the life of Philo T Farnsworth - Early Television Foundation

((18))
Phil and His Family
No SMALL PART of Farnsworth's success is due to his charming
and beautiful wife, Elma Gardner Farnsworth. She has always
been devoted exclusively to their home and the furtherance of
his career. There is
something in Phil's relations to his home
that harks back to the old Mormon tradition of the head of the
family being the patriarch. Phil always has felt more than the
usual responsibility toward his brothers and sisters and their
families. In his early married life he carried this patriarchal relationship
into his own family to the extent of dictating his
likes and dislikes regarding hats and costume jewelry. Pern bore
this with a humorous good will and never took the father-ofthe-clan
tradition too seriously. She has always been his match
in wit and good judgment as far as family
matters are concerned.
His parental attitude toward his brothers' and his
sisters'
families has probably done more harm than good. For a time
it
engendered a dependence on Phil that was harmful to their
own independence of action and initiative. In this case, as in
most cases of a similar nature, generosity is likely to have some
of its roots in personal egotism. It often does the recipient of
170