Magyar News, 1994. szeptember-1995. augusztus (5. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1995-01-01 / 5. szám
TO SUCCESS ON THE AIRWAVES A TRIBUTE TO MY BROTHER We were always interested in members of our Hungarian community who made significant accomplishments, outstanding deeds, or unusual activities to the benefit of us all. In this article we learn about Margaret Fekete Csóványos' brother, Rudy. Rudolph Fekete Black was bom in 1911 in Újpest, Hungary. At the tender age of 11 months, his parents, Fekete Mihály and Valko Julianna emigrated to America to join his mother’s parents, Joseph and Rozalia Valko who came to America in 1910 and settled in Fairfield, Connecticut. For several years they lived in the West End section of B ridgeport, where Rudolph’s father was employed. Seven years later, his parents bought land in Fairfield and built a home in the area known as Villa Park. By this time Rudolph had two sisters and a brother. Rudolph attended theelementary schools, known as The Silliman and The Holland Hill schools. In 1929 he was graduated from the Roger Ludlowe High School with high honors. In 1935 he graduated from the Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering. Rudolph loved music and became an accomplished violinist. At Northeastern University he played in the symphony orchestra and was concert master in his Senior year. He worked his way through College and did chores for his violin lessons because his father died at a very young age. I will never forget the joy and tears in my beloved mother’s eyes when we went to Rudolph’s graduation and the N.E. Symphony became silent for a moment while the concert master, Rudy, stepped forward, raised his bow and began playing a solo, The Ave Maria. Through her tears of joy she sobbed in Hungarian, “Az az én fiam.” He is my son. We were very proud of Rudolph. He was employed by the General Electric Co. in Bridgeport and the Schenedtady plants for 25 years when he decided to retire. He began in their radio department and received several citations for improvements. One outstanding feature 1 will never forget was when in the movies, Pathe News showed him holding a check he received from G.E. for his sixteen page calculus in which he eliminated the static electricity from the Army Airplane radios. The undisturbed, clear sound of the radio meant betThis is the inside of the radio guidance building at Cape Canaveral. This is the system that makes it possible for the space ship to leave the Earth’s atmosphere and safely land even on the far side of the Moon. ter communication, saved lives and brought success. During World War 11 this was an important factor benefiting our pilots. The static electricity was causal mainly by the air flowing on the surface of the airplane. Today all airplanes are equipped with static eliminators. When he decided to retire his superiors asked him what was he going to do when he retired. He simply replied he wanted to move to Florida with his family. G.E. was delighted and asked him if he would be willing to work on their NASA program at Cape Canaveral. Rudy, as everyone called him by now, accepted and was very happy with their generous offer. He moved to Cocoa Beach in the late 1950s. Rudy was one of the Engineers who worked on the Apollo Systems Department and site Activation Engineering at Cape Canaveral. He was the principal designer of the system that made spaceflight such a success. Inside the radio guidance building at Cape Canaveral, the system controlled the vehicle’s position, flight path angle and velocity with such precision that it found the “keyhole in the sky for the Astronauts.” After twenty five years he became a board member of die Apollo Support Department and was flooded with a bag of mail when he reached five years plus to the quarter century club, 30 years, of the ASD Apollo Support Dept. He retired in the late 1980s. He loved his work, his achievements and his Honda and NASA. I will always be proud of my brother Rudy’s accomplishments which date back to my kindergarten years when he carried me on his shoulders to school on the snowy, icy roads of Fairfield. Margaret Fekete Csóványos Rudy Fekete Black, second from left, receives congratulating mail on his 35th anniversary with the company.
