George Mitchell, who is 91 if my research is correct and is the father of Fracking (again if my research is correct) should be a household name and get some sort of Presidential Award. For his dogged determination in getting the techology to work maybe more transformative in a positive sense for our Nation than these toys Steve Jobs gave us that are made in China and get everyone in a zone when they should be with other humans.
Hardly the father of hydraulic fracturing. It was done before he was a real player. Mitchell made a difference around Fort Worth in Bartlett Shale with hydraulic fracturing and an unwillingness to give up on it. Then he sold out to Devon and they combined the shale formation with hydraulic fracturing AND horizontal drilling. The latter made the real difference.