Release calendarTop 250 moviesMost popular moviesBrowse movies by genreTop box officeShowtimes & ticketsMovie newsIndia movie spotlight
    What's on TV & streamingTop 250 TV showsMost popular TV showsBrowse TV shows by genreTV news
    What to watchLatest trailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily entertainment guideIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsPrimetime EmmysToronto Int'l Film FestivalFall TV GuideMost Anticipated This MonthSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll events
    Born todayTrending peopleCelebrity news
    IMDb LabsHelp centerContributor zonePolls
For industry professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
    Some content may be auto-translated
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign in
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
    Some content may be auto-translated
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Biography
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Philo T. Farnsworth(1906-1971)

IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Philo T. Farnsworth
Farnsworth and his team produced the first all-electronic TV picture on 7 September, 1927. At 14, while plowing on the family farm, he was inspired by looking at the harrow lines in the field he had just completed. From there, the concept developed of magnetically deflecting electrons in rows across a screen to create an image. He told his first serious girlfriend about this idea, and she responded by promptly dumping him. After regaining his confidence, he took another girl, Elma (who he eventually married) on a horseback ride to the nearby Bridal Veil Falls, where he again confided his concept of electronic imagery. Elma expressed her belief in him and offered to assist in any way. And she did, by doing laboratory work and keeping Philo's patent books current.
BornAugust 19, 1906
DiedMarch 11, 1971(64)
BornAugust 19, 1906
DiedMarch 11, 1971(64)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank

Photos1

View Poster

Known for

I've Got a Secret (1952)
I've Got a Secret
7.9
TV Series
  • Self - Contestant

Credits

IMDbPro

Self



  • I've Got a Secret (1952)
    I've Got a Secret
    7.9
    TV Series
    • Self - Contestant
    • 1957
  • Popular Science J-8-3
    6.9
    Short
    • Self (uncredited)
    • 1939
  • Paramount Varieties: Popular Science
    Short
    • Self (uncredited)
    • 1935

Archive Footage



  • Mysteries at the Museum (2010)
    Mysteries at the Museum
    8.1
    TV Series
    • Self (archive footage)
    • 2018
  • Into the Zone: The Story of the Cacophony Society (2012)
    Into the Zone: The Story of the Cacophony Society
    5.3
    • Self (archive footage)
    • 2012
  • Modern Marvels (1993)
    Modern Marvels
    8.1
    TV Series
    • Self (archive footage)
    • 1999–2000
  • NY TV: By the People Who Made It - Part I & II (1998)
    NY TV: By the People Who Made It - Part I & II
    TV Movie
    • Self (archive footage)
    • 1998
  • American Experience (1988)
    American Experience
    8.6
    TV Series
    • Self (archive footage)
    • 1997
  • Television (1988)
    Television
    5.5
    TV Series
    • Self (archive footage)
    • 1988
  • KTLA at 40: A Celebration of Los Angeles Television (1987)
    KTLA at 40: A Celebration of Los Angeles Television
    TV Movie
    • Self (archive footage)
    • 1987
  • Television (1985)
    Television
    7.4
    TV Series
    • Self (archive footage)
    • 1985
  • Television: The Ultimate Drug (1981)
    Television: The Ultimate Drug
    TV Movie
    • Self
    • Self - Inventor and TV pioneer (archive footage)
    • 1981

Personal details

  • Official site
    • Philo T. Farnsworth Archives
  • Born
    • August 19, 1906
    • Beaver, Utah, USA
  • Died
    • March 11, 1971
    • Holladay, Utah, USA(emphysema)
  • Spouse
    • Elma FarnsworthMay 27, 1926 - March 11, 1971 (his death, 4 children)

Did you know

  • Trivia
    His invention of television was premiered on 25 August 1934 at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His competitor, RCA, premiered their improved television system at the 1939 New York World's Fair. At the same fair General Motors presented its Futurama exhibit which portrayed a city of tomorrow (i.e., 1960). On the television show, Futurama (1999), the character Hubert J. Farnsworth is said to be named after Philo Farnsworth.
  • Quotes
    "The damned thing works!" - Telegram to one of his backers on September 7, 1927, the day Farnsworth transmitted the image of a horizontal line to a receiver in the adjacent room of his San Francisco laboratory.
  • Nickname
    • The Father of Television

Contribute to this page

Suggest an edit or add missing content
  • Learn more about contributing
Edit page

More to explore

Recently viewed

You have no recently viewed pages
Get the IMDb app
Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
Follow IMDb on social
Get the IMDb app
For Android and iOS
Get the IMDb app
  • Help
  • Site Index
  • IMDbPro
  • Box Office Mojo
  • License IMDb Data
  • Press Room
  • Advertising
  • Jobs
  • Conditions of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Your Ads Privacy Choices
IMDb, an Amazon company

© 1990-2026 by IMDb.com, Inc.