The Resume

(December 2, 1906-December 7, 1977)
Born in Budapest, Hungary
Engineer for CBS Laboratories
Developed the microgroove long-playing 33 rpm phonograph record (1948)
Developed early versions of color television (1940) and the video recorder (1967)
Received the National Medal of Science (1977)
Died in an auto accident in Westchester County, New York

Why he might be annoying:

He divorced his first wife and married his secretary.
His color TV system, using a rotating color wheel, was incompatible with existing black and white TV sets, dooming it commercially.
He foresaw that lasers could be used to read digitally stored music, but predicted it would never be commercially viable.

Why he might not be annoying:

He was also a talented musician who played the cello.
Instead of receiving royalties for inventing the LP, he asked for a copy of each album that Columbia Records released.
He modified his color wheel TV system to create the TV cameras that NASA used to transmit the Apollo moon landings.
A colleague said he had 'more ideas in a day than most others have in a lifetime.'

Credit: C. Fishel

Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

• Breeders [Have 5 or More Kids] (Ranked: 6)
• C. Fishel's Profiles [Series 48]
• Gold, Silver and Bronze
• Hungary for a Bagel [Hungarian Jews]
• I am Hungarian
• I Died in 1977 (Ranked: 71)
• I Died in a Car
• I Died on Pearl Harbor Day [December 7] (Ranked: 1977)
• I Earned a Doctorate
• Inventors
• Profiles 34501-34750 (Ranked: 34613)

Year In Review:

In 2023, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
In 2022, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
In 2021, Out of 11 Votes: 81.82% Annoying
In 2019, Out of 13 Votes: 53.85% Annoying
In 2018, Out of 8 Votes: 62.50% Annoying
In 2017, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
In 2016, Out of 5 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
In 2015, Out of 12 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
In 2014, Out of 10 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
In 2013, Out of 19 Votes: 52.63% Annoying