C. Crane was founded in 1976 in San Francisco , California by Bob Crane , a former cabinetmaker , and his wife Susan Crane . The " C " is Crane 's middle initial , as well as his wife 's and children 's . The co mpany was initially a furniture design and manufacturing company and only switched to being an electronics distributor in 1983 , upon the Cranes ' relocation to Fortuna . C. Crane 's first electronics product was the " Select-A-Tenna " , an antenna manufactured by Intensitronics Corp. of Hales Corners , Wisconsin , for long-distance reception of AM radio broadcasts . The company advertised on late-night radio shows , which served to increase business from AM listeners looking for a better antenna . Later in the 1980s , C. Crane began to distribute radios , such as the GE Superadio , to go along with their antennas . In the 1990s , Bob Crane decided to move the company toward designing its own products , rather than just retailing what was already out there . Following the 1992 Cape Mendocino earthquakes , the company expanded their catalog to include emergency radios and other disaster equipment , such as flashlights . Eventually , C. Crane began to produce its own radios in collaboration with Sangean . At the present radio division of C. Crane specializes in weak signal reception and developed many products to improve the reception of weak radio and internet signals . C. Crane also focuses on high quality audio
1992 Cape Mendocino earthquakes
1992 Cape Mendocino earthquakes
C. Crane Company