Jennifer Davidson Dies at 38

Cartoon Network senior executive Jennifer Davidson, one of the first employees hired by the channel, has died of a sudden illness at a hospital near her home in Atlanta. She was 38.

Davidson, who died unexpectedly Saturday morning, had been senior vp programming and scheduling at Cartoon since September, where she was responsible for overseeing the day-to-day scheduling and strategic positioning of on-air content for Cartoon and Boomerang as well as on-air promotion for Adult Swim.

Viewing services are being held from 6-9 p.m. Tuesday at the Sandy Springs Funeral Home in Sandy Springs, Ga. The funeral is scheduled for 1 p.m. Wednesday at Buckhead Church in Atlanta.

"We have lost a shining star, not only at Cartoon Network but within our industry," said Stuart Snyder, executive vp and COO at Turner Broadcasting System Inc.'s Animation, Young Adults and Kids Media group.

Davidson was born in Pittsburgh, Pa., in 1969. She graduated from Virginia Tech with a bachelor of arts degree in broadcast communications in 1991.