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television stations, which were blocked by the mountains surrounding the town. Walson erected an antenna on a utility pole on a local mountaintop that enabled him to demonstrate the televisions in his store with strong broadcasts coming from the three
Philadelphia stations. He connected the antenna
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Walson's company grew over the years, and he is recognized as the founder of the cable television industry. He was also the first cable operator to use microwave to import distant television stations, the first to use coaxial cable to improve picture quality, and the first to distribute pay
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to his appliance store via a cable and modified signal boosters. He then connected several of his customers who were located along the cable path. This was the first community antenna television (CATV) system in the United States.
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and has been repeated by journalists and scholarly sources alike. However, it has also been contested; research arguing against Walson's claim was published in the
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Walson is widely considered to have invented cable television in 1948. The popular account involves him solving problems receiving radio signals from
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television stations, which were blocked by mountaintops. His claim is recognized by the
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159:"Two tales of a city: John Walson, Sr., Mahanoy City, and the `founding' of cable TV"
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franchise out of his home with the help of his newlywed wife, Margaret
Walsonavich
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23:; March 25, 1915 – March 27, 1983) was an American appliance store owner. Based in
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on March 25, 1915, to Andrew and
Anastasia Walsonavich. According to
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and he graduated from the local high school. He briefly attended
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201:. Allentown, Pennsylvania. December 29, 1998. p. 7
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Walson needed to solve problems receiving signals from
164:Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media
61:Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media
35:franchise out of his home in 1945. He founded
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290:People from Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania
285:Cable television in the United States
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56:National Cable Television Association
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157:Parsons, Patrick R. (Summer 1966).
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98:Pennsylvania Power & Light
29:Pennsylvania Power & Light
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115:Invention of cable television
96:and occasional repairman for
72:John Walsonavich was born in
227:. About.com. Archived from
195:"Service Electric timeline"
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221:"Cable Television History"
82:Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania
39:in 1948; the family-owned
25:Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania
177:10.1080/08838159609364358
86:Loyola University Chicago
74:Forest City, Pennsylvania
131:His descendants now own
128:television programming.
68:Early life and education
90:Coyne Electrical School
197:. Special Supplement.
80:, his family moved to
88:before moving to the
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253:About.com Inventors
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17:John Walson, Sr.
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280:1993 deaths
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