A panel of 17 prominent industry professionals and media members
selected the 2004 class based on integrity, character and impact
on the CE industry. The 2004 inductees are:
Steven Wozniak - Apple Computer
While at Hewlett-Packard, Wozniak used his technical genius
to create a “blue box,” a pocketsize phone attachment that
made long distance calls for free. Wozniak reunited with
friend Steve Jobs at Hewlett-Packard to form Apple
Computers. Teaming up with Jobs, Wozniak led the engineering
side of the Apple I, a logic board with read-only memory and
a built-in video interface. He also played a significant
role in the development of the first widely used PC, the
Apple II, as well as the Apple IIe and Lisa. In 1985,
Wozniak left Apple to take a job combining his two passions,
computers and education. Wozniak continues to instruct
teachers and students on the basics of computer technology.
|
Norio Ohga - Sony Corp.
Ohga served as consultant and advisor to Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo
(renamed SonyCorp. in 1958) during the
development of Japan's first tape recorder. In 1959, he
was named general manager of Sony's Tape
Recorder Division. He concurrently served as head of
Sony'sProduct Planning Division, and was simultaneously
in charge of Industrial Design at Sony. In the
1960s, Ohga’s goal was to make easy-to-use tape
recorders available to everyone. Ohga chose the Philips compact
cassette and convinced the company to make the technology
available free of charge to manufacturers worldwide to make the
cassette a global standard.
In 1968, Ohga was appointed senior managing director and
representative director of the joint venture between CBS Inc.
and >Sony Corp. (CBS/Sony Group
Inc.–now called Sony Music Entertainment
Japan Inc.). Ohga also played a key role in the establishment of
new audio formats, such as the compact disc (CD) in 1982, the MiniDisc
(MD) in 1992, and Super Audio CD (SACD). Appointed chairman and
CEO of Sony Corp. in 1995, he became chairman
of Sony Corp, effective July 1999. Ohga
has been celebrated for his distinguished work as a conductor of
symphony orchestras worldwide. The Audio Engineering Society (AES) awarded
an honorary membership to recognize Ohga's lifetime technical,
artistic and business contributions to the audio industry.
|
Ken Kai - Pioneer
Kai built the U.S. market for Japanese consumer electronics
companies with high-fidelity products along with the
introduction of optical disc technology with Laserdisc. He
was inducted into the Video Hall of Fame in 1984 under the
“Pioneer in Home Video” category |
Alan Blumlein - EMI
Blumlein registered 128 patents on Stereo/TV/Radar in the 1930s.
He invented binaural audio output, better known as stereo sound
while he was at EMI. His inventions extended beyond audio
devices, and included electronic TV system circuits and various
radar circuits that are still used today. His electronic
circuits are fundamental to the functioning of modern
electronics.
|
Henry Brief - Home Furnishings Daily
Brief was a trade association consultant until his death in
1998. He held the position of general counsel to ITA from
1996-1998; executive vice president of ITA from 1979-1996;
executive director of the Recording Industry Association of
America (RIAA) from 1960-1979; editor radio-TV section of
Home Furnishings Daily from 1952-1960;
news editor/announcer for Station WEOK in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.
from 1950-1952; and a features writer for Overseas News
from 1948-1950.
|
Joel Engel and Richard Frankiel - Bell Labs
Frankiel and Engel, researchers at AT&T's Bell Labs, were the
key people in the development of the AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone
Service) standard, which was adopted by the FCC as the country’s
first wireless phone standard. It also was the world's first
wireless phone standard. For their achievement, they were
jointly awarded the National Medal of Technology in 1994 by the
president of the United States. In 1987, Frenkiel, Engel and
their colleague William Jakes were honored with the Alexander
Graham Bell Medal of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineers (IEEE) for their work on cellular radio. |
Robert E. Gerson - TWICE
In 1985 Gerson left his post at the industry newsletter
Television Digest, to launch TWICE (This Week in Consumer
Electronics), with publisher Richard Ekstract. He served as
the founding editor and editor-in chief until his retirement in
2000. At TV Digest, Gerson developed his reputation for
accurate and responsible journalism, and expanded on that at
TWICE with insightful editorials that contributed to the
growth of the industry. Prior to joining TWICE he was a frequent
contributor to such other publications as Consumer
Electronics Monthly, Autosound & Communications,
Video Review and Economic Salon. He also authored two
supplements on consumer electronics for Time magazine,
made a number of network and local TV and radio presentations on
the industry. Gerson holds a CEA Lifetime Achievement Award, the
S. David Feir Humanitarian Award from the Anti-Defamation
League, the RCA Color TV Pioneer Award, a Trade Publication
Impact Award from GERS Retail Systems and is an original member
of the Academy of Digital TV Pioneers.
|
Jerry Kalov - Kay Associates; Cobra Electronics
Kalov is with Kay Associates, a management consulting firm. He
is a Director of Recoton Corp., a Director of Quion Inc. and a
Director of Wells-Gardner Electronics Corp. Previously he was
president and chief executive officer of Cobra Electronics Corp.
and before that was the senior partner in a Los Angeles-based
venture capital and management consulting firm. Kalov was
president and chief operating officer of Harman International
Industies, and also was president and chief executive officer of
JBL Inc. Before that he was the senior officer of Jensen
International. Kalov has served as president of the Institute of
High Fidelity Manufacturers and chairman of the Audio Components
Division of EIA and as president of the Northridge California
Hospital Development Association. He also served as Chairman of
EIA in 1996 and 1997, currently serves on their Board of
Governors as well as the Executive Committee and also is serving
as the Industry Executive Advisor of CEA as well as a member of
that Executive Board.
|
Paul Klipsch - Klipsch Audio Technologies
Klipsch was the owner, president, and chief engineer of Klipsch
Audio Technologies. The Klipschorn, developed in 1945, is still
in production and is the longest running loudspeaker in the
audio market. Klipsch received countless awards including the
Science & Industry Hall of Fame with the likes of Alfred
Einstein. He is a Fellow at the Audio Engineering Society, IEEE
Acoustical Society of America, received the 1978 AES Silver
Medal and in 1984 was inducted into the Audio Hall of Fame.
|
Dr. Woo Paik - General Instrument
For television to move from the analog to digital, there needed
to be a way to compress the digital signal for widespread
access. Dr. Paik, along with associates Marc Tayer, Jerry
Heller, Ed Krause and Paul Moroney created Digicipher, a
technology that could compress a digital signal for digital
television use. By 1993, Dr. Paik and his fellow engineers had a
concrete method for the transmission of an HDTV signal.
|
"The latest class of Hall of Fame inductees
represent the best of the best of a dynamic and innovative
industry," said Gary Shapiro, CEA president and CEO. "With their
unique creativity, persistence and vision these 11 pioneers have
championed the development of new technologies and concepts that
have changed for the better the way we all live and work."
With the addition of the 2004 inductees, the CE
Hall of Fame now is 86 members strong. New inductees will have
their pictures and biographies on display at the 2004
International CES, the world's largest consumer electronics
tradeshow, January 8-11, 2004, in Las Vegas, Nev. Inductees also
will be honored
during a special dinner at CEA's Industry Forum held October
18-20, 2004, in San Francisco.
