World Radio put Council Bluffs on the cutting edge of technology

WRL was also the home to Hy-Gain antennas first under the name of Globe beams. Hy-Gain was sold to Telex and is now owned by MFJ. Galaxy sold part of their line to RCA and later the rest of the line. Hams know the Transceivers as the Galaxy III and V and later GT-550. A matching 1KW amp was also produced. Leo was a pioneer in getting gear to hams. I had friends growing up who had frequent calls from Leo to introduce new gear. One friend was always buying gear such as a Globe King B, Harvey Wells Antenna Tuner, and Cosmophone 35.
If it ws made for hams Leo sold it.

Dave K4JRB

 

Sorry. I wasn’t paying attention. Thanks for clarifying.

But all the same, thanks for posting it!

 

WRL's 1959 glamorous Helen at work rocks. These days the charms of her gift and skill combo would likely be a bit attenuated (for OM me) with fad fashionable pink Glyptal hair highlights and mini clevis pin piercings.

 

I very much enjoyed reading this brief history of World Radio Labs. There was much I didn't know, even after all these decades. Thanks for making this available.
Mike W5MP

 

I still have the 1968 and '69 WRL catalogs I received in the mail back then. They're wonderful to look at. -- 73, N4KZ

 

It's pretty cool that WRL manufactured their own ham gear designs but also sold some competing gear.

Not related to that ... I just remembered that I also have a WLR Comet Kit Signal Slicer self-powered Q-multiplier. I've never seen another one, though I have seen an old ad for one. It is slated to be put back to work taming a Hallicrafters S-40B as soon as the RX gets off the bench.

 

Best Ham store I ever saw. More stuff in one place by far than any other. I was there in the early Spring of 1967. Drove all the way down from ND to visit
the store. Leo was there and waited on me. I walked out with a brand new SR-160,DC supply, and a Hustler antenna. I will never forget walking around the store
looking at the rows and rows of parts. A true Home Brewers heaven.
Chuck
W6RD
WA0EWW back then

 

AWESOME READ!! ONE OF THE BEST

 

Great article! I had back when my first real HF SSB Xcvr, the GT-500A, Remote VFO, PS and Speaker. Cut my teeth on working DX with that set up with inverted vee antenna. Opened the door for more to come. Great radio, wish I still had it.

 

That's a nice article... Thanks for the memory John.
The Gran Masters of early amateur radio entrepreneurship... Retailers like Ward Jensen ECI, Terry Sterman AES, and Leo Meyerson WRL... I met Leo in '75 while living in Omaha. He'd thrown his golf clubs or equivalent atop the 40 meter phasing lines in the trunk of his Cadillac and had broken a lead off an antenna. Quick fix... Lived a long life for sure.

73's
Erika DD
Hi Barry hope all is well...

 

CHIP,
IT'S TIME FOR A
COLD

​

 

Leo paid me a visit back in the 90's. I picked him up at a QCWA meeting in northern Virginia. I took him to National Airport where he bought me lunch. Needless to say I had an interesting eyeball QSO with him. I used to chat with him on the 40 meter band.

 

I met Leo at some ARRL conventions when it was part of my job at National Radio to man a booth and talk to owners who had questions about their gear.

Seemed a personable guy but I dont remember any real conversations. He wasnt at any of the evening hospitality suites I visited.

Carl

 

When I was first licensed as WN0ETE back in nineteen-ought seventy-one, we lived in Omaha, and going across the river to Council Bluffs and WRL was like going to heaven to a teenage ham like me. I swear I hadn't even thought of them for the last 40 years.

Wow, what memories.

 

That lady looks a LOT like my MOM did circa 54-59; typical of Western Iowa beauties of the day. This was definitely staged for print advertising. The look keeps updating but will always be a fashion show.

Erika DD