Here’s a passing that we didn’t note at the time but that will be of interest to Radio World readers.
John Thomas Mark died in November in Oregon. He was 82, according to an account in LancasterOnline.com.
Mark worked his way through school as a radio engineer for several radio stations in Pennsylvania. He was an electrical engineer with RCA, Eimac and Varian, when he retired in 1989, though he continued consulting in power tube design and development until shortly before his death, according to the newspaper. He had 31 patents and designed a mega-watt superpower switching tube used in nuclear research facilities; one of his favorite achievements, the newspaper reported, was the patent for the laser scanner used at retail check-outs.
John served in the army in World War II and was a radio code cryptographer for transmissions including the Potsdam conference negotiations. He also was active in the Antique Radio Club of San Francisco.
“He was an avid collector of antique radio equipment, repairing and refurbishing un-modulated frequency and super-heterodyne tube sets from circa 1926 to 1942,” according to the account of his life, which reported on his numerous other notable interests and accomplishments.
