Silvano Amenta was born in Palermo, Sicily, Italy,January 24, 1930.

After World War II, at the age of 16, he became fascinated  with electronics and amateur radio while studying physics and electricity at the Lyceum with the Jesuits.
He began to experiment and started building small receivers and transmitters. Silvano received his first Italian Amateur Radio license in 1948 with I1SEM call sign. Later, he received and used other call sign: IT1SEM, IT1SEZ, IT9SEZ, IE9SEZ, IF9SEZ, IU9SEZ, ID9SEZ. He built several transmitters and was a DXer from the beginning. In 1969, Silvano was creator and co-founder of the DXOTC (DX Old Timers' Club) with IT1ZGY Pietro, IT1TAI Domenico, I1AA Rosario, I1KDB Giampaolo, W4VPD,Enos, and Geoff Watts founder of the IOTA and the Dx News Sheet. At that time, the Italian call sign only had the number one. Also, at this time, Silvano already had 317 valid countries confirmed for the DXCC program.  By the 1970, he was the first to activate for the IOTA, Ustica Island EU 51, with the call sign of: IT1SEZ/U, IT9SEZ/U, IU9SEZ, IE9SEZ.
IT9SEZ Silvano, was for two years, the Sicilian regional president for the Italian amateur radio association. (read the ARI book at page 162: "70 years of the Italian amateurs radio").
In 1977, Silvano emigrated with his family to the USA, to Metairie (a suburb of New Orleans), in the state of Louisiana. It didn't take him to long before he received the amateur radio license with the call sign of KB5GL and again he resumed amateur radio activity and DX hunt.
In accordance with the DXCC rules, he began from zero to work all the countries again. In 1992 he was the creator and co-founder of the: "New Orleans International DX Convention". The co-founders and executive group of the Convention were: KB5GL, W5ZPA, K5KR, W5VBX, W5ZE and W5FKX. Silvano KB5GL was president twice, in the year 1992 and in the year 1997. The Convention was a big success internationally, it closed in 1999.
Silvano is a life time member of the Italian Radio Amateur Association and also an ARRL member. Today KB5GL has worked all the countries or entities of the DXCC list and he is top Honor Roll with 335/345 in Phone and 329/335 in RTTY. In the IOTA program he has 739 Islands worked and 712 confirmed. KB5GL often goes on DXpeditions, operating from DXCC entities and in particurarly from IOTA Islands.

KB5GL in 1998

IT9SEZ and others italian calls  in 1976

Click to enlarge