Story Behind Inventors and Inventions FM Radio

About the origins, history and story behind the scenes of the inventor and invention of the FM radio.

Extraordinary Stories behind Ordinary Objects That Had to Be Invented by Someone

Invention: FM radio

Inventor: Edwin H. Armstrong, U.S.

Year: 1933

How Invented: Armstrong was a radio genius, having previously invented several important innovations including the superheterodyne circuit, which is still fundamental to radio receivers. But he was unhappy with AM's susceptibility to static and interference. He developed FM (frequency modulation) in the mid-1930s and spent the rest of his life fighting for the patent. He made $15 million from FM, but he was still convinced that the major radio companies were out to steal his invention. He became fanatical about his lawsuits and increasingly discouraged, until in 1954 he jumped from a 13th-story window. The suits already in motion would down, and his widow collected some $5 million in settlements.