Artist and World War II combat pilot Fredric Arnold famously invented the collapsible beach chair, but his most important work was a monumental tribute to American war heroes.
Fredric Arnold was a 'reluctant warrior,' creative dynamo and decorated World War II combat pilot. He miraculously survived 50 missions of flying P-38 Lightning warplanes over North Africa and Europe. The death he witnessed and inflicted in war was in deep contrast with the mild-mannered child prodigy artist from Chicago who spent the rest of his life as a creator: drawing, writing, acting and inventing.
Arnold possessed a rare combination of high levels of artistic creativity and mechanical aptitude. After combat duty, he helped the Army design improvements to P-38 performance and designed a cockpit urinal for female pilots — a convenience the military apparently overlooked. His most well-known innovation was devoted not to wartime but to leisure time. 'He’s quite the Renaissance man,' said Dr. Curatola of the National World War II Museum.
It was inspired by a frustrating encounter as his wife Natalie dragged heavy furniture to a Long Island beach. He received the patent for his lightweight but sturdy folding chair on Feb. 3, 1959. The chairs proved a pop-culture sensation. He founded the Fredric Arnold Co. in Brooklyn, in the shadows of the Brooklyn Bridge, which at its height produced 14,000 folding beach chairs per day. Despite his success, the war and the memories of his buddies killed overseas haunted Arnold.
Both were named Fred. Both flew dual-purpose pursuit planes, Morrison a P-47. Both miraculously survived 50 or more terrifying combat missions. Both were shot down and sent to German POW camps. Fred Morrison and Fred Arnold even shared the same birthday. Frisbee Fred was born on Jan. 23, 1920; folding chair Fred was born on Jan. 23, 1922.
Both men conceived their inventions at the beach – with the women they married. 'There is an obvious connection between the two men,' Marc Arnold said of his dad, and of Morrison, after Fox News Digital shared the similarities between the two men. To read more stories in this unique 'Meet the American Who…' series from Fox News Digital, click here. 'I think after the horrors of war they left behind, they sought to build a new reality.
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