Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame
Zenith Honorees Represent Century of Industry Contributions
Inducted in the inaugural class of honorees in 2000 were: Commander Eugene F. McDonald, Jr. (1886-1958), Zenith’s founder-president who pioneered shortwave radio and subscription television, among many other innovations; Dr. Robert Adler (1913-2007), long-time Zenith vice president of research and father of the TV remote control; and Carl Eilers (1925-2008), a 50-year Zenith veteran who was co-inventor of standards for Stereo FM and Stereo TV.
Legendary sales executive Gerald McCarthy (1941- ), was inducted in 2014, following in the footsteps of Walter Fisher (1919-1994), former Zenith Chairman, long-time senior sales executive and industry statesman, who was inducted in 2001. In 2009, the Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame inducted Karl Hassel (1896-1975) and Ralph H.G. Mathews (1897-1982), co-founders of Chicago Radio Laboratory in 1918, which became Zenith in 1923. Richard Citta (1944- ), retired Zenith researcher, who developed the VSB digital television transmission system at the heart of the U.S. broadcast standard, was inducted as part of the 2012 class along with LG’s In Hwoi Koo (1907-1969), Founding Chairman of LG Corp. Dr. Woo Paik (1948- ), former LG Electronics President and Chief Technology Officer, was inducted in 2004 for his pioneering work in digital HDTV video compression.
Significance of Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame
According to the Consumer Electronics Association, the Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame inductees have made significant contributions to the world, and without their efforts, our lives would not be the same: “We owe these leaders our gratitude for laying the foundation for the marvels yet to come in this century full of opportunity and providing us with inspiration. It is truly amazing what a profound impact an idea can have once it is unleashed on the world. So with this in mind, the Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame honors the leaders whose creativity, persistence, determination and sheer personal charisma helped to shape an industry and made the consumer electronics marketplace what it is today.”