BRYAN, Ohio — The inventor of the Etch A Sketch, the famous red toy that generations of children drew on, shook up and started over, has died in France, the toy’s maker said.

Andre Cassagnes, 86, died Jan. 16 in a Paris suburb, the Ohio Art Co. said.

President Larry Killgallon says the company will always be grateful for the invention. The Toy Industry Association says Cassagnes came upon the idea in the late 1950s.