László József Bíró (Hungarian pronunciation:, Spanish: Ladislao José Biro; 29 September 1899 – 24 October 1985) was the inventor of the modern ballpoint pen.
Bíró was born in Budapest, Hungary, in 1899 into a Jewish family. His father’s name was Mózes Mátyás Schweiger and his mother’s name was Janka Ullmann. He had one brother, György Bíró. He presented the first production of the ballpoint pen at the Budapest International Fair in 1931 While working as a journalist in Hungary, he noticed that the ink used in newspaper printing dried quickly, leaving the paper dry and smudge-free. He tried using the same ink in a fountain pen but found that it would not flow into the tip, as it was too viscous. Working with his brother György, a chemist, he developed a new tip consisting of a ball that was free to turn in a socket, and as it turned it would pick up ink from a cartridge and then roll to deposit it on the paper. Bíró patented the invention in Paris in 1938.
| László Bíró | |
|---|---|
Bíró, c. 1978
| |
| Born | László József Bíró 29 September 1899 Budapest, Austria-Hungary |
| Died | 24 October 1985 (aged 86) Buenos Aires, Argentina |
| Nationality | Hungarian |
| Other names | Ladislas Jozsef Biro Ladislao José Biro |
| Citizenship | Hungarian, Argentine |
| Known for | Inventor of the ballpoint pen |
| Religion | Jewish |
| Spouse(s) | Elsa Schick |
| Children | Mariana |
In 1943 the brothers moved to Argentina. On 10 June they filed another patent, issued in the US as US Patent 2,390,636,[3] and formed Biro Pens of Argentina (in Argentina the ballpoint pen is known as birome). This new design was licensed for production in the United Kingdom for supply to Royal Air Force aircrew, who found they worked much better than fountain pens at high altitude.[4]
In 1945 Marcel Bich bought the patent from Bíró for the pen, which soon became the main product of his Bic company.
László Bíró died in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1985. Argentina's Inventors' Day is celebrated on Bíró's birthday, 29 September.
In 2016, Google Doodle commemorated 117th anniversary of Bíró's birthday.[5]
"Biro" trademark
A ballpoint pen is widely referred to as a "biro" in many countries, including the UK, Ireland, Australia and Italy. Although the word is a registered trademark, it has become genericised.
