George J Weiss

George John “TV George” Weiss
August 5, 1936 – July 15, 2026

Born and raised on Chicago’s north side to a German immigrant father who embraced assimilation and a strong midwestern mother, George was the only son, but one was enough! As a child, he enjoyed helping out his father, a skilled baker at Piper’s Bakery in Old Town. As a teen, George met his cherished wife, Pat, on the North Avenue bridge, which crosses Lake Shore Drive to the beach. George attended Lane Tech High School until his pranks caught up with him, and he then served and was a proud veteran of the U. S. Air Force. Stationed in Fairbanks, Alaska, and accompanied by Pat, Billy and Debbie, he excelled in building enormous snowmen, radio transmission and repair, and intercepting and scrambling Soviet radio signals during the height of the cold war in the 1950’s. He took that trade to Chicago’s Albany Park, becoming a blue-collar success story, growing his family tv repair business into the premier electronics service center in the Midwest, while being a founding member of the Albany Park Chamber of Commerce and the Lawrence Avenue Development Corporation (LADCOR), where he reveled in driving slumlords out of the neighborhood. All the while, he was also a founding member and served as President of NATESA (National Association of Television and Electronics Servicers of America), eventually merging it into NESDA (National Electronics Service and Dealers Association), also serving as President. George worked on behalf of the tradesmen, which raised the caliber of service education for technicians nationwide, providing consumers with quality and affordable support while holding manufacturer’s accountable for the quality of their products and honoring their warrantees, earning respect for his trade and the service industry, and livable wages for workers. Along the way, he had the luxury of two true-blue friends, Leo Cloutier, III and Wayne Markman, sharing lots of laughs, kingmaking, superb meals, and some fine cognac. George continued working, organizing, and challenging the industry until finally retiring in 2016 at the age of 80.

While George worked long and hard for his success, he and his family also enjoyed the fruits of his labor at their lake home in Spring Grove, Illinois, AKA Fox Lake, AKA The Cottage.  He found enjoyment in the driver’s seat, whether in his 1971 Triumph Spitfire, snowmobiling, or piloting a Cessna airplane. His ski boating years were legendary, from Moonbeam through his leisurely pontoon boat years. George enjoyed late afternoon slalom waterskiing, trick waterskiing, barefoot waterskiing, and backwards barefoot waterskiing, and a slow ride home where a 3” round steak was always waiting.

In middle age, George’s life changed as he embraced his German heritage. The Jet Age brought relatives from Germany to Chicago, especially thrilling were visits from his sister Anna and his niece, Bernadette, and his cousins Rosa and Anni. This lit a fire in George. He hungered to walk in his father’s footsteps and, with Pat, made frequent trips to Aschheim and also to visit Anna and her children in Schliersee. He discovered a love for a family he never knew and a longing for a homeland that he never expected. His heart felt full and his spirit was awakened. His final trip to Germany was in the summer of 2019, where he tearfully and knowingly gave his final goodbye.
In his later years, he proselytized the exceptional care of Hines Veterans Hospital for everything from check-ups to life-saving surgery, visits made all-the-better by a stop at Gene and Jude’s for a genuine Chicago-style hotdog on the way home. George enjoyed exercising in his pool in Florida, cranking up the Strauss, welcoming visitors, and took up playing the concertina to the joy of neighbors and agony of his family. He achieved a grandfather’s dream in hearing the laughter of his grandchildren and even the splashes of his granddog in his pool.

Stateline Cremations is assisting the family, 6204 Forest Hills Rd., Loves Park, IL 61111. www.statelinecremations.com