Minneapolis Institute of Art

Ice gun

Manufacturer: Opco Company

Date

1935

Medium

Enameled steel, chrome, rubber

Department

Arts of the Americas

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

It could have leapt from a 1930s Buck Rogers science fiction comic strip. But instead of death rays, this gun fired ice into cocktail glasses. Activated by a spring-loaded plunger and trigger mechanism, it crushed ice cubes and “shot” the ice spray out through the rubber gasket, to the delight of guests. This gadget connected the new cocktail culture that took hold after the repeal of Prohibition (which outlawed the sale of alcohol in the United State between 1920 and 1933) with popular science and interest in space travel. The product brochure says the shaved ice can also fill the “ice bag, ” presumably to hold against your aching head after too many cocktails. United States, Americas

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