USELESS MACHINES

A useless machine or useless box is a device which has a function but its direct purpose is deliberately unknown. The best-known useless machines are those inspired by a design, in which the device's sole function is to switch itself off by operating its own "off" switch. Such machines were popularised commercially in the 1960s, sold as an amusing engineering hack, or as a joke.

More elaborate devices and some toys which have a more obvious function or entertainment value, have been based on these simple useless machines. In the 1960s, a novelty toy maker called "Captain Co." sold a "Monster Inside the Black Box", featuring a mechanical hand that emerged from a featureless plastic black box and flipped a toggle switch, turning itself off. Other versions have been produced In their conceptually purest form, these machines do nothing except switch themselves off.

It is claimed that Don Poynter, who graduated from the University of cincinnatoi in 1949 and founded ,Poynter products lnc.., first produced and sold the "Little Black Box", which simply switched itself off. He then added the coin snatching feature, dubbed his invention "The Thing", arranged licensing with the producers of the television show, The Addams Family, and later sold "Uncle Fester's Mystery Light Bulb" as another show spinoff product . Robert J. Whiteman, owner and president of liberty library corporation also claims credit for developing "The Thing". (Both companies were later to be co-defendants in land mark litigation initiated by Dr.Seuss

Both the plain black box and the bank version were widely sold by spencer gifts, and appeared in its mail-order catalogs through the 1960s and early 1970s. As of 2015, a version of the coin snatching black box is being sold as the "Black Box Money Trap Bank" or "Black Box Bank". versions of the useless machine (often modernized with microprocessor controls) have been featured in a number of web videos and inspired more complex machines that are able to move or which use more than one switch. As of 2015, there are several completed or kit form devices being offered for sale.

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