Gill Industries Television
| Industry | Cable television |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1967 in San Jose, Califonia, U.S. |
| Headquarters | United States |
Area served | San Jose, California |
| Owner | Allen T. Gilliland Allen T. Gilliland Jr. |
| Parent | Heritage Communications Inc. |
Gill Industries Television was an American cable television company.
The San Jose Gill cable system gave service to roughly 110,000 subscribers and at the time was the biggest independently-owned cable television system in the United States.[1]
Early years
[edit]KNTV was a television station that was the first based in San Jose, California, operated by Standard Radio and Television Corporation, and owned by Allen T. Gilliland.[2]
In 1960, Allen T. Gilliland died and ownership of KNTV was controlled by executors of his estate, including his son Allen T. Gilliland Jr.[1][3] Gilliland Jr. got majority ownership of KNTV in August 1966[4][5] and later operated KNTV as part of Gill Industries, that controlled San Jose's cable television system.
In 1967, Gill Cable built what was thought to be the first dual-channel cable system which got around the channel capacity limitations of customer and cable equipment. RF A/B switches allowed subscribers to choose which cable would provide these services.[6]
Later years
[edit]In 1978, Gill Industries sold KNTV to Landmark Communications in Norfolk, Virginia.[7][8]
The G Channel
[edit]Gill Industries Television included a movie channel for cable subscribers, The G Channel.[9]
On April 3, 1979, Sam Ewing was made media services director for Gill Cable where he supervised an eight-to-ten person staff. Ewing's duties included scheduling, selection, ordering and promotion of films for The G Channel.[10]
Del Henry was later hired for a special project for Gill Cable to boost subscribers, study pay television systems, and work with film companies to get movie programming. Henry stated in a 2000 interview that he booked the debut showing of the film Gone with the Wind on United States television on The G Channel. Henry said that, in the end, they paid only $0.55 cents for the use of the film.[9]
Parent company
[edit]In December 1985, 50 percent of Gill Industries Television was purchased by Heritage Communications Inc. from Allen T. Gilliland Jr.[11] The deal's value was estimated at $75 million.[1] Management of the cable system remained with Gill while Heritage, a top 20 cable television operator in the United States with over 600,000 subscribers, had the option to buy the remaining 50 percent of the Gill system in 1991.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d "Heritage Communications Inc. announced Tuesday it had purchased 50..." United Press International. December 31, 1985.
- ^ "KNTV (TV) starts next week". Broadcasting & Cable. September 5, 1955. p. 9.
- ^ "For the record: Actions of the FCC–Ownership changes–Applications". Broadcasting & Cable. August 15, 1960. p. 102.
- ^ "Changing hands–Approved". Broadcasting & Cable. August 15, 1966. p. 64.
- ^ "Gains control of KNTV(TV)". Broadcasting & Cable. August 15, 1966. p. 74.
- ^ "The Cable History Timeline" (PDF). Syndeo Institute. p. 9.
- ^ "In brief". Broadcasting & Cable. January 9, 1978. p. 28.
- ^ "Changing hands–Approved". Broadcasting & Cable. August 14, 1978. p. 65.
- ^ a b Keller, Jim (February 15, 2000). "Del Henry". Syndeo Institute.
- ^ "Ewing v. Gill Idustries Inc (1992)". Court of Appeal, Sixth District, California. January 15, 1992.
- ^ "Heritage-Gill Deal". The New York Times. January 1, 1986. p. 37. Archived from the original on September 7, 2014. Retrieved April 2, 2025.
External links
[edit]- Video: G Channel (Gill Cable - San Jose, CA) Partial Break (Wed. 1/18/1978)
- In Praise of The G Channel
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