Voting Station

George W. Trendle

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Producer

The Resume

    (July 4, 1884-May 10, 1972)
    Born in Norwalk, Ohio
    Co-founder of the Kunsky-Trendle Broadcasting Company (1929; later radio station WXYZ)
    Co-creator (with Fran Striker) of the Lone Ranger (1932) and the Green Hornet (1936)
    Radio and television producer
    Entertainment lawyer based in Detroit

Why he might be annoying:

    He had a reputation for pinching pennies and wrangling free labor out of his subordinates (earning him the nickname ‘Miser of Motown’).
    His middle name? Washington.
    When employees were looking for pay raises, he simply downplayed their worth and threatened them with unemployment (a highly effective tactic in the Depression era).
    His insistence on non-copyrighted classical music for WXYZ radio shows (and thus royalty-free) led to the William Tell Overture becoming the Lone Ranger theme and Flight of the Bumblebee becoming the Green Hornet theme.
    Having recognized the market value of the Lone Ranger, he neatly bullied his co-creators into surrendering control over the character.

Why he might not be annoying:

    The first Detroit-area movie theater is credited to him.
    WXYZ became an independent station under his reign.
    He was highly conscious of youth listeners.
    After a few months with sub-par replacement writers, he let Striker return to the job to a $3-per-episode raise (about $65 in the 21st century).
    He sold all Lone Ranger rights to another company for $3 million (July 1954) — and accorded Striker a $4,000 farewell bonus (quite generous for the time).

Credit: Cool It All Right?


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 13 Votes: 69.23% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 8 Votes: 37.50% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 9 Votes: 55.56% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 19 Votes: 68.42% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 12 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 10 Votes: 80.0% Annoying