WHO’S WHAT AND WHAT’S WHERE.

 

W elcome to the new season. . .the start of our 2006—2007 season and our 41st year. A big thank you to retiring President JOHN HARLAN and his Board members, JUDY BRENDEL, EDDY JO BERNAL, TOMMY COOK, BILL IRWIN, ROCKY KALISH, STAN SPIRO and CHARLES WASHBURN, and welcome to new President CHUCK SOUTHCOTT. Other 2006-2007 officers are MARTY HALPERIN, Vice President; BARBARA FULLER, Secretary; RIC ROSS, Treasurer; MICHAEL BROCKMAN, Assistant Treasurer; JEANNE DeVIVIER BROWN, Chairman of the Board; ART GILMORE, Chairman Emeritus and BOB AHMANSON, Chief Financial Officer Emeritus. New Board members are ART ALISI, STEPHEN BROWN, JUNE FORAY, KAY HENLEY, SAM LOVULLO, ALAN PERRIS and SHEL STUART. We should be off to a good start with the first luncheon, September 22.

TRAVELERS — Our new President, CHUCK SOUTHCOTT spent a working vacation on an Alaskan cruise with his “Music of Your Life” listeners in July (tough duty). EDDIE CARROLL and his wife, Evelyn, were in Syracuse, N.Y. for his one-man show, “Jack Benny—Laughter in Bloom,” then on to New York for meetings with their booking and theatrical agents who are interested in bringing the show to Broadway. FRANCES ROBERTS took her two children and two grandchildren for a theatre-going week in New York and a tour of Manhattan... In June she soloed to Egypt exploring archeological sites and swimming in the Dead Sea in Jordan as well as much sight seeing in both countries.

PPBER MAX ECKERT spent two weeks in London accompanied by friends Robert Amarante and George Knoke. New Board member JOHN COUCH traveled a bit vacationing in Santa Cruz and visiting family in Stockton and his father in North Carolina.

Former Board member SHARON DOUGLAS has moved to Albuquerque, N.M. because of ill health. She writes that she will miss her many friends and our meetings. Hope she is on the road to recovery. As usual, JUNE FORAY has been busy: she narrated a Frank Tashlin shoot for Looney Tunes, recorded three parts in a film short for Nickelodeon “Rarzn Fratz” and signed autographs for the Celebrity Hollywood Collectors Show. MARILYN KING of the King Sisters sang in concert at Henri’s Backroom in  June; and in August PATTI PAGE headlined the Marina Del Rey summer concert in Chase Park.

FORMER PPB BOARD MEMBER DALE OLSON points out a lot of our members and friends were on hand August 26 when Actors and Others for Animals toasted Dick Van Dyke at a luncheon at the Universal Hilton. EARL HOLLIMAN, A&O president and founding member JO ANNE WORLEY put the event together with toasters Elayne Boosler, Brett Butler, Mike Connors, Bryan Cranston, Nancy Dussault, Steve Lawrence, Charlotte Rae, BETTY WHITE, Mitzi Gaynor and host MONTY HALL. The organization, which does so much to promote humane care for animals is celebrating its 35th anniversary.

ED WILLIAMS recently played a 1940s doctor in a Capital Blue Cross commercial. ED was also interviewed for a British program on ITV Channel 4 about his work with Leslie Nielsen on the “Police Squad” series and in the Naked Gun movies. GERRY FRY’s wife, Marty, is recovering from massive leg injuries. She continues to improve after many hours of physical therapy. Mrs. RICHARD PAUL (Patty) co-produced a staged concert reading of “The Roar of the Grease Paint, the Smell of the Crowd” for the Musical Theatre Guild (MTG) at the Alex Theatre Glendale and the Sherr-Forum in Thousand Oaks in June. This is the third show she has produced for MTG. Our very own past president, TOM HATTEN, writes the program notes for each MTG show.  PATTY is a member of the MTG board of directors and has served on their board for the past six years. JEANNE and LUCKY BROWN and PAT PATTERSON attended the performance at the Alex Theatre.

MALA POWERS writes the forward to a new McFarland book, Ladies of the Western, recently released. The book contains interviews with 51 actresses in westerns from the silents to television. Just learned that former president CHUCK CECIL and wife Edna are great-grandparents of four girls. New president CHUCK SOUTHCOTT had a busy summer emceeing the free jazz concerts on behalf of K-Jazz Radio from the beautiful Highland and Hollywood Center.

RECEIVED a great postcard picturing means PEGGY GILBERT and announcing that a documentary on PEGGY and her all-girl band was being released in October. The film about PEGGY, who changed it all for female musicians, was produced by Jeannie Pool with narration by LILY TOMLIN       

I HOPE YOU DIDN’T MISS the L.A. Times article on NORMAN CORWIN. It was almost a full page and had a great picture of CORWIN. The         96-year-old CORWIN is still a professor of Journalism at USC. CORWIN’s VE Day Broadcast “On a Note of Triumph” was the subject of a documentary that won a short subject Oscar in 2006. The Oscar-winning documentary,   titled On a Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin, was repeated on Cinemax, July 29. A stirring tribute.    

Board member STEVE BROGDEN announced the opening of the children’s addition at the Thousand Oaks Library. The Thousand         Oaks Library has also published a catalogue of the American Radio Archives Collection, with a forward by NORMAN CORWIN. PPBer MILT LARSEN gets a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, September 15.

PPBER WOODY WISE writes that long-time member NANCY WIBLE is now in an assisted living home in Sacramento, which is near her daughter. WOODY says she is slightly depressed and would like to hear from her PPB friends. So, send a note to NANCY WIBLE, c/o Country Club Manor, 2100 Butano Drive, Sacramento, CA 95824. ESTHER McVEY writes from Eugene, Ore., “I’m hoping to come south for at least one or two gatherings. Miss y’all.”

FORMER PRESIDENT FRANK BRESEE celebrated a milestone August 5, when his “Golden Days of Radio” started its 58th year. FRANK presented the first program on KCSI on Catalina, August 5, 1949. The show was on the Mutual Network for ten years, on the Liberty Broadcasting System and carried by Armed Forces Radio for 19 years, and presently is on the Yesterday USA Radio Satellite Network and around the world on the Internet.

I HOPE THIS NEWSLETTER MAKES IT. We had a 49- hour blackout during the heat wave and could not use fax, typewriter, computer, etc.. . .then on the deadline day for the copy to be sent to the printer. . . the phones were out for 12 hours.. .so again no fax and no means of communication.

Membership Chairman KAY HENLEY announces New Members BOB DIX, KEVIN GERSHAN and TOM GOODWIN.

We will remember with admiration BOB DONNER, JOHN M. KENNEDY, ARTHUR MALVIN, JEREMIAH MORRIS, LESLIE RANDAZZO, JACK SMITH, STAN SPERO and ALBERT WILLIAMS.

Please send your news and that of your PPB friends to:

SUE CLARK CHADWICK

1841 Outpost Drive

Hollywood, CA 90068-3721

                                                Fax (323) 851-2401

 

NOTE: THE DEADLINE FOR THE NEXT NEWSLETTER is October 1, 2006