Sept. 5, 2010
Huntington Broadcast Pioneer Dies in Tennessee
Special to Huntingtonnews.net
Women’s television pioneer, Ann Connolly Davis, 76, formerly of Huntington, died at her home in Gatlinburg, Tennessee on Tuesday, August 24th, 2010.
In the 1950’s and 60’s, “Ann Connolly” was a popular television personality for television channels 3 and 13 in Huntington, starting as a “weather girl” and vocalist on the “Saturday Night Jamboree” and moving into hosting daily talk shows including “The Feminine Touch,” eventually earning the title of “Women’s Director of WHTN Television.” She was considered a “pioneer” in women’s broadcasting, as her work deviated from the traditional women’s topics of the day.
A 1961 news article described her “Feminine Touch” talk show as “a refreshing departure from the conventional ‘homemaker’ program,” and went on to say that “Miss Connolly’s show steers clear of the drudgery aspects of running a household…and, instead, concentrates on items of interest revolving around ‘Mrs. 1961’s’ outside, modern-day activities.”
She also owned the “Ann Connolly School of Modeling” in Hurricane, West Virginia. She was a graduate of Hurricane High School, where she was a member of the National Thespian Society; and The Ber/Te/Ay Modeling Academy of Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Born Alice Ann Conner, she was the daughter of Howard and Josephine Conner of Hurricane. She is survived by two children, Gary Evan Davis of Orlando, Florida and his wife, Melissa; and former Mrs. America, Deborah Wolfe of Huntington and her husband, Huntington Mayor Kim Wolfe. She was preceded in death by a son, (Howard) Scott Wilson Davis, and a sister, Jo Ellen Conner. Ms. Davis had eight grandchildren: James, Michael, Angela, Mary Ellen, John, Sara, Paul and Annie; and eleven great-grandchildren: Zachary, Blake, Molly, Emma, Caleb, Sydnee, McKenzie, William, Ethan, Ben, and Tyler.
Ms. Davis was preceded in death by husbands: Dorsey Wilson, John Connolly and Jack Davis. She is survived by her partner of twenty-eight years, Peter Lundell.
In more recent years, she was very involved in the areas of holistic wellness and naturopathic health, and facilitated numerous conferences and seminars dealing with these areas of service.
Ms. Davis apparently passed on much of her adventurous spirit to her daughter and granddaughters, as they include among them a firefighter and paramedic/rescue specialist, a stuntwoman, and high school theatre teacher, who were also “beauty queens” who broke stereotypical molds.
She will be sorely missed by her friends and family, including her cats, dogs, raccoons, coyotes and bears and all of the other animals of the forest that she took care of for so many years and so deeply loved.
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Huntington Broadcast Pioneer Dies in Tennessee
Special to Huntingtonnews.net
Women’s television pioneer, Ann Connolly Davis, 76, formerly of Huntington, died at her home in Gatlinburg, Tennessee on Tuesday, August 24th, 2010.
In the 1950’s and 60’s, “Ann Connolly” was a popular television personality for television channels 3 and 13 in Huntington, starting as a “weather girl” and vocalist on the “Saturday Night Jamboree” and moving into hosting daily talk shows including “The Feminine Touch,” eventually earning the title of “Women’s Director of WHTN Television.” She was considered a “pioneer” in women’s broadcasting, as her work deviated from the traditional women’s topics of the day.
A 1961 news article described her “Feminine Touch” talk show as “a refreshing departure from the conventional ‘homemaker’ program,” and went on to say that “Miss Connolly’s show steers clear of the drudgery aspects of running a household…and, instead, concentrates on items of interest revolving around ‘Mrs. 1961’s’ outside, modern-day activities.”
She also owned the “Ann Connolly School of Modeling” in Hurricane, West Virginia. She was a graduate of Hurricane High School, where she was a member of the National Thespian Society; and The Ber/Te/Ay Modeling Academy of Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Born Alice Ann Conner, she was the daughter of Howard and Josephine Conner of Hurricane. She is survived by two children, Gary Evan Davis of Orlando, Florida and his wife, Melissa; and former Mrs. America, Deborah Wolfe of Huntington and her husband, Huntington Mayor Kim Wolfe. She was preceded in death by a son, (Howard) Scott Wilson Davis, and a sister, Jo Ellen Conner. Ms. Davis had eight grandchildren: James, Michael, Angela, Mary Ellen, John, Sara, Paul and Annie; and eleven great-grandchildren: Zachary, Blake, Molly, Emma, Caleb, Sydnee, McKenzie, William, Ethan, Ben, and Tyler.
Ms. Davis was preceded in death by husbands: Dorsey Wilson, John Connolly and Jack Davis. She is survived by her partner of twenty-eight years, Peter Lundell.
In more recent years, she was very involved in the areas of holistic wellness and naturopathic health, and facilitated numerous conferences and seminars dealing with these areas of service.
Ms. Davis apparently passed on much of her adventurous spirit to her daughter and granddaughters, as they include among them a firefighter and paramedic/rescue specialist, a stuntwoman, and high school theatre teacher, who were also “beauty queens” who broke stereotypical molds.
She will be sorely missed by her friends and family, including her cats, dogs, raccoons, coyotes and bears and all of the other animals of the forest that she took care of for so many years and so deeply loved.
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