JK Loves A Parade Pt. V :)

Hello!

There's already snow on the ground where I live, so let's hurry back to Jack Kelly and Barbara Nichols in sunny Palm Springs, California:

 Something's still holding their attention...

 

"The horses are going faster than we are!"

 

"I think he found the accelerator."

 

More fun to come--please stay tuned! :)

JK Loves A Parade Pt. IV

Hello Everyone!

Make way for more pix scanned from the Kellection of Jack Kelly and Barbara Nichols at the 1961 Palm Springs Mounted Police Rodeo:

JK & BN stop to greet two of the Crosby brothers, who were the parade marshals. The brothers also had a gig going at the "Chi Chi" nightspot in Palm Springs. And, JK had played in their dad Bing's annual golf tournament the previous weekend. Plus, JK, BN & the Bros all appeared in What About Linda?, a TV appeal for the March of Dimes which was airing in syndication in January 1961.

 

JK starts signing autographs again and BN smiles at the kids. The lady onlooker seems caught up in it all.

 

Finally, BN gets to sign an autograph! Incidentally, about two weeks after the parade and rodeo in Palm Springs, she would be seen in probably her best-remembered role: As hospital patient "Liz Powell" in the Twilight Zone episode "Twenty Two" (with its creepy catchphrase "Room for one more, Honey").

 

JK's still busy, so BN makes the best of it.

 

What's everyone looking at?

 

You'll want to keep looking at TDS as the fun goes on. Please stay tuned! :) 



JK Loves A Parade Pt. III :)

Howdy Again!

I hope everyone shook off their turkey coma and survived the stampede of holiday shoppers, because it's "Black (and White) Friday" here on TDS!

Let's swing back to 1961 again and see what Jack Kelly and Barbara Nichols are up to as we continue our visit to the 21st Annual Palm Springs Mounted Police Rodeo.

It looks like JK is still signing autographs:

"'Thanks for being my friend...Er, is that 'Philomena' with a 'Ph' or with an 'F'?"

"I'm starting to get writer's cramp..."

So much is going on here: The ladies to the right are like, "I just got Bart Maverick's autograph!"; JK & BN are like, "Let's go!"; the gentleman to the left is busy reading the program; and the driver is like, "This is Jack Kelly's pen...I'll keep it so my grandkids can sell it some day on eBay!" ;>

"Drink your milk, young man, and you'll grow up to be big and strong like me."

The fun continues next time in TDS--please stay tuned! :)  

JK Loves A Parade Pt. II :)

"More autographs, Jack?

C'mon, I wanna go to the rodeo!"

JK Loves A Parade :)

Howdy!

As promised, more images of Jack Kelly at the parade for the Palm Springs Mounted Police Rodeo in 1961 are coming up.

But first: what exactly was the Mounted Police Rodeo?

An editorial from a Palm Springs newspaper explains the serious reason for the festivities:

 

"This is Rodeo Week in Palm Springs, with two top days of action scheduled this weekend at the Polo Grounds, plus a Rodeo Ball Friday night and the traditional parade down Palm Canyon Drive on Saturday morning. And it's all for a good cause, with proceeds used by the Palm Springs Mounted Police to purchase additional rescue equipment, which is used in the pursuit of the organization's volunteer work as an auxiliary force of the Palm Springs Police Department. Their rescue work is well known, with members called upon day or night to travel hazardous mountain trails to locate missing or lost hikers. Without such a volunteer organization, this community would be forced underwrite a trained rescue crew. Let the community show its appreciation by supporting the 21st annual Rodeo this weekend and make it the biggest ever."

JK was announced as the parade's Grand Marshal on January 14:

 

An ad on January 26 drummed up more excitement:

 

As noted here before, Dorothy Provine was originally scheduled to serve as "Rodeo Queen", but had to drop out at the last minute due to an eye infection. So, Barbara Nichols became the substitute Queen.

On Saturday, January 28, literally thousands of people viewed the parade as it made its way down Palm Canyon Drive:

"A glittering star-studded Mounted Police Rodeo parade moved down Palm Canyon Drive at 10 a.m. sharp today, with one of the largest crowds ever attending...The parade was headed by Palm Springs Mounted Police color guard...The Marine Band from Twentynine Palms preceded a caravan of cars holding Grand Marshal Jack (Maverick) Kelly, Queen Barbara Nichols...and Palm Springs' own Joan Davis," read a newspaper account.  

So, now that we know the story of the parade, here's the star of the parade: JK! :)

All of the following images were scanned from original negatives in the Kellection:

 Here's a charming shot of JK and BN.

Gentleman Jack steadies Barbara's arm as she turns to give the photographer a saucy grin.

 

Let's zoom in for a close-up! :)

 

JK glances in the direction of some fans. I think the convertible is a 1961 Cadillac. 

(Note: For privacy purposes, I've blurred the clearly visible faces of bystanders who were not celebrities or parade officials.)

 

A killer close-up (sigh...)

 

JK is greeted by a group of young autograph seekers

 

I wonder what JK is saying?

 

"Hang on to this autograph--it'll be worth big bucks one day on eBay!" ;>

 

Babs waits patiently as JK signs more autographs

 

"Hey, who put invisible ink in my pen?"

 

 

Please stay tuned for much more fun with JK in TDS! :)

The Maverick's A Marshal :)

Howdy Pardners!

Remember that 2009 TDS post titled "Jack Kelly Goes To Rodeo", which featured a Japanese magazine clipping of JK, wife Donna and actress Barbara Nichols at a rodeo in Palm Springs, California?

Well, I recently purchased a U.S. magazine with a fun article and additional photos of the rodeo:


 "It's not a sight you're likely to see on your TV screen--Maverick's gone straight. But loyal fans needn't fret. It's only temporary, and come Sunday he'll be back again on the other side of the badge."

 

Photo captions: 1."Rodeo queen Barbara Nichols doesn't need gun to get her man. Duds are enuf." 2. Jack and Barbara look on tensely during exciting moment in bronco-busting event" (B27: And let's not forget Donna Kelly/May Wynn, sitting right next to her husband!)

 

 Article text: "Take one spoonful of a western hero, add a pinch of a curvy blonde actress, garnish with a trio of nightclub crooners and season with a top radio disk jockey, and you've got yourself the big 21st annual Palm Springs Mounted Police Rodeo.

 

21st Annual Palm Springs Rodeo Program courtesy of Palm Springs Historical Society

 

"Handsome Jack Kelly the star of Maverick, lovely Barbara Nichols, the Crosby brothers (Lindsay, Dennis and Phillip) and KMPC's Dick Whittinghill were the ingredients--as Grand Marshal, Rodeo Queen, Parade Marshals and High Sheriff respectively. For three days these madcaps were on hand, adding fun and glamor to what has already become one of the top rodeos.

 

"Still, it was a major blow to all self-respecting outlaws."

 

1."Three of Bing's sons (l to r) Phillip, Dennis and Lindsay are Parade Marshals" 2. "Jack and wife (actress May Wynn) admire trophy and each other at end of big day"

 

 It's a shame these fantastic photos are so hard to see. But, not to worry: we can see them much better, because I have these same photos--scanned directly from the original negatives! :)
 

(I think Babs forgot part of her costume.)

 

"This isn't my first rodeo!"

 

"So where's my cowboy hat?"

 

Donna has the best prize of all--JK! :)

 

Extra-special images of this event have actually been in the Kellection for some time now but I was waiting for a special occasion to share them here in TDS. Quite honestly, I've spent mucho dinero purchasing them and untold hours scanning them, digitizing them and researching the story behind them. That's because I believe that you, my readers, deserve the very best. Because, let's face it, you are the very best! :)

And, you've waited long enough. So, I'm declaring today a special occasion, the start of a parade of fabulous photos starring JK! (Watch out, Macy's! ;>)  

I'm also working on a special "beyond the blog" project with these images, so please stay tuned! :)

A Blast From the Pages of the Past :)

Hello Everyone,

I love delving into vintage magazines and books to learn more about Jack Kelly. I've also enjoyed countless hours scrolling through various newspaper archives to research posts such "All the World's A Stage With JK".

While wandering around these archives, I've also found some great, rare pictures of JK to share. They're PDF images scanned from old newspapers, so they're not the clearest pictures, but I'm sure you'll enjoy them, nonetheless.

Remember my 2009 post about "JK Goes To Rodeo", with photos from a Japanese magazine showing JK at a rodeo? For years, the date and location of this rodeo was a mystery (at least to me--I don't read Japanese). Then, I finally learned that JK was the grand marshal of the annual Palm Springs Rodeo parade on January 28, 1961. The "queen" of the rodeo was actress Barbara Nichols, who'd co-starred with JK in "The Third Rider" episode of Maverick.

But, Ms. Nichols was actually a replacement rodeo queen! Thanks to a newspaper archive, I discovered that the original 1961 queen was none other than Bart Maverick's Charleston partner, Dorothy Provine, pictured here with JK putting a rodeo bumper sticker on a vehicle at the Warner Bros. studio:

Ms. Provine had to abdicate at the last minute due to an eye ailment. So, Ms. Nichols assumed the crown--er, cowboy hat. Below, she's clowning with JK. (He's plugging his ear because she's pretending to shoot at the photographer.) The newspaper story says that "thousands" of spectators were on hand to watch the Palm Springs parade and rodeo.

Now, here's a cute shot of JK getting a friendly smooch from one of his poodles in 1958:

I'd read that JK was a guest at Sammy Davis Jr.'s November 1960 wedding to Swedish actress May Britt. What I didn't know was that JK and James Garner had presented a humanitarian award from the Los Angeles chapter of the Shriner's organization to Davis earlier that same year. (That's JK second from right with his hand on Sammy's shoulder; singer Arthur Lee Simpkins is next to JG.) Strangely, the photo caption IDs JG as "Bart" and JK as "Bret"!

Finally, here's JK (at right) in 1969 presenting another award, this time to an amateur actor in Akron, Ohio. JK was appearing at the Canal Fulton Summer Arena at the time.

  
Coming up in TDS:

• Forget "Black Friday". You don't want to miss "Black Tuesday"! :)
• Part III of "All the World's a Stage With JK".
• And more--stay tuned!

Jack Kelly Goes to Rodeo!

Howdy!

No, the title doesn't refer to a Jack Kelly shopping spree on Rodeo Drive. ;->

It's the title of a picture story I found from a 1962 Japanese magazine. Naturally, the text is all in Japanese (if there are any Japanese translators out there in JK fan-land, could you please drop me a line?!)

UPDATE! (8/12/15) - I finally managed to track down some more details. Jack Kelly was the grand marshal of the parade at the annual Palm Springs Rodeo on Saturday, January 28, 1961. Actress Barbara Nichols (who memorably co-starred with JK in the Maverick episode "The Third Rider" ) was the rodeo "queen".  More info about the rodeo is here.

Anyway, here are the pix:

Here, JK treats his poodle to a pre-rodeo Milk Bone. Actually, this is a familar sight at my house. Not because of Jack Kelly, of course, but because I give my own pooch at least two Milk Bones a day. And, the box hasn't changed much in 47 years! :)


"Howdy, Ma'am!"

The Grand Marshal and Queen in a convertible


JK is really into this rodeo! And, he's not paying much attention to Ms. Nichols, because...
 

...he has his own leggy lovely, his wife May Wynn!
 

A Jack and two queens...