Dwight E. "Red" Harkins
ABT 1915 - 26 Apr 1974
diedLong Beach, California, USA
bornCincinnati, Ohio, USA
SchooltblData
BiographyMovie theater owner.Came to Tempe in 1932.
Attended Arizona State Teachers College in 1932. He started WGBUQ, the first shortwave radio station in Tempe, in the basement of the Industrial Arts Building at ASTC. With the assistance of Stan Schirmacher, built an open-air movie theater at Tempe Beach Park. It ran only one season, the summer of 1934, before it was damaged by flooding. He dropped out of college after one year to take over the State Theater in downtown Tempe, where he played the organ to accompany the movies. He operated this theater until 1940, when, in partnership with Harry Nace, Sr., they launched the College Theater.
President of the Tempe Chamber of Commerce, 1938.
During World War II, he was chief machinist at Williams Field, and later served as an instructor in radio navigation at Falcon Field, Mesa, when Royal Air Force cadets from England were trained there.
In 1948 he and Nace opened the Saguaro Theater in Wickenburg.
In 1950 he introduced the first high fidelity FM station in Arizona with a 50,000-watt transmitter. He also started KCLF, Clifton's first radio station. In 1953 he spearheaded the effort under which Mesa obtained station KTAR, Channel 12, the Valley's second television station. He was general manager of the station for many years. He had been a licensed radio amateur since 1929.
He invented a process called FM Multiplex and then gave the secret away. At the FCC in Washington, he was referred to as "Mr. Multiplex" for his pioneering efforts in the FM broadcasting field. He authored about 40 technical papers on broadcasting in national publications. As a pioneer in using stereo sound in the Valley, he operated a company which first began to pipe music into banks, stores and offices.
Lived at 6622 N. 40th Sreet, Phoenix.
BIO-Peralta
BIO-Harkins
Old Settlers collection, THM
Juana Estrada Peralta obit, TDN, Apr 1973
Manuel R. Peralta obit, TDN, Oct 1975
Ray Peralta obit, TDN, 8 Sep 1982
Smith, Tempe; Arizona Crossroads, p. 174
Person TypeIndividual
