Inventor of the Zippo lighter and founder of Zippo Manufacturing Company, George G. Blaisdell, loved automobiles as much as he loved his world-famous windproof lighter. As a young man, Mr. Blaisdell was impressed by a parade of “productmobiles” – incredible vehicles that resembled the products they represented. After the incredible success of Zippo after WWII, he set out to create his own “productmobile” in the image of the iconic Zippo lighter.