Philo T. Farnsworth, the father of television, joined the nation's founding fathers with a permanent spot of honor in the U.S. Capitol Wednesday.
Amid pomp in standing-room-only Rotunda ceremonies, Utah formally gave the nation its statue of Farnsworth - which House Speaker Thomas Foley accepted saying it is fit for "a nation of discoverers and achievers."He added, "His invention took us to the moon two decades ago . . . and in recent months it took us to the capitals of Prague, Moscow and Beijing to show the struggle for freedom."
Utah was one of just six states that had sent only one of two statues of famous citizens for display in the Capitol, allowed since the Civil War. The state's other statue, of Brigham Young, was placed in 1950.
Farnsworth's statue by artist James Avati was unveiled by Farnsworth's widow, Pem, in a spot between statues of George Washington, Marquis de Lafayette and Martin Luther King. It will remain there six months before being moved to the Capitol's main corridor, the longest indoor hallway in the world.
As many speakers noted, the statue gives Farnsworth recognition that is long overdue for his many inventions and improvements, including television, radar, sonar, baby incubators, the gastroscope to look at the digestive track, infrared photography and the electron microscope.
Historian Stephen Carr noted in a speech on the history of Farnsworth's life that he was quiet and unassuming - and others sometimes unsuccessfully sought credit for some of his inventions.
Foley noted that Farnsworth developed the idea for television while plowing a field as a 13-year-old. The neat rows prompted the thought about parallel lines of electrons arrayed on a tube, which led to television.
Farnsworth explained his ideas to a high school teacher in Rigby, Idaho - who kept some of Farnsworth's notes. Those notes later helped him win patent cases against RCA about who developed television first.
Carr noted that Farnsworth transmitted the first electronic television transmission in 1927 _ at age 21. It was just a straight line but proved images could be transmitted. Not long afterward, he transmitted the first true picture _ of his wife, Pem.
Carr said many of Farnsworth's patents are still used in today's television. "If his patents were taken out of a TV set, all that would be left is a radio."
Pem Farnsworth told the crowd, especially children in it, that her husband's life urges, "Follow your dreams. Nothing is impossible, it just requires the right amount of energy. The sky is the limit."
Elder James E. Faust of the Council of the Twelve of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints dedicated the statue "to remind people of the nation and world of the diligence of this man." He also prayed that television would be "used for even wider and nobler purposes."
All members of Utah's congressional delegation also praised Farnsworth. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said Utahns still share his spirit of invention, filing more patents per person than any other state.
Rep. Wayne Owens, D-Utah, said Farnsworth's inventions turned the Earth into a global village, and television helped spread freedom in Eastern Europe.
Gov. Norm Bangerter, who was master of the dedication ceremonies, said Farnsworth was one of the greatest scientists ever in the nation.
A chorus from Ridgecrest Elementary sang two new songs for the occasion written by Janice Kapp Perry: "When A Man Has A Dream" and "This Is Utah."
Among the pomp at the ceremonies were flag ceremonies by the Joint Armed Services Color Guard, music by an ensemble of the U.S. Marine Band and an invocation by the Most Rev. William Weigand, Roman Catholic bishop of Salt Lake City.