Betty Lou Varnum was a TV personality at WOI-TV in central Iowa. She began her career in 1954 as host of a program for children, "The Magic Window." She also hosted other WOI-TV programs "Dimension 5," "Status 6," and "Stringer’s Newscast." Varnum was an announcer for a number of televised VEISHEA parades at Iowa State University and Iowa State Fair parades in Des Moines, Iowa. She retired from WOI-TV in 1994. This collection contains biographical information, correspondence, program notes, Iowa State Fair programs, VEISHEA programs, and photographs.

Betty Lou McVay Varnum was born on May 3, 1931, in Chicago, Illinois. She received her B.A. (1953) in psychology with a minor in English literature from University of Wisconsin-Madison. She also received a Bachelor of Science degree in education (1954) from Wisconsin State College. After graduating, Varnum took a job teaching literature and speech in Port Washington, Wisconsin. In 1954 she began working at WOI-TV. Two days after she was hired, Varnum became the host of the children's program, "The Magic Window."

Later in her career, Varnum tackled current affairs programming. She hosted "Dimension 5," which addressed contentious subjects such as women’s rights and gay and lesbian rights, and "Status 6," a program that addressed the struggles of the handicapped in Iowa. Varnum also conceived and hosted "Stringers Newscast" in the mid-1970s, which featured film shorts and animations produced by the viewing public.

Varnum was the television announcer for numerous Iowa State Fair parades in Des Moines and VEISHEA parades at Iowa State University. She retired from WOI-TV in 1994. Varnum was widely recognized for her pioneering role as a woman in early television. She received the McCall’s Golden Mike Award for Women in Radio and Television and the Public Media Award from the American Psychological Association.

Varnum married James (Red) Varnum, an employee at WOI-TV, in 1959 and they had three children.

This collection (1955-1993, undated) contains biographical information, correspondence, program notes, Iowa State Fair programs, VEISHEA programs, photographs, and Varnum’s history as a personality at WOI-TV.

Related collections in the Special Collections Department include:

• WOI Radio and Television Records, RS 5/6
• WOI television programs with Betty Lou McVay Varnum as host; found by searching the Department's film and videotape listings (http://findingaids.lib.iastate.edu/spcl/collections/film.html)