Ray E. Dodge; Oscar Manufacturer
MIAMI — Ray E. Dodge, a former Olympic runner and founder of the firm that makes the Oscar and Emmy statuettes for movie and television awards, has died of congestive heart failure. He was 84.
Dodge, who died Thursday at his Key Biscayne home, participated in the 1924 Olympics and the Pan American games in 1925, where he won several awards as a middle-distance runner.
He returned to Chicago to found Dodge Inc., one of the world’s largest manufacturers of trophies. The company had moved to Los Angeles by 1930, when Dodge began making the Oscars in association with the Southern California Trophy Co. The company began manufacturing Emmys for the television industry in 1949. Dodge Inc. also manufactured Rose Bowl and Orange Bowl football trophies.
Dodge had been a resident of the Miami area since 1950.
He is survived by daughters Diane Dodge and Darlene Dodge Baque and four grandchildren.
Dodge was a graduate of Oregon State University with a degree in journalism. Services will be held Monday in Miami.
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