By 1962, Dominic Tampone was made president of Hammacher Schlemmer - bringing with him a focus on mixing the practical along with the whimsical. Tampone initiated a wholesale operation, Invento Products Corporation, as a subsidiary for inventing and product development. Invento quickly evolved into a clearinghouse for the new and unusual, sourcing items from around the world and selling them under its own namesake brand. It sold goods not only to Hammacher Schlemmer, but also to such major national retailers as Sears and Neiman Marcus, generating annual sales of nearly $2.5 million.
On October 28, 1962, the Cuban Missile Crisis ends with Soviet Union leader Nikita Khrushchev announcing that he has ordered the removal of Soviet missile bases in Cuba. In a secret deal between Kennedy and Khrushchev, Kennedy agrees to the withdrawal of U.S. missiles from Turkey. That same month, Johnny Carson takes over as permanent host of NBC's Tonight Show, a post he will hold for 30 years.
Hammacher Schlemmer and its New York Store begin selling the first Home Bowling Alley and the "Nothing Box" (subsequently rechristened "The Something Box" to avoid confusion with a similarly-named product)-a box that did nothing but flash lights in a random sequence. The novelty captures the fancy of The Beatles, who purchase hundreds of them as gifts.
