Rube Goldberg: The Man Behind the Rube Goldberg Machine

Whether you call it a Rube Goldberg machine, a Rube Goldberg device, or even a Rube Goldberg contraption, the essence is the same - design a machine to take an incredibly simple task and perform it in the most complicated manner imaginable. That simple premise has inspired Rube Goldberg Contests, car commercials and has even made Rube Goldberg's name an entry in Webster's New World Dictionary. Despite the popularity of Rube Goldberg devices, there is much more to the man than a machine.

Early Life

Rube Goldberg was born on July 4, 1883 in San Francisco. As a child he displayed an early talent for drawing cartoons. In 1900, after graduating from Lowell High School in San Francisco, Rube Goldberg went to the University of California, Berkley to study engineering. Despite Rube's passion to pursue a career as a cartoonist, his father wanted a more practical use for his son's drawing talents and mechanical aptitude. The young Goldberg acquiesced to his father's wishes and graduated in 1904 with a degree in mine engineering. Ironically, it would be a combination of his father's desires and Rube's passion for cartooning that would help Goldberg achieve lasting fame.

A Change in Plans

Upon graduating as an engineer, Rube Goldberg went to work for the City of San Francisco Water and Sewers Department. While working for the city, Goldberg continued to draw cartoons. After working for six months in his tedious city job, Goldberg decided he had to pursue a career as a cartoonist. He quit work as an engineer and took a position in the San Francisco Chronicle's sports department. At first he worked as an office boy - straightening out the desks and taking out the trash. Supposedly, while emptying trash cans, Goldberg discovered his own earlier art submissions to the paper. Undeterred, Goldberg continued working at the Chronicle, eventually becoming the paper's sports cartoonist.

In 1907, Goldberg moved to New York to take a position at The New York Evening Mail. It was here that he created his breakout success - and it didn't involve devices or machines, but rather, something a bit more obvious.

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