Jane Norman

Jane Lazarus Norman ( - May 13, 2017) was an actress best known for her role as Pixanne in the children's television program of that same name that was broadcast in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the 1960s.

Early years Born in Philadelphia, When she was 8, she composed "Sad Story", a musical work that was performed by the Philadelphia Orchestra. While at Temple, she acted in the University of the Air and the Studio Schoolhouse, both of which Temple produced and WFIL radio broadcast.

Television Having her kindergarten students act out stories and put on plays, and writing songs for the students awakened an interest in a different direction for Norman's career, A meeting with executives at WCAU-TV in Philadelphia led to the creation of Pixanne,

Initially broadcast in black and white, the program began airing in color, six days every week, beginning at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, November 21, 1966.

The children's program eventually branched out from Philadelphia and into television syndication. Relocating to New York, it found a new home there with WNEW-TV as the flagship station, and was carried in seventy-five cities, including on television stations in: California, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin.

Ultimately, Norman's show lasted seventeen years. Soon after it began, Pixanne's ratings exceeded those of Captain Kangaroo, which preceded it daily.

During her show's run, Norman also wrote and performed in special, holiday-themed shows which featured Pixanne and her Enchanted Forest friends, including "Pixanne's Christmas Fantasy," which aired at 5:30 p.m. on WCAU on December 23, 1967. Skits involved Pixanne's time travel back to Philadelphia during colonial times, where she visited a toymaker's shop with antique dolls and toy soldiers, a blacksmith's shop where horses were being shoed, a tailor's shop where period clothing was being sewn, and the shops of a butcher, baker and candlestick maker. Pixanne also became the first local children's television show to be filmed at major world events, including at the World's Fair in New York and at Expo '67 in Canada, and gave children the opportunity to watch segments about the Ice Capades and the Moscow Circus, both of which were filmed on location while the groups were on tour on the East Coast.

Norman's experience with Pixanne led her to produce The National Kid's Quiz series, which was broadcast on NBC. She then continued her ambassador work in subsequent years.

Writing Norman wrote the books The Private Life of the American Teenager. Her first CD, Pixanne Sings for Adults ... In a Christmas Mood, included five of Norman's compositions in addition to seven Christmas standards. That Christmas album was followed by Madly in Love, featuring "lush, sensuous standards" with accompaniment by a 47-piece orchestra.

The couple also owned a home in Palm Springs, California. Ailing with Parkinson's disease and prostate cancer, her husband's health continued to decline between 2008 and 2010. It was during this phase of their lives that Norman became active in the hospice movement, and helped to raise funds for the Home Care Network/Main Line Health/Jefferson Health System. Her husband died at their Palm Springs home on March 4, 2010.

Death On May 13, 2017, Norman died at her home in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania. She was 83 years old. At her request, there was no funeral service or memorial event held.

Recognition On November 18, 2005, Norman was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia.