Monday, March 3, 2008

A step back in time

Last month, while watching an old movie that starred Clark Gable and rambling in a post, I mentioned the fact that when he was young, my dad was more handsome than Mr. Gable. My sisters immediately wrote to agree with me, and we all remembered how much he looked like a young Frank Sinatra. Others have written to suggest that I post a pic of my father and when I went to look for an old photograph, I realized that I only had a few and they were all extremely small.
Enter my sister, Ginny, to the rescue. She and her husband have a scanner that they've never used before and between the both of them, they managed to send me these two pictures this afternoon. I did try to fix them up a little bit in Photoshop, but these photos are really old and this was the best I could do with my very minimal Photoshop skills.
I also tried to find an old picture of both Clark Gable and Frank Sinatra on the internet to add to this post, but I have no idea how to do that. I know how to add my own digital photographs to my post, but to pick up a photo somewhere else is just beyond my capabilities. I just don't know where to look.
My dad was born in Philadelphia in 1918, the eldest of four sons, three of which are still living. He'll be 90 this August and he lives with my sister Ginny and her husband, Jay, in California. He's led a fulfilling life, raising 7 children with my mother, was an executive for the Coca-Cola company for years but in the end, worked for and retired from RCA in Moorestown, NJ.
God's light shone on my father's face, for he was the pride and joy of his mother. At the age of 17, after just having graduated from West Catholic High School in Philadelphia, and with his parent's permission (which he did admit took quite some doing), he hitch-hiked by himself out to Kentucky to visit relatives. The year was 1935.
My dad visited back East just last summer, staying for several months with my sister Char and her family, in York PA. I stayed with him for several days while my sister was gone, and while there, I wrote down everything he could remember from that trip which subsequently led to him remembering all sorts of other stories from his life. He had to take naps in between all the reminiscing, but when he woke, he was ready to dictate again.
Growing up, I adolized my father. He worked a lot, but when he came home you didn't have to ask him twice to play. He enjoyed his children and his love for us, our mother, and God was great. I remember, too, when he used to smoke cigarettes. Most people did, back then, and I ran to him to give him a kiss before bedtime one night and he accidentally burnt me with his cigarette. I will never forget that because the very next day he quit. Cold turkey. Never smoked again in his life. My father has done a lot of things during his life that impress me and all of us love him very much.
I still say he's more handsome than Mr. Gable. Certainly better looking than ole' Blue Eyes, too.

15 comments:

Russell said...

Most interesting! Yes, your father was (is) a most handsome man and certainly sounds like a man you can be extremely proud of!

My father is still living and he is about 86 or so. It is always interesting to listen to these men and women who have lived such a long life and experienced so much. They are truly treasures in our lives.

Take care and know I always enjoy your blog every day. I confess I don't always post a reply, but I always read it! Your post is one of the best on the net!

Take care.

Anonymous said...

Told you your post was grrreat....

Good job on the pictures, I'm glad I could scan them for you.

Keep up the good work.

Love,

Fave Babe

Shelley said...

Thanks for the nice comments in my blog. You have some wonderful photos here! I love photography! Nice to meet you.

Anonymous said...

Your father could have been in the movies, he's got that look! Much better than Sinatra! Different from Clark Gable, but just as handsome if not more so. Sweet post.

SJR

Mental P Mama said...

He is so very handsome. My father looked like Bing Crosby...

Anonymous said...

Nice post. Your father was a handsome man! I was just looking at some photos of my father, probably in his 20s. Very handsome too. I keep trying to get him to write down the stories from his boyhood...Maybe I should do like you and write them/record them myself.

Anonymous said...

Wow, I felt like I was reading about my Dad and if I showed you a picture of him. You would think they were brothers. Wow, I'm blown away. My Dad passed away several years ago and this was a great remembrance.

Aunt Jo said...

Wonderful tribute to your dad. He is most handsome and sounds like a great father.

I read your blog daily and really enjoy it.

Country Girl said...

Thank you so much everyone! And Christine from Hogue Chronicle has sent me pics of Clark Gable and Frank Sinatra! So I'll add them in as soon as I get home.

~C.G.

Laura B. said...

Awesome post...your Dad was very striking back in the day. I do love old photos of family and we have a lot that my Mom and Dad have salvaged and saved. Those pictures are priceless.

Jeannelle said...

A wonderful tribute post.....your dad is indeed handsome and sounds very special.

The other day when I posted an old photo, I was amazed at what could be done with it once it was scanned into the computer. It could be enlarged, sharpened, darkened, and many details came out better that way!! I have many old photos now here at our house, so it will be fun to work with them.

Your posts....the photos and your writing, are always great! I enjoy reading them and learning much!

emily said...

this is great! pop is so handsome. i think you should post the picture of him from last year at judy's house on the motorcycle. just to compare and contrast :) i also love the story about your undies. mom says she remembers asking the mister peanut man if there was a bathroom in his costume. ha,ha!

Country Girl said...

Your mom was a little punk always looking for trouble! Nah, not really. I can't find the motorcycle picture. It used to be in my Hotmail account but it's lost. Maybe if Judy could SEND it to me again, that would be good!

~Aunt Kate

brneyedgal967 said...

Hubba, Hubba! What a great post. I love reminiscing about family and people in my life. The people that helped shape us into who we are today. Absolutely loved, loved this post. And a salute to your Dad for being such a wonderful guy!!

Anonymous said...

Yep! Much more handsome than either Gable or Sinatra. I'm a Daddy's Girl. Love remembering the times with him...