Milton Levine has passed away. He was 97.
Who?
Oh, he just created this:
Uncle Milton’s Ant Farm! Yes, he was Uncle Milton!
He came up with the idea for the ant farm by recalling his childhood collecting ants in jars. Thus was born an item that became part of American childhood, whether at home where mom could fret that the ants would get out, or at school where it shared shelf space with the class hamster. You’d set it up, mail in a coupon, and receive your ants in the mail (although most kids could just go out to the yard and scoop up all the ants you’d want). They’ve sold over 20 million of those green plastic “farms.”
Uncle Milton, the company, was sold last Summer. The company now sells all sorts of science toys, the kind good little nerds everywhere revere — including a whole line of Star Wars science toys (the Lightsaber Room light! The Force Trainer! The Jedi Telescope!).
Now, that’s a legacy.
Image: Uncle Milton
Just in case people have forgotten about this clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rF6MlSAz_oU
scrub ahead to about 55 sec
He gonna go up to the spirit in the sky; then immediately burrow into the clouds creating a subterranean tunnel for his queen.
Cxry “too soon!” if you must but someone’s got to do it:
Looks like Uncle Milton bought the farm.
There! It’s done! You read it! You can’t unread it!