Ulises Armand Sanabria
Encyclopedia
Ulises Armand Sanabria was born in southern Chicago
of Puerto Rican
and French-American parents.
, the first mechanical television
station which went on the air in Chicago on June 12, 1928. By sending the sound signal to station WIBO and the video signal on WCFL, he was the first to transmit sound and picture simultaneously on the same wave band on May 19, 1929.
When he was 15 years old, he told his one and only girlfriend of high school days, that he was going to invent television. Two years later, he figured out how to do it. Two more years later, at the age of 19, he demonstrated the first television in Chicago. This was only months after the first demonstrations of mechanical television by Charles Francis Jenkins
in the US and John Logie Baird
in the UK.
By 1929, Sanabria was operating his own station, WX9AO, with the help of radio station WIBO. In that year, he asked a young comedian named Milton Berle
to appear on one of his station's programs.
The "grand opening" of television station W9XAP took place in the evening of August 27, 1930. A number of receivers had been distributed to homes and stores in the Chicago area. Sears Roebuck had advertised extensively and crowds had assembled to see and hear. Bill Hay was the announcer and several other WMAQ artists performed. The signal was strong and the program good, but ghost images were terrific and the results disappointing. Apparently the nice crystal-steady signal from W9XAP made the ghost images distinct and objectionable, whereas the self-excited oscillator of W9XAO seemed to make them less distinct and quite tolerable.
By 1934, Sanabria was able to present a projecting television system with a picture 30 feet wide. He continued to demonstrate his system until the late 1930s and was in business manufacturing television picture tubes until 1955.
Also, in 1940 Sanabria working with Dr. De Forest
explored the concept of a primitive Unmanned combat air vehicle
using a television camera and a jam resistant radio control and presented there idea in a Popular Mechanics issue.
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
of Puerto Rican
Puerto Ricans in the United States
Stateside Puerto Ricans are American citizens of Puerto Rican origin, including those who migrated from Puerto Rico to the United States and those who were born outside of Puerto Rico in the United States...
and French-American parents.
Career
Sanabria was the builder and engineer of WCFLWCFL (AM)
WCFL was the callsign of a commercial radio station in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was owned by the Chicago Federation of Labor, hence its call letters. The station is now known as WMVP. Its transmitter is located in Downers Grove and is still in use by WMVP...
, the first mechanical television
Mechanical television
Mechanical television was a broadcast television system that used mechanical or electromechanical devices to capture and display video images. However, the images themselves were usually transmitted electronically and via radio waves...
station which went on the air in Chicago on June 12, 1928. By sending the sound signal to station WIBO and the video signal on WCFL, he was the first to transmit sound and picture simultaneously on the same wave band on May 19, 1929.
When he was 15 years old, he told his one and only girlfriend of high school days, that he was going to invent television. Two years later, he figured out how to do it. Two more years later, at the age of 19, he demonstrated the first television in Chicago. This was only months after the first demonstrations of mechanical television by Charles Francis Jenkins
Charles Francis Jenkins
Charles Francis Jenkins was an American pioneer of early cinema and one of the inventors of television, though he used mechanical rather than electronic technologies...
in the US and John Logie Baird
John Logie Baird
John Logie Baird FRSE was a Scottish engineer and inventor of the world's first practical, publicly demonstrated television system, and also the world's first fully electronic colour television tube...
in the UK.
By 1929, Sanabria was operating his own station, WX9AO, with the help of radio station WIBO. In that year, he asked a young comedian named Milton Berle
Milton Berle
Milton Berlinger , better known as Milton Berle, was an American comedian and actor. As the manic host of NBC's Texaco Star Theater , in 1948 he was the first major star of U.S. television and as such became known as Uncle Miltie and Mr...
to appear on one of his station's programs.
The "grand opening" of television station W9XAP took place in the evening of August 27, 1930. A number of receivers had been distributed to homes and stores in the Chicago area. Sears Roebuck had advertised extensively and crowds had assembled to see and hear. Bill Hay was the announcer and several other WMAQ artists performed. The signal was strong and the program good, but ghost images were terrific and the results disappointing. Apparently the nice crystal-steady signal from W9XAP made the ghost images distinct and objectionable, whereas the self-excited oscillator of W9XAO seemed to make them less distinct and quite tolerable.
By 1934, Sanabria was able to present a projecting television system with a picture 30 feet wide. He continued to demonstrate his system until the late 1930s and was in business manufacturing television picture tubes until 1955.
Also, in 1940 Sanabria working with Dr. De Forest
Lee De Forest
Lee De Forest was an American inventor with over 180 patents to his credit. De Forest invented the Audion, a vacuum tube that takes relatively weak electrical signals and amplifies them. De Forest is one of the fathers of the "electronic age", as the Audion helped to usher in the widespread use...
explored the concept of a primitive Unmanned combat air vehicle
Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle
An unmanned combat air vehicle or combat drone is an unmanned aerial vehicle that is designed to deliver weapons without an onboard pilot. Currently operational UCAVs are under real-time human control, but future version may enable autonomous operation, for example with pre-programmed route and...
using a television camera and a jam resistant radio control and presented there idea in a Popular Mechanics issue.