(October 1, 2003) Nashville, TN--Gregory Norman Griffith, co-founder of the Electric Picture Company and
its recording media distribution component, TapeOnline.com, as well as video production house LifeView Resources, died last month, at age 39. He was fatally shot by a man hunting down his ex-girlfriend in the Electric Picture Company offices in Nashville, TN. The man never reached his intended target and minutes later committed suicide. Griffith left behind a wife, Gloria, and three young children, William, Benjamin, and Sarah.
Griffith founded LifeView Resources with his
childhood friend and partner Steve Roche in 1991. Primarily, the company produced healthcare videos. Roche and Griffith found they were having difficulty obtaining the video equipment needed for the business in the Nashville area, so they created the Electric Picture Company, a video equipment rental company, in 1993. Later, they launched an online component, TapeOnline.com.
According to Roche, Griffith spent a great deal
of his time working on LifeView Resources. He particularly enjoyed his involvement in a series of videos the company created, The Educated Caregiver, a program offering
emotional support and practical advice for families taking care of a loved one in the home. "That's a testament to the kind of guy he was," said Roche. "He wanted to help other people."
Roche and Griffith knew each other since
elementary school, but didn't become good friends until they began working together on their high school yearbook staff. "That's how we became close, and from there on it's been a lifelong friendship and a great partnership," said Roche. In adulthood, it was a given the duo would team up: "We always intended to go into business together," said Roche. "We didn't care what it was going to be, we were just going to do something together."
Prior to his co-founding LifeView Resources, Griffith had served in the United States Air Force as an
intelligence officer. He received his MBA from Rutgers University and was working on his doctorate in public policy at the time of his death. Roche said he will continue to run the businesses.
