99% Invisible Rocket Man
14 snips
May 14, 2024 
Chris Berube, a producer known for his deep dives into design and culture, brings fascinating insights into the world of jetpacks. The conversation explores the dream and reality of personal flight, tracing the jetpack's rise and fall from Cold War military aspirations to its cultural significance in cartoons and public demonstrations. Berube shares anecdotes about the challenges and thrills of early jetpack technology, and the eventual decline in public interest despite advancements, revealing the paradox of human curiosity and innovation.
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The Jetpack Guy Story
- Chris Berube's dad told him stories about a co-worker who owned a jetpack.
- This co-worker supposedly used the jetpack for emergencies and even flew it in Superman 2 (which is false).
The Jetpack on the Mall
- David Taylor had a childhood memory of a man in a white suit hovering over the National Mall.
- He later found a 1967 photo in the Washington Post, validating his memory.
Jetpacks: From Fiction to Reality
- Jetpacks, initially appearing in 1930s Buck Rogers comics, became symbols of the future.
- Early attempts at creating jetpacks involved flying shoes with propellers and compressed air platforms.
