Mike Adams Presents Lee de Forest King of Radio Television and Film.m4v

Author Mike Adams talks about his research and his book, "Lee de Forest, King of Radio, Television, and Film" (Springer Science 2012). He presented this before the California Historical Radio Society of which he is the Board Chair. The nice production of this video, the camera, sound and editing, was done by CHRS member and videographer Dave Billeci.

[@Hortonfarms1]

It was my Grandfather, Harry Horton, who was Dr. deForesr's telegraph operator who travelled with him and went on to invent and patent the first air to ground radio and antenna. Nice to see your video.

[@juanbosco31]

Happy Birthday Lee De Forest !!!!

[@ArthurJS123]

I’m a distant descendant of DeForest. Terrible business man, married four times, and couldn’t even describe how the Audion Tube works. But interesting guy, despite all his weaknesses. Maybe more of a tinkerer than anything else.

[@vanettennattafamily6440]

Hello, I wonder if in your research you came across a Herbert B Van Etten who worked with and for Mr Deforest? Also might you have any pictures of Mr Van Etten?

[@eelsgothegoods]

My name is Lee De Forest Marshall, my dad is Glenn Marshall. He named me this because his mother's mother's last name is De Forest. What can you tell me that is interesting about my namesake? btw i am 21 yrs old, born august 31, 1991.

[@insomniac1954]

I`m related something like 5th cousins It is in a book i have somewhere

[@caroltenge5147]

twelve thirty.. M U S I C....... double you see oh el!

[@DoubleMrE]

DeForrest deserves credit for inventing the triode (or audion) tube, but he was a liar and a thief. He sued Howard Armstrong claiming he invented the principle of regeneration and the regenerative circuit. He proved himself a liar and a thief when he lost the case on the merits when he couldn't explain how regeneration even works. But he was also a dirty rat. He appealed and won on a sneaky technicality. But DeForest and Armstrong's peers knew the truth. When Armstrong tried to return the medal he was awarded by the Society of Radio Engineers for inventing regeneration . . . the chairman refused to take it back and the entire assembly gave him a standing ovation. Most of the money Deforrest made with his radio companies was from that stolen patent. DeForrest also tried to steal Case's invention, which is what made the modern system of soundtracks possible, but Case was too smart for him. He left DeForrest when he saw DeForrest claiming Case's work as his own and he went over to Fox studios (who had much better lawyers than DeForrest) and it was Case & Fox who went on to make the system practical. Case was an honest man and retired rich. DeForrest deservedly died almost penniless.

[@DoubleMrE]

***** I mostly agree with everything you said, except that I don't think DeForest was a great man. As I said, he deserves credit for coming up with the grid for vacuum tubes, but he had no idea how to actually exploit the invention. As you said, he was merely tinkering around . . . and got lucky. Armstrong was proud to a fault no doubt, but he is IMO the single most important person in making radio really work. He invented the Regenerative circuit, the Super-Het circuit, and FM. What DeForest (or Marconi for that matter) did, pales in comparison.