Sarkes Tarzian???

[Belanger99]

The Indy STar has an article today about Paul Mendehall retiring from radio and mentions he works for WTTS in Bloomington, owned by Sarkes Tarzain. That name is familiar, Sarkes Trazain is listed as the sponsor of an Indy roadster driven by Elmer George.

I looked the name up on Wikipedia, is this the same person? It has to be.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarkes_Tarzian

He's also listed as the founder of WTTV in Indy.

Learn something new all the time.

[Pelican Joe]

This car was owned by Mari Hulman George (I believe). It's a beautiful car.

[indyrjc]

He's also listed as the founder of WTTV in Indy.

His sponsorship of the Mari Hulman/Elmer George car was a continuation of ties between himself and the Hulmans. WTTV (today CBS 4 in Indianapolis) was not part of a major network and focused on local broadcasting as well as local sports, Tarzian was able to get one hour (from 4:30-5:30PM) of Time Trial broadcasts on Channel four. I believe these were rebroadcasts on tape but I'm not sure about that.

[Tifositoo]

Chuck Marlowe was also a fixture at WTTV for many years.

[Thorzdad]

Back when I was a kid in the 60s, Channel 4 broadcast races from the Speedrome for awhile. Also, Popeye and Janie. Good times to be a kid.

[Belanger99]

His sponsorship of the Mari Hulman/Elmer George car was a continuation of ties between himself and the Hulmans. WTTV (today CBS 4 in Indianapolis) was not part of a major network and focused on local broadcasting as well as local sports, Tarzian was able to get one hour (from 4:30-5:30PM) of Time Trial broadcasts on Channel four. I believe these were rebroadcasts on tape but I'm not sure about that.

Seems like he was quite the pioneer in Indiana broadcasting and built quite an organization. Wasn't until I was triggered to do some more research from the article above that I looked up the name. For the longest time I thought it was either some company, or two people (like Sumar). I've got every Clymer and Hungness Yearbook and I don't remember seeing much, if anything written about Sarkes Tarzain and his relationship with auto racing.

[JSJLW]

I have also found out that most of the races were sponsored by "HOW"...Is that associated with Mari Hulman-George?

[frodo13]

If I remember correctly Sarkes Tarzian manufactured radios and TVs in Bloomington. On Big Time wrestling on WTTV 4 a wrestler was gifted a Sarkes Tarzian radio and another wrestler threw it an tore it to pieces. There were no tubes in it. ( That was when radios had tubes and not transistors) Oh, the wrestler was Argentina Rocca and the destroyer was Dick the Bruiser.

[goner]

The big time wrestling taking place in Indy meant most of the biggest names lived here. I went to school with many of the wrestling family kids. The wives often were part of the show.
Most of the big name stars rented homes and were on my paper route.

[Turn13]

He was quite anninventor and entreprenuer, came to Indiana via RCA.

The Sarkes Tarzian company was an important manufacturer of radio and television equipment, television tuners, and components. Its FM radio receivers helped to popularize the broadcast medium. Sarkes Tarzian manufactured studio color TV cameras in the mid-1960s.^[9] The manufacturing operations were spun off in the 1970s and today the company still exists as a broadcaster, owning several television and radio stations.

[frodo13]

Wish they had been on my paper route!