Three Interesting Stories about Pens

Posted by elkos pens on May 16th, 2019

Many decades ago it was the fountain pen, then we got the ball pen, and then we moved to gel pens, which have been preferred as writing instruments serving the purpose of aesthetics, convenience and also economy. But apart from the utility of pens, there are several interesting stories linked to different kinds of pens. Let us have a quick look at three of the most interesting stories.

We have all heard of the brave exploits of the first men on the moon, Armstrong and Aldrin. Once the moon landing of the Apollo 11 was accomplished, they needed to head back to earth in their lunar module. But before they could start, they realised that in all the excitement, they had managed to break one of the ignition switches. This near disaster was averted on time by the use of a ball pen they were carrying, which helped complete the circuit to activate the sequence for launch.

One of the finest pieces of legislation enacted by the Government of President Barack Obama was the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act 2010, also referred to as Obama Care. But one of the interesting facts is that President Obama signed the declaration of the bill using 22 different pens!! This was not a new tradition, but actually continued a quaint tradition followed for years by all American Presidents. The multiple pens used to sign any Act become memorabilia, and are then presented to those people who have had an important contribution in the framing, passing and implementation of that Act.

The biggest ballpoint pen ever made was manufactured in India. It was as long as 5.5 metres, and it weighed more than 37 kilograms. The problem with this outrageously sized pen would only be to get a few people to assist in holding it up in the correct direction. The mechanism of the ink flow would not be a problem at all, because this pen is fully functional.