Early Nintendo: With 1966s 'Ultra Hand,' Future Game Boy Inventor Saved The Company

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Source: (beforemario.com)

What's the symbol of Nintendo -- Mario the plumber? True, the little guy with the mustache, and his brother Luigi, and Princess Peach and Bowser... there's a large cast of characters that makes up a Nintendo universe. But we might never have met Mario and co. if not for "Ultra Hand," a plastic toy with an extendable grabber hand.

Long before Nintendo introduced its first gaming system it had a major hit with the “Ultra Hand,” a plastic toy that mesmerized kids and single (ultra) handedly pulled the company out of financial dire straits. Who came up with the idea? And how was this simple toy able to save Nintendo?