Boris Alexandrovich Rcheulov (born Boris Aleksandres dze Rcheulishvili; Georgian: ბორის ალექსანდრეს ძე რჩეულიშვილი; 10 August 1899 – 10 February 1942),[1] also spelt Rtcheouloff, was a Georgian scientist, and the inventor of “videotape”.[2] Early attempts to record television signals on magnetic material had started when Boris Rtcheouloff applied for a British patent on 4 January 1927[3] for a technique of recording television signals on 'a magnetic record of the Poulsen telegraphone type'.[4] Sound would be recorded in sync on the reverse side. These ideas incorporated a way to record sound or pictures by causing a strip, disc, or cylinder of iron or other magnetic material to be magnetized. He did not pay the annual renewal fee, so his patent soon lapsed.[5]
His godfather was the renowned opera singer Feodor Chaliapin.[6]