posted 07-24-2009 07:42 AM ET (US)            

John S. Barry, of WD-40 Fame, Dies at 84

SAN DIEGO (AP) — John S. Barry, the former president and chief executive of WD-40 Co. Inc., who is credited with helping turn the rust-preventer for missiles into a household brand, has died. He was 84.

Barry died of pulmonary fibrosis on July 3 at a skilled nursing facility in La Jolla, his widow, Marian, said Monday.

In 1969, Barry, who had a master's degree in business from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, became president and CEO of what was then the Rocket Chemical Co. of San Diego. He took over the president's position from his father-in-law, according to his widow.

WD-40 stood for a "water displacement" formula worked out on the 40th try. It was used to protect the skin of the Atlas missile from corrosion but it worked so well that, according to a company history, some employees sneaked cans out of the plant for use at home.

By the late 1950s, the product was being sold in aerosol cans in local stores. By 1960, employees were selling an average of 45 cases a day out of their car trunks to hardware and sporting goods stores, according to the company's Web site.

People used it as a lubricant and corrosion-preventer for a variety of purposes. Mrs. Barry said Marines who used it to keep their guns clean in the Vietnam War took it home to use on their fishing gear.

Within weeks of joining the company, Barry recommended a major change.

"He said, 'We don't make rockets. Let's change the name to WD-40," said his brother-in-law, Lawrence Irving. "It was a stroke of genius. We had no name identification."

Under Barry, the company went public and began production overseas. Today, WD-40 has about $300 million in sales a year in 160 countries, Ridge said.

Barry retired as CEO of the company in the mid-1990s and as chairman of the board in the late 1990s, Ridge said.