FESTIVAL OF THE WEST 2004
VISIONS OF THE WESTERN SPIRIT
by
Moira J. Purnell aka The Calgary Cowgirl
Some 15 years
ago, Mary Brown had a vision - a vision that is today one of the largest and
most prestigious Western Festivals in the world.
Mary Brown, a
long time fan of the late actor John Smith, had a dream of sharing her love of
westerns while at the same time preserving this extraordinary genre for future
generations. Mary was lucky enough
to meet her childhood hero who was the driving force in accomplishing her goal
and creating this outstanding event.
When you visit the Festival you will be astounded by the size of the schedule and variety of events. From vendors selling just about everything, including tack, western wear, western décor for the home, jewelry, to the enticing odors emanating from the various concessions including the great Chuck Wagon Cook Out, there is something geared to everyone’s taste and every age group.
Daylong
Country & Western music could be heard floating throughout the marquee,
serving as the perfect backdrop for visitors to enjoy while wandering from one
vendor’s exhibit to another’s.
Outside the
massive tent were numerous places of interest, such as the various full-size
stagecoaches, chuck wagons and a favorite with everyone - the mounted shooting
and equestrian events.
This year saw
the first Native American exhibit, which included dancers, music and a look at
the life and history of the Native American.
While enjoying the exhibit, I was pleased to see at least two groups of
local school children enjoying the show and learning all about this rich and
fascinating culture. If only such
education had been available in days gone by, maybe much of this heritage would
not have been lost.
But the real
attractions for many who attend are the Celebrities (our childhood heroes) who
keep the Wild West alive for so many of us.
If not for their love and dedication to the western genre and their
willingness to take time out of their busy lives to attend these festivals, the
“western” would be lost forever. But
for them, it is the fans who attend these events that make it all worthwhile for
these wonderful people, our heroes. Anyone
who loves westerns and wants to keep this special time in America’s history
alive for generations to come may do so by promoting and attending these
outstanding festivals.
It is no
small feat to put together something like Festival of the West.
Mary Brown has said that she would never be able to do it without the
support of her family and friends. And it shows true dedication on her part that
by the Monday following the last day of the Festival; she is already planning
the next year’s extravaganza.
Each year
sees a very special event at Festival of the West, namely the Cowboy Spirit
Award Ceremony. This award is presented to Celebrities who have set the
benchmark as Western heroes with their integrity, strength of spirit, and moral
character. This year’s recipients were Mr. Jack Palance - a giant in the movie
industry, and The Western Channel - for the undying work they do to promote this
wonderful genre on our television screens today. Last but certainly not least,
and the reason for which I attended the Festival this year, the gentleman who
has been my favorite actor and personal hero since I was 8 years old, when he
first graced my television screen on September 15th, 1959
-Mr. Robert Fuller.
Bob Fuller
has had one of the most varied careers in Hollywood. He started out as a dancer, worked as an extra, then went on
to become a stuntman and has worked with many prestigious actors during his
extensive career. He got his first
break working with Gary Cooper on the movie “Friendly Persuasion”, where,
due to the fact that he had real sideburns, he got his first line of dialogue.
Incidentally, it was on that movie that he first met and worked with John
Smith, who would later become his co-star and long time friend.
But it was
with “Laramie” that Bob got his first big break that instantly shot him to
stardom worldwide. He played “Jess Harper”, one of the most fascinating
western characters ever created, and according to Bob himself, his favorite
character. After “Laramie’s”
four-year run, he moved to “Wagon Train”, portraying “Cooper Smith” and
the rest is history so to speak. A
detailed biography of his life and work can be found on this website.
Attending the
celebration of Bob’s achievements were members of The Robert Fuller Fan Club,
which has a website on Yahoo. Vernette
Goats, the Fan Club’s Vice President lives in Phoenix and has volunteered her
time at Festival of the West for the last five years and this year was no
exception. Aside from her commitment to the event itself, she is also very
dedicated to her favorite cowboy and arranged a wonderful party in his honor
with several members of the club in attendance.
It was no
small feat to put this together and after weeks of planning and emailing the
club members, it was set for the Friday evening. Everyone was thrilled when Bob
very graciously took a couple of hours out of his busy schedule to spend time
with the fans that had traveled from far and wide to share his special moment
with him. And they certainly came
from far and wide including New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Montana,
Massachusetts, California, Arizona, Utah, England, Germany, Japan, and of course
- my own Canada. Tony Gill, who is
the designer and moderator of this beautiful website, drove Bob to the hotel
where the party was being held and I don’t think Bob really expected what was
waiting for him. As he entered the
room, approximately 25 voices all shouted “Surprise” and he inadvertently
took a step back - he was so stunned. But
after reality sank in, his face was filled with his usual beaming smile and he
greeted everyone warmly. The party
progressed with good conversation and good company. For the most part, it was
the first time the group had actually all met each other, having only
communicated via email in the past. Everyone
got along famously as we all had something in common: a passion for a certain
dark haired, blue-eyed cowboy.
Amy Mintzer
from Williamsport, PA was at Williamsburg with Angelika and I the week before
but this time she came bearing something wonderful that she is working on.
She brought with her a portable DVD player and a DVD that she is making
with clips from several of Bob’s series and movies.
The background music she has chosen says it all – it is Tina Turner
singing “SIMPLY THE BEST” he
certainly is just that.
Amy shared
her labor of love with Bob and as you can see from the pictures, he was
enthralled from beginning to end.
Vernette
presented Bob with a book of personal messages that the club members had written
to congratulate him on his award. Tony presented him with our other gift, a
beautiful flask engraved with “Cowboy Spirits Award 2004”, which got a huge laugh from all of us, Bob
included. Bob then decided that
pictures should be taken so several minutes were spent with Bob posing with each
of us. At one point, I almost got
left out since Bob kept directing everyone to give me their cameras so I could
take the photographs. This was
something that I did for Bob in Williamsburg as did Angelika.
Sadly, the
hours slipped by far too quickly and after I assured Bob that we would all be
sitting in the front rows for the awards the next afternoon, Tony had to whisk
him away to another event. But the
group members stayed and enjoyed the buffet and bar and simply enjoyed hanging
out together, until we all eventually dragged our weary bones to our beds.
Saturday
dawned bright and hot yet again. But
this is Arizona and I had expected the heat, in fact Rachel and I welcomed it,
coming from “igloo land” (aka Canada)!
As country
music played in the background, we strolled and shopped and passed the time of
day with Bob and soon it was 1:30 and almost time for the awards.
We managed to get some of the front row seats and some of us sat on the
floor, just so that we would be in the front where Bob wanted us.
Dennis Weaver
presented an award to The Westerns Channel for their enduring work in keeping
the western on our television screens. We
have a similar channel in Canada called Lonestar.
Buck Taylor presented the award to Jack Palance.
Alex Cord
then took the stage and began by recalling memories of his longtime friendship
with Bob. He then spoke of Bob’s career, starting with “Laramie”, which
got a huge yell of appreciation from our group.
Alex looked at us and simply said, “See we have some Laramie fans here
in the audience.” Then Bob came
onto the stage and his entrance was
accompanied by whoops and yells and a standing ovation from his fan club members
and he looked over affectionately and acknowledged us all. Various clips from “Laramie”, “Wagon Train” and some
of Bob’s other movies such as “Incident at Phantom Hill” and “Return of
the Seven” were presented on a large screen television, while Bob stood and
listened intently, he not being able to see the screen.
Alex handed him the award and we took the roof off yet again.
Bob is a very modest and gentle person
and he thanked everyone for honoring him with the award. He then proceeded to
tell the audience about his fans who had come from all over the world to be with
him and share this moment. He told
them about the party and said that he had to thank a few people – he took a
neatly folded piece of paper from his pocket…the guest list from the party and
proceeded to read off all of our names.
There was another very special person in
Bob’s life that was there to share his triumph, his wife Jennifer, and what a
lovely lady she is.
After thanking everyone, Bob showed the
world what friendship is all about and what it means to him.
It is about remembering those who have shared our lives and who have gone
before us. He motioned for Mary
Brown to stand beside him and started by thanking her for the undying work she
does to put the Festival together each year.
Then he told everyone about how Mary was a fan of John Smith, his co-star
in “Laramie” and it was that, that prompted her to put the Festival
together. Bob said that he felt
that if John had still been alive, he would have received the award long before
him. So if she didn’t mind, and
let me quote right from Bob here, “So Mary, I hope you don’t mind but I
would like very much to share this honor with Smitty.”
Such a touching moment - here is a man receiving an award for his
accomplishments and enduring devotion to the western genre and all he could
think about was sharing it with a dear, departed friend.
If only there were more like Bob in the world, it would be a far, far,
better place.
So the rest
of the day progressed as the others had and that night the fan club got together
at a local restaurant and enjoyed a relaxing dinner together. We all raised a
glass, or two to the man who had brought us all together.
Sunday came
and saw many a goodbye but over the past five days, new bonds of friendship had
been tied and now as we email one another, we see those faces of friends old and
new.
Festival of the West is truly an extraordinary event and a must see for anyone who enjoys westerns - either film or TV series, for it is there that you will step back into another time. A time of innocence and struggle as pioneers built and forged this land that has grown into the great nation that it is today.
BOB … may your cowboy spirit live on for
generations to come!