Skip to content
Obituaries
Link copied to clipboard

Michael Ranalli, an electronics wiz

IT'S NOT recorded whether Pope Pius XII ever watched Milton Berle or Sid Caesar at the Vatican in the early days of TV, but thanks to Michael Joseph Ranalli Sr. it was available to him.

IT'S NOT recorded whether Pope Pius XII ever watched Milton Berle or Sid Caesar at the Vatican in the early days of TV, but thanks to Michael Joseph Ranalli Sr. it was available to him.

Mike, a vice president of RCA International, was instrumental in getting television introduced at the Vatican under Pius XII (1939-58).

Mike was also the first to televise a bullfight in Mexico City.

Michael Ranalli, who had a long and distinguished career in electronics and communication systems, and who was an active community leader in Overbrook, died Sunday. He was 89.

He was born in West Philadelphia to Nicolo and Beatrice Ranalli, immigrants from the Abruzzi region of Italy.

His late parents were a constant inspiration to him, his family said.

He showed an early talent for electronics and at West Philadelphia High School in the early '30s, he built his own short-wave radio set and became a ham-radio operator.

Mike was fascinated by the concept of a practical television receiver and transmitter in the days when such ideas were still mostly in the dream stage.

He designed and built radio, audio and communication equipment in his youth.

Mike attended for two years what it is now St. Joseph's University, then transferred to the University of Pennsylvania.

He graduated with honors from both the Moore School of Electrical Engineering and the Wharton School of Business in 1940.

He later continued his pursuit of knowledge in the area of radio and television at the Moore School.

He joined RCA during the reign of the late David Sarnoff, who had built the company into one of the largest corporations in the world. Ranalli rose quickly to the position of vice president.

During World War II, he received a military deferment because he was working on top-secret communications equipment.

His job required him to travel extensively and he was a "Million Miler" before the term "frequent flier" was coined.

In the 1970s, he and the late lawyer Joseph Alessandroni Jr. and others purchased the old Green Hill Theater in Overbrook and converted it into a community center, the Green Hill Club.

The club provided recreation programs for children and social opportunities for black, Jewish and Catholic neighbors to get to know one another.

In more recent years, Mike served as vice president of Future Tech Computer Centers, working with his son Edward.

Mike enjoyed photography and usually had a camera around his neck.

"Everybody was the perfect subject," his family said.

He enjoyed getting together with former engineers from RCA. He was a devoted member of Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Overbrook.

"His amazing abilities and love of people made an encounter with Mike an unforgettable experience," his family said.

"His gregarious nature, mastery of technology, languages and cultures caused him to be a success at all he attempted, and he was loved by all."

He also is survived by two other sons, Michael and John; a brother, Adam; a sister, Mary Ranalli; and four granddaughters.

Services: Funeral Mass 10:30 a.m. Friday at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, 63rd Street and Lancaster Avenue.

Friends may call at 6 tomorrow night at the Robert L. D'Anjolell Memorial Home of Broomall, 2811 West Chester Pike, Broomall, and at 9 a.m. Friday at the funeral home.

Burial will be in Ss. Peter and Paul Cemetery, Marple.

Contributions may be made to Our Lady of Lourdes Church, 63rd Street and Lancaster Avenue, Philadelphia PA 19151. *