October 17, 2007
The Associated Press
"The world has always screamed for poor taste."
Don Featherstone may or may not have thought as much when he designed the original pink plastic lawn flamingo, but there's little arguing with the quote now.
The kitchy plastic birds are celebrating 50 years of existence this year, and while there have been plenty of knockoffs (and questionable claimants to the design) since, Featherstone's signature on the tail is widely considered the benchmark for authenticity. Besides, Union Products Inc., which hired Featherstone as a young art school graduate to expand its lawn-ornament line in 1957, owned the original copyright.
Union Products shuttered its Leominster, Mass., plastics factory this year, but fear not -- it sold its flamingo copyright and molds to HMC International LLC, which plans to continue expanding the flock.
Hear Featherstone talk about his creation -- and its dubious legacy -- in this asap video by FRITZ FAERBER.
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Watch the video here: http://asap.ap.org/data/interactives/_lifestyles/flamingo/
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asap contributor Fritz Faerber works for the AP's bureau in Washington, D.C.
