Connie Parkinson & unidentified male actor
W3XE (now KYW-TV)
Thursday, May 2, 1940

This picture was sent to us by John & Linda Walker. Connie is Linda's aunt (her mother's sister-in-law). They e-mailed:

Constance Lonsdale Parkinson (Connie was her nickname) was the daughter of Lulu & Vincent Parkinson. She was born in Philadelphia and raised in Lansdowne, Pennsylvania. She was about 23 years old at the time this photo was taken. When my wife's mother passed away we found this photo but my wife thinks Connie had shown her at least one other picture similar to this one.

My wife remembers being told by Connie that she worked in very early television programming. Unfortunately Connie, her husband and my wife's other relatives are now deceased.

Don't know if this will help but the only other information we know is that Constance's family was fairly wealthy. Makes you wonder how much history is sitting unrecognized in closets. I was unable to decipher the signature of the program director on bottom of the photo.

The signature is that of W3XE's Program Director/Manager for the Philco Radio & Television Corporation at that time, E. N. Alexander. We do not have any identification on the male actor. Can anyone help ID him? If so, please e-mail us.

At the time of this snapshot, W3XE was still an experimental TV station operating on Channel 3 in Philadelphia and owned by Philco. A year later, it would become WPTZ, one of the country's first commercial television stations.

From the official archives of the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia
Photo originally donated by John & Linda Walker
© 2009, Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia
All Rights Reserved

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