Herman Miller, officially MillerKnoll, Inc., is an American company that produces office furniture, equipment, and home furnishings, including the Aeron chair, Noguchi table, Marshmallow sofa, Mirra chair, and the Eames Lounge Chair. Herman Miller is also credited with the 1968 invention of the office cubicle (originally known as the "Action Office") under then-director of research Robert Propst. History Herman Miller was founded in 1905 as the Star Furniture Co. Initially the company produced furniture, especially bedroom suites, in historic revival styles. In 1919, it was renamed the Michigan Star Furniture Co. under then-president Dirk Jan De Pree. De Pree and his father-in-law, Herman Miller, purchased 51% of the company stock in 1923 and renamed it the Herman Miller Furniture Company. The company reformed as Herman Miller, Inc. in 1960. With the coming of the Great Depression, the company faced bankruptcy until De Pree met Gilbert Rohde, an up-and-coming modernist designer. Rohde convinced De Pree that the furniture industry's focus on historical reproduction furniture in lieu of new designs was not only out of touch with the consumer, but fundamentally dishonest in the practices used to make furniture pieces appear older and of higher quality than they were. De Pree acquired the rights to Rohde's modernist furniture designs in exchange for a 3 percent royalty on any furniture sold. In 1933, Herman Miller debuted a line of modern furniture at the Century of Progress exposition in Chicago, Illinois. In 1941, the company opened a showroom in the Merchandise Mart in Chicago, and another in New York City. Under Rohde's supervision, Herman Miller entered the contract office furniture market in 1942, with the introduction of the "Modular Executive Office" Group (EOG). Rohde died in 1944 and was replaced by architect George Nelson, who joined the firm as director of design in 1945. Over the next four decades Nelson influenced Herman Miller through both his personal designs and the designers that he recruited, including Isamu Noguchi, Charles and Ray Eames, and textile designer Alexander Girard. Beginning in the late 1940s, the period under Nelson's guidance saw Herman Miller produce some of the company's most recognizable pieces of furniture, including the Noguchi table, Eames Lounge Chair, Marshmallow sofa, Ball clock (actually produced by Howard Miller Clock Company), and the Sling sofa. De Pree continued to serve as Herman Miller CEO until 1961, when he was forced by illness to step down. He was succeeded