Biro

Whilst working with a magazine, Hungarian journalist Laszlo Biró (September 29, 1899 – October 24,  1985) 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. Eventually Biró had the idea of replacing the nib with a metal ball which delivered the ink more evenly.

Had Biró kept the patent for the world's first ballpoint pen, his estate would be worth billions. As it happened, Biró sold the patent to one Baron Bich of France in 1945 and it soon became the main product of his Bic company.

The success of the biro was helped by it’s being offered to Royal Air Force airmen in the Second World War as it didn't leak at high altitudes.

Bíró moved to Argentina to develop his invention and he died in Buenos Aires in 1985.

Birome advertisement in Argentine magazine Leoplán, 1945. Wikipedia Commons

Argentina's Inventor's Day is celebrated on Bíró's birthday, September 29th.

American entrepreneur Milton Reynolds came across a Bíró ballpoint pen during a business trip to Buenos Aires. Recognizing commercial potential, he purchased several ballpoint samples, returned to the United States, and founded Reynolds International Pen Company.

His product Reynolds' Rocket ballpoint pens went on sale at Gimbels department store in New York City on October 29, 1945 for $12.95, the equivalent of $161.41 in 2023. Reynolds advertised it as the pen "to write under water." It was immediately successful: $100,000 worth sold the first day on the market.

Bíró was responsible for several other inventions, including a lock, a heat-proof tile, and a device for recording blood pressure.

Biró's name is pronounced to rhyme with “hero” not “giro."

The Frenchman Marcel Bich (1914-94) took over the invention in 1958 and created a disposable version, the Bic.

In 2008, Bic released a statement indicating that its standard ballpoint pens are capable of writing up to 2 kilometers (1.24 miles) of continuous line. 

Launched in 2012, the "Bic Cristal for Her" was a pink-hued spinoff of the classic pen, marketed specifically towards women. This decision was met with widespread criticism and mockery. Critics lambasted the product for its blatant gender stereotyping, suggesting that women somehow require specialized writing instruments different from their male counterparts.

The campaign's messaging further stoked the flames. Phrases like "Look Like a Girl" and "Think Like a Man" were deemed patronizing and insensitive, reinforcing harmful gender binaries. Predictably, sales plummeted, and the "Bic Cristal for Her" became a prime example of marketing gone wrong.

However, the story doesn't end there. The "Bic Cristal for Her" found its way into the Museum of Failure, a collection of well-intentioned products that met unfortunate ends. While not intended to be a badge of honor, the pen's inclusion serves as a reminder of the importance of inclusivity and sensitivity in marketing, especially when considering gendered products.

China produced over 38 billion ballpoint pens in 2016 - 80 percent of the world's pen production.

Ballpoint pens are widely referred to as "biro" in many English-speaking countries, including the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand.

On average, 100 people choke to death on ball-point pens every year.

According to the article "It's 70 today, but our favourite pen just keeps rolling along" published in The Guardian in 2008, an estimated 15 million Bic pens are sold every day worldwide, perhaps making the pen the world's most successful gadget.

Sources The Independent 3/11/07