How Wiffle Ball Has Endured Without Advertising, Licensing or Product Placement
This ordinary plastic sphere with 8 holes became the national pastime of the American backyard

Wiffle still makes all of its balls in a two-story brick building in Shelton, Conn.
Dianna McDougall

Nineteen fifty-three was a seminal year in world history. Biologists discovered the double helix of DNA. Sir Edmund Hillary reached the top of Everest. Dr. Jonas Salk perfected the polio vaccine. And in a suburban backyard in Fairfield, Conn., a bunch of kids played the first game of Wiffle Ball.