Acme TV in College Mall

Scope and Content: Photograph of the staff at Acme TV. L to R on left side of photo: Kaz Hirage, Marie Hirashima, Mas Shigehiro, Darlene Woo, Peter Oka, Carl Steiner (?), unidentified, unidentified, unidentified, unidentifed. L to R on right side of photo: Tom Okutake, George Takeyasu, unidentifed, unidentified.

History Biographical: Kaz Hiraga started working as a bookkeeper at Acme TV in 1958 (Acme TV was located at 535 - 13th Street N., which just had the one location at the time). After a few years he apprenticed as a Radio Technician at Sait in Calgary, concurrent with taking over Acme TV and buying out the owners. My dad owned the building at 535 - 13th Street N., at some point.The second location at College Mall was opened around 1970. Acme TV did sales, rentals, and leasing of televisions to a lot of hotels and businesses in Lethbridge and surrounding cities/towns. A few that came to mind right away were the El Rancho and Park Plaza in Lethbridge, and hotels/motels in Fort Macleod and Radium. They also installed a number of sound systems (background music in common areas) in hotels and businesses (Eaton’s, for example). [as told to Shelley Johnson by her father, Kaz Hiraga.]

Scope and Content: Photograph of the staff at Acme TV. L to R on left side of photo: Kaz Hirage, Marie Hirashima, Mas Shigehiro, Darlene Woo, Peter Oka, Carl Steiner (?), unidentified, unidentified, unidentified, unidentifed. L to R on right side of photo: Tom Okutake, George Takeyasu, unidentifed, unidentified.