Abigail (Abbey) M. Fleck is an American child inventor, born in
St. Paul,
Minnesota
Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
. She is known for her 1993 invention, ''Makin' Bacon'', a
microwavable
A microwave oven, or simply microwave, is an electric oven that heats and cooks food by exposing it to electromagnetic radiation in the microwave frequency range. This induces Dipole#Molecular dipoles, polar molecules in the food to rotate and ...
bacon
Bacon is a type of Curing (food preservation), salt-cured pork made from various cuts of meat, cuts, typically the pork belly, belly or less fatty parts of the back. It is eaten as a side dish (particularly in breakfasts), used as a central in ...
cooking plate. This device, which she created at the age of 8, is an inch-deep, dual compartment tray made of microwave-safe plastic, containing three T-shaped beams protruding up from the center. Abbey and her father, Jonathan Fleck, founded the A. de F. Ltd. company to manufacture this product. In 1996 their "microwave cooking vessel" was granted a
U.S. Patent. Following an endorsement from
Armour
Armour (Commonwealth English) or armor (American English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, e ...
, Fleck embarked on a promotional tour of her product, which included appearances on
The Oprah Winfrey Show
''The Oprah Winfrey Show'' is an American first-run syndicated talk show that was hosted by Oprah Winfrey. The show ran for twenty-five seasons from September 8, 1986, to May 25, 2011, in which it broadcast 4,561 episodes. The show was taped i ...
,
Late Night with David Letterman
''Late Night with David Letterman'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the first installment of the '' Late Night''. Hosted by David Letterman, it aired from February1, 1982 to June 25, 1993, and was replaced by ...
, and two features on
Dateline NBC
''Dateline NBC'' (also known simply as ''Dateline'') is a weekly American television news magazine reality legal show that is broadcast on NBC. It was previously the network's flagship general interest news magazine, but now focuses mainly on ...
.
References
Further reading
*
External links
MIT Inventor of the Week articleMakin' Bacon product websiteArticle from Lubbock NBC affiliate KCBD
20th-century American inventors
People from Saint Paul, Minnesota
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
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