Trendle, George W., 1884-

George Washington Trendle was born July 4, 1889 in Norwalk, Ohio. The family moved to Detroit in 1891. Trendle studied law at Detroit College of Law, graduating in 1908. In 1915, Trendle worked as attorney and general manager for Kunsky Enterprises, a theater management company. Three years later Trendle became part owner of the Madison Theater with John Kunsky (who later changed his name to King). By the 1920s, Trendle was a partner in what was now called the King-Trendle Company. They held exclusive rights to all the motion picture theaters in Michigan. Trendle had full charge of the corporation, which owned seventeen theaters in the Detroit area. The late 1920s-'30s saw the purchase of radio station WGHP. Trendle arranged with the U.S. Navy to get permission to use the call letters "WXYZ" so that he could add a catchy slogan: "The last thing in radio". (See Box 48:14) H. Allen Campbell, who started as sales manager and later partner of WXYZ, became a partner in the Trendle Campbell Corporation. Raymond Meurer, a lawyer, was hired to handle contracts and eventually the company became known as Trendle-Campbell-Meurer. The companies were responsible for producing a number of radio programs, the most well-known being "The Lone Ranger", "The Green Hornet" and "Sgt. Preston of the Yukon", all created by Trendle. Other shows included "Bob Barclay, American Agent" and "Ned Jordan, Secret Agent", among others. The three former shows, however, proved the most popular and made the transition to television.