Carl Williams, an influential cable pioneer and the founder of TelEvents, died Nov. 27 at age 87. A Korean War veteran, Williams played a key role in the formation of the cable industry by teaming with Bill Daniels in 1957 and creating TelEvents, which acquired many cable properties in the West.
Daniels eventually sold his interest in TelEvents to Williams in 1963 and Williams went on to expand the company by acquiring more cable systems and franchises in Wyoming, Colorado, California, Montana and Florida. Williams eventually sold the company to Tele-Communications Inc. in 1986. He was named a Cable Pioneer in 1969 by the Cable Center.
Williams played a key role in the Republican Party in Colorado. He became a Colorado state senator in 1968 and was named the chairman of the Colorado Republican Party in 1975 and 1976.
Among his many philanthropic activities, Williams established the Carl M. Williams Chair for Ethics at the University of Wyoming and the Carl M. Williams Institute of Ethics and Values at the University of Denver.
He is survived by his wife, Ginny Williams; daughter Elle P. Williams and her husband, Gregg Eggert; son Mike Williams and his wife, Deepali Williams and three grandchildren.
For more:
- see this Denver Post blog
- see this Multichannel News article
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