DISTANT VISIONS

A continuation of Pemberly Farnsworth’s story:  When I first met Phil (Philo T. Farnsworth) there was a brilliant illuminating twinkle in his eyes and I had to agree with his sister Agnes.  He was someone special. I subconsciously put him on a higher level, definitely beyond my humble reach…but yet this was our wedding night and as my little daydream ended, I was alone in our motel room. More than an hour had passed, since Phil had left to return the borrowed roadster. Stretched across the big double honeymoon bed, I was alone and my mind resumed its wandering…

…I didn’t see Phil again until the Christmas holidays. He had been hired by the Bates Furniture Store. One of his duties was to deliver radios and install antennas. In those days there was no radio broadcast stations in Utah, and the elaborate antennas were necessary to receive the nearest stations in Colorado and California.

In the early days of radio, many of Phil’s BYU friends, coming from rural farming areas, had never heard a radio. Phil decided to give a “radio party.” He invited his best friends and classmates and borrowed a top-of-the-line radio console from the store. Miss Frances Critchlow had been Phil’s music teacher in Idaho. Now living in Hyrum, Utah, Miss Critchlow drove her mother seventy-five miles to attend the radio-party. Agnes (Phil’s sister) and I had also been invited to this party.

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The highlight of the evening came when the voice over the radio announced that the next three selections would be played for Phil Farnsworth and party in Provo, Utah. This caused excited chatter, and everyone gathered close to the radio. After these were played, Phil tuned in KFI in Los Angeles, where again his selections were played. Then to his great delight, he was able to tune in WLW in Cincinnati, Ohio, which was a treat he was not always able to enjoy. At that time these were the only stations with enough power to reach Provo, Utah. Phil had written each station and given them the time and named his selections. The party was a huge success. Phil was the man of the hour.

The next spring, my sister Verona and her friend Bill invited Phil, Agnes, Cliff and me on a picnic up the canyon to Castello Springs. This was our first date. We had so much fun dancing to the nickelodeon that we sang all the way home. When Phil learned that Cliff played the trombone and I the piano, he invited himself over for a “jam” session. These sessions became a weekly habit. We enjoyed playing together, but I considered Phil more Cliff’s friend than mine. It wasn’t until the fall that Phil and I had our next date. The Farnsworth’s had moved to a duplex at 187 North, 2nd East. When the other side of the duplex became empty, Agnes and I prevailed on my family to move in. My father who had freighted with Agnes’ father several years previously near Vernal, Utah, readily agreed. Our families were very compatible. My mother, who was now in very poor health, really appreciated the kindness shown her by Serena Farnsworth.

Phil had signed up at the Y (BYU) again, and invited Agnes and me to go to a Friday night dance. He danced with us only a time or two but introduced us to several young men, and we found ourselves well occupied. He had many lady friends with whom he danced. The next Friday he took us again. This time he danced a little more often with me. Agnes’ boyfriend, Jack Scott, came along to see her home and Phil and I practiced new dance steps all the way home on the sidewalk. Unable to find a job in Provo, Phil went to Salt Lake looking for work. He tried several jobs, including the city street cleanup crew. He was hired by the Felt Electric Company at a very low wage because he was supposed to learn the trade of small electrical appliance repair. To be continued…