On May 26, 1959, the term Frisbee became an official registered trademark when the Wham-O toy company received Trademark No. 679,186. The name was inspired by the metal pie tins produced by the Frisbie Pie Company of Connecticut, which New England college students had been tossing around for decades. Wham-O intentionally altered the spelling to Frisbee to avoid trademark infringement lawsuits from the baking company, turning a campus bakery tradition into a global backyard phenomenon.
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