Kia ora koutou, and welcome back to Milli’s Top Five! Last week, the heaviest coat of bees won the weirdest world record. This week I’m counting down inventions that someone was sure would change the world. Some cost millions of dollars, and some had people lining up to buy them. But every single one of them flopped. Read on, then head to the Kahoot at the end to vote for the one you think was the biggest flop of all.
5. The Segway (United States)
Coming in at number five is the Segway. When it was revealed in 2001, there was so much excitement that some people said it would change the way everyone got around cities. The Segway is a two-wheeled scooter that balances itself using clever sensors, and you steer simply by leaning forwards or backwards. The company hoped to sell 100,000 of them in the first 13 months. But a Segway cost around US$5,000 (in American money), about the price of a second-hand car, and lots of people weren’t sure whether it belonged on the footpath or the road. In almost 20 years, it sold about 140,000 altogether. That’s not much more than it hoped to sell in its first year! It did find fans among police officers and tourist groups, but the original Segway stopped being made on 15 July 2020.
4. Smell-O-Vision (United States)
At number four is an invention that, quite honestly, stank. Imagine watching a movie and smelling it at the same time! That was the idea behind Smell-O-Vision, invented by Hans Laube. In January 1960, a film called Scent of Mystery opened in specially fitted cinemas in the United States. Pipes ran under the seats and puffed out smells, like perfume, flowers and tobacco, to match what was happening on screen. The smells were even part of the story, giving the audience clues to help solve the mystery. Sadly, it didn’t go to plan. Some people complained that the smells arrived too late or were too faint, and the machines made a hissing noise. Audiences and critics weren’t impressed, and the film soon disappeared from cinemas. Scent of Mystery became the first, and last, film ever made in Smell-O-Vision.
3. New Coke (United States)
In third place is a drink that made a whole country cross. On 23 April 1985, the Coca-Cola company did something nobody expected: it changed its famous secret recipe. The new drink was sweeter, and in taste tests, lots of people actually said they liked it more. But once it hit the shelves, many Americans were furious. To them, Coke was part of everyday life, and they felt something special had been taken away. The company was flooded with angry phone calls and letters, and some people even stocked up on the old version before it disappeared. Just 79 days later, the original recipe was back, with a new name: Coca-Cola Classic. Some people still reckon the whole thing was a clever trick to get everyone talking about Coke, but the company has always said it was a real mistake.
2. The Martin Jetpack (Aotearoa)
Coming in at number two is a flop from right here at home. Who hasn’t dreamed of flying to school? Christchurch inventor Glenn Martin certainly had, and in the 1980s he started building a jetpack in his garage. After many years of work, it was finally shown to the world in 2008. It wasn’t strapped to your back like in the movies. Instead, the pilot stood inside a frame between two big fans and steered with hand controls. It could fly for almost half an hour, and the company planned to sell it to emergency services first. But even after years of testing and millions of dollars spent, not a single jetpack was ever sold to a customer. The company closed in 2019, and in 2021 its prototypes (test models) were sold on Trade Me. One went for $158,200, which is a lot of money for a jetpack that couldn’t fly!
1. Heinz EZ Squirt tomato sauce (United States)
And my number one biggest flop is… Heinz EZ Squirt tomato sauce! This was the time tomato sauce stopped being red. In 2000, Heinz launched “Blastin’ Green” sauce and teamed it up with the first Shrek movie. It came in a squeezy bottle with a thin nozzle, so you could draw pictures and write your name on your food. Kids loved it, and millions of bottles sold in just a few months. So Heinz kept going, adding Funky Purple, Stellar Blue, Passion Pink and even a mystery colour, where you didn’t know what you’d get until you squeezed. Altogether, more than 25 million bottles were sold, so it wasn’t a flop straight away. But the novelty wore off, and many parents weren’t keen on all that food colouring. By 2006, the colourful sauce had vanished from the shelves. Would you put purple sauce on your chips?
Your turn to vote!
So there you have it, my top five biggest flopped inventions. Which one do you think was the biggest flop? Head to this week’s Kahoot and cast your vote, and I’ll share the results next week. Ka kite anō!
Comprehension Questions
1. Why did so many Americans get angry when the Coca-Cola company changed its recipe in 1985?
2. How did Smell-O-Vision get the smells to the audience, and what went wrong with it?
3. Heinz sold more than 25 million bottles of EZ Squirt tomato sauce, yet Milli still calls it a flop. Why do you think she says that? Use clues from the article to explain your answer.
SMART Prep | Quick Question 
