Liquid Paper® Inventor Bette Nesmith Graham
Graham's Product Became A Secretary’s Best Friend
Sep 9, 2009
Bette Clair McMurry was born March 23, 1924 in Dallas, Texas. She dropped out of high school to marry Warren Nesmith before he enlisted in World War II. While Nesmith was away, McMurry had a son, Michael Nesmith of The Monkees fame. When Warren returned from the war, he and Bette divorced, leaving Nesmith alone to raise her son. Nesmith worked as a secretary to support herself and her only child while earning her GED in night school.
Idea for Mistake Out
After World War II, electric typewriters experienced a growth in popularity. But erasing mistakes made with carbon-film ribbons proved difficult and messy. Oftentimes, it was necessary to retype paperwork and documents because of one small mistake.
Nesmith had originally wanted to be an artist. While painting holiday windows at Texas Bank & Trust where she worked as a secretary, Nesmith realized that artists don't erase their mistakes: they paint over them. Armed with a bottle of tempura white paint and a small brush, Nesmith used her artistic knowledge to paint over her mistakes.
Liquid Paper Company
Soon, other secretaries were requesting the job-saving fluid. Nesmith put the paint in bottles and labeled them "Mistake Out" and gave them to friends. With some help from her son's high school chemistry teacher, Nesmith refined the white correction paint.
It wasn't long before Nesmith was manufacturing "Mistake Out" in her home with son, Michael, and his friends helping her to fill orders. The Mistake Out Company was started in 1956. Upon realizing this would be a full time endeavor, Nesmith renamed Mistake Out to Liquid Paper. She patented the product, obtained a trademark and began her own company.
Liquid Paper Sales
Liquid Paper was mentioned in a magazine called "The Office" in 1957. As a result, General Electric ordered a large amount. Nesmith remarried in 1962 to Robert Graham who became part of the company as well.
Liquid Paper quickly became a staple office supply. By 1968, Nesmith was able to open a new plant with twenty employees. That was the year she sold one million bottles of Liquid Paper.
Nesmith was an innovative business manager. She set up an in-plant child care center and a library. She encouraged employees to take part in corporate decisions. She also displayed her own artwork as well as the art of others on the walls within the corporation.
By 1975, the Liquid Paper Corporation produced 500 bottles per minute. The Grahams were also divorced that year and Nesmith resigned as chairman of the board. Graham replaced her. The formula for Liquid Paper was changed and the board of directors eliminated Nesmith's royalties.
Nesmith disputed this decision. Before the dispute could be resolved, the company was sold to the Gillette Corporation for $47.5 million dollars. Nesmith's corporate philosophy did not survive her absence.
Nesmith passed away at the age of 56 on May 12, 1980, six months after her company was sold.
At the time of her death, Michael Nesmith inherited half of his mother's $50 million-plus estate. The other half financed the Council on Ideas, a think tank devoted to exploring world problems.
Women's Foundations
Bette Nesmith Graham left behind a legacy. She established the Bette Clair McMurry Foundation in 1976 and the Gihon Foundation in 1978. Both were founded to support women's welfare and business and art endeavors. The Gihon Foundation's website is currently closed for site renovation.
Sources:
Lemelson-MIT Program, Inventor of the Week Archive
Texas State Historical Association
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