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Polaroid Corporation

1937-

The Polaroid Corporation was founded by Edwin H. Land. He registered his first patent (for a synthetic polarzier) in 1926, and created the Land-Wheelwright Laboratories in Boston with George Wheelwright III in 1932. The company initially produced glasses with polarized lenses, including 3D glasses and Army issue goggles. The inspiration for instant photographs reportedly came to Land from his daughter, who while on vacation in 1943, asked her father why she couldn't see a photo he had just taken right away. By 1947, the first demonstration model of the instant camera was complete. The first Land instant cameras (Model 95) were sold in 1948, and by 1956 the one millionth Polaroid Camera was manufactured in Cambridge Massachusetts. Colour instant film was introduced by the company in 1963, and soon after automatic film pack cameras were developed. Over the years, the company had many spokespeople for its products, including Lawrence Olivier, Steve Allen, the Muppets, James Garner, Mariette Hartley, Sinbad and the Spice Girls. The original Polaroid company filed for bankruptcy in 2001, and by 2002 it was a new private company held by Bank One.

The original Polaroid Corporation is now known as Primary PDC, and exists under chapter 11 protection of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. The company that continues under the name Polaroid Corporation (as of 2002) is a separate, privately held company.

PLR Ecommerce, LLC. (2014). History. Polaroid. Retrieved from: http://www.polaroid.com/history
Deutsch, C. (13 October, 2001). Deep in Debt Since 1988, Polaroid Files for Bankruptcy. The New York Times. Retrieved from: http://www.nytimes.com/2001/10/13/business/deep-in-debt-since-1988-polaroid-files-for-bankruptcy.html