Airplane | Wrights and Wrongs | 2
American Innovations
Audible
4.6 • 4.1K Ratings
🗓️ 25 April 2019
⏱️ 42 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Glenn Curtiss may have mastered the technical aspects of the airplane, but in September of 1909, Curtiss found himself painfully ill-equipped to handle the latest challenge before him: the Wright brothers were suing him for patent infringement., demanding he stop building, selling, and even flying his planes.
While Curtiss was the main target of the lawsuit, the outcome of the case would affect the industry as a whole. That’s because the question at hand focused on the interpretation and application of patent law. Specifically, could any one man--or in this case, two brothers--legally own the air.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hey, Prime Members, you can listen to American innovations |
| 0:03.6 | and free on Amazon Music. |
| 0:05.6 | Download the app today. |
| 0:08.1 | One, two, one. |
| 0:22.6 | It's a cool September evening in 1909. |
| 0:26.2 | And in the town of Hammond Sport, New York, |
| 0:28.8 | the celebration is underway. |
| 0:31.6 | Extravican fireworks light up the sky. |
| 0:34.4 | Bonfire's blaze by the shore of Lake Cucumber. |
| 0:38.0 | The entire town is festooned with American flags, |
| 0:41.6 | all to mark the return of the hometown hero, Glen Hammond Curtis. |
| 0:47.9 | As Curtis makes his way from the train station |
| 0:50.3 | to the stage in the center of town, |
| 0:52.6 | he marvels wide-eyed at the welcome he's receiving. |
| 0:56.5 | It's been a little over a year since he piloted |
| 0:58.9 | the June Bug to Victory, and he hasn't slowed down since. |
| 1:03.1 | Once his contract with the AEA expired, |
| 1:06.3 | Curtis began manufacturing his own planes |
| 1:09.2 | right here in Hammond Sport. |
| 1:11.2 | He built the first commercially sold airplane |
| 1:14.2 | and then piloted it to a second scientific American trophy. |
| 1:18.7 | But today, he returns from his most thrilling accomplishment yet. |
... |
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