Aug 16, 2007

My Dad, American InventorBy Stephanie RosenbloomNYTimes.com

Tommy Habeeb just wanted to be one of the new breed of involved dads: the hands-on guys who preside over bath time without creating a flood; the ones who return home from work early enough to crawl after their children toward the realm of make-believe. His ambitions did not include inventing the Water Bottle Nipple Adaptor.

Inspiration struck Mr. Habeeb on a sweltering afternoon in Dallas, though, when he found himself with a cold bottle of water and no way for the baby slung across his chest to drink from it. In short order, he was in his kitchen hacksawing off the top of a baby bottle and improvising a coupling to allow the nipple to be screwed onto almost any water bottle.

Mr. Habeeb — a producer, actor and reality-show host for programs like “Cheaters” and “Stag: Last Night of Freedom” (in which engaged bachelors enjoy a final eye-popping hurrah before saying “I do”) — is not publicly known for baby expertise. But that hardly discouraged him from bringing his invention to market earlier this year through a company called BabySport. And it has not dissuaded 7-Eleven and Amazon from buying the adaptors, which are sold for $1.95 to $2.49. Nor has it deterred the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

“They stock tons of bottled water for emergencies,” said Mr. Habeeb, whose children are 18 months (Alexander), 3 (Zachary) and 14 (Richard). “We’re talking to them now about these adaptations for emergency situations.”

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