This is a Blog site created by Bob Reed (in Florida) for folks who live--or used to live--in Marcus, Iowa. Its purpose is to exchange notes, news, remembrances, and thoughts about life in and about Marcus, or news about one's family, friends or acquaintances.
Friday, April 01, 2005
April 2005 Discussion
This discussion thread is closed, but feel free to wander in and read at your leisure.
We hope this reorgainization of the Marcus Blog will bring more folk into the discussions by posting comments and reminisances. We had some wonderful family arguments with our son Bob(who has degrees in computers and is Assistant Director of Distance Education at the University of Central Florida) about the reorgainization. We kept telling him to KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid). And we hope he did, so that more of our wonderful fraternity of Marcus folk can particpate in an easier way. Please continue to suggest improvements and thoughts about this means of communication. In the five months of this Blog, some 28 folk have posted comments. JUST GREAT! A lot more have read the comments, but the requirement to log on and have a password was clumbersome and intimidating. That is no longer a requirement. One can post a comment under the "Anonymous" identity (see below) and it should be much easier. So please tell all your friends and relatives about the Marcus Blog. And ask them to join us! Bob Reed (Senior)
There is a feature article about Dad and his retirement career as a presbyterian humorist in last week's Orlando Sentinel. He credits his Marcus upbringing:
"Reed, who was born and reared in the rural town of Marcus, Iowa, said he uses small-town life in Midwestern America as a backdrop for many of his stories." more
I tested and I'm pretty sure the link will work without requiring registration and logging in...
Where was everyone's favorite dance hall/ballroom? Mine were the Cobblestone in Storm Lake and the Roof Gardens in Arnolds Park. The Avalon Ballroom in Remsen was a pretty close second. And much more convenient. Radio stations KOMA (Oklahoma City), KAAY (Little Rock) and WLS (Chicago) would keep us all tuned in to what was happening and where. I see the Avalon has a website now and has been "kept alive" albeit in a different location, apparently. "The Cobb" and "The Roof Garden" are now relegated to our memories. Summer nights, new kids to check out from other towns and, for a really great time The Fabulous Flippers (homebased out of The Red Dog Inn in Lawrence, Kansas) would be playing that big sounding "Harlem Shuffle". Before The Tower of Power ever hit the stage on the West Coast, The Flippers were blowing us away with all those horns in rural America. Loved every minute of it. Those smooth hardwood floors, the lake outside (in Storm Lake and Arnolds Park)and that sensation of knowing how you'd feel when you walked into one of those places made you feel ten feet tall. Fred
I have just discovered the official site for Marcus. It's great! Well done! And if you are thinking of buying a house and retiring in Marcus (or environs) there's a link to two realtors and pics of houses for sale. The Hawkeye is listed at $69,000. Anyone???? Go to http://www.marcusiowa.com/ Whoever is responsible for this great site is to be commended! Bob Reed
Okay, so I missed most of those cool dance days. I was always wishing I could go into the shelter house at the park during the fair for those dances with the "groovy" colored lights ... too young. And then when I was old enough -- no more dances. However, the Avalon in Remsen was quite a cultural icon, wasn't it! Has it changed at all? Can you still go into a wedding dance even if you have no clue who the couple is? Do they still sell lime vodka-7-Ups and sloe gin Cokes in small glasses? (Remember, the legal drinking age was 18 ... can't believe it now!) And do they still play polkas where you spin around the floor with some sweaty stranger in pale blue or lime green tuxes? (Well, the tux colors have probably changed ... or have they?) We used to pile in a car on Saturday night and have a great time! Of course, disco had its own space and time, and there were some "hot spots" in Cherokee and Spencer for a brief blip of time (which was probably long enough). Polyester and more sweat ... how romantic! Long live the BeeGees ... so long ago...
Bob and Max, great improvements! Thank you for putting in the work.
Julia, funny you should say that about the Marcus Fair and dances. I too remember those lights and wondered what was going on in there. There used to be dances with wild lights in the Holy Name Gym too and I'd sit at my bedroom window at night looking across the playground wondering what all was going on over there. Great memories!
I can remember listening to Bleeker Street(sp?) radio out of Little Rock, AR late at night and they had some spooky stories on the radio. I'd really huddle under the covers after that!
Julia: I have great disco memories, too. I know it's not cool to admit to liking it, but all you have to do is go to a wedding party and when things get slow tell the DJ to crank up some "Stayin' Alive", "YMCA" or "The Hustle" and everybody gets out on the dance floor. I bought a satellite radio system recently -Sirius- which has one channel dedicated to disco music, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. K.C. and the Sunshine Band, The O'Jays, Donna Summer and The Village People. I know its called the scourge of the '70's - too Studio 54, too drug-related, too sensual. All I know is when I hear the music I think of smooth John Travolta, it takes me back to weekend teen dances in northwest Iowa and I want to dance. I don't analyze it that deeply. I'll leave it to others to figure out the social, cultural and political implications. (Disco Duck I could have done without, but most of the rest is hard wired to my brain and feet.)
I found a group on The Avalon's website called The Spectacle. It bills itself as Iowa's #1 Party Band. It started with Remsen and LeMars kids in the summer of 1967. It was a knock-off the Flippers. It had 13 members, lots of horns and everybody dressed alike. Check out the following website for some great before and after pictures: spectacle.topcities.com/
Marcus' own Steve Smith, although not an original member, is now part of the group when they do reunion shows, apparently. They are not getting back together this year, but plan to in 2006 according to their webpage. They look like they would have been, and I'm sure still are, great performers.
Finally, Marcus had its own great band in my era. The Charades, with The Nielsen brothers, Chuck and Dick, Denny Delaney and Mike Hoover. I've heard Chuck recount some of their great times together. We need him to weigh in on this blog. As I recall they opened for The Everly Brothers, among others. I'm sure there are lots of stories to tell. Fred
The following was sent by Chuck Beaton, at the request of Ken McQueen. Chuck reports that they have been in Arizona since 1991.
Subject: Marcus Picnic Attendees
Hi folks, The rain gave way to sun for our Marcus Picnic on Feb. 20, 2005. The 43 that were in attendance at the Hometown Buffet,1312 N. Scottsdale Rd., are listed below:
Kenneth & Carole McQueen, Berniece L. Johnson, Gordon & Shirley Roese, Denny & Betty Moser, Derald & Arlene Hendrickson, Jim & Betty Lage, Lin Nelson, David & Shirlie Nelson, Barbara Birch & Jean Griffin, Galen & Pat Duccommun, Milt, Julia, Kennedy,& Taylor Avery, Jack & Sharon Dawson, Roger Lindsay & Sandra Johnson, Jerry & Judy Weimer, Mary Richard(King) & Jack, Mary Ann Clayton, Mike Goth, Willie Goth, Grayce Wirt, Stan & Joyce Nervig, Tom & Doris(Peavey) Dawson, Earl & Jane Rae, Marcia Beaton, Chuck & Eleanor Beaton.
After the good meal and conversations, a short program of stories and memories of our past time in Marcus were greeted with smiles and laughter.
After the meeting I have heard about a few that wanted on the e-mail notification list. I have had some problems with the computer address file and some names did not show up on the last mailing. If there are some that did not get the last mailing or wish to be on it please e-mail me at
cnbeaton@juno.com
and I will see it is done.
For those that are wondering The Marcus Picnic, it is always held the Sunday preceding Presidents day which will be Feb. 19 in 2006. At this time it looks like it will be at the same Hometown Buffet. Hope to see all then.
Well my Baylor Lady Bears won the National Championship! We beat LSU on Sunday night then went on to defeat Michigan State in a blowout. We had a great time in Indianapolis and I highly recommend a national championship, it's a lot of fun. Bob, is this the year for the Hawkeyes to bring home the big one?
The link below is a pic of my son and niece with the Baylor coach, Kim Mulkey-Robertson after the LSU game.
Reminiscing about our old home town can sound like it was a more modern version of Our Town. Things weren’t as good or as bad as in that classic play. But there were problems and limitations.
The current drive to modernize the Marcus swimming pool reminded Earl Rae that in the ’30s and ’40s, our swimming pool was just one of the sandpits out in the country. We also fished for bullheads there. There was a public tennis court (where the pool is now) but no golf course.
We do tend to idealize, however. It’s part of the American tendency to reach out for roots. We are a young country. And most of us know some part of it that we are uncommonly attached to. As I understand it, there are even some people who are inordinately fond of Alabama.
And we often remember the kindness and compassion that the citizens of Marcus showed for one another. A recent notice in a Thelma Gravanish column in the Marcus News about the death of Dorothy Rose Cave Gabel (at age 80) reminded me of that small town caring.
Dorothy was supposed to graduate from MHS in my brother’s class of 1941, but developed an “illness,” and was home-bound for a long time. The school and town hooked up a telephone line to her farm home and she attended classes that way. It was a primitively wonderful (and for those days, inventive) use of technology. She graduated in 1943.
And all of us of that era remember Mary Ellen Kelly. She contracted “infantile paralysis” (polio) in her pre-teen years in the late ‘30s and was completely paralyzed and bedridden for the rest of her life. Still, she wrote a weekly column for the Marcus News and a book—"With the Dawn Rejoicing." She read vociferously, using a long stick from her mouth to turn the pages. She endured travel to Sioux City, Chicago, and all the way to Lourdes in France in search of a cure. Somehow, all the bills were paid. Most important, she was the recipient of daily visits, loving care, and constant prayers from both Catholics and Protestants in our growing-up years. She died in her thirties.
Polio was conquered fifty years ago today, with the approval of the Salk vaccine on April 12, 1955. Too late for Mary Ellen. But the compassion for her and for Dorothy Cave was a part of the “take care of one another” ethics that were—and are—a part of the fabric of life in Marcus.
Jack Clarkson reminded us last fall about the compassion for a little girl in town, and I have read of many other examples of such community care in the Marcus News in recent years. It does indeed take a village to raise a child. Bless our heritage. And, Go Baylor Bears! Bob Reed
Thank you to the creators and keepers of the site!! Karen F told me about it and I see so many names that bring fond memories! Margaret Dorr--so good to see you on here. I'll see you in August. Fred, Bob and other Dorr boys (who I remember as the little brats that splashed the guards at the pool), Jack Clarkson (I baby-sat for you when we were all much younger). What fun we had in Marcus. Fred, can we safely talk about the Great Train Ride? How did Mr. Hipple ever find out? My friends cannot believe that "Julie the straight-laced one" ever did that!! (nor can my children, for that matter). I'll check in again to see if this really works. Like Margaret, paper and pen are still more familiar to me. Julie Davis Reaman Class of '66
Julie......to think "THE BRATS" always spoke so highly of the Davis kids! Don't let me catch you anywhere close to the pool over the fair weekend.....LOL!!!!
I'm flattered, Bonnie. Ah, Les Brown and his Band of Renown. I would have loved to hear him live. Has anyone on this site ever heard Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey or Glenn Miller live? I'd love to hear those stories. Big Band and Swing. Before my time, but the newsreels and movies make it look so glamorous and fun. Those couples gliding across the floor in those huge dance halls, occasionally pulling on a cocktail and dragging on an unfiltered cigarette... That sense of living for that night as who knew what tomorrow would bring, especially for the young (mostly) guys who were headed off to war.
Speaking of that, for those who haven't yet seen it, there is a marvelous video put together by Nebraska Public TV (I believe) about the WWII era "North Platte Canteen". It was a relief station on the rail line in North Platte where thousands of young soldiers and sailors stopped for a few minutes going east and west, to either coast on their way to the front. It's a typically midwestern story about how a town cared magnificentally for young kids they didn't even know, feeding them, talking to them and comforting them during their stop. These kids from everywhere were treated by the women (mostly) of central Nebraska, as though they were their own. I guarantee you will love it.
Two other dance hall memories: The girls were always gorgeous and the guys always had "an attitude on". It never failed that throughout the course of the evening the word would spread that some little town was going to "fight" some other little town in the parking lot after the dance. It rarely ever happened though. When it did, it was usually a short fist-fight (no guns, knives or tire irons), with the first to get hit deciding to quit. I particularly remember one night when the testosterone was raging and two guys got into it in the rain. Nobody really did any damage, but they put on a show for the rest of us. It was fairly dramatic at the time, but looking back on it now it is mostly funny.
How about town reputations or rivalries? I could go on and on, but now it's someone else's turn.
Great to have you join this group, Julie, and wonderful to hear from you. (No, Bonnie, I would have never splashed Julie Davis at the town pool. You see, she was in my class. Julie was the total package. She was both beautiful and bright. If not the top student in our class she was close. Gary Wallin (now deceased) vied for that honor with her, as I recall. On top of it, she was incredibly nice, a cheerleader and a life guard. You didn't mess with Julie Davis, Bonnie. It was probably one of my little brothers she's thinking of. I would have been too busy trying to impress her to do something like that.)Fred
Okay, here's a new topic for all of you: beanwalking and corn detasseling. I have to believe even the "town kids" earned some spending money by the sweat of their brow. Do crews even do this anymore? Let's hear some stories.
I admit to wimping out and detasseling only one summer, but bean walking was something I could not get out from under. From walking with my family (little brothers who threw dirt clods at each other) to high school crews of girls that told stories up and down rows (hope they were fairly well done), it was a job that my children can't even comprehend. I'm a walker to this day because of it!
Well Julia you have to blame Roundup Ready Soybeans for the death of bean walking. Now all they do is spray roundup and it doesn't kill the beans but everything else. I have a hard time believing you could even find enough kids willing to that sort of labor today.
I find it interesting that soybeans were "new" at some point since they were always there, along with the pigweeds, thistles, cockleburrs and milkweeds! When were they first introduced into the midwest and how and why? Do they still detassel? And Bonnie, did all farmers have their own seed corn or did just some around Marcus? When I detasseled we were bussed off to the Storm Lake area, but my sisters simply remember being transported in the back ends of big trucks (Can you imagine!) like migrant workers. I guess even baling hay has changed, hasn't it? I remember the humongous dinners for all the balers. Quite an occasion.
Julia, soybeans originally grown in Iowa in the 1930's were "hay beans" and were black in color. They originated in China. In the early years, John Sand was instrumental in introducing regular soybean seed into Cherokee county, a move that now finds soybean production a vital element to farm economy throughout the United States. All farmers did not raise seed corn, only those with contracts to grow for seed companies. When Bonnie was detasseling corn, most farmers were planting their corn with "wire". A long wire, with spaced "knots", stretched across the field and mechanically tripped the seed to fall into the ground at specified intervals [hill dropped]. This allowed the farmer to "cross check" his planting and he could cultivate his fields in two separate directions as the corn could be "rowed" north and south or east and west. With the advent of hybrid corn and chemicals, farmers could plant higher populations of corn that now was uniform in heighth and harvest ears of corn that were all suniform in size and location on the stalk. Gone were the days of dragging a heavy wire across the field and cultivating corn two or three times, until it was "laid by". The old expression "knee high by the Fourth of July" applied to the growth of corn in those days. Today corn staging is more properly thought of as first tassel by the Fourth of July. You have now completed the introduction to Agronomy 101. Earl Rae
I have noticed that a lot of the posts on here have tended to reflect on "the past." Looking forward my question is this, "Does Marcus have a vehicle in place where families and/or individuals can leave assets of any kind to the city to be deployed for community projects that are currently needed or might be needed in the future?" If the city has this vehicle in place already would someone post the name of the FUND and the ADDRESS along with what the guidelines are that the funds are going to be used for? If there is no vehicle in place my last question is why not?
EXAMPLE: I know of a community that has a "Community Betterment Fund" setup and any individual that would like can donate assets (monetary or otherwise) to this fund while they are living and/or through their will upon their death. The funds are then used for CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS to the community whether they be for street and sewer improvements,public library improvements, business development opportunities, and/or additions or remodeling projects at their local school.
I am sure their are very competent lawyers in the community who could facilitate this vehicle being setup if one is not currently in place. Now wouldn't this be a neat legacy for the current community leadership to leave for the next generation if it hasn't been done already?
P.S. I can think of many former Marcusites who just might want to be part of something like this as well and they are more than able to do so---only if they knew where to send the funds if such vehicle is in place!
The Marcus News should take up and print issues you bring up anonymous about having such a community betterment fund, but the local newspaper lacks vision. I can think of many interesting people in Marcus that I would love to see stories written about but they never are. Many older generations know of Oscar Heline but many of the younger folks do not. It took someone like Studs Terkel to come into Marcus and write about Mr. Heline. Hell I bet most folks in Marcus didn't even know a famous author like Studs Terkel even wrote about Oscar Heline.
Now don't get me going about the Marcus News but you do bring up a GREAT POINT. Man I wish they had someone on that staff that could figure out how to write relevant and interesting stories about people and families that made Marcus great and are currently making Marcus great. If nothing else you would think they could get a decent digital camera so they could incoporate better quality pictures in the paper. I am amazed how the Marcus Fire Department has such leadership and committment and yet no one at the paper can figure out how to write a thorough and quality article about the members of the team and why they serve with such passion and devotion! Better yet the little blurb about Julia Meylor's uncle in the paper didn't seem to do the man justice when the Colorado paper wrote such a wonderful article about him. Guess sometimes you don't know what you have when it is in your backyard.
The tone of this blog seems to have changed a bit. Also, the last few authors have not wanted to identify themselves. Of course, that is their option but it dilutes the message, in my view.
I don't run a small town paper, nor do I ever suspect I will. But, I do know this. Most everywhere I've lived in this country, big town or small, people complain about their local paper. Too provincial, too liberal, not enough business news, too much focus on sports, not enough international coverage, too many ads, and on and on. I would assume that the margins in running a small town paper are very small (i.e., you have to watch expenses very closely). So, my reaction is this: 1. Buy the paper and run it better if you can; 2. Submit interesting copy for publication (which will usually get printed unless it is completely unreadable); 3. Take photos and offer them to the paper, if you have good ideas; or 4. Discontinue taking it, if you are unhappy.
There are readers, at least on this blog, who are familiar with both Oscar Heline and Studs Terkel and have read Terkel's account of Mr. Heline. I've found it wise to never underestimate the intellect of Marcusites. There are lots of well read and thoughtful people who have, at one time or another, called it home. There are many interesting people who live there now, or who did once. If you know of a good story about such a person or family, research it, write it and offer it to the paper.
As to those who think the posters at this site are overly concerned about the past - that is part of what this is all about - reminiscing. That's what its creator, Bob Reed, stated at the outset. It is also about current events and plans for the future. Read the complete thread.
If you can't find out how to leave money to Marcus, make a quick call to the Mayor's office (712-376-2211) and I'm sure you'll get started with the information you need. Marcus has a website where you can leave questions, if you have them, and you can google "Marcus, Iowa Mayor" to find the mayor's address and phone number. In short, information responsive to your questions is, largly, on the web. (If you can't use a computer, presumably you aren't reading this anyway.)
In sum, I get plenty of negative and critical news every night when I go home and turn on the TV. I think this blog has the potential to be different. It will, of course, ultimately be what we all make it. I for one vote for positive, interesting and creative. I don't pretend to speak for Bob Reed, as I don't even know him, but I suspect, based on what he's added here so far, that he had something similar in mind when he came up with this blogspot idea in the first place.
To the good people of Marcus -past, present and future. Fred Dorr
Well said, Fred. [is that poetic?] Everyone lighten up a bit; no need to make the "blog" a letter to the editors page. Thinking negative thoughts tends to shorten one's life; writing negative thoughts tends to shorten the lives of those who must read same. If we are going to live forever. let's make this a venue for positive reading. From the past; what ever became of Kirby Adler? Any old heads out there with a clue? earl rae
There have been some postings in the last week that have been unsigned---submitted only by "Anonymous". We opened up this blog recently so people could post comments in that way so they wouldn't have to go through the laborious hassle of getting a password and all that other stuff. The attempt is to increase the opportunity for folks to easily participate. This is a "community" driven blog,and it's subjects, shape and future will be determined by it's participants.No subject is really taboo. But it seems only reasonable to request that the people who comment,identify themselves. So please sign your name if you are posting a comment as "Anonymous"--or your toes will rot off! Go Eagles! Bob Reed
I second Fred Dorr's post. I want to say that as soon as I commented that former Marcusites might appreciate addresses in The Marcus News to help out with fund drives, Lori immediately made sure this was done and I've noticed several stories with addresses now. Ask and you shall receive!! All newspapers can be improved; I know, I worked on a daily for seven years. It's tougher and tougher for major newspapers to stay afloat these days, much less smalll-town papers. I town without a newspaper is deadening -- so keep supporting it. Do NOT let it die.
I also know that John Carey has been tremendously helpful in setting up a Class of 75 scholarship for the Dollars for Scholars program. I found the Marcus website very well done -- and enjoyed looking at all the real estate for sale. Marcus has many, many good people who care about its programs and residents. I respect your work.
I would never say anything disparaging about a town that I truly care about so much. I feel honored that such a big piece of my identity was formed there. Many people have no sense of place; they never did, never will. They don't even comprehend such an attachment. I guess that's what makes me a little different from many people I meet out here.
So enough said. Too many anonymous people in my life. I'd ask for a name on posts too; please let us know who you are. The little story I tell is that I may be a teacher and a mother and a wife and all those things in East Providence, but in Marcus I'm still "a Meylor girl," and that is all I need to say when I go home.
P.S. Thank you Earl Rae! A whole world I took for granted while growing up there.
Here's another idea for stories to pass along: Iowa snowstorms. I'd like to know about living through the worst of them and the best. Did you ever get caught out on the roads during a storm? Best snow memories? Scariest memories? Are snowstorms as bad as they used to be? Longest time out of school?
To everyone out there who is a reader check out Thomas Friedman's new book "The World is Flat". He's a midwestern guy (Minneapolis) who is married to a Des Moines woman (one of the Bucksbaum's - General Growth - nationwide mall developers and operators). Many of you know of him, but for those who don't, he's a foreign affairs columnist for The New York Times. He's also a prolific, Pulitzer-winning writer of great books. His latest is either #1 on the NYT's Bestseller list or soon will be. The reason I thought of it in this blog context is that he's written in his latest how "flattened" the way people communicate, do business and spend their personal time has become in just the past ten years or so. For example, all of you who read and respond on this blogspot, are in many cases people my brothers/sister knew, my parents knew or I'd heard of but never talked to until now. Thanks to Bob Reed this ongoing conversation is interwoven from Florida to Arizona to California back through Iowa - Illinois and east to Rhode Island, to name a few locations. What a marvel. Intergenerational thoughts are shared, memory is created or passed on, and information about our hometown of Marcus is transferred back and forth. Ten years ago this would have never happened, or if it did, it would have consisted of a few people who sent Christmas cards once a year or ran into each other at the Marcus Fair or a class reunion.
Friedman goes on at length about implications for all of us in our business and personal lives - JetBlue's reservation service now being handled by stay-at-home moms in Utah; help desks for the U.S. and Japan established in India and China; and even the drive-through windows at McDonalds now being handled off-site at a consolidated location (our orders and photos get digitized, confirmed and sent from/returned to the local stores, over hundreds or thousands of miles, from the time we place our order until seconds later when we pull around to the pick-up window.) Lots of opportunites for those who stay up with these changes and lots of challenges for those who don't. But, the "smaller world" we've all heard about for years is now here and this blog is a classic application of that technology. What a great thing. And a great book... if you're so inclined. Fred Dorr
p.s. Julia - I have great after-blizzard memories of staying at my Uncle Cecil's (while my parents were out of town) and having to create our own entertainment as we were snowed in. We hooked some goats up to sleds. Then piled corn on one side of the yard, showed it to the goats, drug them back across the yard, jumped on the sleds and held on while the goats charged pell-mell back to the corn to eat. We repeated that for what seemed like forever. The goats didn't lose their enthusiasm, nor did we. It was great fun.
I have great memories of the blizzard of January 1975! The lowest recorded barometric pressure in recorded history in NW Iowa. I am sure many of you remember it. I have a bunch of newspaper stories and pics from the Sioux City Journal and Cherokee Times scanned into my pc. I will upload the stories and pics and post the links here for you all to see.
The thing I remember most about that storm was shoveling out the Beck's driveway and front porch steps. It literally took us hours to clear it out for them. Normally we'd charge $2 or $3 for such a job but this time I asked for $10 and got it too! When my dad found out how much I charged he made me take it back and only charge $2. Whew, was I mad.
A chinook helicopter had to land on the Holy Name playground a day or two after the storm to pick up or deliver something to the Letsche house behind us. I don't remember what it was but I remember seeing that double rotored helicopter swooping down into our back yard, basically, and as a 14 year old I sure that was pretty cool!
Burdette, it's great to hear from you. Come back often. When you mentioned Spanish in elemetary school it made me think of our wonderful Spanish teacher Rafael Rodriguez(sp?). At the time I never appreciated him or what he had gone through to come to America. I wish he were still with us so I could personally thank him for his sacrific in leaving everything behind in Cuba and coming to Marcus, Iowa for kids that didn't appreciate him like we should have. I will always remember him and his cheerful smile and attitude. He was one of my favorite teachers, along with Martha Truelson!
Burdette, I would imagine you were the one that hired Rafael weren't you? Could you post some of your memories of him, what you thought of him when you hired him, etc.? I would love to hear your stories about him. Now that I think about it did you hire Martha Truelson Hueser too?
Had to add some comments about the Avalon in Remsen and the Roof Garden at the Lakes.
I remember "Ding" Ellis as a local territory band and most remembered the ....was it Al Menke and his 1000 or 10000 friends from Minnesota?
After college and Chicago we moved to Spencer in 1956 and I was a member of the James C Petrillo Musisc union--played clarinet in a couple of small groups...Connelly from Cherokee..used to play at the road house just outof Remsen....anyway the Pres of the NW iowa union from Spencer took Lois and I most every Wed and Sat nite to the "Roof" (he had to be there to collect the 5% due the local union from away bands. Jimmy Dorsey, Les Brown, Glen Miller Band led by nasal singer and sax, Gene Krupa, Claude Thornhill group, Les Elgardt (sp?) etc. The Spencer union furnished 1-3 players for just about every band as they were usually always short.
Oh, and a college friend, Ellie Leslie sang with Tommy Dorsey when she was 16 years old...she lives here in Rancho Bernardo now with husband, Dick Don Peters
PS We had a home on West Lake Okoboji (Millers Bay) and watched the tornardo come over the Lake and rip off the top floor of the Roof Garden (and Vern & Coilas second floor also)....middle 70s????
The answser is no. I hired the previous Cuban - Mr. Diaz. Rafael came shortly after we left Marcus - but I did met him.
Another event in which the entire community got involved. The Diaz family had nothing when they came to Marucs. The coummunity found him a home, furnished it, provided groceries to get the family going...and if I remember correctly even a car for transportation.
They lived right across the street from us. In fact my wife taught Mrs. Diaz how to drive - Mrs. Diaz for a few months would only make a right turn - so every where they went the route had to take only right turns.
Last I heard Mr. Diaz was a college proffesor at some university in Cleveland. It was he that got the Spanish program going.
Don Peters: Tell us a couple of your better memories about the big bands. Who were some of the better musicians? Who was the most popular group of that era? Who got the crowd going the most? Who were some of the nicer people to be around? Were drugs/alcohol any part of the scene with those groups? Any insights into what life was like on the road with those bands? (I enjoyed your comment about collecting union dues and providing musician "fillers" from the local talent pool.)
Although The Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake wasn't on my radar as a kid, I have since been several times to "Buddy Holly Reunions" or "Winter Dance Party Revues" there. I've talked to lots of people who claim they were there "The Day The Music Died". Very interesting stories about that night in February of 1959 - Waylon Jennings gave up his seat on the plane to The Big Bopper and lived, why and how some decided to fly in bad weather, as opposed to riding the bus to their next stop (Fargo I think it was)and so much more.
Burdette: Great to hear from you. I remember going to your house one Saturday morning, along with my dad, Melvin, to eat some of your [in]famous "fried brains". Worst thing I ever ate. I understand you liked them. I could never get it. At the time I probably tried to smile politely, choke them down and leave. I can say it now though - how in the heck could you eat those things? It was as bad or worse than the night in college I ate chitlins. Again, horrible to eat and the smell was overwhelming. I remember asking my dad one time, why with all the great pork and beef around we, in Iowa, weren't beter known for our BBQ. His comment: "You answered your own question. We don't have to cover up poor quality with sauces and long hours in a smoker. Our meat is great without all that." And so, when you elected to eat those strange animal parts, Burdette, I was just left with one question - why? (I served on the West Des Moines school board for six years, Burdette. We had a terrific supe here - Dale Grabinski. Even though I'm teasing you a bit now, you're still one of the top two superintendents I ever saw in action. Marcus was very fortunate to have had you at the school's helm, even if only for a short time.) All my best, Fred Dorr
BTW - very hard to get those beef brains in CA...but let me assure you, they have lots worse things to eat around here - espacially in some Mexican places.
Thanks for the comment - we like Marcus and thought the community wanted and had an outstanding school. I do know when I went back to school at the University of Iowa, the Marcus schools were well thought of...
With a bow to Don Peters, my wife Max says I should weight in about big bands. She says that everyone should know that in 1954, "Bob Reed And The Varsity Men" followed Ralph Flannigan into the Dakota Ballroom in Sioux Falls (the next week)--and outdrew that great band from New York. This was at the end of the big band era. I was a student at the U of South Dakota and had what was called a "territory band". I had been discharged as a Navy musician the year before and (as was the custom) took alot of the great big band charts from WW11 by Fletcher Henderson and others with me. So we did alot on one nighters throughout the Siouxland area. The 17 piece outfit was made up of students and faculty--plus some professional ringers from Sioux City. We were union. The union headquarters (one guy) was in Remsen. We never played the Cobblestone or Avalon or Roof Garden. The gigs were varied--into Iowa, Nebraska and Minnesota--wherever folks would gather for Fireman's Balls or Community Celebrations or just to dance. The folks loved the big band sound, but alot of farmers got off on numbers from a "book" I purchased from a defunct "tenor band" (a 6 piece outfit with 3 saxes and 1 trumpet) that had alot of polkas and schottisches in it. Man did those Scandinavian farmers like to stomp around! We would load up cars and drive to the gig, set up mikes and stands and be on the stand by 8:00 P.M.--play till midnight, strike and motor back to Vermillion to get there by the first classes. The "Varsity Men" lasted for about a year when I collapsed and the Doctor said I had to choose between being a musician or a student. I chose the latter. Bob Reed
to Fred D & Bob Reed.....at the roof garden in Okoboji in the summer months the big band area was stillgoing with Wed and Sat nite bands thru the early 60s. The biggest crowds were when Les Brown and his band of renoun (sp), T Dorsey, Glen Miller band with Tex Beneke. I recall that Jack Tegarden (trombone) band and Artie Shaw were at the roof in 58 or 59. the bands would travel out of mpls or Chicago (Aaragon or Trianon (sp?)Ballroom)engagements on large Grayhound type busses then headingto St. Louis, KC or on west. Lois and I met most of the band leaders thru our union friend from Spencer.
We were in Chicago in 52 thru 54 and the bands were hitting the two main Chicago ballrooms all the time.
About drugs, Fred, we guessed that Gene Krupa on the drums and band leader was hopped up as his eyes seemed pretty glassy as I remember. We never thought about drugs in spencer or Okobji at that time but they were probably available. DON PETERS (47)
PS the roof garden was two story wood bldg so the full house of dancers could get the second story dance floor moving up and down a tad.
Hi Bonnie, had to mess up the page....Vern and Coila's was one great fish and steak place with small combos playing upstairs. Coila's son-in-law was the chef and he would buy hanging quarters of beef and let them age in the basement freezers for 6 months...cut the steaks with a fork, Bonnie. You could come by boat at walk up some few hundred feet to their reastaurant hidden somwhat in all the oak trees.
Use this link instead. Cut and paste it into your browser. My memory is failing. Here I thought it was a Chinook but instead it was a single blade Huey! The pic explains the story.
COMMENT ON ELMER BJORNSTAD....WELL HE SURE DID INTRODUCE ME TO A CLARINET; THEY RETIRED TO LAJOLLA,CA (ABOUT 25 MINUTES WEST OF US ON THE COAST--HIS FOLKS HOME. HE THREW EARL RAE, BILLY McDANIEL, MYSELF AND BARITONE BOB TOGETHER...WE HAD A LOT OF FUN IN THAT QUARTET.
MY BEDROOM WAS NEXT TO MY SISTER'S ROOM (4 YEARS OLDER) AND SHE LISTENED TO THE BIG BANDS FROM WGN CHICAGO AFTER 10:30 5 NITES A WEEK....SO I CAUGHT THAT BIG BAND SOUND FROM ABOUT AGE 10 ON.......
Don, the Elder Mr. Reed would have been known as Lead Tenor Bob, had we nicknames in the days of yore. Bill McDaniel would have been Baritone Bill, you were, rightfully so, Basso Don. With only one slot left, I was, obviously, Top Tenor Earl. When I was in the Marine Corps the drunks all wanted me to sing Danny Boy. Being half Scotch and half French, I wanted to sing love songs. Tenors do not make the best crooners. I did, in later years, play Beau in a production of Mame. Beau, however falls from a Swiss Alp on his honeymoon and is killed. Does that tell you something? The last part of the show I was an Orthodox Priest. Is that type casting, or what. Somewhere there is a record of our infamous quartet, and I wouldn't be surprised if Bob Reed still has a copy of same; unless he has sold it on Ebay at grreat profit. Earl Rae
We hope this reorgainization of the Marcus Blog will bring more folk into the discussions by posting comments and reminisances. We had some wonderful family arguments with our son Bob(who has degrees in computers and is Assistant Director of Distance Education at the University of Central Florida) about the reorgainization. We kept telling him to KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid). And we hope he did, so that more of our wonderful fraternity of Marcus folk can particpate in an easier way. Please continue to suggest improvements and thoughts about this means of communication. In the five months of this Blog, some 28 folk have posted comments. JUST GREAT! A lot more have read the comments, but the requirement to log on and have a password was clumbersome and intimidating. That is no longer a requirement. One can post a comment under the "Anonymous" identity (see below) and it should be much easier. So please tell all your friends and relatives about the Marcus Blog. And ask them to join us!
ReplyDeleteBob Reed (Senior)
There is a feature article about Dad and his retirement career as a presbyterian humorist in last week's Orlando Sentinel. He credits his Marcus upbringing:
ReplyDelete"Reed, who was born and reared in the rural town of Marcus, Iowa, said he uses small-town life in Midwestern America as a backdrop for many of his stories." more
I tested and I'm pretty sure the link will work without requiring registration and logging in...
Bob Jr.
gotta try this out without name and password. Pete in San Diego
ReplyDeleteWhere was everyone's favorite dance hall/ballroom? Mine were the Cobblestone in Storm Lake and the Roof Gardens in Arnolds Park. The Avalon Ballroom in Remsen was a pretty close second. And much more convenient. Radio stations KOMA (Oklahoma City), KAAY (Little Rock) and WLS (Chicago) would keep us all tuned in to what was happening and where. I see the Avalon has a website now and has been "kept alive" albeit in a different location, apparently. "The Cobb" and "The Roof Garden" are now relegated to our memories. Summer nights, new kids to check out from other towns and, for a really great time The Fabulous Flippers (homebased out of The Red Dog Inn in Lawrence, Kansas) would be playing that big sounding "Harlem Shuffle". Before The Tower of Power ever hit the stage on the West Coast, The Flippers were blowing us away with all those horns in rural America. Loved every minute of it. Those smooth hardwood floors, the lake outside (in Storm Lake and Arnolds Park)and that sensation of knowing how you'd feel when you walked into one of those places made you feel ten feet tall. Fred
ReplyDeleteI have just discovered the official site for Marcus. It's great! Well done! And if you are thinking of buying a house and retiring in Marcus (or environs) there's a link to two realtors and pics of houses for sale. The Hawkeye is listed at $69,000. Anyone???? Go to
ReplyDeletehttp://www.marcusiowa.com/
Whoever is responsible for this great site is to be commended!
Bob Reed
Okay, so I missed most of those cool dance days. I was always wishing I could go into the shelter house at the park during the fair for those dances with the "groovy" colored lights ... too young. And then when I was old enough -- no more dances.
ReplyDeleteHowever, the Avalon in Remsen was quite a cultural icon, wasn't it! Has it changed at all? Can you still go into a wedding dance even if you have no clue who the couple is? Do they still sell lime vodka-7-Ups and sloe gin Cokes in small glasses? (Remember, the legal drinking age was 18 ... can't believe it now!) And do they still play polkas where you spin around the floor with some sweaty stranger in pale blue or lime green tuxes? (Well, the tux colors have probably changed ... or have they?) We used to pile in a car on Saturday night and have a great time!
Of course, disco had its own space and time, and there were some "hot spots" in Cherokee and Spencer for a brief blip of time (which was probably long enough). Polyester and more sweat ... how romantic! Long live the BeeGees ... so long ago...
Was WOW out of Omaha? And is it still WOW?
ReplyDeleteBob and Max, great improvements! Thank you for putting in the work.
ReplyDeleteJulia, funny you should say that about the Marcus Fair and dances. I too remember those lights and wondered what was going on in there. There used to be dances with wild lights in the Holy Name Gym too and I'd sit at my bedroom window at night looking across the playground wondering what all was going on over there. Great memories!
I can remember listening to Bleeker Street(sp?) radio out of Little Rock, AR late at night and they had some spooky stories on the radio. I'd really huddle under the covers after that!
Kurt Dorr
Julia: I have great disco memories, too. I know it's not cool to admit to liking it, but all you have to do is go to a wedding party and when things get slow tell the DJ to crank up some "Stayin' Alive", "YMCA" or "The Hustle" and everybody gets out on the dance floor. I bought a satellite radio system recently -Sirius- which has one channel dedicated to disco music, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. K.C. and the Sunshine Band, The O'Jays, Donna Summer and The Village People. I know its called the scourge of the '70's - too Studio 54, too drug-related, too sensual. All I know is when I hear the music I think of smooth John Travolta, it takes me back to weekend teen dances in northwest Iowa and I want to dance. I don't analyze it that deeply. I'll leave it to others to figure out the social, cultural and political implications. (Disco Duck I could have done without, but most of the rest is hard wired to my brain and feet.)
ReplyDeleteI found a group on The Avalon's website called The Spectacle. It bills itself as Iowa's #1 Party Band. It started with Remsen and LeMars kids in the summer of 1967. It was a knock-off the Flippers. It had 13 members, lots of horns and everybody dressed alike. Check out the following website for some great before and after pictures: spectacle.topcities.com/
Marcus' own Steve Smith, although not an original member, is now part of the group when they do reunion shows, apparently. They are not getting back together this year, but plan to in 2006 according to their webpage. They look like they would have been, and I'm sure still are, great performers.
Finally, Marcus had its own great band in my era. The Charades, with The Nielsen brothers, Chuck and Dick, Denny Delaney and Mike Hoover. I've heard Chuck recount some of their great times together. We need him to weigh in on this blog. As I recall they opened for The Everly Brothers, among others. I'm sure there are lots of stories to tell. Fred
The following was sent by Chuck Beaton, at the request of Ken McQueen. Chuck reports that they have been in Arizona since 1991.
ReplyDeleteSubject: Marcus Picnic Attendees
Hi folks,
The rain gave way to sun for our Marcus Picnic on Feb. 20, 2005.
The 43 that were in attendance at the Hometown Buffet,1312 N. Scottsdale Rd., are listed below:
Kenneth & Carole McQueen, Berniece L. Johnson, Gordon & Shirley
Roese, Denny & Betty Moser, Derald & Arlene Hendrickson, Jim & Betty Lage, Lin Nelson, David & Shirlie Nelson, Barbara Birch & Jean Griffin, Galen & Pat Duccommun, Milt, Julia, Kennedy,& Taylor Avery, Jack & Sharon Dawson,
Roger Lindsay & Sandra Johnson, Jerry & Judy Weimer, Mary Richard(King) & Jack, Mary Ann Clayton, Mike Goth, Willie Goth, Grayce Wirt, Stan & Joyce Nervig, Tom & Doris(Peavey) Dawson, Earl & Jane Rae, Marcia Beaton, Chuck & Eleanor Beaton.
After the good meal and conversations, a short program of stories and memories of our past time in Marcus were greeted with smiles and
laughter.
After the meeting I have heard about a few that wanted on the e-mail notification list. I have had some problems with the computer address file and some names did not show up on the last mailing. If there are some that
did not get the last mailing or wish to be on it please e-mail me at
cnbeaton@juno.com
and I will see it is done.
For those that are wondering The Marcus Picnic, it is always held the Sunday preceding Presidents day which will be Feb. 19 in 2006. At this time it looks like it will be at the same Hometown Buffet. Hope to see all then.
Marcus Picnic Committee
Chuck Beaton
Well my Baylor Lady Bears won the National Championship! We beat LSU on Sunday night then went on to defeat Michigan State in a blowout. We had a great time in Indianapolis and I highly recommend a national championship, it's a lot of fun. Bob, is this the year for the Hawkeyes to bring home the big one?
ReplyDeleteThe link below is a pic of my son and niece with the Baylor coach, Kim Mulkey-Robertson after the LSU game.
http://img3.picsplace.to/img3/1622/Kurt__s_Pictures_107a.jpg
Kurt Dorr
BLESS OUR HERITAGE
ReplyDeleteReminiscing about our old home town can sound like it was a more modern version of Our Town. Things weren’t as good or as bad as in that classic play. But there were problems and limitations.
The current drive to modernize the Marcus swimming pool reminded Earl Rae that in the ’30s and ’40s, our swimming pool was just one of the sandpits out in the country. We also fished for bullheads there. There was a public tennis court (where the pool is now) but no golf course.
We do tend to idealize, however. It’s part of the American tendency to reach out for roots. We are a young country. And most of us know some part of it that we are uncommonly attached to. As I understand it, there are even some people who are inordinately fond of Alabama.
And we often remember the kindness and compassion that the citizens of Marcus showed for one another. A recent notice in a Thelma Gravanish column in the Marcus News about the death of Dorothy Rose Cave Gabel (at age 80) reminded me of that small town caring.
Dorothy was supposed to graduate from MHS in my brother’s class of 1941, but developed an “illness,” and was home-bound for a long time. The school and town hooked up a telephone line to her farm home and she attended classes that way. It was a primitively wonderful (and for those days, inventive) use of technology. She graduated in 1943.
And all of us of that era remember Mary Ellen Kelly. She contracted “infantile paralysis” (polio) in her pre-teen years in the late ‘30s and was completely paralyzed and bedridden for the rest of her life. Still, she wrote a weekly column for the Marcus News and a book—"With the Dawn Rejoicing." She read vociferously, using a long stick from her mouth to turn the pages. She endured travel to Sioux City, Chicago, and all the way to Lourdes in France in search of a cure. Somehow, all the bills were paid. Most important, she was the recipient of daily visits, loving care, and constant prayers from both Catholics and Protestants in our growing-up years. She died in her thirties.
Polio was conquered fifty years ago today, with the approval of the Salk vaccine on April 12, 1955. Too late for Mary Ellen. But the compassion for her and for Dorothy Cave was a part of the “take care of one another” ethics that were—and are—a part of the fabric of life in Marcus.
Jack Clarkson reminded us last fall about the compassion for a little girl in town, and I have read of many other examples of such community care in the Marcus News in recent years. It does indeed take a village to raise a child. Bless our heritage. And, Go Baylor Bears! Bob Reed
Thank you to the creators and keepers of the site!! Karen F told me about it and I see so many names that bring fond memories!
ReplyDeleteMargaret Dorr--so good to see you on here. I'll see you in August. Fred, Bob and other Dorr boys (who I remember as the little brats that splashed the guards at the pool), Jack Clarkson (I baby-sat for you when we were all much younger). What fun we had in Marcus. Fred, can we safely talk about the Great Train Ride? How did Mr. Hipple ever find out? My friends cannot believe that "Julie the straight-laced one" ever did that!! (nor can my children, for that matter).
I'll check in again to see if this really works. Like Margaret, paper and pen are still more familiar to me.
Julie Davis Reaman Class of '66
Julie......to think "THE BRATS" always spoke so highly of the Davis kids! Don't let me catch you anywhere close to the pool over the fair weekend.....LOL!!!!
ReplyDeleteI'm flattered, Bonnie. Ah, Les Brown and his Band of Renown. I would have loved to hear him live. Has anyone on this site ever heard Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey or Glenn Miller live? I'd love to hear those stories. Big Band and Swing. Before my time, but the newsreels and movies make it look so glamorous and fun. Those couples gliding across the floor in those huge dance halls, occasionally pulling on a cocktail and dragging on an unfiltered cigarette... That sense of living for that night as who knew what tomorrow would bring, especially for the young (mostly) guys who were headed off to war.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of that, for those who haven't yet seen it, there is a marvelous video put together by Nebraska Public TV (I believe) about the WWII era "North Platte Canteen". It was a relief station on the rail line in North Platte where thousands of young soldiers and sailors stopped for a few minutes going east and west, to either coast on their way to the front. It's a typically midwestern story about how a town cared magnificentally for young kids they didn't even know, feeding them, talking to them and comforting them during their stop. These kids from everywhere were treated by the women (mostly) of central Nebraska, as though they were their own. I guarantee you will love it.
Two other dance hall memories: The girls were always gorgeous and the guys always had "an attitude on". It never failed that throughout the course of the evening the word would spread that some little town was going to "fight" some other little town in the parking lot after the dance. It rarely ever happened though. When it did, it was usually a short fist-fight (no guns, knives or tire irons), with the first to get hit deciding to quit. I particularly remember one night when the testosterone was raging and two guys got into it in the rain. Nobody really did any damage, but they put on a show for the rest of us. It was fairly dramatic at the time, but looking back on it now it is mostly funny.
How about town reputations or rivalries? I could go on and on, but now it's someone else's turn.
Great to have you join this group, Julie, and wonderful to hear from you. (No, Bonnie, I would have never splashed Julie Davis at the town pool. You see, she was in my class. Julie was the total package. She was both beautiful and bright. If not the top student in our class she was close. Gary Wallin (now deceased) vied for that honor with her, as I recall. On top of it, she was incredibly nice, a cheerleader and a life guard. You didn't mess with Julie Davis, Bonnie. It was probably one of my little brothers she's thinking of. I would have been too busy trying to impress her to do something like that.)Fred
Okay, here's a new topic for all of you: beanwalking and corn detasseling. I have to believe even the "town kids" earned some spending money by the sweat of their brow. Do crews even do this anymore? Let's hear some stories.
ReplyDeleteI admit to wimping out and detasseling only one summer, but bean walking was something I could not get out from under. From walking with my family (little brothers who threw dirt clods at each other) to high school crews of girls that told stories up and down rows (hope they were fairly well done), it was a job that my children can't even comprehend. I'm a walker to this day because of it!
Well Julia you have to blame Roundup Ready Soybeans for the death of bean walking. Now all they do is spray roundup and it doesn't kill the beans but everything else. I have a hard time believing you could even find enough kids willing to that sort of labor today.
ReplyDeleteKurt Dorr
I find it interesting that soybeans were "new" at some point since they were always there, along with the pigweeds, thistles, cockleburrs and milkweeds! When were they first introduced into the midwest and how and why? Do they still detassel? And Bonnie, did all farmers have their own seed corn or did just some around Marcus? When I detasseled we were bussed off to the Storm Lake area, but my sisters simply remember being transported in the back ends of big trucks (Can you imagine!) like migrant workers.
ReplyDeleteI guess even baling hay has changed, hasn't it? I remember the humongous dinners for all the balers. Quite an occasion.
Julia, soybeans originally grown in Iowa in the 1930's were "hay beans" and were black in color. They originated in China. In the early years, John Sand was instrumental in introducing regular soybean seed into Cherokee county, a move that now finds soybean production a vital element to farm economy throughout the United States. All farmers did not raise seed corn, only those with contracts to grow for seed companies. When Bonnie was detasseling corn, most farmers were planting their corn with "wire". A long wire, with spaced "knots", stretched across the field and mechanically tripped the seed to fall into the ground at specified intervals [hill dropped]. This allowed the farmer to "cross check" his planting and he could cultivate his fields in two separate directions as the corn could be "rowed" north and south or east and west. With the advent of hybrid corn and chemicals, farmers could plant higher populations of corn that now was uniform in heighth and harvest ears of corn that were all suniform in size and location on the stalk. Gone were the days of dragging a heavy wire across the field and cultivating corn two or three times, until it was "laid by". The old expression "knee high by the Fourth of July" applied to the growth of corn in those days. Today corn staging is more properly thought of as first tassel by the Fourth of July. You have now completed the introduction to Agronomy 101. Earl Rae
ReplyDeleteI have noticed that a lot of the posts on here have tended to reflect on "the past." Looking forward my question is this, "Does Marcus have a vehicle in place where families and/or individuals can leave assets of any kind to the city to be deployed for community projects that are currently needed or might be needed in the future?" If the city has this vehicle in place already would someone post the name of the FUND and the ADDRESS along with what the guidelines are that the funds are going to be used for? If there is no vehicle in place my last question is why not?
ReplyDeleteEXAMPLE: I know of a community that has a "Community Betterment Fund" setup and any individual that would like can donate assets (monetary or otherwise) to this fund while they are living and/or through their will upon their death. The funds are then used for CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS to the community whether they be for street and sewer improvements,public library improvements, business development opportunities, and/or additions or remodeling projects at their local school.
I am sure their are very competent lawyers in the community who could facilitate this vehicle being setup if one is not currently in place. Now wouldn't this be a neat legacy for the current community leadership to leave for the next generation if it hasn't been done already?
P.S. I can think of many former Marcusites who just might want to be part of something like this as well and they are more than able to do so---only if they knew where to send the funds if such vehicle is in place!
The Marcus News should take up and print issues you bring up anonymous about having such a community betterment fund, but the local newspaper lacks vision. I can think of many interesting people in Marcus that I would love to see stories written about but they never are. Many older generations know of Oscar Heline but many of the younger folks do not. It took someone like Studs Terkel to come into Marcus and write about Mr. Heline. Hell I bet most folks in Marcus didn't even know a famous author like Studs Terkel even wrote about Oscar Heline.
ReplyDeleteNow don't get me going about the Marcus News but you do bring up a GREAT POINT. Man I wish they had someone on that staff that could figure out how to write relevant and interesting stories about people and families that made Marcus great and are currently making Marcus great.
ReplyDeleteIf nothing else you would think they could get a decent digital camera so they could incoporate better quality pictures in the paper.
I am amazed how the Marcus Fire Department has such leadership and committment and yet no one at the paper can figure out how to write a thorough and quality article about the members of the team and why they serve with such passion and devotion!
Better yet the little blurb about Julia Meylor's uncle in the paper didn't seem to do the man justice when the Colorado paper wrote such a wonderful article about him.
Guess sometimes you don't know what you have when it is in your backyard.
The tone of this blog seems to have changed a bit. Also, the last few authors have not wanted to identify themselves. Of course, that is their option but it dilutes the message, in my view.
ReplyDeleteI don't run a small town paper, nor do I ever suspect I will. But, I do know this. Most everywhere I've lived in this country, big town or small, people complain about their local paper. Too provincial, too liberal, not enough business news, too much focus on sports, not enough international coverage, too many ads, and on and on. I would assume that the margins in running a small town paper are very small (i.e., you have to watch expenses very closely). So, my reaction is this: 1. Buy the paper and run it better if you can; 2. Submit interesting copy for publication (which will usually get printed unless it is completely unreadable); 3. Take photos and offer them to the paper, if you have good ideas; or 4. Discontinue taking it, if you are unhappy.
There are readers, at least on this blog, who are familiar with both Oscar Heline and Studs Terkel and have read Terkel's account of Mr. Heline. I've found it wise to never underestimate the intellect of Marcusites. There are lots of well read and thoughtful people who have, at one time or another, called it home. There are many interesting people who live there now, or who did once. If you know of a good story about such a person or family, research it, write it and offer it to the paper.
As to those who think the posters at this site are overly concerned about the past - that is part of what this is all about - reminiscing. That's what its creator, Bob Reed, stated at the outset. It is also about current events and plans for the future. Read the complete thread.
If you can't find out how to leave money to Marcus, make a quick call to the Mayor's office (712-376-2211) and I'm sure you'll get started with the information you need. Marcus has a website where you can leave questions, if you have them, and you can google "Marcus, Iowa Mayor" to find the mayor's address and phone number. In short, information responsive to your questions is, largly, on the web. (If you can't use a computer, presumably you aren't reading this anyway.)
In sum, I get plenty of negative and critical news every night when I go home and turn on the TV. I think this blog has the potential to be different. It will, of course, ultimately be what we all make it. I for one vote for positive, interesting and creative. I don't pretend to speak for Bob Reed, as I don't even know him, but I suspect, based on what he's added here so far, that he had something similar in mind when he came up with this blogspot idea in the first place.
To the good people of Marcus -past, present and future. Fred Dorr
Well said, Fred. [is that poetic?] Everyone lighten up a bit; no need to make the "blog" a letter to the editors page. Thinking negative thoughts tends to shorten one's life; writing negative thoughts tends to shorten the lives of those who must read same. If we are going to live forever. let's make this a venue for positive reading. From the past; what ever became of Kirby Adler? Any old heads out there with a clue? earl rae
ReplyDeleteThere have been some postings in the last week that have been unsigned---submitted only by "Anonymous". We opened up this blog recently so people could post comments in that way so they wouldn't have to go through the laborious hassle of getting a password and all that other stuff. The attempt is to increase the opportunity for folks to easily participate.
ReplyDeleteThis is a "community" driven blog,and it's subjects, shape and future will be determined by it's participants.No subject is really taboo. But it seems only reasonable to request that the people who comment,identify themselves. So please sign your name if you are posting a comment as "Anonymous"--or your toes will rot off! Go Eagles!
Bob Reed
I second Fred Dorr's post. I want to say that as soon as I commented that former Marcusites might appreciate addresses in The Marcus News to help out with fund drives, Lori immediately made sure this was done and I've noticed several stories with addresses now. Ask and you shall receive!! All newspapers can be improved; I know, I worked on a daily for seven years. It's tougher and tougher for major newspapers to stay afloat these days, much less smalll-town papers. I town without a newspaper is deadening -- so keep supporting it. Do NOT let it die.
ReplyDeleteI also know that John Carey has been tremendously helpful in setting up a Class of 75 scholarship for the Dollars for Scholars program. I found the Marcus website very well done -- and enjoyed looking at all the real estate for sale. Marcus has many, many good people who care about its programs and residents. I respect your work.
I would never say anything disparaging about a town that I truly care about so much. I feel honored that such a big piece of my identity was formed there. Many people have no sense of place; they never did, never will. They don't even comprehend such an attachment. I guess that's what makes me a little different from many people I meet out here.
So enough said. Too many anonymous people in my life. I'd ask for a name on posts too; please let us know who you are. The little story I tell is that I may be a teacher and a mother and a wife and all those things in East Providence, but in Marcus I'm still "a Meylor girl," and that is all I need to say when I go home.
P.S. Thank you Earl Rae! A whole world I took for granted while growing up there.
ReplyDeleteHere's another idea for stories to pass along: Iowa snowstorms. I'd like to know about living through the worst of them and the best. Did you ever get caught out on the roads during a storm? Best snow memories? Scariest memories? Are snowstorms as bad as they used to be? Longest time out of school?
jmsimpson@cox.net
ReplyDelete10 Manning Drive
Riverside, RI 02915
To everyone out there who is a reader check out Thomas Friedman's new book "The World is Flat". He's a midwestern guy (Minneapolis) who is married to a Des Moines woman (one of the Bucksbaum's - General Growth - nationwide mall developers and operators). Many of you know of him, but for those who don't, he's a foreign affairs columnist for The New York Times. He's also a prolific, Pulitzer-winning writer of great books. His latest is either #1 on the NYT's Bestseller list or soon will be. The reason I thought of it in this blog context is that he's written in his latest how "flattened" the way people communicate, do business and spend their personal time has become in just the past ten years or so. For example, all of you who read and respond on this blogspot, are in many cases people my brothers/sister knew, my parents knew or I'd heard of but never talked to until now. Thanks to Bob Reed this ongoing conversation is interwoven from Florida to Arizona to California back through Iowa - Illinois and east to Rhode Island, to name a few locations. What a marvel. Intergenerational thoughts are shared, memory is created or passed on, and information about our hometown of Marcus is transferred back and forth. Ten years ago this would have never happened, or if it did, it would have consisted of a few people who sent Christmas cards once a year or ran into each other at the Marcus Fair or a class reunion.
ReplyDeleteFriedman goes on at length about implications for all of us in our business and personal lives - JetBlue's reservation service now being handled by stay-at-home moms in Utah; help desks for the U.S. and Japan established in India and China; and even the drive-through windows at McDonalds now being handled off-site at a consolidated location (our orders and photos get digitized, confirmed and sent from/returned to the local stores, over hundreds or thousands of miles, from the time we place our order until seconds later when we pull around to the pick-up window.) Lots of opportunites for those who stay up with these changes and lots of challenges for those who don't. But, the "smaller world" we've all heard about for years is now here and this blog is a classic application of that technology. What a great thing. And a great book... if you're so inclined. Fred Dorr
p.s. Julia - I have great after-blizzard memories of staying at my Uncle Cecil's (while my parents were out of town) and having to create our own entertainment as we were snowed in. We hooked some goats up to sleds. Then piled corn on one side of the yard, showed it to the goats, drug them back across the yard, jumped on the sleds and held on while the goats charged pell-mell back to the corn to eat. We repeated that for what seemed like forever. The goats didn't lose their enthusiasm, nor did we. It was great fun.
I have great memories of the blizzard of January 1975! The lowest recorded barometric pressure in recorded history in NW Iowa. I am sure many of you remember it. I have a bunch of newspaper stories and pics from the Sioux City Journal and Cherokee Times scanned into my pc. I will upload the stories and pics and post the links here for you all to see.
ReplyDeleteThe thing I remember most about that storm was shoveling out the Beck's driveway and front porch steps. It literally took us hours to clear it out for them. Normally we'd charge $2 or $3 for such a job but this time I asked for $10 and got it too! When my dad found out how much I charged he made me take it back and only charge $2. Whew, was I mad.
A chinook helicopter had to land on the Holy Name playground a day or two after the storm to pick up or deliver something to the Letsche house behind us. I don't remember what it was but I remember seeing that double rotored helicopter swooping down into our back yard, basically, and as a 14 year old I sure that was pretty cool!
Kurt Dorr
Burdette, it's great to hear from you. Come back often. When you mentioned Spanish in elemetary school it made me think of our wonderful Spanish teacher Rafael Rodriguez(sp?). At the time I never appreciated him or what he had gone through to come to America. I wish he were still with us so I could personally thank him for his sacrific in leaving everything behind in Cuba and coming to Marcus, Iowa for kids that didn't appreciate him like we should have. I will always remember him and his cheerful smile and attitude. He was one of my favorite teachers, along with Martha Truelson!
ReplyDeleteBurdette, I would imagine you were the one that hired Rafael weren't you? Could you post some of your memories of him, what you thought of him when you hired him, etc.? I would love to hear your stories about him. Now that I think about it did you hire Martha Truelson Hueser too?
Kurt Dorr
Had to add some comments about the Avalon in Remsen and the Roof Garden at the Lakes.
ReplyDeleteI remember "Ding" Ellis as a local territory band and most remembered the ....was it Al Menke and his 1000 or 10000 friends from Minnesota?
After college and Chicago we moved to Spencer in 1956 and I was a member of the James C Petrillo Musisc union--played clarinet in a couple of small groups...Connelly from Cherokee..used to play at the road house just outof Remsen....anyway the Pres of the NW iowa union from Spencer took Lois and I most every Wed and Sat nite to the "Roof" (he had to be there to collect the 5% due the local union from away bands. Jimmy Dorsey, Les Brown, Glen Miller Band led by nasal singer and sax, Gene Krupa, Claude Thornhill group, Les Elgardt (sp?) etc. The Spencer union furnished 1-3 players for just about every band as they were usually always short.
Oh, and a college friend, Ellie Leslie sang with Tommy Dorsey when she was 16 years old...she lives here in Rancho Bernardo now with husband, Dick Don Peters
PS We had a home on West Lake Okoboji (Millers Bay) and watched the tornardo come over the Lake and rip off the top floor of the Roof Garden (and Vern & Coilas second floor also)....middle 70s????
Kurt asked - did I hire Rafael?
ReplyDeleteThe answser is no. I hired the previous Cuban - Mr. Diaz. Rafael came shortly after we left Marcus - but I did met him.
Another event in which the entire community got involved. The Diaz family had nothing when they came to Marucs. The coummunity found him a home, furnished it, provided groceries to get the family going...and if I remember correctly even a car for transportation.
They lived right across the street from us. In fact my wife taught Mrs. Diaz how to drive - Mrs. Diaz for a few months would only make a right turn - so every where they went the route had to take only right turns.
Last I heard Mr. Diaz was a college proffesor at some university in Cleveland. It was he that got the Spanish program going.
Dare I ask who is our big band expert?
ReplyDeleteJulia, that would be Donald Peters, class of 1947. Earl Rae
ReplyDeleteDon Peters: Tell us a couple of your better memories about the big bands. Who were some of the better musicians? Who was the most popular group of that era? Who got the crowd going the most? Who were some of the nicer people to be around? Were drugs/alcohol any part of the scene with those groups? Any insights into what life was like on the road with those bands? (I enjoyed your comment about collecting union dues and providing musician "fillers" from the local talent pool.)
ReplyDeleteAlthough The Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake wasn't on my radar as a kid, I have since been several times to "Buddy Holly Reunions" or "Winter Dance Party Revues" there. I've talked to lots of people who claim they were there "The Day The Music Died". Very interesting stories about that night in February of 1959 - Waylon Jennings gave up his seat on the plane to The Big Bopper and lived, why and how some decided to fly in bad weather, as opposed to riding the bus to their next stop (Fargo I think it was)and so much more.
Burdette: Great to hear from you. I remember going to your house one Saturday morning, along with my dad, Melvin, to eat some of your [in]famous "fried brains". Worst thing I ever ate. I understand you liked them. I could never get it. At the time I probably tried to smile politely, choke them down and leave. I can say it now though - how in the heck could you eat those things? It was as bad or worse than the night in college I ate chitlins. Again, horrible to eat and the smell was overwhelming. I remember asking my dad one time, why with all the great pork and beef around we, in Iowa, weren't beter known for our BBQ. His comment: "You answered your own question. We don't have to cover up poor quality with sauces and long hours in a smoker. Our meat is great without all that." And so, when you elected to eat those strange animal parts, Burdette, I was just left with one question - why? (I served on the West Des Moines school board for six years, Burdette. We had a terrific supe here - Dale Grabinski. Even though I'm teasing you a bit now, you're still one of the top two superintendents I ever saw in action. Marcus was very fortunate to have had you at the school's helm, even if only for a short time.) All my best, Fred Dorr
I knew Dale quite well...good man.
ReplyDeleteBTW - very hard to get those beef brains in CA...but let me assure you, they have lots worse things to eat around here - espacially in some Mexican places.
Thanks for the comment - we like Marcus and thought the community wanted and had an outstanding school. I do know when I went back to school at the University of Iowa, the Marcus schools were well thought of...
With a bow to Don Peters, my wife Max says I should weight in about big bands. She says that everyone should know that in 1954, "Bob Reed And The Varsity Men" followed Ralph Flannigan into the Dakota Ballroom in Sioux Falls (the next week)--and outdrew that great band from New York. This was at the end of the big band era. I was a student at the U of South Dakota and had what was called a "territory band". I had been discharged as a Navy musician the year before and (as was the custom) took alot of the great big band charts from WW11 by Fletcher Henderson and others with me. So we did alot on one nighters throughout the Siouxland area. The 17 piece outfit was made up of students and faculty--plus some professional ringers from Sioux City. We were union. The union headquarters (one guy) was in Remsen. We never played the Cobblestone or Avalon or Roof Garden. The gigs were varied--into Iowa, Nebraska and Minnesota--wherever folks would gather for Fireman's Balls or Community Celebrations or just to dance. The folks loved the big band sound, but alot of farmers got off on numbers from a "book" I purchased from a defunct "tenor band" (a 6 piece outfit with 3 saxes and 1 trumpet) that had alot of polkas and schottisches in it. Man did those Scandinavian farmers like to stomp around! We would load up cars and drive to the gig, set up mikes and stands and be on the stand by 8:00 P.M.--play till midnight, strike and motor back to Vermillion to get there by the first classes. The "Varsity Men" lasted for about a year when I collapsed and the Doctor said I had to choose between being a musician or a student. I chose the latter.
ReplyDeleteBob Reed
to Fred D & Bob Reed.....at the roof garden in Okoboji in the summer months the big band area was stillgoing with Wed and Sat nite bands thru the early 60s. The biggest crowds were when Les Brown and his band of renoun (sp), T Dorsey, Glen Miller band with Tex Beneke. I recall that Jack Tegarden (trombone) band and Artie Shaw were at the roof in 58 or 59. the bands would travel out of mpls or Chicago (Aaragon or Trianon (sp?)Ballroom)engagements on large Grayhound type busses then headingto St. Louis, KC or on west. Lois and I met most of the band leaders thru our union friend from Spencer.
ReplyDeleteWe were in Chicago in 52 thru 54 and the bands were hitting the two main Chicago ballrooms all the time.
About drugs, Fred, we guessed that Gene Krupa on the drums and band leader was hopped up as his eyes seemed pretty glassy as I remember. We never thought about drugs in spencer or Okobji at that time but they were probably available. DON PETERS (47)
PS the roof garden was two story wood bldg so the full house of dancers could get the second story dance floor moving up and down a tad.
Hi Bonnie, had to mess up the page....Vern and Coila's was one great fish and steak place with small combos playing upstairs. Coila's son-in-law was the chef
ReplyDeleteand he would buy hanging quarters of beef and let them age in the basement freezers for 6 months...cut the steaks with a fork, Bonnie. You could come by boat at walk up some few hundred feet to their reastaurant hidden somwhat in all the oak trees.
DON PETERS
[url=http://img3.picsplace.to/img3/1852/Thursday_January_16__1975_Cherokee_Daily_Times.jpg][img]http://img3.picsplace.to/img3/1852/thumbs/Thursday_January_16__1975_Cherokee_Daily_Times.jpg[/img][/url]
ReplyDeleteHere is a pic of the helicopter. Don't know if this will work. I am trying it as an experiment.
Kurt Dorr
http://img3.picsplace.to/img3/1852/Thursday_January_16__1975_Cherokee_Daily_Times.jpg
ReplyDeleteUse this link instead. Cut and paste it into your browser. My memory is failing. Here I thought it was a Chinook but instead it was a single blade Huey! The pic explains the story.
Kurt Dorr
FROM DON PETERS
ReplyDeleteATTN MARGARET DOOR
COMMENT ON ELMER BJORNSTAD....WELL HE SURE DID INTRODUCE ME TO A CLARINET; THEY RETIRED TO LAJOLLA,CA (ABOUT 25 MINUTES WEST OF US ON THE COAST--HIS FOLKS HOME.
HE THREW EARL RAE, BILLY McDANIEL, MYSELF AND BARITONE BOB TOGETHER...WE HAD A LOT OF FUN IN THAT QUARTET.
MY BEDROOM WAS NEXT TO MY SISTER'S ROOM (4 YEARS OLDER) AND SHE LISTENED TO THE BIG BANDS FROM WGN CHICAGO AFTER 10:30 5 NITES A WEEK....SO I CAUGHT THAT BIG BAND SOUND FROM ABOUT AGE 10 ON.......
DON P
Don, the Elder Mr. Reed would have been known as Lead Tenor Bob, had we nicknames in the days of yore. Bill McDaniel would have been Baritone Bill, you were, rightfully so, Basso Don. With only one slot left, I was, obviously, Top Tenor Earl. When I was in the Marine Corps the drunks all wanted me to sing Danny Boy. Being half Scotch and half French, I wanted to sing love songs. Tenors do not make the best crooners. I did, in later years, play Beau in a production of Mame. Beau, however falls from a Swiss Alp on his honeymoon and is killed. Does that tell you something? The last part of the show I was an Orthodox Priest. Is that type casting, or what. Somewhere there is a record of our infamous quartet, and I wouldn't be surprised if Bob Reed still has a copy of same; unless he has sold it on Ebay at grreat profit. Earl Rae
ReplyDelete