You may not have been aware of it, but Monday marked a rather significant product anniversary.

Yes, my friends, Jan. 25 was the 50th birthday of Bubble Wrap.

Guess you could say it was a “pop” culture milestone.

It was in 1960 that two New Jersey engineers, Marc Chavannes and Al Fielding, coined the term “Bubble Wrap.” Interestingly enough, their intent was not to create a packing material, but a type of textured wallpaper.

Of course, I’m fairly certain that spawning several generations of Americans hopelessly addicted to bursting those plastic orbs of sealed air was an unintended side effect as well.

I don’t known if I’d go so far as to classify myself as an addict, but I definitely enjoy sitting down with a good-sized sheet of the stuff every now and again.

It’s fun. It’s a great stress reliever. And, it’s perfectly harmless.

There aren’t many things in life about which you can say all of those things.

Personally, I prefer the wrap with the larger bubbles, because those make a more satisfying “pop” when you squeeze them — kind of like an oversized zit, but (thankfully) without the mess.

However, I would imagine there are also hard-core Bubble Wrap aficionados out there who could wax poetic for hours about the virtues of the type with the smaller bubbles.

I can’t say I have ever encountered anyone like that, though. And, truth be told, I’m kind of glad.

Amusement value aside, Bubble Wrap — which is patented to New Jersey-based Sealed Air Corp. — also works quite well for protecting fragile items during shipment.

I know I’d much rather receive boxes containing Bubble Wrap than those irritating Styrofoam peanuts. I hate those things.

Learning of Bubble Wrap’s birthday got me to wondering what folks used for packing material before it went into wide usage.

Then I realized that I know the answer to that — sort of.

Said answer was contained in an amusing anecdote shared with the author of a book I read a few years back.

The book, “Hot Rod Model Kits,” was written by a fellow by the name of Terry Jessee, a former Montana sheriff’s deputy, and like myself, an avid model-builder.

The book contained a great deal of information on the history of the plastic model kit industry. In one chapter, a couple of former employees of model manufacturer Revell talk about a contest the company sponsored in the 1960s.

According to the book, the company left flyers in hobby shops that instructed builders to mail in their models to Revell for judging and to pack them in popcorn — real popcorn, as the plastic foam type, like Bubble Wrap, was not widely available at the time.

Apparently, they should’ve been a little bit more specific.

One of the employees, the late Bob Paeth, told Jessee that the company received one box that contained a model that had been packed in unpopped popcorn kernels. The effect of that, he said, was essentially the same as if the person had packed it in ball bearings. It was destroyed beyond recognition.

Another person sent in a model that had been packed in caramel corn, Paeth said. That one, he recalled, was such a gooey mess that nothing could be done with other than to throw it away.

Just a couple more reasons to be thankful we have Bubble Wrap.

So, what say we all wish a belated happy birthday to one of the greatest inventions of the past half-century by grabbing a sheet and squeezing off a few?

Sounds to me a like a fun way to kill an afternoon.

KENNETH HART can be reached at khart@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2654.