This news left me feeling inexplicably saddened:

Walter Fredrick Morrison, the man credited with inventing the Frisbee, has died. He was 90.

Utah House Rep. Kay McIff, an attorney who represented Morrison in a royalties case, says Morrison died at his home in Monroe, Utah, on Tuesday. McIff is from Richfield, Morrison’s original hometown.

“That simple little toy has permeated every continent in every country, as many homes have Frisbees as any other device ever invented,” McIff said. “How would you get through your youth without learning to throw a Frisbee?”

Morrison’s son, Walt, told The Associated Press Thursday that “old age caught up” with his father and that he also had cancer.

“He was a nice guy. He helped a lot of people,” Walt Morrison said. “He was an entrepreneur. He was always looking for something to do.”

Morrison sold the production and manufacturing rights to his “Pluto Platter” in 1957. The plastic flying disc was later renamed the “Frisbee,” with sales surpassing 200 million discs. It is now a staple at beaches and college campuses across the country and spawned sports like Frisbee golf and the team sport Ultimate.

An official disc golf course at Creekside Park in the Salt Lake City suburb of Holladay is named for Morrison.

Morrison co-wrote a book with Frisbee enthusiast and historian Phil Kennedy in 2001. Kennedy released a brief biography about Morrison on Thursday, wishing his late friend “smoooooth flights.”