Whose Invention Is the Ballpoint Pen?

László Bíró noticed that newspaper ink dried quickly without smudging but was too thick for fountain pens. Working with his brother György, a chemist, he developed a pen with a small rotating ball at the tip that picked up quick-drying ink. Bíró patented the design in Britain in 1938 and later moved to Argentina, where the pens were manufactured. The British Royal Air Force adopted them because they worked well at high altitudes, unlike fountain pens. In 1950 Marcel Bich launched the Bic Cristal, which became one of the best-selling pens in history.