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STORIES OF ARIZONA
JUNE - SEPTEMBER 2002
MONDAYS AT 7 PM
KAET-TV/CHANNEL 8
Profiles
June 3 - Dolan Ellis: Arizona's
official balladeer
For more than 30 years, he has been the Official Balladeer of Arizona.
But Dolan is much more than just a singer. He is a songwriter of historic
epics (such as a tune about the only aerial gun battle and bombing raid
in Arizona…when a drunken pilot accidentally dropped his explosives
on the town of Naco, Ariz. instead of Naco, Mexico) and he is a preserver
of history. He and his wife Rose gave up most of their personal belongings
to start the Arizona Folklore Center in Ramsey Canyon.
June 10 - Bennie Gonzales: Visionary
architect
A native Arizonan, Bennie Gonzales gained a national reputation for
his Southwestern style architecture which gave a modern interpretation
to mission adobe style buildings. He designed civic centers, banks,
schools, libraries, churches and numerous residences that are now part
of the Arizona landscape. Gonzales now makes his home in Nogales, Ariz.
June 17 - Esther Don Tang: Tucson
community leader
Her parents came to Tucson from China to build a better life for themselves
and their children. Esther Tang grew up working in her family's grocery
stores. Following that example, she and her husband David built a chain
of markets while raising their own children. Tang also found time to
be active in numerous community causes as Tucson grew from a sleepy
pueblo to a vibrant modern city.
June 24 - Angel Delgadillo: Historic
Route 66
Angel Delgadillo was a mild-mannered barber in Seligman, Ariz., the
town where he was born. In the 1980s, Interstate 40 bypassed the road
running through his town, virtually stopping traffic dead. His, and
most business, suffered to the point that he considered moving. When
his children protested leaving their schools and friends, Angel came
up with another plan. He and a dozen others organized the Historic Route
66 Association, named after that "little road" that ran through town.
In less than a year it had been named an historic highway, interest
was renewed in traveling it… and the rest is history. Today, not only
do people come from all over the world to see the famous Main Street
of America, they come to see Angel, the Barber of Seligman… the angel
of Route 66.
July 1 - Grace Frederick: Broadcast
pioneer
A New York native who fell in love with Arizona, Frederick was one of,
if not THE, first woman on television. She was a Broadway actress, a
renowned photographer, and a builder of sets for many of the groundbreaking
live television productions like the Ed Sullivan Show. After moving
to Cave Creek in the 1960s, she dedicated herself to collecting broadcasting
and fashion memorabilia. Today, she is building her own museum, dedicated
to telling the story of the history of the United States and featuring
her own lifelong collection of artifacts.
July 8 - Calvin Goode: Phoenix community
leader
An accountant by profession, Calvin Goode is best known as the first
African-American Phoenix City Councilman. Serving on the council for
22 years, his greatest concerns were education and safe, affordable
housing for his community. In "retirement" he spends his time at his
old high school, which is now the George Washington Carver Museum and
Cultural Center, working to preserve the history of the African-American
community in Phoenix.
July 15 - Hal Empie: Tubac artist
An artist and cartoonist, Hal Empie became the pharmacist for the Duncan
Drug Store in 1934. Over the next 47 years, Empie transformed his store
in the tiny southeastern Arizona town into the Art Gallery Drug. While
fulfilling the town's pharmaceutical needs, Empie also captured the
scenes of the people and land of Arizona in his paintings. His work
became nationally respected through publication in Arizona Highways,
American Artist and Life magazines. A devastating flood in the early
1980s destroyed the town of Duncan and the Art Gallery Drug, but Empie
continued to paint in his studio in Tubac.
July 22 - Harvey Girls: Railroad
hotel pioneers
Fred Harvey's chain of hotels served railroad passengers as they traveled
across the American West from the 1880s through the 1950s. The women
who worked at those hotels were known as "Harvey Girls." Today, a group
of retired Harvey Girls in Winslow are preserving the history of this
unique group of women who found adventure and new lives in the West.
July 29 - Winn Bundy: Rancher /
bookstore owner
This Benson rancher dreamed of being a librarian. And that's what Winn
Bundy's become, in her own unique way. A few decades ago she "borrowed"
$600, bought a bunch of books, displayed them in her living room and
it just grew. Today she has over 150,000 titles spread out in several
rooms (still in her ranch house), has read most of the books, and is
known throughout the world as one of THE Arizona attractions. Her collection
is not the usual run-of-the-mill novels and bestsellers. Hers is a look
at women's history, true pioneer life, witchcraft and a look at some
of the best gamblers in Arizona history.
August 5 - Bill Close: Phoenix broadcast
pioneer
One of the pioneer broadcasters in Phoenix, Close set the tone for journalistic
integrity. He began his career in radio but became the most popular
and respected anchorman in Phoenix during his 27 years on KOOL-TV. Close's
life reflects not only the growth of the Valley of the Sun, but the
changing mood of a nation. He has fought being disabled (he is a double
amputee), becoming a leader in the news room, and even confronted a
deranged gunman during the five hours he was held hostage on a news
set. Close is also known for his collection of hundreds of bola ties.
Through his efforts, the bola tie was named Arizona's official neckwear
in the 1970s.
August 26 - Jeanne Branson: Parker
pioneer
What does the woman who was once billed as the world's youngest wild
animal trainer do when she's older and wants to take life easier? If
you're Jeanne Branson, in 1946 you buy land on what's now called the
Parker Strip along the Colorado River. Back in 1946 there was nothing…
no water, no electricity. Which suited Jeanne just fine. But, she says,
she opened her mouth about it… and friends and strangers came out West
to see this primitive land… and today it is indeed a destination point.
At 82, Jeanne is still going strong, still running her motel/RV park,
and still as active in community affairs as ever.
Septmber 9- Mary Thomas: Gila River
Indian community leader
She grew up in an adobe home in Sacaton, spent two decades working
for the U.S. Postal Service and became the first woman Governor of the
Gila River Pima Maricopa Indian Community. As Governor, Mary Thomas
led her community during the 1990s when the tribe began operating their
first casinos, generating income to improve education, health care,
jobs and housing for her people.
September 16 - Bob McCall: Space
artist
A man who truly lives his days… "Out of this World." This Paradise Valley
resident is America's most respected science artist. He has spent much
of his career interpreting NASA's space program on canvas…and speculating
on not only what other worlds might look like, but the distant future
of our own. His works include the six-story mural at the National Air
and Space Museum in Washington D.C. and a 19' x 60' canvas at the Disney
Epcot Center. Many of McCall's original art works will have a permanent
home at his museum at the Challenger Space Center in Peoria, Ariz. Stories
of Arizona is produced by Agave Productions. Agave Productions, Inc.
is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving Southwest history
by videotaping oral histories.
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