My 43rd NAB show coming. Too many stories to fit in but three highlights.
1979 launch of the GVG 300 switcher - very big deal for GVG and the live production world. Stage show started with the booming voice of Steve Kerman of Tektronix over "Burn Baby Burn" "the GVG 300 switcher - as up to date as the Disco Beat itself."
Speaking of burning - as a young British 20 something coming to Vegas for the first time with white skin, had a few Pina Coladas and fell asleep by the pool, spent much of the show wondering if my pant legs would catch fire!
Jump forward 5 years and GVG's 25th anniversary. Most impressive booth I've seen. 40 foot wide projection screen lit by two color Eidophor projectors for a very widescreen image. We put two Betacams on a special rig on a Bell Jet Ranger and flew it 6 inches off the water through the Grand Canyon! Packed booth every time we'd show it and 100+ people leaned every time the helicopter banked - true magic!
Finally at Scitex Digital Video's launch, we gave away a complete Videocube package - worth about $40,000 and everything a young editor needed to get started. It was a "must be present to win" drawing and I got to host the drawing from our stage. Whipping the crowd into hysteria, tossing T shirts out, etc., was a kick and I got to feel like a game show host for a day!
– Pete Challinger | Vina, Calif.
Pete Challinger is president of Pacific Media Technologies
You were just glued to the screen. That song came on the radio. The best NAB Show you ever attended.
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