Memphis has always been proud of its entrepreneurs: Fred Smith, Kemmons Wilson, Pitt Hyde, and most (but certainly not all) of the Lauderdales. And joining that exclusive club is the anonymous inventor of the Zip-Pin Diaper Pin Lubricator.

Now I have to confess that I never realized there was any need for such a device. Oh sure, I knew that diaper pins could stick a baby if you were careless — or drunk — while you were trying to jab those things through a thick diaper. Well, somebody decided that one way to prevent these accidents was with the Zip-Pin.

I found an ad for this intriguing product in a 1975 program for the Duration Club, a charitable organization that put on an annual fund-raiser, among other good deeds. As you can see, though it's not really clear HOW it accomplishes all these things, the Zip-Pin offered many benefits: "no more bent pins, eases pins thru diapers, reduces chances of sticking baby." It apparently was some kind of "special lubricant — non-toxic" which, I assume, you smeared on the pins. Good gosh, it even "prevents dangerous rust." And as if that weren't enough, it "keeps pins safe and handy," which is a pretty vague claim, if you ask me.

There's no address for the company, just a P.O. Box, and no name of the inventor, so that's all I can tell you. I wonder how long the Zip-Pin company stayed in business? And were they trying to play off the name of the Zippin Pippin roller coaster, or was that just a happy coincidence?