TV DINNER FACTS

The invention of the TV dinner has been attributed to at
least three different sources, primarily Gerry Thomas, the
Swanson Brothers, and Maxson Food Systems, Inc.

                  
In 1945, Maxson Food Systems, Inc. manufactured “Strato-
Plates” – complete meals that were reheated on the plane
for military and civilian airplane passengers. The meals
consisted of a basic three-part equation of meat, vegetable
and potato, each housed in its own separate compartment on
a plastic plate.

                   
In 1949, Albert and Meyer Bernstein organized Frozen
Dinners, Inc., which packaged frozen dinners on aluminum
trays with three compartments. By 1950, the company had
produced over 400,000 frozen dinners.



In 1952, the Bernstein brothers formed the Quaker State
Food Corporation and expanded distribution to markets east
of the Mississippi. By 1954, Quaker State Foods had
produced and sold over 2,500,000 frozen dinners.

                       

Swanson’s frozen meals appeared in 1954. Swanson was a well-
known brand that consumers recognized, and Swanson launched
a massive advertising campaign for their product. They also
coined the phrase TV Dinner, which helped to transform their
frozen meals into a cultural icon.


Until recently, the most widely credited individual inventor
of the TV dinner was Gerry Thomas, a salesman for C.A.
Swanson & Son in 1953. However, Betty Cronin, a
bacteriologist who was working for the Swanson brothers at
that time, asserts that it was the Swanson brothers
themselves, Gilbert and Clarke Swanson, who came up with
the concept of the TV dinner.