description Flash of Genius Overview
Flash of Genius is a 2008 American biographical drama directed by Marc Abraham and starring Greg Kinnear as inventor and university professor Robert Kearns. The film dramatizes Kearns's creation of an intermittent windshield-wiper system and his prolonged patent dispute with Ford Motor Company. It is structured as both a personal biography and a courtroom story, focusing on intellectual property, corporate power, and the costs of pursuing recognition for an invention.
help Flash of Genius FAQ
Is Flash of Genius based on a true story?
Yes. The 2008 film dramatizes inventor and engineering professor Robert Kearns's fight over his electronic intermittent windshield-wiper system. Smithsonian records that Kearns patented the system in 1967. [Smithsonian Institution](https://www.si.edu/object/archives/sova-nmah-ac-1406?edan_fq%5B0%5D=online_visual_material%3A%22true%22).
Who plays Robert Kearns in Flash of Genius?
Greg Kinnear plays Kearns, with Lauren Graham, Dermot Mulroney, and Alan Alda in the principal cast. Universal lists Marc Abraham as director, a 2008 release, and a 2-hour-1-minute runtime. [Universal Pictures](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/flash-of-genius).
Did Robert Kearns win his case against Ford?
Kearns sued Ford in 1978, and the dispute ended in 1990 with Ford paying about $10.2 million after the patent litigation. Smithsonian describes the federal jury ruling as finding that Ford had unintentionally infringed Kearns's patent. [Smithsonian Institution](https://www.si.edu/object/archives/sova-nmah-ac-1406?edan_fq%5B0%5D=online_visual_material%3A%22true%22).
What exactly did Robert Kearns invent?
His invention was an electronic intermittent windshield-wiper system, not the basic wiper blade itself. Smithsonian identifies U.S. Patent 3,351,836 and notes that Ford began installing the intermittent feature on cars in 1969. [Smithsonian Institution](https://www.si.edu/object/archives/sova-nmah-ac-1406?edan_fq%5B0%5D=online_visual_material%3A%22true%22).
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