Hot Bird
The history of the 'Hot' Bird is complicated. In the early 60's, Sam Randlett designed a flapping bird from a Waterbomb Base which he published in his classic book 'The Art of Origami. In about 1974 I independently created a similar flapping bird. It had a 22 1/2 degree tail – Sam's had a 45 degree tail. This may seem like a small difference, but actually, it makes the bird look very different, and I think my version flaps much better. In 1976 or 1977 Robert Harbin asked people for models to include in his 'Origami 4'. I sent him my model, NOT KNOWING about Sam's model. Harbin published my bird. I'm sure he knew Sam's bird well, so I guess by publishing my model with my name, he considered it my model and not a variation on Sam's model. Since then, I know a few other people have independently created the model, with either Sam's tail or my tail. The model in 'Hot' has a colour-change added to the head. It does nothing to improve the action and is difficult to do, but I was surprised how good it looked! The director wanted detail on the head, so I did it for him, not for me. I was 16 when I created the bird. It was my 2nd creation. Probably nothing I've done since has been as good! The flapping action is very big, dramatic and always works, so I make the bird whenever someone wants to see some origami. I think the action is better than the classic Flapping Bird, though the Flapping Bird is a better model. Who is Sam Randlett? In the early 60's, Sam published 2 CLASSIC books of great importance to the history of origami in the West. To learn more about him, do a Google search, or read some of David Lister's origami articles on the BOS website. Sam is still alive and lives near Chicago. If anyone wants the instructions from 'Origami 4' of the bird, I can send a jpg. Best wishes, Paul Jackson