William J.B. Smith's Obituary
William J.B. Smith, 93, passed away March 20, 2020 in Plano, TX with his children at his side. He was born July 23, 1926 in Kress, TX, the eldest child of William C. and Maudie L. Smith.
Bill was a legend in Texas broadcast engineering for decades. Despite being a well-respected consultant to television stations across the United States and around the world, marriage to his wife of 70 years, Hermagene Gauntt Smith, was his real purpose for living.
A native of the Texas Panhandle, Bill turned a childhood passion for electricity and learning about radio, into an enviable reputation as a problem solver in modern television engineering. Bill’s hard work, dedication and expertise gained him a loyal following from television broadcast engineering colleagues. He was a master of detecting troublesome problems and working out the solutions. He shared those principles of hard work and doing the right thing with his family and others he mentored. Bill often said when working to solve a problem, “this is going to take either 30 minutes or 30 days.”
In 1938 as a 12-year old, he was reputed to be the youngest person in America to successfully be tested and be awarded a First-Class FCC license. As a teenager Bill worked as a licensed engineer for radio stations in Dallas, Amarillo and Clovis, NM.
During World War II, Bill joined the U.S. Army, and due to his prior radio engineering experience, was assigned to the Army Signal Corps at Camp Crowder, Missouri. There he helped assemble the control room, the transmitter and recording studio for Armed Forces Radio Network. But more important, he met his future wife, Hermagene Gauntt.
Following the war, Bill and Herma returned to civilian life, building new radio stations in several Texas communities. At the dawn of television in the Texas Panhandle in 1953, Bill helped sign on KFDA-TV in Amarillo, and later became the Chief Engineer. General Electric hired Bill as the district field engineer in Dallas in 1964, and he installed and tested the first-of-its-kind color cameras for WFAA-TV, Channel 8 in Dallas. During the next 35 years, with GE and later Harris Corporation, Bill’s specialty was integrating television transmitters and antenna systems. After he and Herma founded William J.B. Smith Broadcast Consultants in 1986, television stations throughout Texas, in surrounding states, and across the globe continued to line up for Bill to work his magic to oversee their installations or solve problems in a crisis. If a piece of test equipment or a transmission line part did not already exist, Bill designed and built one in his home workshop. Technical books were invaluable to him, and Bill had lots of them!
As the evolution from analog to digital television was occurring in the 1990s, Bill collaborated with other broadcasting professionals to assist his clients in this imposing transition. Moving to the technology of high-definition digital broadcasting required dozens of television stations to retain Bill to manage the design, construction and installation of these new systems. The conversion to digital broadcasting occupied all of Bill’s time for the last decade of his lengthy career.
While he frequently was away from home working on projects, he and Herma were as close as a couple could possibly be. Theirs was a deep, romantic love. Bill, the teacher, shared all sorts of practical and philosophical knowledge with his kids, Connie and Bill. Whether working in the shop, working on a car, flying a kite, or having a coffee break, you were sure to learn something useful and thought-provoking. Several young men learning broadcast engineering called Bill their mentor and inspiration.
When Bill and Herma finally retired, they enjoyed traveling with a tour group of friends. He had a life-long love of music, and copied many of their old 40’s era records to CDs. The couple loved eating out for breakfast, then maybe going back in the afternoon for pie and coffee. He was very proud of his kids and grandkids, wanting them obtain as much education as possible, and to work to be the best they could be. But mostly, Bill and Herma just wanted to be with each other, letting the rest of the world just retreat into the background.
Preceding him in death were his parents, William C. Smith and Maudie L. Smith Adams, five brothers and sisters, and the love of his life, Hermagene Gauntt Smith, who died in 2016. Survivors include his daughter, Connie S. Smith; son William Jerry Smith and wife Sue Ragsdale Smith; granddaughter Ash Smith-Keyfitz, her husband Ben Keyfitz, son Maximo Spinoza Ontiveros and daughter Eartha Keyfitz; granddaughter Nora Smith-Herring, her husband Jacob Herring, son Aaron Wade Herring and daughter Finley Elise Herring; and grandson William Jacob Smith, his wife Samantha Smith and daughter Violet Wren Smith.
Due to current COVID19 restrictions, a private graveside service is scheduled. A celebration of the life of William J.B. Smith is planned for November 2020 when it is safe for family and friends to gather.
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