Robert G. Heft, designer of the fifty-star American flag, has passed away at 67 of unknown causes.

Believe it or not, the current American flag was designed by Heft for a high school history project. He spent 12 hours with his mother’s sewing machine to create the prototype.

He originally received a B- for the project, but his teachers promised to change his grade to an “A” if the flag design was accepted by the federal government. It was, obviously, and his teacher kept his word.

Incidentally, Wikipedia says Heft had copyright on flag designs with 51 through sixty stars. I wonder if that copyright would be honored if another state were added.