Mobile Electronics Industry Hall of Fame

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Mobile Electronics Industry Hall of Fame Announces Inaugural Class of 2024 Inductees

The Mobile Electronics Association proudly introduces the inaugural class of the Mobile Electronics Industry Hall of Fame, honoring individuals whose contributions have profoundly shaped the industry. Selected by a distinguished nomination committee, including executive leadership from the Mobile Electronics Association, this first class is dedicated in memoriam of the manufacturing sector.

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Jim Fosgate (1937-2022)

Emmy Award-Winning and surround sound pioneer, an American Inventor and Engineer. His father Louis (Louie) Fosgate was a radio and television repairman. Jim always said that he was Brilliant and understood electronics and audio, which he taught to Jim. His love for sound was natural and normal, already programmed into him. His entire career was defined by music and technology that inspired and changed the lives of those who listened to his Sound Demos. He created a Human Experience in Sound with an inexhaustible PASSION for The Perfect Sound. In his early teens, he built a portable radio from scavenged parts and installed it on his Cruiser Bicycle. He told stories of riding it all over Indianapolis and grinned as he said “It was a Hit.” FOZ realized that music and the human ear didn’t have the same “curve” or signature; so, in 1973 the solution was invented and patented as the FOSGATE PUNCH EQ Car amplifier. That same punch is the sound of Rockford Fosgate and it is heard in everything made today. In 2000 after working with quadraphonic sound and producing the Tate II processor, Jim made improvements to his stereophonic technology which Norma and Lex called “Surround Sound”. The name was adopted by competitors and Dolby Laboratories announced the introduction of DOLBY PRO LOGIC II. Roger Dressler of Dolby Laboratories said, “Jim’s system, his invention, made him become one of the most prolific developers of Surround Decoding Technologies since the Quadraphonic era”. This circuity is now enjoyed by more than 500 million stereo receivers, video game consoles, car stereos, and commercial theater decoders throughout the world. In 2003 Jim was Honored with the Ultimate recognition in his field.… An Emmy Award for his remarkable achievement and contributions in the development of Surround Sound for Television.

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Larry Frederick (1949 – 2023)

Larry’s early career included working at Altech Lansing Professional, Audiomobile, a few years later, Larry joined Coustic, and drove the mix to include the famous XM3, AMP190 and AMP380 among many other products. He joined Keith Peterson at Phoenix Gold in 1989 when they were only an audio accessory company. In a short amount of time Larry and Keith introduced the MS-250 and MS-2125 with 24 karat gold plated PCB’s that placed Phoenix Gold with a reputation for high quality products. Larry went on to develop many amps including the “Frank AMP’n stein”. A large portion of Larry’s career was training, he trained 1000’s of enthusiasts and installers all over the world. He was famous for a flowerful tongue and his nerf gun, shooting students who were not paying attention or answering with a wrong answer. Also, in the early 90’s Larry was also instrumental in the rules committee and judging of 1000’s of vehicles that competed in ISACA events nationwide. He was very passionate about the fact that the only seat in the car that mattered was the driver’s seat and would only judge a car from that seat. His career path then took him to elettromedia USA where he was instrumental in the introduction and training of the industry’s first serious aftermarket DSP, the Bit One. Larry helped to tune over 250 cars and could make any one of them sound good. Followed by 10 years at Diamond Audio where he reintroduced the brand as a leader in Harley Davidson Audio. Finally, he was presented with the opportunity to form his own company. His daughter, Catherine, came up with naming it Cicada, after the loudest bug on earth. Cicada Audio which was formed during the pandemic and started selling to the Motorcycle market just over a year ago. The successful introduction of his first Cicada product, the CH65 6-1/2” Coax Horn Loudspeaker and was first to stock 2 or 4 ohm versions. With its ability to fit into most locations with little or no modification it was a home run. Larry designed and developed 80 additional products in the current line. His passion for the category led him to a product plan of an additional 40 new products arriving to market in 2023 the second year of Cicada Audio’s existence. Larry’s presence in the electronics industry was a guiding light, and he was a reliable source of support and guidance for all who had the good fortune of knowing him. His legacy in the industry will live on through the many people he touched with his vast knowledge and expertise.

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Reese Haggott (1940 – 2010) 

Haggott, a key leader in building the mobile electronics aftermarket, was employed at Alpine Electronics during the mid-1970s through the mid-1980s and rose to become sales and marketing VP, where he was known for building a nationwide network of Alpine specialty retailers who numbered about 600 at the time. “Reese understood the concept of building relationships with the specialist retailers, which eventually led to Alpine hosting its retailers at national sales meetings in exotic locations like Hawaii and Mexico. He was known as a visionary who helped transform car audio from a low fi hobby to a thriving business that included hifi components worthy of any Lamborghini. From 1978 to 1986, he led Alpine Electronics, where he became senior VP, and then worked at Eclipse and Coustic. Haggott, with his cowboy style, big personality and bold vision, continues to influence many of today’s market leaders. Haggott created a business distribution model that became the gold standard. He demanded that each retailer be visited personally by an Alpine rep before it was authorized. And he convinced home audio dealers to enter the new car stereo category at the time.

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Loyd Ivey (1951 – 2023)

Loyd was a Consumer Technology Association Hall of Fame (CTA) member.  He loved car audio, and while his business expanded into a large commercial audio enterprise, he always retained a soft spot for the 12 volt industry. Back in the day, Loyd was director of IASCA, serving from 1985 to 1994.  And he was a former member of the board of directors for MERA, now the Mobile Electronics Association. He was also past chairman and board member for the CTA. As the story goes, Loyd left rural Missouri on a bus bound for Chicago at the age of 16.  One of his first jobs was at a wood mill that made speaker enclosures.  He founded his own company in 1971 making bookshelf speakers, according to a 2015 article by Systems Contractor News.   He founded Mitek in 1979 and soon launched the MTX car audio brand. Mitek grew to include AtlasIED and it has owned AV brands Xtant Technologies, Coustic Car Audio, Streetwires, Esoteric Audio USA and others. Loyd’s impact reached far beyond awards and recognition. An entrepreneur through and though, Loyd built his businesses both organically and through strategic acquisition. Many of the acquired brands were consolidated into and added to the success of the well-known commercial and consumer audio brands -AtlasIED and MTX, the two largest entities that fall under the MiTek umbrella. In addition to his entrepreneurial passion, Loyd’s commitment to nurturing talent and fostering a culture of growth within and outside the companies transformed the lives and careers of countless employees and industry individuals. His mentorship inspired innovation and creativity, yielding confident pioneers in this ever-evolving industry.

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Rob Limbaugh (1955 – 2021)

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Tom Malone (1954 – 2020)

Tom was a well-respected veteran of the consumer electronics industry and joined VOXX (then Audiovox) in 1986 as a product manager for car security. He consistently moved up the ranks over the next three decades…and most recently served as President of VOXX Advanced Solutions. His contributions to our business, our partners and the industry as a whole have been numerous, and he will always be remembered, respected and loved by those he touched. Tom was the consummate professional who lit up the room when he entered, believed anything could be accomplished and had such a deep passion for changing our industry for the better. Malone helped create and grow the car audio, mobile video and advanced driver safety markets. He was a gracious, caring, and devoted member of the consumer electronics industry and a highly respected leader at Audiovox/VOXX for 33 years. He is an icon in the 12 volt industry with deep passion and admiration for the business. Tom was on the forefront and a pioneer of many 12 volt categories that are still being sold and manufactured by VOXX and others today. Those who worked with Tom knew what a strong work ethic he had and mentored many of us in the industry. He was in command of the facts and not afraid to speak the truth, he was candid in his interviews and held a clear vision of where the industry was heading. His contributions to our industry have had and will continue to make a positive impact on our future.”

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Kevan Morris (1957 – 2021)

A well-respected and cherished member of the Pioneer family, Kevan’s affiliation with Pioneer began in 1984.  While working at Pacific Stereo selling car stereo components directly to consumers, he was recruited into the role of Product Specialist at NLS Marketing, a rep firm in Bellevue, Washington, selling Pioneer car electronics to retailers throughout Washington state. In August 1986, Kevan officially joined Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc. as a District Sales Manager covering car electronics in the Pacific Northwest territory.  In the 35 years since, Kevan quickly ascended the ranks of Pioneer and held numerous sales and management positions related to Pioneer’s car electronics, home electronics, and television businesses, culminating as executive vice president, a position in which he served with distinction since May 2011.  Kevan’s expansive sales knowledge, strong leadership and tireless work ethic have been the backbone of Pioneer’s growth and success throughout North America.  Kevan could always be counted on to meet any challenge with a calm demeanor and comforting smile.  Kevan conducted himself with the utmost integrity and he earned the admiration and respect of all with whom he has worked.  Kevan was proud of his life-long career at Pioneer, and he valued every friendship that developed during the past thirty-five years.  Kevan’s legacy continues in the strong bonds he developed with his customers as well as the Pioneer staff that he mentored and guided throughout his Pioneer career.

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Clyde Podraza (1954 – 2022)

Clyde began his professional career at Motorola, then moving into executive positions at Panasonic, International Jensen, Recoton, Dual Electronics, and AAMP Global. Clyde spent more than 25 years in the 12V industry. Starting his career at Motorola, he then moved on to work in executive positions at Panasonic, International Jensen, Recoton, Dual Electronics, and AAMP Global. Clyde was one of the founding partners at Dual Electronics and spent a decade as a top executive there. He was a pillar of the 12Volt industry during his time with Jensen and Dual. Clyde spent the last several years of his career at AAMP Global prior to retiring in 2020. 

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Michael Somma (1927 – 2021)

Somma started out by opening a television sales and service shop with his brother-in-law, after serving proudly and with honor in the United States Navy in World War II. He was a graduate of Brooklyn Technical School, where he learned electrical and mechanical engineering skills. Somma built and sold his first television while attending school, which became his first official TV sale. After the war, where he served as a radioman, he knew where his passion and interests would be best utilized, and thus, Metra Radio and TV was founded. They went on to sell and install numerous car radios because cars at this time did not come equipped with a radio and the option from the factory was, as it is now, an expensive addition. Installing a car radio was a time-consuming and complex undertaking. These trials and tribulations gave Somma the idea of standardizing the design and creation of kits instead of tackling each installation one at a time. Several innovations at the time pushed Metra’s focus more towards automotive. Although AM technology was still the rule and FM the exception up until the 1970s, Somma’s forward-thinking saw the potential on the broader bandwidth of FM and its ability to attain Hi-Fidelity sound, as it was called at that time. Somma’s other innovation was the manufacturing of car radio installation kits, which greatly facilitated an easier installation of car radios. At the beginning of car radio installations, it could take two men several hours to install the earlier and primitive units. Somma used his considerable mechanical skills to fashion Metra’s earliest kits out of metal and find whatever way he could fasten the radio to the car. This change led Metra to pre-fabricate kits as their radio and installation business took off! As the 1950s rolled on, more and more installations meant fabricating more radio kits. This is where Somma’s talents came into play, thinking of the bigger, Somma’s boldness led him to eliminate the installation bays and fill them with machinery and equipment to manufacture the myriad of kits required to fit the many different types of cars on the road. He hired engineers and designers, set up a shipping department, and hired a sales and marketing staff to take Metra nationwide. As time went by, Metra went full circle and introduced a line of car radios called MetraVox in the early 1960s that included 4-track players, AM and FM radio, and eventually became a public company in 1969. MetraVox’s radios, which were manufactured in Italy and Japan, were discontinued as Somma determined that the true profit center was in the installation kit business.