Eugene J. Polley , a man best roll in the hay for excogitate the first wireless television remote control , pop off of born causes on Sunday at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove , Illinois . He was 96 .
Polley bagan his calling in 1935 working for Zenith Radio Corporation ( now Zenith Electronics , a subordinate of LG Electronics ) . In 1955 , he insert the humankind to the first - ever wireless TV outback mastery , the“Flash - Matic,”which shift channels on a TV exercise set using a photograph - cell activating flashlight - similar twist . The Flash - Matic was moody , requiring accurate angling to successfully work , but its arrival was a huge procession from Zenith ’s first TV remote , a gadget called — no kidding — the “ Lazy Bones , ” which was connected to the TV set by an umbilical - like wire cord .
Cordless control allowed audience a vastly newfangled experience of consuming television : For the first sentence ever , the could flip programs without getting up to wrick the telephone dial . No longer were broadcast weather plainly because they were too lazy to get up off the couch . Commercials could be avoid by switching channels , or muted , with just the press of a button . “ Channel surfboarding ” become a affair .
Eugene Polley worked his path through Zenith ’s stockroom , to its part department , and ultimately to the engineering section where he spent most of his career . He was responsible for for acquire Zenith ’s first catalog . During World War II , Polley worked on radar advances for the US Department of Defense . In his 47 - year life history with Zenith , Polley held numerous high - outrank technology position , let in Head of Video Recording Group and Assistant Division Chief for the Mechanical Engineering Group . He and fellow Zenith railroad engineer Robert Adler were honored in 1997 with an Emmy Award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for “ Pioneering Development of Wireless Remote Controls for Consumer Television . ”
Eugene Polley was behave in Chicago on November 29 , 1915 . He was a longtime resident of Lombard , Illinois , where was was active in village government . He is survived by his Logos Eugene J. Polley Jr. , and grandson , Aaron , of San Diego , Calif ; preceding him in dying are his wife , Blanche , and girl , Joan Polley .
show into the Golden Age of Television with Mr. Polley ’s Zenith Flash - Matic , entire generation were presented with their first “ clicker , ” “ gizmo , ” “ thingamabob , ” “ whatsit . ” It was and will constantly be the convenience we ’re always looking for and never can find out . The one we brave sofa - cushion crumbs to retrieve , start slapping fights with our siblings to secure . It ’s issue forth a retentive way since the finnicky Flash - Matic of the fifty , but the video remote control remains a mainstay menage gadget all these years later , one few of us could imagine growing up without .
Thank you , Eugene Polley . [ MarketWatch ]
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