SBE CHAPTER 40 NEWSLETTER
NOVEMBER 2002
San Francisco
Roy Trumbull - Editor roy547@msn.com
Bill Dempster - Artist
Advertisers for this month's newsletter are:
Projection Systems Inc. - Marci Mearns - (510) 259-2469
Santucci Video Systems - Sandra Santucci - (818) 704-6324
Belden - Steve Lampen - (415) 440-8393
Orban - custserv@orban.com - (510) 351-3500
MARCOM - Martin Jackson - (408) 768-8668
William F. Ruck, Jr. Broadcast Engineer - (415) 564-1450
Ross Marketing Associates - Kevin Frost - (408) 988-8111
Kathrein (Scala Division) - Michael Wm. Bach - (541) 779-6500
Hammett & Edison, Inc. - Dane E. Ericksen, P.E. - (707) 996-5200
LeBLANC - David A. Hill - (650) 574-4600
Econco - George Badger - 650-327-7599
Improbable Missions Fource - Mike Schweizer - (888) 4-ISDN4U
Digi-Gear/Cancomm - Eric B. Lane - (818) 980-9188
RF Specialties of California - Bill Newbrough - (888) 737-7321
Pacific Radio Electronics - Sam Mao - (510) 636-0308
West Penn Wire/CDT - Michael J. La Porte - (650) 652-9080
Axcera - Russ Erickson - (877) 440-7877
Microwave Radio Communications - Clark W. Rhoads - (909) 246-1602

Babes/SBE Luncheon on Wednesday Nov 27th

This meeting wraps up our year. There is no meeting in December. Paul Black will have a boom box and suggests we all bring our favorite out-takes for this meeting.

As usual, our luncheon will be at Sinbad's just south of the Ferry Building on the Embarcadero near the foot of Mission St. We meet at 11:30 and are seated at 12:30. To make reservations call Paul Black at 925-827-9511 and leave a message on his machine.

News of Dave Hill
Dave Hill, a longtime BABEs participant and rep for Larcan, has been diagnosed with a fairly aggressive brain tumor. Dave suddenly started losing his memory and went in for the brain scan that found the tumor.. He's had radiation therapy and is in the hospital. I'll have more details in a few days.

Robert L Hammett Dead at Age 82
Robert L. Hammett, P.E., died peacefully on October 11, at age 82. He is survived by Luana, his wife of 57 years, by his three children, and by nine grandchildren.

Bob Hammett was raised in Bakersfield, California, and he earned Phi Beta Kappa honors at Stanford (1942) and a Masters in Electrical Engineering there in 1943. During WWII, he conducted radio research at Harvard Labs, and afterward began his career with A. Earl Cullem in Dallas, Texas.

In 1952, Bob started his own consulting practice in San Francisco, which grew to national renown maximizing coverage for AM, TV, and FM broadcasters. He received, with his partner Ed Edison, the 1992 NAB Engineering Achievement Award. Bob retired in 1988, and the firm of Hammett & Edison, Inc., Consulting Engineers, continues to this day, under the leadership of his son.

Bob is remembered for his sharp mind, quiet wit, high ethics, and gracious manner. He was instrumental in several projects preserving the beauty of Fallen Leaf Lake, California, and he loved sailing. Remembrances in Bob's name may be made to Whitman College, Walla Walla, Washington 99362.

John Klecker Dies
Dielectric regrets to announce that John Klecker passed away on October 19, 2002 in Phoenix, Arizona following the SBE National show. John joined the sales staff of Dielectric in 1997 and was a familiar face in the broadcast industry, having spent over 25 years in sales positions in the top broadcast companies in the U.S.

Memorial Fund
BABES was started in the early 60s by Howie Immekus, who then worked for KABL. When Howie died in 1985, a memorial scholarship fund was started at the College of San Mateo. As others have passed on, we've added to that fund. To make a donation, make your check payable to:

We Can't Hire It Out
Who caught the Unibomber? His brother. Who caught the Washington D.C. sniper? An ordinary citizen who saw a car at a rest stop on the highway. Who turned up evidence in the Zebra serial murder case? Marilyn Baker at KPIX. She drove out with a shooter using the same information the police had and looked.

Police and security forces comprise a thin veneer on this lumpy thing we call civilization. They can never be everywhere and they will never know everything. Our existing forces had ample information prior to Sept 11th and couldn't put the pieces together. The CIA didn't foresee the breakup of the USSR or the fall of the Berlin Wall. I have little faith that another group of spooks will do much better. I recall all the muscle General Groves had at Las Alamos and he still had three spies on the payroll and a massive steel safe set with the default combination it had come from the factory with.

In the end it is up to us to promote the folks with brains and bounce those lacking same.

Mike La Porte Breaks Arm Instead of Par
Mike had an "ooops" moment while reaching for his golf bag. At the moment, he is a very humerous kind of guy (cast on same).

A merry Winter Solstice. No meeting in December - RT