Hedwig Keisler

Like you, I have the greatest grand kids on earth!

The two youngest are in high school, so naturally. they're no longer as interested in their old grandaddy's tall tales as they once were. Even though my "tall tales" were (almost) always the Gospel truth!

Recognizing that today's youngsters are never very far away from their cell phones.  I decided that my topic for this Thanksgiving's story for the kids would be about the inventor of the cell phone.

Well, to be technically correct, there was no ONE inventer.....but many people contributed....however, if it weren't for one person....around 1942 or so.....our present cell phones would not exist!

Now those of us....long in tooth...and soon to graduate from this green earth...all  know who this inventor was. But to  the young people of today, the name  Hedwig Keisler... means nothing. 

But, of course, back then, the term "cell phone" meant nothing to us!

It didn't mean anything to Hedwig either, because the technology was meant for something else:

To allow our torpedoes NOT to be "misdirected" by the existing Nazi technology!  

This was all happening during the early 1940's of course.

It would have worked perfectly and I would love to write that this "frequency shifting" technology contributed mightily to our eventual victory in WW2.

But, it didn't.

Our government simply filed the technology somewhere in Washington and forgot about it.

Meanwhile our torpedoes keep missing Nazi ships.

Hedwig went on to other things and was very successful and famous for awhile. But as old age....and society's.....fickleness took its toll....Hedwig ended up broke.
Even going hungry....and resorting to stealing (shoplifting)....for food.

Hedwig's invention was finally resurrected and used by the US Navy in the 1960's....but no royalties were ever paid because Hedwig GAVE it to the government during WW2.

 Several years after Kiesler's death...the same formula which made the invaluable tool that is in you pocket or purse right now...the cell phone......was made possible.

Thanks to that hungry bum who died penniless on the streets of Florida.

We all knew that  famous inventor ... 

as the once "Most Beautiful Woman in the World".....by her stage name..

Hedy Lamarr


-Ed

Hedwig Kiesler  AKA Hedy Lamar