George Beauchamp

George Beauchamp
George Beauchamp
Born	George Delmetia Beauchamp; March 18, 1899; Los Angeles, California, United States
Occupation	Inventor

George Delmetia Beauchamp (

National Stringed Instrument Corporation and Rickenbacker

(originally Rickenbacher) guitars.

Biography

He was born in Coleman County, Texas on March 18, 1899. Beauchamp performed in

Paul Barth and Adolph Rickenbacker to form the Ro-Pat-In Corporation to produce and sell electrified string instruments. The most notable of these, the Rickenbacher A-22 (and A-25) lapsteel guitar – known as the "frying pan" – is widely regarded as the first mass-produced electric guitar. Production of the instrument began in 1932. In 1937, Beauchamp secured a United States patent

for his version of the electric guitar.

Beauchamp married Myrtle Johnston in 1917. They had two children, Frances and Nolan. He died of a

deep sea fishing

near Los Angeles.

Inventions

1: Patent applied for the single-cone dobro guitar, patent #1,808,756 ^[1]
2: Patent applied for metal
finger picks (now commonly used for steel guitars and banjos), patent #1,787,136 ^[2]

3: Patent applied for the electric lap steel guitar (nicknamed "the frying pan"), patent #2,089,171 ^[3]
4: Patent applied for the electric guitar (called the electro Spanish guitar, which was a hollow-body electric guitar), patent #2,152,783 ^[4]
5: Patent applied for the electric violin (called the electro violin), patent #2130174 ^[5]

Catalogues from the Electro String Instrument Corporation show a range of electric instruments. In 1932, Beauchamp's Ro-Pat-In company marketed the electric lap steel guitar. The electric guitar was supposedly marketed the same year; early catalogues showing the instrument are not dated.^{[citation needed]}