The co-inventor of the TV remote, Robert Adler, died Thursday of heart failure at a Boise nursing home at the age 93.

In his six-decade career with Zenith, Adler was a prolific inventor, earning more than 180 U.S. patents. He was best known for his 1956 Zenith Space Command remote control, which helped make TV a truly sedentary pastime.

In a May 2004 interview with The Associated Press, Adler recalled being among two dozen engineers at Zenith given the mission to find a new way for television viewers to change channels without getting out of their chairs or tripping over a cable.

But he downplayed his role when asked if he felt his invention helped raise a new generation of couch potatoes.

“People ask me all the time — ‘Don’t you feel guilty for it?’ And I say that’s ridiculous,” he said. “It seems reasonable and rational to control the TV from where you normally sit and watch television.”

Some respctful jokes for the funeral may include the following:

“Guess his batteries… just sort of ran out, poor guy.”

“His picture looks good. Can you get up and change it for me?”

“Have you seen Robert anywhere?” - “Check under the coffin lid over there.”