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The company was co-founded by Ralph Matthews and Karl Hassel in Chicago, Illinois, as Chicago Radio Labs in 1918 as a small producer of amateur radio equipment. The name 'Zenith' came from ZN'th, a contraction of its founders' ham radio call sign, 9ZN. They were joined in 1921 by Eugene F McDonald, and Zenith Radio Company was incorporated in 1923.
The fledgling company soon became known for its high-quality radios and electronic innovations. Zenith introduced the first portable radio in 1924, the first mass-produced AC radio in 1926, and push-button tuning in 1927. It added car radios in the 1930s with its Model 460, promoting the fact that it needed no separate generator or battery, selling at US$59.95. The first Zenith television set appeared in 1939, with its first commercial sets sold to the public in 1948. The company is credited with having invented such things as the wireless remote control and FM multiplex stereo. For many years Zenith used the slogan 'the quality goes in before the name goes on'. This phrase was used by the Geo. P Bent Piano Company of Chicago as early as 1906.
Zenith sourced their valves from several different manufacturers, you will most commonly see GE, Sylvania, and RCA, but those were not the only suppliers.
Information courtesy of Wikipedia.
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