Monday, October 13.
Dear Andrew and John,
We're working naturally and so is school tonight but the banks and most of the business offices are closed down today honoring your birthday on yesterday.
One Friday, I mean on Friday afternoon I 'phoned Abe and he is feeling much better since he found he has only a tendency toward diabetes and not the actual stuff. Noontime Mommie told me she got a letter from Mrs. Bellis but didn't read it because I have to keep these calls from the office to home short. Got the 'phone bill Saturday and Arlene had called her friend Mary Margaret in Catonsville to the tune of $1.19 worth. For other news of Catonsville, Virginia called Ann to say she was dropping in on Sunday and Dee called again Friday to say no they wouldn't. And yesterday afternoon we have a - I can't even think straight - we had a short visit from Ellen and Gerry Bures. They are anxious to get out of West Edmondale where they bought their new house but can't find cheaper quarters elsewhere. They're so darned on edge they're nervous wrecks.
It was raining Friday evening so we postponed our trip to the food store till Saturday morning. It cleared Saturday noontime and I fixed the back door and wiped off the car and then drove Ann and the kids as far as Woolworth's on Harford Road. We were gone a little over an hour and came back Long Green Valley Road way to find fire engines racing past us to a big fire. If you still have a map or remember my describing Peterson's store and packaged refreshment shop, it's right next to that. Burned down into the ground with not a beam or shingle standing were the post office (Baldwin) general store and hardware and a good part of Baldwin Motors, a combination garage, repair shop and sales agency for tractors and farm equipment. Doctor's property ends down that way - it's almost a mile from the house really -- and one of his barns full of hay was partly burned. Arlene went with her friend Ann Woodward, our second neighbor to the south, and her father who is a member of the volunteer firefighters. She said they had eleven fire engines there but it got too much of a start. Ann didn't see the results but I drove past yesterday morning with Mike and Kathy when we event to pick up Arlene from Mass. Ann and I went to 8:30 yesterday for a change as it was Holy Name and in memory of our 8:30 Mass six years ago. Father Doran takes his good old time and has a sermon no matter how long he talks on the matter of Propagation of the Faith or the particular problem for the Sunday. We got home from 8:30 Mass at 10:02 and it started on time. Arlene was out in half an hour. We could go over on Harford Road to an earlier Mass or in to Towson but I think it's better to stay in the parish and they need our two-bitses.
I guess it was about 5:30 when we got back Saturday and I didn't look at the paper till after we ate so were we surprised to see Tallulah listed for All Star Review at 8 p.m. We were up and waiting for the beginning. You remember how Jimmy Durante used to and still does close by walking off as though into the distance. Well, Tallu comes from way back walking slowly and playing with her hair, right up into the camera and croaks "Hello Dahlings". We loved it. Her support all through the show were no less than Ethel Barrymore and Groucho Marx. But the show was all Tallulah's. She danced, sang and had several skits to herself as well as with the others. It was from New York as she remarked Ethel and Groucho had flown in from Hollywood. I liked her semi-final, a solo of how she had gone from her place at 59th Street to visit some friends in the country -- way out at 181st St. on a thing called the subway. Maybe it's old stuff but we enjoyed her applying at the money changing window for a drawing room and saying of course they would take her check. She pauses and gives her name as the fellow has evidently asked who she thought she was. She says, "I'm Tallulah Bankhead", then another pause listening to him and reaches her hand through to shake saying, "I'm so glad to know you, Mr. Bonaparte". Just as she is about to board the subway train, the camera follows her past a big paste up ad featuring the head and shoulder picture of Betty Davis and "Two's Company" which is apparantly her latest. Tallu goes past, does a double-take and then comes back to whip out her lipstick, hunch over the pic and step aside to show her decorations of glasses, a mustache and beard; no talking. Her ending of the show was a reversal of the beginning; saying "'Bye Dahlings" in front of the camera and walking slowly to music off into the rear center. Show of Shows did everything right as usual, this time with a host, Dennis O'Keefe. After this Ann retired but Arlene and I sat to watch Louis Hayward, Joan Bennett and George Sanders in "Son of Monte Cristo". I didn't realize it was such a big production and lasted just five minutes short of two hours.
We sat around all yesterday and had finished eating and cleaning up when Gerry and Ellen came. I guess they were here from about 5:30 till 6:30. We went up to TV for This is Show Business which was fair and Colgate's Comedy Hour had a pretty good show in Bob Hope with Fred MacMurray and Connie Haines. Phil Playhouse which last night was Goodyear Playhouse came on with some gypsy offering O Ramany. Ann said the author is a good one but we didn't care for the beginning so turned it off for the evening. Ann heard Mrs. Baldwin next door calling and I went down and read awhile. Ann came back and told me she had promised to go next door to stay with the kids in the event Mrs. Baldwin would be called back to town. Her husband's father, Streett Baldwin, had suffered a heart attack and stroke on Friday. So far they have kept it out of the papers for some political reason or other but as of this morning he's hanging on. The doctors now say there's no hope whatsoever and he is paralysed except for the fingers of one hand.
On our ride to the ten cent store Saturday we had to go past the Maryland School fort the blind on Taylor Avenue. They have their annual sign out advertising apples and cider. Ann says, from past experience, there's none better. They'll have it for some time but we don't want to get any as it might turn or that might be for the better also. It's only twenty minutes away by car.
That Stevie slob at the table will shovel in three helpings of meat, potatoes and vegetables I couldn't come near downing, then sit back with his shoulders slumped and mouth omen and wait for the monstrous bubbles that usually follow. Right after eating his stomach hangs down the way Kathy's used to. Nothing new on Kathy this week but Mike is due one of my famous haircuts no later than tomorrow.
END OF LETTER
Editor's notes:
October 12, Columbus Day, is Charles and Ann's sixth wedding anniversary. It is also the birthday of twin brothers, Andrew and John.
Next Posting: October 15, 1952
Copyright 2012 Stephen A Conner
No comments:
Post a Comment