TITLE: A question about the limit of a sequence of pointwise convergent analytic funtions
QUESTION [5 upvotes]: Question: Let $\{f_n\}$ be a sequence of analytic functions on the unit disk $\Delta$ and suppose that $f_n$ converges to a continuous function $f$ on $\Delta$ pointwisely. (1) Can we say that $f$ is analytic on $\Delta$? (2) If $f$ is analytic, is the convergence $\underline{locally}$ uniform on $\Delta$? (Note: I add the words "locally" due to obvious reason.)
If we do not assume that the limit function $f$ is continuous (of course $f$ is measurable) in advance, (3) can we say that $f$ is continuous? [I number this new question by (3)]
Note that evrey measurbale functon on $\Delta$ can be the limit of a sequence of analytic functions in the Lebesgue sense (i.e. almost everywhere).

REPLY [9 votes]: These questions were investigated by Osgood, Montel and Lavrentiev, Sur les fonctions d'une variable complexe
representable par des series de polynomes, Paris 1936. (There is a Russian translation in his
selected Works available free on Internet). If you prefer German, see Hartogs and Rosenthal,
Uber Folgen analytischer Funktionen, Math Ann., 1928, 100, 212-263, and 1932, 104, 606-610.
In general, if a sequence of polynomials converges pointwise in a region $D$, then the
limit function is analytic except for a closed nowhere dense set $E$ (Osgood).
Montel proved that $E$ is a perfect set whose union with the complement of the disc is connected.
Lavrentiev completely characterized the sets $E$ that can occur, and proved that every function
of the first Baire class
which is analytic outside $E$ is a pointwise limit of polynomials.
Thus every continuous function, analytic outside $E$ can be obtained as a limit of polynomials.
Convergence outside $E$ is locally uniform.
This answers all your questions.
By the way, similar problems for harmonic functions (characterization of their pointwise limits)
is still not solved completely.
EDIT. For example, any simple curve in the unit disc, going from $0$ to $1$, satisfies the Lavrentiev
condition. Taking this curve with positive area, we can construct a continuous function $f$
in the unit disc, which is analytic outside the curve but not analytic in the unit disc.
This function will be a pointwise limit of polynomials.

REPLY [2 votes]: Of course (1) does not imply (2) : the functions $f_n:=z^n$ converge pointwisely to $0$ on the unit disk, but the convergence is not uniform. 
In fact, assuming (1), the convergence need not be locally uniform : using Runge's Theorem, it is possible to find a sequence of polynomials $p_n$ such that $p_n \rightarrow 0$ pointwisely on the unit disk, but the convergence is not uniform in any neighborhood of $0$ : see e.g. this question
EDIT
A similar argument (using Runge's Theorem) answers your question (3) negatively : It is possible to construct a sequence of polynomials $p_n$'s with $p_n(z) \rightarrow 0$ for every $z \neq 0$ but $p_n(0) \rightarrow 1$.