Marion A. Trozzolo (1925 – June 30, 1992) was a pioneer, visionary, innovator,
inventorAn inventor is a person who creates or discovers a new method, form, device or other useful means. The word inventor comes form the latin verb invenire, invent-, to find...
,
entrepreneurAn entrepreneur is a person who has possession of an enterprise, or venture, and assumes significant accountability for the inherent risks and the outcome. It is an ambitious leader who combines land, labor, and capital to often create and market new goods or services. ... The term is a loanword...
, and
professorThe meaning of the word professor varies. In some English-speaking countries, it refers to a senior academic who holds a departmental chair, especially as head of the department, or a personal chair awarded specifically to that individual...
of business at
Rockhurst UniversityRockhurst University is a private, coeducational Jesuit university located in Kansas City, Missouri, founded in 1910 as Rockhurst College. The school adheres to the motto etched into the stone of the campus bell tower: "Learning, Leadership, and Service in the Jesuit Tradition." It is one of 28...
in
Kansas City, MissouriKansas City is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties. It is one of two county seats of Jackson County, the other being Independence, just to the city's east...
. He is called the "inventor of the Teflon coated frying pan" and was the developer of the Kansas City entertainment district River Quay.
Trozzolo was born in
CastroliberoCastrolibero is town and comune in the province of Cosenza in the Calabria region of southern Italy. It contains the ruins of the ancient city of Pandosia....
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
, and was one of three brothers. His family immigrated to Chicago, Illinois in 1927 for a better life for their children.
Marion A. Trozzolo (1925 – June 30, 1992) was a pioneer, visionary, innovator,
inventorAn inventor is a person who creates or discovers a new method, form, device or other useful means. The word inventor comes form the latin verb invenire, invent-, to find...
,
entrepreneurAn entrepreneur is a person who has possession of an enterprise, or venture, and assumes significant accountability for the inherent risks and the outcome. It is an ambitious leader who combines land, labor, and capital to often create and market new goods or services. ... The term is a loanword...
, and
professorThe meaning of the word professor varies. In some English-speaking countries, it refers to a senior academic who holds a departmental chair, especially as head of the department, or a personal chair awarded specifically to that individual...
of business at
Rockhurst UniversityRockhurst University is a private, coeducational Jesuit university located in Kansas City, Missouri, founded in 1910 as Rockhurst College. The school adheres to the motto etched into the stone of the campus bell tower: "Learning, Leadership, and Service in the Jesuit Tradition." It is one of 28...
in
Kansas City, MissouriKansas City is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties. It is one of two county seats of Jackson County, the other being Independence, just to the city's east...
. He is called the "inventor of the Teflon coated frying pan" and was the developer of the Kansas City entertainment district River Quay.
Early life and education
Trozzolo was born in
CastroliberoCastrolibero is town and comune in the province of Cosenza in the Calabria region of southern Italy. It contains the ruins of the ancient city of Pandosia....
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
, and was one of three brothers. His family immigrated to Chicago, Illinois in 1927 for a better life for their children. A veteran of
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Trozzolo earned a
Silver StarA bronze medal is a medal awarded to the third place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The practice of awarding bronze third place medals began at the 1904 Olympic Games in St...
and
Purple HeartThe Purple Heart is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those who have been wounded or killed while serving on or after April 5, 1917 with the U.S. military. The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor is located in New Windsor, New York...
for his service. After the war, he attended the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
where he received a bachelor's degree in Philosophy and a Master's degree in Business Administration.
Career
Trozzolo moved to Kansas City, Missouri in 1951 to pursue a career as a professor of business administration and economics at Rockhurst University.
The Happy Pan
In 1957 he founded Laboratory Plasticware Fabricators producing plastic-coated scientific utensils, including a
TeflonIn chemistry, polytetrafluoroethylene is a synthetic fluoropolymer of tetrafluoroethylene which finds numerous applications. PTFE is most well known by the DuPont brand name Teflon....
-coated magnetic stirring rod. He eventually experimented with coating pans and E. I. duPont deNemours & Company executives endorsed the plan.
In 1961 he unveiled the "Happy Pan", a Teflon coated frying pan (although the frying pans had been selling in France since 1954). He was the first American to manufacture and market Teflon coated frying pans.
After its success, other companies began marketing the pans and he went back to focusing on his scientific instrument sales and got out the kitchen ware industry.
One of the original Happy Pans is now at the
Smithsonian InstitutionThe Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its shops and its magazines...
.
During the Presidency of
Ronald ReaganRonald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States and the 33rd Governor of California .Born in Tampico, Illinois, Reagan moved to Los Angeles, California in the 1930s...
he marketed Teflon coat mementos in honor of the "Teflon president." He was also to donate a Teflon coating for the fence around the
Harry S. TrumanHarry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice-president and the 34th Vice President of the United States, he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
home in
Independence, MissouriIndependence is the fourth largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri, and is contained within the counties of Jackson and Clay. It is part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. The city had a total population of 110,440 in 2008, and is the 224th largest city in the United States...
.
River Quay
The name “Quay” means a landing place by a body of water, and the pronunciation is “key”. The name was selected because the area’s northern boundary is the Missouri River and the district is the site of Westport Landing, a stopping place for explorers and settlers of the West. This is where Kansas City began.
As early as 1958, Trozzolo discovered the charm of the old buildings surrounding the city market. Over the years he acquired over 30 buildings. By 1971, a real community of small shops was forming and on June 30, 1972 River Quay was officially born. In two years it grew to include over 80 shops and restaurants which attracted thousands of people each year. The entertainment district was similar to
Ghirardelli SquareGhirardelli Square is a landmark with shops and restaurants in the Fisherman's Wharf area of San Francisco, California.Ghirardelli Square once featured over 40 specialty shops and restaurants, in addition to the Ghirardelli Soda Fountain & Chocolate Shop, known for its world famous ice cream...
in
San Francisco, CaliforniaSan Francisco is the fourth most populous city in California and the 12th most populous city in the United States, with a 2008 estimated population of 808,976. It is the eighth most densely populated city in the U.S. and is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the larger San...
or
Old Town, ChicagoOld Town is a neighborhood in Chicago, Illinois, It sits inside the community areas of Lincoln Park and the Near North Side, and is part of Chicago's 43rd Ward. It is bounded by Armitage Avenue on the north, Division Street on the south, Halsted Street on the west, and Clark Street on the east...
. Its initial slogan was "The Old New Town." In 1973, he said, “We have a real feeling of community. People are happy here. Even the shoppers and business people who come just for lunch are smiling and more relaxed.” Perhaps that is why River Quay’s slogan became “A community in downtown Kansas City, rich in leisure, arts, craftsmanship and 19th century flavor.”
Trozzolo was especially creative in his marketing campaign of "The River Quay". He imported three red double-decker buses from
Great BritainGreat Britain is an island lying to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island. With a population of about 59.6 million people, it is the third most populated island on Earth. Great Britain is surrounded by over 1000 smaller...
and began to run bus routes all over town. Promoting and encouraging people to "Come see... The River Quay" (the official slogan) with bill boards and painted signs.
Marriage and children
He was married to his wife Phyllis for 35 years. They had seven children, Alexandra, Angela, Andrea, Anita, Peter, Jon and Alisa.
External links