Cooling It with Anita Bryant

Описание: The Early 1970s: At Least the A/C Was Cool

Anita Bryant, the resolutely Middle Of The Road vocalist, at one time lived in South Florida and at one time pitched Florida orange juice, so it should come as no surprise that she also sold another indispensable South Florida accessory, air conditioners. This spot highlights her vocal style; silence was a big selling point for Friedrich air conditioners, so somebody had to speak up.

We're highlighting air conditioning today because on May 6 1851 Dr. John Gorrie, a physician practicing in Apalachicola, was granted patent number 8080 for an ice making machine. Gorrie, who researched tropical diseases, thought that cooling sickrooms would benefit patients and obtaining ice in any quantity was a challenge in sultry Florida.

Gorrie's ideas form the basis of air conditioning, but he didn't benefit from them. He died in poverty in 1855 and the whole idea of air conditioning languished for another half century.