#69 Charles Goodyear: An Inventor's Obsession and the Struggle for a Rubber Monopoly

**David Senra** (0:00)
I want to tell you about a one-time only limited event that I don't think you're going to want to miss. I am doing a live show with Patrick O'Shaughnessy from the Invest Like the Best podcast in New York City on October 19th. Patrick has interviewed over 300 of the world's best investors and founders for his podcast. I've read over 300 biographies of history's greatest entrepreneurs for my podcast. We'll be talking about what we learned from seven years of podcasting, sharing our favorite ideas and stories, and doing a live Q&A. There will also be special event-only swag. If you live in New York City, I think it's a no-brainer. But if not, I think it's a great excuse to fly in. I've already heard from a bunch of people that bought tickets. They're flying in from other cities. Some people are flying in from other countries. That's setting the bar really high, so I will have at least four shots of espresso or four energy drinks before or during the show so we can make it a night that you'll never forget. If you're interested in attending this unique live event, I will leave a link down below. I highly recommend you get your tickets today, and I hope I get to see you in New York on October 19th. Long before America became an international economic powerhouse in the late 19th century, a generation of visionary inventors gambled on innovations they hoped would bring them riches. Chief among them was Charles Goodyear, who in the 1830s began an obsessive quest to find the recipe for rubber, the material he believed would change the world. Chasing his dream exacted a stiff price, plunging Goodyear and his family into an underworld of poverty and litigation. He spent extended periods in debtor's prison and acquired powerful enemies determined to control this miracle substance before he did. His victory in a dramatic lawsuit argued by Daniel Webster made Goodyear into an American legend, but it never released him from his tragic fixation or relieve the pain it caused those close to him. The Goodyear Story is a fascinating biography that also provides a panoramic view of America at the dawn of its industrial revolution. Drawing on recently discovered archival sources, Richard Korman tells a suspenseful story of scientific experimentation and legal struggle while he vividly portrays one of the godfathers of today's new economy pioneers.
Okay, so that is actually from the back cover of the book that I have in my hand, and the one I want to talk to you about, the one I read this week, which was The Goodyear Story, An Inventor's Obsession, and the Struggle for a Rubber Monopoly by Richard Korman. Before I jump into the book, I just want to read some of the blurbs that I felt were helpful.
They're on the back cover as well. Here's one. It says, This is a case study in psychopathology. Remember that word. A case study in psychopathology and business. It also portrays the waning era of the inventor as tinkerer before science puts such investigation on a systemic footing. Another one is, Although Korman doesn't emphasize it often, his book serves as an inspiration for entrepreneurs of any age. That's a good description of why it's going to be on the podcast. And finally, Besides tracing the life of this inspiring entrepreneur, Korman's social history of factory life and debtor's prison in the early to mid 1800s is exceedingly well drawn.
I'm going to, instead of starting in his early life, I want to start right before he dies, actually. And there's some excerpts on, that take place over a few pages in the prologue that I think give you a good idea, like a good prep to who Charles Goodyear is, or was, rather, before we get into his early life, and learn about how he basically created one of the largest, what has become one of the largest industries in the world, if you think about all the different uses that we use today for what's termed vulcanized rubber. And that's basically the process that Charles Goodyear invented, and was the basis of his business. All right, so this is actually taking place, let me give you some background here. There's a huge, I would say like it's a huge convention. It's taking place in 1851 It's called the Great Exhibition of 1851 It is in England, and it's where everybody is gathering together to show off the products they make and the inventions they have. And Charles Goodyear is at this convention, so I want to read a little bit about this. So it says, One of the most celebrated American exhibitors, notorious was the word his competitors would have used, was a former Philadelphia hardware store owner named Charles Goodyear. He epitomized the spirit of the upstart American technologist. So I actually started with that sentence. I wanted to include that sentence at the beginning of the podcast because when I read it, and I'm glad it appears towards the beginning of the book, it kind of smacked me in the face. When I hear the word technologist today, my mind immediately goes to information technology, the technological revolution that we're currently living through, the one of the Internet, computers, basically bits. I don't really think of technology in atoms.