Ganolife Salutes Black History

Marie Van Brittan Brown. Born: Queens, NY. Oct 30, 1922 - Feb 22, 1999 Invention: Closed Circuit Television Security System. The system used a motorized camera which slid up and down looking through a set of 4 peep holes. Anything the camera picked up was shown on a monitor. An electrical switch allowed the occupant to unlatch the door by remote control. Back in 1966 the idea for a home surveillance device seemed almost unthinkable. A resident of Jamaica, Queens, New York City, she applied for a patent with Albert Brown in 1966 for a closed circuit television security system. The system used a motorized camera which slid up and down looking through a set of 4 peep holes. Anything the camera picked up was shown on a monitor. An electrical switch allowed the occupant to unlatch the door by remote control. Back in 1966 the idea for a home surveillance device seemed almost unthinkable.