Ray-Bans were first created in 1936

Ray-Bans were first created in 1936. The idea of Ray Bans began some years earlier when Lieutenant John A. Macready returned from a balloon flying adventure and complained that the sun had permanently damaged his eyes. He contacted Bausch & Lomb asking them to create sunglasses that would provide protection and also look elegant. On May 7, 1937, Bausch & Lomb took out the patent.[3] The prototype, known as Anti-Glare, had an extremely light frame weighing 150 grams. They were made of gold-plated metal with green lenses made of mineral glass to filter out infrared and ultraviolet rays. Pilots in the United States Army Air Corps immediately adopted the sunglasses.[3] The army had intentions to have sunglasses that would protect the soldiers from the rays of the sun but yet still have an elegant look. [4] The Ray-Ban Aviator became a well-known style of sunglasses when General Douglas MacArthur landed on the beach in the Philippines in World War II, and photographers snapped several pictures of him wearing them. Ray Bans were quickly seen outside of just the army. In 1937, Ray Ban made their first patent on the Ray Ban Aviator sunglasses. Ray Bans quickly gained popularity through other wars and even made a debut in the movies. In 1952, Ray Ban created another style, the Ray Ban Wayfarer. The difference with these sunglasses were the plastic frames. This design of the wafer glasses became very popular with the normal everyday socio-economic crowd. The wafer sunglasses were seen on movie stars, TV stars, and musicians. [5] Still Ray Ban remains a top designer in the sunglasses industry with their constant change in color, frames, and lenses.