In 1949, 13 cardiologists, led by Franz Groedel, MD, MACC and Bruno Kisch, MD, MACC, founded the American College of Cardiology during what is often called "The Golden Age of Cardiology." In his book "American Cardiology: The History of a Specialty and Its College,"Bruce Fye, MD, MACC, details how in the period following World War II, factors like the increasing prevalence of heart disease, the advent of federal research funding, breakthroughs in technological innovations, and the growing availability of health insurance worked together to shape cardiology into a major academic and clinical discipline.