Conrac

Conrac Corporation was an American electronics manufacturer independently active from 1939 to 1987. Founded in Newark, New Jersey, as Conrac, Inc., by Leon W. Conrow, George L. Carrington, and Harry M. Bessey, it was founded as a manufacturer of people counters for the movie theater industry. In the late 1940s, Conrac pivoted to manufacturing broadcast reference monitors for television studios, becoming a major innovator in the field, releasing the first commercially available color reference monitor in 1953. In 1961, Conrac was acquired by Giannini Controls Corporation, a diversified aerospace and industrial control company based in Duarte, California; in 1967, Giannini renamed itself to Conrac Corporation. In 1987, Conrac was acquired by Mark IV Industries of New York for $150 million.