When I was a kid, jumping on a trampoline was both exhilarating and a little scary. (My mother always thought I was going to break my neck.) The New York Times announced today the death of 96-year-old George Nissen, the father of the trampoline. While in high school, gymnast George rigged a sheet of nylon in his parent’s garage such that he could bounce and flip. Later, he made a more flexible contraption and he and two friends formed the Three Leonardos, a traveling acrobatics act that performed throughout the Midwest and Texas and then in Mexico (where he heard the Spanish word for diving board: el trampolin.) According to the Times, he added an “e” and trademarked “Trampoline” for what has become a joy-inducing device in backyards, circuses and, since 2000, the Olympics. The photo above was taken in 1977 by Ron Munn after George scaled a pyramid in Egypt — one with a flattened top — set up a trampoline and did some flips. George, thanks for leaving behind some fun. I’m sure they’re flipping for you in heaven.
