Overmyer

Overmyer is a surname. The most widely known bearer is Daniel A. Overmyer (1924–2012), an American businessman and television executive. In the 1960s he built a group of UHF television stations and proposed the creation of a fourth national television network funded by the ownership group. The centerpiece of the plan was WDHO-TV in Toledo, Ohio, among other stations, with the aim of forming a nationwide system.

The Overmyer network proposal drew regulatory and financial scrutiny. In 1968–1969, the Federal Communications Commission and Congress examined the financing and ownership arrangements involved in the plan. The investigations raised questions about disclosure and control, and the network never materialized into a national broadcaster. The local stations continued to operate as independent outlets rather than as a coordinated national network.

In the aftermath, Overmyer remained a figure in broadcasting circles for the rest of his life, but the ambitious network project did not come to fruition. The episode is often cited in discussions of broadcasting history and regulatory policy as an example of the challenges involved in launching a new national television network in the United States.

Beyond Daniel A. Overmyer, the surname may refer to other individuals or families, but the most prominent association in public records concerns the 1960s broadcasting endeavor and its regulatory scrutiny.