Man or Machine: Rube Goldberg

Rube Goldberg – adjective – accomplishing by complex means what seemingly could be done simply

You have probably seen videos of Rube Goldberg machines online, and perhaps some in person. The board game “Mouse Trap” that I played as a child was inspired by his inventions. But who was Rube Goldberg and how did his name become part of the English language?

The Library

Nearly every week of the past 4 years, I have visited the public library to borrow children’s picture books to read to my son. I borrow about 10-20 books each time and we read and re-read them over the course of the week. We have about 200 favourites. Sharing my love of books with him and watching his reading preferences, vocabulary, and storytelling skills develop fills my heart. Stories help him handle stress and big feelings. They are a point of connection with other children and adults reading or listening to the story. But he also sometimes prefers to sit quietly by himself, allowing the story and its characters to speak directly to him as his memories, questioning, and imagination swirl together.

The Book

One great book that we read recently is: Just Like Rube Goldberg: The Incredible True Story of the Man Behind the Machines. It’s written by Sarah Aronson and illustrated by Robert Neubecker. I highly recommend it.

The Man

Rube Goldberg was born over 140 years ago to middle-class Jewish immigrants. “His father, who originally thought artists were not much more than beggars, eventually became his agent.” His first invention cartoon was published in a newspaper when he was 29 years old. For the next 20 years, Rube created a new invention nearly every 2 weeks, spending roughly 30 hours to finish each one. He said his contraptions were “a symbol of man’s capacity for exerting maximum effort to accomplish minimal results.”

He travelled to Paris during World War 1 to observe what was happening and would reference politics and real world controversy in his cartoons. During World War 2 he received hate mail and death threats, so he asked his sons to change their last name, which must have felt terrifying and heartbreaking.

“In 1948, Rube received the Pulitzer Prize for his political cartoon: “Peace Today”, which shows a house and a family perched on top of a giant atomic bomb, teetering between world control and world destruction.”

Throughout his life, Rube drew about 50,000 cartoons. He didn’t believe in retirement and became a sculptor at the age of 80, passing away 7 years later. He wrote: “You have to have courage to be a creator.”

The Legacy

I think there is a lot to admire and learn from Rube Goldberg, particularly for artists and creatives. I hope his story continues to be passed on, just as his “machines” live on and bring delight to many families around the world. Try building your own!

The Machines

Here are some of my favourite Rube Goldberg machine videos.