My brother, James Francis McNeer, was born on Feb. 9, 1930, and served in the United States Marines for two years starting in November 1951. He took his rigorous, disciplined boot training at San Diego and then spent two years at Camp Pendleton in the same area before heading back home to Newton. He was still a single man.
Along with a variety of tours up and down the west coast on weekends, Jim and his friends liked to travel the 90 miles to Hollywood and take in some of the premiers of movies shown at famous landmarks, such as Grauman’s Chinese Theater. Jim always had his leather pocket autograph book handy. Back in those days, it wasn’t unusual to walk right up to a Hollywood star like Debbie Reynolds, Mitzie Gaynor, Jane Russell, Rock Hudson, Piper Laurie, June Allyson, Bob Hope or Bob Newhart and get a coveted autograph for posterity!
A number of other famous names are also in that little suede covered notebook. But my modest brother Jim never made a big deal out of things like this. Most of our extended family probably doesn’t realize just what a famous guy he is. We must encourage Jim to bring some of his memorabilia to one of our next family reunions. Cousins, nieces, nephews and grandkids would likely be startled to see the extent of his unpublicized collection.
In visiting with Jim recently, he mentioned his experience in sending Jane Russell one of the pictures he took of her in Oceanside, asking her to autograph it and return in his self-addressed envelope. She granted his wish but signed it on the back, which was somewhat of a disappointment to Jim.
When talking about Jim’s famous 8x10 picture with superstar Bing Crosby, he related that very interesting day back on Nov. 9, 1953, which also happened to be the day of his official discharge from the Marines. Rather than immediately heading for Iowa, Jim decided to spend a couple days roaming around in the Hollywood area on his own. One of his main challenges was to see if he could make contact with Bing at the Paramount Studios, where he was involved in a major film. As Jim put it, “Mom was crazy about this guy with the fantastic baritone voice. She considered him almost the next thing to God.”
Sure enough, Bing was in the studio at work. When Jim asked one of the stage hands if there was any way he could visit with Bing during a break, the fellow immediately delivered the request. This most famous crooner of all time smiled, then came right over to shake Jim’s hand. During their chat, Jim mentioned he was disappointed in having to check his camera at the gate. Bing said, “That’s no problem. I’ll get my publicity photographer to take a picture of us together and send it to your home in Newton.” What a great surprise gift for our mother, Barbara Theresa McNeer!
That very same day, Jim saw Dean Martin on the street and just walked up beside him in his military uniform and asked for an autograph. Sure enough, nothing was too good for a Marine. He also bumped in to Percy Kilbride, who played Pa Kettle in the blockbuster film “The Egg and I,” along with Fred McMurray and Claudette Colbert. Jim said Percy’s street voice was exactly like the old codger he played in the movie. Many folks today remember the follow-up series of Ma and Pa Kettle movies. I have four VCR copies in my own movie library, thanks to my late cousin Johnny Lose in Des Moines. They were a Christmas gift from his family.
There’s still more to this fascinating day in Jim’s life. That evening in the RCA radio parking lot, he bumped in to Bob Hope heading to work for his weekly broadcast. Jim asked Bob if he could have a copy of his radio script for the day when he finished with it. He attended the radio program and, sure enough, got that script.
Youngsters of today may not relate to many of these famous names from just a few short years ago. But anyone with a little grey in their hair will nod their head in agreement that this was indeed a day to remember in this young Marine’s life. Jim’s most prized possession from his many unique experiences is his framed picture of him and Bing Crosby. They both look like a couple of pleasant, affable celebrities!
Bing Crosby, only 74 years of age, died of a heart attack on a golf course in Madrid, Spain, on Oct. 14, 1977. Bob Hope, who died July 27, 2003, at over 100 years of age, was Bing’s good buddy. They made a number of movies together. Bing will be remembered for his stellar performance in “White Christmas,” which was the top money-maker in 1954 by a large margin.
Thanks, Jim, for these great memories. I am having prints of this famous picture of you and Bing made for your family and friends. A copy of these historic happenings will be on the back of each one.