Jack Kelly - Hoppin' Along With Bart Maverick! :)

Hey Everybody!

I'm sorry I haven't blogged much lately. I've been on the go. Last weekend, I visited the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington to watch the exciting cross-country portion of the Rolex 3-Day Event. Beautiful park, beautiful horses. I visited a couple of antiques stores while in KY, too, but found no Kellectibles.

I had better luck this Friday (4/30) at the Hopalong Cassidy Festival in Cambridge, a town nestled in the rolling hills of southeastern Ohio. Hoppy's portrayer, actor William Boyd, was born near Cambridge in 1895.

I'd heard about this two-day festival before, but this was the first time I'd attended. It doesn't seem to be very widely publicized and I wasn't sure if it was still being held. However, I saw it advertised this year and just happened to have an opening in my schedule, so I decided to check it out.

I already had an all-day commitment for Saturday (5/1), so I attended the festival on Friday. The weather was unseasonably warm and brilliantly sunny, so I slapped on the sunscreen and brought along a cowboy hat I'd bought in KY. I thought I'd be spending a lot of time walking around outdoors, because to me, "festival" suggested an event with carnival rides and food booths. Stuff like that.

Well, it turned out I didn't need the sunscreen or the hat. What I saw of the "festival" was contained inside a building, the Pritchard Laughlin Civic Center. There was a food stand outside the Civic Center, along with a fellow in cowboy duds performing rope tricks for a small group of spectators.

Inside, I saw a guy dressed like Zorro and a couple of vendors selling western DVDs in the lobby. To the left there was a large room where more vendors were selling western toys and collectibles. To enter the room, however, one had to pay $5.00.

The lady collecting the entrance fee took my fiver and then said, "Now I have to stamp your hand." Whomp! The stamp left a bright blue line portrait of Hopalong Cassidy's head on the back of my hand.



This being the Hopalong Cassidy Festival, naturally there was a ton of Hoppy stuff for sale in the vendor's room, along with a bunch of Roy Rogers and other western star collectibles.

But, of course, I was looking for Kellectibles. In fact, if any other Jack Kelly fans happened to attend the festival after me, you probably didn't see too much Maverick stuff because I bought most of what I saw, including: a jigsaw puzzle with a photo of Bret and Bart; the Maverick Whitman book (which, although it mentions JK on the cover, seems to be only about Bret Maverick), and a Maverick comic book.

The Maverick puzzle

I would have bought more comics (the vendor had several), but the prices were a bit higher than my pocketbook would allow at the time. However, the vendor was extremely nice and we had a pleasant conversation about Maverick and Cheyenne.

A couple of vendors had the Hartland Maverick rider and gunfighter figurines for sale, but these were (a) way too expensive and (b) only Bret (Hartland didn't make any Bart figurines), so they stayed on the shelf. (Trivia: The Maverick figurines wear white cowboy hats, when everyone knows that Bret usually wore a black hat.) However, I did find a rare Hartland woodgrain-patterned mustang figurine for a very good price, and it joined my stash of souvenirs.

A few authors were hawking western-themed books and a singing cowboy did a spot-on impression of Kermit the Frog crooning "The Rainbow Connection".

The memorabilia, books and cowboy Kermit impersonators were not the biggest attractions in the room, though, because surviving cast members of The Virginian (James Drury, Gary Clarke, Roberta Shore and Randy Boone) were also there. They were seated at a table, with Virginian DVDs playing on a TV in the background. The show is currently being rerun on the Encore Westerns channel.

I have fond memories of watching The Virginian with my older sister. Along with the title character, for some reason I particularly remember vivacious Betsy (played by Ms. Shore). I think I wanted to be like Betsy and ride a horse around the ranch all day. Of course, Ms. Shore also co-starred in an episode of Maverick with JK ("The Royal Four Flush"), so I should have gone up and at least said, "Hello". But, there were a lot of people hovering around the table, and signs saying it would cost $20 to have a photo taken with the actors or to get an autograph.

Maybe I should have waited until the crowd thinned out. But, I knew I had a long drive ahead of me, so I didn't want to linger too long. I did get a glimpse of 76 year-old James Drury (who appeared with JK in Forbidden Planet)--he looked kind of tired--and 67 year-old Ms. Shore is as vivacious as ever.

I'm sure there was more to the festival in Cambridge proper (the Civic Center is on the highway leading into town), but, unfortunately I wasn't able to check it out due to time constraints. Maybe next year. :)

Jack Kelly - Cool Maverick Video! :)

Hello Everyone!

I just found a cool Maverick video on YouTube. It features several nice pix of JK and is set to what sounds like the version of the Maverick theme song used in the show's fifth season (with the clanging bell and tooting whistle). Enjoy! :->

Jack Kelly - Pause for the Cause :)

Howdy!

Before traveling on to today's topic, I wanted to answer all the questions I've received about yesterday's post.

JK's "spring break" photos are actually stills from "One Embezzlement and Two Margaritas", an episode of Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theater originally presented on May 18, 1966. JK portrayed private eye "Fred Piper" in a plot that involved high-society embezzlement. The dark-haired woman in the photos isn't me (I wish!), but actress Antoinette Bower. The blonde is Gay MacGill.

And, yes, while I'm crazy about JK, I'm not crazy enough to have a tattoo on my tummy--or to wear a bikini in public! :->

Well, here's hoping that RTV or some other nostalgic network will treat us to "...Two Margaritas". :)

Now, back to our regularly scheduled post:

Every spring, my employer devotes two weeks to raising funds for a local food pantry. One of the fund-raising activities my floor is planning is a "1950's Malt Shop". Next Monday, we're going to turn our breakroom into an "after the sock hop" hangout, complete with hamburgers, hot dogs, and spinning platters (CDs).

To publicize the malt shop, we've been papering our walls with flyers and with images of 1950's record covers and TV shows. Since I'm a committee member, I'm one of the people in charge of finding the images.

Hmmm...1950's TV show...Hey! How about Maverick? :)

So, now, I have Bart and Bret looking over my desk. I'm also surrounded by some of their friends , including"The Lone Ranger", "The Cisco Kid" and "Matt Dillon".

All the 1950's images have been so popular that now we're calling them "the gallery" and inviting folks to take a look before stopping by the malt shop.

I'm glad that people can "pause for the cause" and get a glimpse of JK and his pals, too. :->

Jack Kelly - Spring Break With JK!

It's spring break time for JK--
and we're all
invited to join in the fun! :)



"Hola, room service? Hundreds of my amigas just arrived. Could you send up mucho Mexican food, por favor?"

"Caution: soft shoulder ahead."

"Now, honey, if you want to learn how to play tennis
you're going have to keep your eye on the ball, not on me!"

"I love that tattoo on your tummy, Bartista!"

Happy Easter From The Tall Dark Stranger There :)

"The Easter Bunny gave me my favorite candy bar!"

Jack Kelly - "I'm a Home-Stayer, Course-Charter, a Follow-Througher" :)

Hi Again!

Before continuing with our 1958 tour of the Kelly home, let's pause for a quick cup of joe with Jack:

Oops! Looks like JK just lost a game of Chinese checkers to Donna. And who's that sitting on the TV? Our old friend Mr. Clown Doll! Glance just past him and you can see into the Kellys' backyard:


The caption to the pic below says that JK "cuts his own firewood, and he himself has made most of the improvements around the honeymoon cottage, just big enough for two."


And, of course, he was handy in the kitchen (and at the grill), too!


The article also gives some details about how the Kellys became a couple. Although they'd acted in two films together (They Rode West and The Violent Men) and socialized at various functions, they didn't really start dating until after Donna decided to visit JK at the Warner Brothers Studios one day. She found him on Stage Nineteen, and "there was Kelly, looking as handsome and dashing as her memory of him, in his period costume for King's Row, the teleseries then being made at Warner Brothers."

JK, as Donna might have seen him,
in costume for King's Row

The couple soon became an "item" and decided to marry. Reportedly, their first choice for a wedding location was Mexico. However, there was too much international red tape involved. Then, they considered having a formal ceremony, but there were too many guests involved.

Finally, a friend steered them to Quartzsite, a marrying mecca located in the Arizona desert. Although the couple arrived in the middle of the night, they were able to have a $75.00 wedding ring fashioned on the spot before being married by a justice of the peace. The Kellys also had a church wedding a month later.

The Kellys made a pact to never be apart during their marriage. JK claims in the article, "This is a motivating factor in our happiness. If a plane crashes or a train wrecks or a ship sinks, we will be together. Whatever happens to one of us will happen to both. This has worked a hardship, financial and career-wise, more than once...since signing on for the role of Bart in the Maverick series at Warner Bros., I've run into countless difficulties--obligations for personal appearances and business trips which I steadfastly refuse unless my wife can go along."

In fact, this "togetherness" pact may have almost cost JK his guest role in the TV series Gunsmoke. According to the article, while in the middle of enjoying a delayed honeymoon in Mexico four months after they were married, Jack got word about the Gunsmoke part. However, the plane home was overbooked and there was room for only one Kelly on the flight! The tearful decision was made that JK would go on to Los Angeles for the job while Donna would stay in Mexico.

JK was about to board the plane, but he looked back and saw Donna crying. He ordered his bags off the plane and the whole airport cheered his gallant, romantic gesture. And, the Kellys were able to leave Mexico together the next day, just in time for JK to play "Cal Durbin".

So, it's no wonder maverick Jack said of his married life at the time, "I used to be a fence-walker...now, I'm a home-stayer, a course-charter, and a follow-througher."

And, here's a bit of JK nickname trivia for you: We know that Donna called JK "Kelly". The article says JK called her "The Big M" or "Kukie". He hated the name "May Wynn" because it "wasn't real" and called her "The Big M" until he married her and "... I knew her well enough to call her 'Donna'".

Plus, they had a poodle named "Hickey"--since Donna's full real name was "Donna Lee Hickey".

Well, until next time, have a blessed and safe Easter. :)

Jack Kelly - "These Are Our Old Masters" :)

Hello Everyone!

I guess something strange happened with this blog on April 1. I heard some of the pictures and links were acting funny. Must have been sunspots or something. ;->

Anyway, I hope everything's working okay today, because you'll definitely want to see this:

It's a pic of Jack and Donna/May Kelly from a wonderful 1958 TV Radio Mirror article I found which ties right into my earlier posts about the Kelly's home. Unfortunately, none of the pix are in color, so we can't see any of the watermelon pink. However, they do give some fascinating peeks into the home and provide more clues about the Kelly's unique flair for decorating.

The article states, "The Kellys live in a picturesque farmhouse that hugs a cliff on one of the hills of Hollywood. The rooms all flow together, and are filled with the implements of their joint projects, and souvenirs and symbols of their lives together. Two unusual oil paintings dominate the living room. [The Kellys] bought them in a junk shop for $1.50 apiece; then spent over $90.00 having them cleaned and framed. 'These are our Old Masters,' says Kelly. There are also assorted paintings of clowns and horses.

"Everywhere about are souvenirs of their travels. There is a carved man with delicate hands, bought in Hong Kong because Donna likes delicately carved hands. And there is the bolo knife, brought from the Orient as a gift for a friend, but rejected by him because it looked too 'murderous'. On every nook and cranny there are curious objects of all sorts that have significance only to the Kellys. And everywhere, on shelf and on chair, there are books, books and more books.

"There is a den with a low, round table which is always cluttered. It generally contains half-filled coffee cups, a half-played game of Chinese checkers, and reams and reams of typing paper. For the Kellys collaborate on writing projects of all sorts, chiefly television scripts. Their creative efforts dovetail beautifully. Donna does research and collaborates on plotting, and each is an excellent critic of the other's ideas."

The Kellys are hard at work on a script, or maybe a cookbook.

Speaking of hard work, JK is crafting a fountain that will go outside their bedroom window, because "Donna thought it would be romantic".

But, all work and no play makes JK a dull boy (never!),
so here he strums the guitar. As the caption says, "Jack believes in serenading his fair lady, Donna, even after he's won her."

The story also provides a sweet look at the Kellys' courtship and elopement, and JK explains how married life changed this maverick. That, and more pix, next time! :)