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| Etch A Sketch inventor Andre Cassagnes dies at 86 | Etch A Sketch inventor Andre Cassagnes dies at 86 |
| (about 11 hours later) | |
| The inventor of the classic toy Etch A Sketch has died at the age of 86. | The inventor of the classic toy Etch A Sketch has died at the age of 86. |
| Andre Cassagnes died in Paris on 16 January, the Ohio Art Company, the US-based firm that made the toy, said. | Andre Cassagnes died in Paris on 16 January, the Ohio Art Company, the US-based firm that made the toy, said. |
| Mr Cassagnes came up with the idea for a mechanical toy that creates erasable drawings by twisting two dials in the late 1950s, while working as an electrical technician. | Mr Cassagnes came up with the idea for a mechanical toy that creates erasable drawings by twisting two dials in the late 1950s, while working as an electrical technician. |
| Picked by the Ohio Art Company at a toy fair in 1959, Etch A Sketch went on to sell more than 100 million copies. | Picked by the Ohio Art Company at a toy fair in 1959, Etch A Sketch went on to sell more than 100 million copies. |
| Etch A Sketch, with its familiar red-frame, grey screen and two white dials, allows children to draw something and shake it away to start again. | Etch A Sketch, with its familiar red-frame, grey screen and two white dials, allows children to draw something and shake it away to start again. |
| Kites | Kites |
| Mr Cassagnes saw the potential for the toy when he noticed, while working with metal powders, that marks in a coating of aluminium powder could be seen from the other side of a translucent plate. | Mr Cassagnes saw the potential for the toy when he noticed, while working with metal powders, that marks in a coating of aluminium powder could be seen from the other side of a translucent plate. |
| The Ohio Art Company spotted the invention at the Nuremberg Toy Fair in 1959, and the next year it became the top-selling toy in the United States. | The Ohio Art Company spotted the invention at the Nuremberg Toy Fair in 1959, and the next year it became the top-selling toy in the United States. |
| "Etch A Sketch has brought much success to the Ohio Art Company, and we will be eternally grateful to Andre for that," the firm's president Larry Killgallon said. | "Etch A Sketch has brought much success to the Ohio Art Company, and we will be eternally grateful to Andre for that," the firm's president Larry Killgallon said. |
| "His invention brought joy to so many over such a long period of time." | "His invention brought joy to so many over such a long period of time." |
| The toy may seem old-fashioned in an age of tablet computers, but the Ohio Art Company says it still has a steady market, thanks in no small part to its appearance in the Toy Story movies. | The toy may seem old-fashioned in an age of tablet computers, but the Ohio Art Company says it still has a steady market, thanks in no small part to its appearance in the Toy Story movies. |
| And it became a feature of last year's US presidential campaign, when an aide to Republican candidate Mitt Romney likened his campaign to the toy. | And it became a feature of last year's US presidential campaign, when an aide to Republican candidate Mitt Romney likened his campaign to the toy. |
| "You can kind of shake it up and restart all over again," said campaign spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom, a comment seized upon by his rivals as evidence that Mr Romney was willing to change his position to get elected. | "You can kind of shake it up and restart all over again," said campaign spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom, a comment seized upon by his rivals as evidence that Mr Romney was willing to change his position to get elected. |
| Etch A Sketch has been named by the American Toy Industry Association as one of the most memorable toys of the 20th century. | Etch A Sketch has been named by the American Toy Industry Association as one of the most memorable toys of the 20th century. |
| As well as being the man behind Etch A Sketch, Andre Cassagnes also developed a reputation as the most successful designer of competition kites in France during the 1980s. | As well as being the man behind Etch A Sketch, Andre Cassagnes also developed a reputation as the most successful designer of competition kites in France during the 1980s. |