IT IS WITH MUCH SADNESS THAT WE REPORT ON THE DEATH OF LAWRENCE “Larry” E. Tannas, Jr., a long-time engineer, valued member of the Society for Information Display (SID), and friend to so many. Tannas died February 5, 2021 from complications of COVID-19. In his 84 years of life, he built a legacy of great achievements. Tannas is especially remembered for his contributions to the science of flat-panel displays, solidifying the future of SID, and sharing his gifts through teaching and endowments. He also nurtured a loving family for whom he cared deeply. Tannas was born on March 19, 1936 and raised near Ambrose, North Dakota. He moved to southern California to attend the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where he earned his bachelor's and master's degrees in electrical engineering in 1959 and 1961, respectively. After graduation, he made his mark on the aerospace industry. He developed automated landing systems at General Electric in New York; and then at Honeywell International he designed the backup reentry-guidance display for the Apollo reentry vehicle. Subsequently, at Martin Marietta, he designed a cockpit for a US Air Force prototype that was a predecessor to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA's) space shuttle. In these early years, Tannas specialized in technologies and applications for flat-panel displays—in particular, LCDs. And he continued to foster the evolution of flat-panel display technology. It was his work at Rockwell Autonetics in California in the 1970s that led to the world's first production line for LCDs. Later, while at Aerojet Electro-Systems, Tannas developed a manufacturing process for electroluminescent displays. During the next phase of his career, Tannas devoted himself to consulting and teaching. He consulted for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), NASA, Air Force, Navy, National Science Foundation (NSF), and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). In 1989, he served on a special committee for the NSF to study the then new high-definition TV industry evolving in Japan. Tannas led a group of 11 scientists with the NSF Japanese Technology Evaluation Center (JTEC) committee to study the Japanese display industry in 1991. From 1980 to 2000, Tannas developed and taught advanced engineering classes on information displays at UCLA Extension and other institutions. He authored, edited, and contributed to the first definitive book on flat-panel displays, Flat-Panel Displays and CRTs.1 Tannas is also the author of more than 50 technical papers. In 1999, Tannas founded Tannas Electronic Displays (TED) based on his multitude of patents for resizing LCDs. His inspiration for resizing displays was driven by a need for custom sizes suitable for aircraft cockpit applications. He later targeted display applications for digital signage as well. Throughout his career, Tannas was awarded 28 patents and had more than 10 others pending at the time of his death. In 2015, he sold TED to Pixel Scientific, but he remained active in the industry as president of the consulting firm Tannas Electronics. Lawrence “Larry” E. Tannas, Jr. Photo credits: Society for Information Display Tannas was a fellow of SID and held many offices, including treasurer (1983–1985), vice president (1986–1987), and president (1988–1989). During the years of his presidency, SID put itself on sound financial footing, and set the stage for his successor Walt Goede to start increasing SID's international presence by adding three new chapters (France, Korea, and Taiwan), ultimately leading to a global presence with 28 chapters. Tannas also served as SID's archivist and historian, and helped author a series of articles on SID's 50th anniversary that were published in the July/August and September 2012 issues of Information Display.2, 3 Tannas was a key member of the SID Los Angeles Chapter, where he was secretary (1976), chairman (1977), and director (1980-1982). After serving on the SID international board for eight years and starting his successful display business, he rejoined the local chapter leadership, serving as chairman (2004–2008) and director (2009–2021). He made a major contribution to keeping the SID Los Angeles Chapter a vibrant organization by initiating an annual one-day conference, held in February at the Costa Mesa Country Club (2005–2020). These well-attended conferences initially were the first in the display community to seriously address now-dominant LED technologies, and have since addressed a variety of timely display technology each year. A Valued SID Leader Tannas was the chairman of the Society for Information Display's 50th anniversary celebration, which took place September 29, 2012 at UCLA. Shown here are, left to right, Larry Tannas, Past SID President Brian Berkeley, Vijay K. Dhir of the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science, and Carol Tannas. Tannas was recognized with the SID Lewis and Beatrice Winner Award for exceptional and long-term service to the organization, as well as its Slottow-Owaki Prize for outstanding teaching. In addition to his deep involvement with SID, Tannas was a life member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). The UCLA Samueli School of Engineering, in particular, held a deep place in Tannas's heart. Tannas and Carol—his wife of 64 years—contributed many gifts to the school, including toward the Engineering VI building, which houses an alumni suite that bears their name. The Tannas’ also created two endowed faculty chairs at the school. Partially because of his contribution, UCLA has now become one of the leading institutes in organic thin-film electronics, such as organic photovoltaics. Tannas served on the Dean's Executive Board as well as on the Galactic Center Group Board of Advisors and the Samueli Reunion Committee. He was close to many of his fellow 1959 graduates from the then UCLA College of Engineering. In 2012, SID held a 50th anniversary celebration at UCLA where the organization was founded. Tannas was the chairman of the celebration and conference and led the organizing committee to carry out an extraordinarily successful event. During this same period, Tannas established the “SID Display Museum and Exhibit” in Boelter Hall at UCLA. UCLA recognized Tannas's many contributions to his field when it honored him with the UCLA Samueli Distinguished Professional Achievement Award in 2012. In 2017, the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering also bestowed him with a Lifetime Contribution Award, which recognizes individuals who have made a lasting impact across generations of engineers. Tannas was an active member of his community, serving as a member of Rotary, the Orange Chamber of Commerce, and his church. He also was an avid aviator with instrument and instructor ratings, and even flew his own Mooney airplane from 1960 through 2013, which he kept at John Wayne Airport in Orange County. It was during these flights that he developed a deep understanding of how display technologies could be used to good effect in many applications, especially in cockpit displays. After selling his beloved Mooney in 2015, Tannas spent his next years on extended car trips through Montana, North Dakota, and Canada with Carol, and shorter trips hiking with family and friends. He enjoyed tending to his backyard zoo of koi, ducks, songbirds, frogs, and rabbits. He was a devoted husband, father, and grandfather who treated his family to memorable trips to Hawaii, Africa, and many other places. Along with Carol, Tannas is survived by his son Lawrence Tannas, III, his daughters Diane Sandberg and Laura Skiff, and 10 grandchildren. Tannas will be missed by all who had the good fortune to know him. —Harlan Rogers