Hi.  My question is... what year was The Clapper released to the
public for consumption?  I've found out the names of the inventors and
the company that owns the patent... but no release date!

Hello.

According to U.S. government trademark data,  the Clapper was first
sold on September 1, 1985.

Joseph Enterprises, maker of the Clapper, filed for a trademark on July 9, 1986.

Here is the "first use" information:

CLAPPER
ACOUSTICALLY OPERATED SWITCH
International Class: 009
First Use Date: 1985-09-01
First Use in Commerce Date: 1985-09-01

source: U.S. Patent & Trademark Office
http://tarr.uspto.gov/servlet/tarr?regser=serial&entry=73608656

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search strategy:
uspto.gov, search: clapper

I hope this helps.

That was exactly what I wanted to know.  Why couldn't I find it on the
web?!! Grrrr! Thanks!