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To celebrate National Sea Monkey Day, before buying Sea Monkeys — consider this instead
After a crazy history and the death of their creator in 2003, his widow is stuck in a court battle, and has no electricity
May 16 — Yes it’s one of those weird holidays, likely based on the nostalgia for “Sea Monkeys”, a children’s novelty toy which sold like hotcakes in the 1960s — 1970s straight from the back pages of comic books. Your parents (or possibly you) may remember having them.
Sea Monkeys were a combination of selectively bred Brine shrimp, and an ingenious viral marketing campaign — before viral marketing was a thing. The creator, Harold von Braunhut, actually worked with a Microbiologist in New York, resulting in eggs that were heartier, would last longer while dry, and with a higher yield when hatching. In 1998, John Glenn actually took some Brine shrimp to space for nine days; they were unaffected and hatched back on earth, apparently unfazed by neither the journey nor the radiation.
“Sea Monkeys” were sold to children for $1.25 (with shipping and handling included) in a state of suspended animation (called crypto biosis), along with a tiny plastic aquarium, food, and “water purifier”. The amazing little creature’s eggs were to be added to water to…
