation, Oil Crisis

1973:   Revlon's Charlie, designed for the working woman's budget, is a hit.
1974:   The first product with a UPC--a pack of gum--is scanned.
1974:   Arthur Fry and Spencer Silver invent Post-it Notes; 3M introduces the product in 1980.
1975:   Bill Gates and Paul Allen form Microsoft.

The Most Severe Recession Since The Great Depression (So Far)

1981:   MTV hits the airwaves.
1982:   Diet Coke makes its debut.
1983:   California firm (later IDEO) designs Apple computer mouse.
1983:   Microsoft introduces Word for MS-DOS 1.00.

Black Monday

1987:   Ameritech spends 10 percent more on fiber optic and digital technologies than in 1986.
1987:   Quark introduces QuarkXPress.
1987:   The Food and Drug Administration approves the use of Prozac for treating depression.

Gulf War, Oil Prices Surge

1991:   The World Wide Web and Apple PowerBook debut.
1992:   Kali's Bar is introduced. It becomes Clif Bar in 1997.

Dotcoms Implode, 9/11 Attacks

2000:   Adam Lowry and Eric Ryan found Method Products.
2001:   The iPod is unveiled; Orbitz.com goes live; X.com Corp., renamed PayPal, goes public; and XM Satellite Radio begins broadcasting.
2002:   RIM introduces BlackBerry 5810.

View a slideshow of this timeline here.

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