Robert Kearns flawed "Genius"

Battling perceived wrongs and deception against powerful institutions can exact a high cost. In Kearns case, the theft of his invention he deemed worth it

clipped from www.latimes.com The inventor in 'Flash of Genius' was much more tragic and difficult than portrayed by Greg Kinnear. That thought went through my mind last week while watching Kinnear's performance in "Flash of Genius," a new drama based on the story of the cantankerous Detroit engineer who successfully sued Ford and Chrysler for a combined $30 million for infringing on his patent designs for the intermittent windshield wiper. The lesson to be drawn from Kearns' remarkable struggle is that it takes a tremendous amount of guts, smarts and perhaps a touch of craziness to stand up to powerful interests in one's society. Those who do it must be prepared to sacrifice time, health, love, peace of mind or, in Kearns' case, all of the above.