Today is the 50th anniversary of the aluminum beer can, released by Coors in 1959. And while I was prepared to make fun of cans for a few hundred words, they're actually sort of interesting.

Some IMPORTANT historical facts:

• Coors spent two years developing the aluminum can.
• Before aluminum cans, the tin can had been in use since the 1800s. It used lead in the seams.
• Tin can beer tasted even worse than canned beer now, as the cans were not easily pre-cleaned, thereby requiring the beer be pasteurized.
• Aluminum cans were the first cans to be feasibly recycled while also lowering shipping costs.
• Coors Light, available in cans, is the preferred beer of resident foodie Wilson Rothman. On his Facebook page alone, he has a collection of eight identical Coors Light gifts.

Happy Birthday, aluminum can. I raise my glass and/or bottle to you. [Rocky Mountain News via Consumerist]

Send an email to Mark Wilson, the author of this post, at mark@gizmodo.com.