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While most people aim to complete everyday tasks as efficiently as possible, Rube Goldberg delighted audiences with his illustrations of overly complex devices designed to perform simple actions in the most amusingly intricate manner.
His imaginative contraptions incorporated ordinary items, along with humans or animals, in a cleverly tangled yet functional way. For instance, his self-operating napkin device automatically cleans the mouth of his fictional character, Professor Butt, through a series of steps involving a spoon tugging a string, launching a cracker to a toucan, tipping a bucket, lighting a match, firing a rocket, and finally releasing a napkin to wipe his mouth.
Goldberg, who lived from 1883 to 1970, left a lasting legacy with his cartoon inventions, influencing popular culture for decades. Here are 10 places where you might encounter a machine inspired by Rube Goldberg's genius.
10. Board Games
Numerous board games have sought to leverage the widespread appeal of Rube Goldberg machines. Examples include Internal Contraption and Factory Fun.
The most legendary game in this category is the 1963 classic, Mouse Trap. In this game, players construct a complex device step by step, ultimately using it to capture a mouse-shaped game piece. The process involves a series of steps, such as a shoe kicking a bucket, a diver, and a bathtub. The original game box art closely resembles Rube Goldberg’s cartoons, even using capital letters to label each step of the machine, mirroring his artistic style.
The game’s popularity led to the creation of a life-sized version that toured the U.S., educating people about the principles of simple machines.
9. Computer Games and Apps
Computer games and apps have drawn inspiration from these whimsical machines, sometimes unintentionally. For instance, a Goldberg-style machine created in Minecraft executes a vast sequence of actions that transform the environment before culminating in the explosion of a tower.
Several games were specifically crafted for constructing Rube Goldberg machines, such as The Incredible Machine and the official Rube Works Game. These games provide players with the tools to design their own intricate devices to solve various challenges. Searching for “Rube Goldberg” on Google Play or the App Store reveals a wide range of options, from educational to purely fun. Additionally, many other games, like Pull the Pin, Cut the Rope, and Fruit Ninja, appear to draw inspiration from the whimsical nature of Goldberg’s creations.
8. Fine Art
Goldberg produced more than 50,000 cartoons featuring his elaborate machines. Inspired by his work, other artists have embraced the challenge of incorporating Goldberg-style contraptions into their own pieces.
Some artworks explicitly depict Goldberg machines, such as Clint Hansen’s A Simple Coffee Machine. Others take a more abstract or surreal approach, incorporating Goldberg-esque elements, like Vanessa Bates’s Klockwerk Orange Patent Pending or Mike Savad’s Steampunk—Coffee Break.
Some contemporary artistic interpretations don’t feature functional machines but instead convey emotions like frustration or chaos through machine-like imagery, as seen in Peter Kuper’s Election Recap. At first glance, this cartoon resembles a Rube Goldberg creation, but upon closer inspection, it reveals missing elements, such as skipped steps and absent alphabet letters. There’s no clear starting or ending point, symbolized by the missing “A.” The imagery of an egg on Uncle Sam’s face and people being ejected from the room reflects the chaotic emotions surrounding the election.
7. YouTube
YouTube has become an ideal platform for showcasing homemade Rube Goldberg machines. Popular creations include devices for everyday activities like flipping book pages, watering plants, and illuminating Christmas trees.
One of YouTube’s most famous Rube Goldberg machines is OK Go’s “This Too Shall Pass.” The machine begins with a toy truck toppling dominos and incorporates various mechanisms that trigger music and vocals along its elaborate path. Highlights include spoons playing water-filled glasses, a falling piano, a typewriter, a smashed television, and a dramatic finale featuring paintball guns targeting the performers.
Like many Rube Goldberg machines, this one is designed for a single use—unless significant portions are rebuilt.
6. Education
Unsurprisingly, Rube Goldberg was an engineer. His machines, which demonstrate fascinating principles of engineering and physics, are frequently incorporated into educational settings. An organization named after Goldberg provides lesson plans and hosts competitions, while many schools encourage students to undertake projects involving the creation of Rube Goldberg-style machines.
Beyond teaching scientific concepts, Rube Goldberg projects are also used to develop skills in project management and leadership. Constructing these machines is believed to enhance creativity and problem-solving abilities, though some students humorously note they’ve learned a great deal about what can be achieved with “random junk.” Regardless of the motivation, the process is undeniably enjoyable.
5. Toys
Toys that rely on chain reactions can be considered Rube Goldberg-inspired, such as marble runs, roller coasters, Lego creations, and domino chains. These toys all feature the hallmark Goldberg trait of initiating a sequence of events from a single action, like a push or a drop. Many construction sets, even those not originally designed for this purpose, can be used to build imaginative and intricate contraptions.
You don’t necessarily need specialized materials to create a Rube Goldberg machine. Simply gather items from around your home that can move or be manipulated into motion. This could include objects of varying weights, string, rope, duct tape, broken toy parts, kitchen utensils, balloons, and other seemingly useless items. Scour your garage, toy box, or attic, and you’ll discover a treasure trove of potential components for your contraption.
What can you set in motion with a running blow dryer? How can you activate it? What mechanisms can you use to send a toy car speeding down a track? The possibilities are endless, and anything you can imagine is fair game.
4. Private Homes
Schools aren’t the only places where these intricate machines are built. Many families enjoy creating them at home. In fact, during the COVID-19 quarantines of 2020, homemade Rube Goldberg machines gained immense popularity on YouTube. Some creators humorously addressed social distancing by designing machines to perform simple tasks, like passing salt across a table without physical proximity. One family constructed an elaborate machine that spanned their entire house, culminating in a foosball goal. While building it was undoubtedly fun, cleaning up afterward must have been a challenge!
Building Rube Goldberg machines is an excellent way to keep children entertained, especially when they’re out of school. Start them off with a simple task, like launching a teddy bear off a dresser by toppling a stack of books with a Nerf dart, and watch their creativity take over from there!
Of course, kids don’t have to turn your home upside down to build their contraptions; they can simply sketch them out, much like Goldberg did. Some children—or those young at heart—might prefer this approach, as it allows them to include fantastical elements that would be impossible to recreate in real life. Imagine a canary that sings when its tail feathers are tugged or a monster truck that sets off an avalanche, sending a giant snow-spider fleeing into a booby-trapped cave.
3. Movies
Movies are an ideal medium for Rube Goldberg machines, as their visual nature perfectly captures the unfolding chain reactions. From Home Alone and Toy Story to The Goonies and Edward Scissorhands, quirky Goldberg-inspired machines have made their mark in countless films.
Some of the most iconic movie machines are breakfast contraptions, featured in classics like Chitty, Chitty, Bang Bang, Back to the Future, and Pee Wee’s Big Adventure. These elaborate setups are the perfect blend of nerdy ingenuity and entertainment, often used to highlight the eccentricities of a character.
A more subtle example of a Goldberg machine appears early in Raiders of the Lost Ark, when Indiana Jones inadvertently activates a deadly cave mechanism by removing an idol from its pedestal [LINK 35]. Why didn’t removing the idol result in an immediate, straightforward demise? Because Rube Goldberg machines are far more thrilling—and, of course, our hero needed a fighting chance.
Stay observant, and you’ll notice these whimsical machines popping up in the most unexpected places!
2. Music
Some musicians have taken inspiration from Rube Goldberg to create machines that play music. For instance, one machine uses falling marbles to produce melodies, while another employs spinning components and strings that drop balls onto piano keys to perform a tune. Among the most intricate and entertaining is a machine that combines percussion instruments like drums, cymbals, chimes, and xylophones, creating a rhythmic symphony as balls navigate the device—with a touch of computer assistance.
1. Sports
A frequent outcome of a Rube Goldberg machine is the successful scoring of a basketball or another ball through a series of amusing and elaborate steps. Even the Harlem Globetrotters have embraced this trend, crafting their own version of a Goldberg-inspired contraption.
Red Bull crafted an advertisement showcasing a sports-themed Rube Goldberg machine, featuring renowned athletes from skydiving to skateboarding and racecar driving. Each athlete’s action sets off the next phase of the machine, which delivers the required sports gear for the subsequent participant, seamlessly merging human skill with mechanical ingenuity.
