HOWARD’S DAILY CHRONICLE
NUMBER 2 VOL 7
FEBURARY 3RD 2008
WEATHER; NICE, LOW HUMIDITY, 27/66 DEGREES
GAS STILL SAME, UP AND DOWN. WE PAID $2.73 AT WAL MART TODAY GOT 21.7 MPG ON THE LAST TANK.
IT WAS SO NICE MOM AND I PUT UP THE BAMBOO CURTINS AROUND THE DECK TODAY! WE’VE GOT TO DECIDE WHETHER OR NOT TO PUT THE LAST TWO IN THE OPENING WHERE WE COME UNDER THE COVER ONTO THE COVERED PART OF THE DECK! THAT’LL BE HANDY WHEN THE SUMMER SUN GETS DOWN IN THE SOUTHWEST!
WE WENT TO 5:00 MASS TODAY AND MET GARY AND CHARLEEN AFTERWARDS FOR DINNER AT “JONES BAR-B-QUE IN DENISON.” THEY HAVE PROBABLY THE BEST BAR-B-QUE IN THE AREA
DURING OUR CONVERSATION THE SUPERBOWL WAS BROUGHT UP AND CHARLEEN ASKED IF WE WERE GOING TO WATCH IT WHICH WE ANSWERED YES! “WELL, I’M NOT!” CHARLEEN SAID AND GARY SAID SHE WAS STILL UPSET BECAUSE THE PACKERS LOST!
LILLIAN SAID SHE WAS GOING TO ROOT FOR THE GIANTS TO BEAT THE PATRIOTS! GARY WANTS THE PATRIOTS TO WIN SO THEY’LL GO 19-0 AND BE THE FIRST TEAM IN NFL HISTORY TO DO IT! LIKE I SAID, “WE’LL JUST HAVE TO WAIT AND SEE” BUT, I’M PULLING FOR THE GIANTS SINCE THEY’RE THE TEAM THAT DALLAS COULDN’T BEAT THEY’VE GOT TO BE GOOD!
I MENTIONED THE DIFFERENT CELEBRATIES THAT HAD BIG YACHTS AROUND NEWPORT AND BALBOA HARBOR! ONE DAY I WAS WALKING AROUND THE BOAT SLIPS AT SOUTHCOAST BOAT YARD AND WALKED PAST A MAN SETTING ON THE AFTER DECK OF A BIG CRUSIER! HE CAME OVER AND ASKED ME WHAT I WAS DOING THERE AND I TOLD HIM JUST LOOKING AT THE BOATS! HE SAID THAT WASN’T ALLOWED BUT IF I DON’T GO ABOARD ANY OF THEM IT’LL BE OK! I TOLD HIM THANKS BUT I HAD NO INTENTIONS OF GOING ON ONE UNLESS INVITED! HE LAUGHED AND INVITED ME TO COME ON HIS. WE TALKED FOR A WHILE AND I FOUND OUT IT WASN’T HIS IT BELONGED TO NELSON EDDY HE WAS THE CAPTAIN! LOOKING AROUND I SAW A LIFE RING WITH THE NAME ON IT “DORENE II”, THE CAPTAIN TOLD ME DORENE WAS NELSON EDDYS WIFES NAME! I ASKED HIM IF I COULD BRING MY BIG SISTER TO SEE THE BOAT AND HE SAID SURE AS LONG AS SHE WAS AS WELL BEHAVED AS I WAS!
I RAN BACK TO THE CAMP GROUND AND TOLD MADELINE I GOT PERMISSION TO TAKE HER TO SEE NELSON EDDYS YACHT AT SOUTHCOAST DOCKS. SHE SAID IT WOULD HAVE TO BE THE NEXT DAY SINCE SHE HAD A DATE THAT NIGHT!
BRIGHT AND EARLY WE GOT UP AND GOT READY TO GO TO THE DOCKS. AS WE WALKED DOWN BALBOA AVE. TO THE ENTRANCE TO SOUTHCOAST BOAT DOCKS SHE KEPT ASKING ME IF I WAS SURE I HAD THE CAPTAINS OK AND I KEPT SAYING YES! IT WAS ABOUT 11AM WHEN WE GOT TO THE DOCKS AND THE DOCKMASTER ASK WHY WE WANTED TO GO ON THE DOCKS (HE WASN’T THERE THE DAY BEFORE) AND I SAID THE CAPTAIN OF THE DORENE II HAD INVITED US, HE PICKED UP THE PHONE AND VERIFIED WE WERE ACTUALLY INVITED! HE LET US THROUGH THE GATE AND I LED MADELINE DOWN THE RAMP TO THE BOAT! THE CAPTAIN CAME UP FROM BELOW AND WHEN HE SAW MADELINE HE ALMOST SWALLOWED HIS TONGUE! I INTRODUCED THEM AND WE ALL SAT AROUND THE AFTER DECK, I NOTICED HE COULDN’T KEEP HIS EYES OFF MADELINE (AT THE TIME I WAS 13 AND MADELINE WAS MY BIG SISTER! IN LATER YEARS I REALIZED WHY HE KEPT LOOKING AT HER! MY SISTER WAS A VERY BEAUTIFUL RED HEAD WHO COULD GIVE RITA HAYWORTH A RUN FOR THE MONEY)! WE STAYED ABOUT TWO HOURS AND LEFT WITH THE UNDERSTANDING WE COULD BOTH COME BACK AND GO FOR A NIGHT CRUISE TO CATALINA! I THINK MADELINE DID BUT I HAD TO GET HOME TO START SCHOOL, THE SUMMER WAS OVER! I DID GO BACK THE NEXT YEAR BUT WITHOUT MADELINE AND WENT ON A CRUISE TO ENSENADA MEXICO, SHE HAD GOTTEN MARRIED TO CHUCK REID A BOMBARDIER IN THE ARMY AIR CORPS. SHE HAD KNOWN CHUCK FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS BEFORE THE WAR AND HE WAS HOME ON LEAVE AND CALLED HER FOR A DATE WHICH TURNED OUT TO BE A VERY LONG AND BEAUTIFUL DATE!
MY NEXT ENCOUNTER WITH A CELEBRITY WAS IN 1946-47, MY COUSIN FRED HOLZER AND I WERE SWIMMING AROUND THE CANALS LEADING TO LIDO ISLE, WE SWAM UNDER THE LIDO ISLE BRIDGE AND WERE HEADED FOR THE BEACH ON THE ISLAND WHEN THIS MAN CALLED TO US OVER A MEGAPHONE, “IF YOU’RE TIRED COME ON OVER AND COME ABOARD TO REST! WHEN HE LOWERED THE MEGAPHONE I TOLD FRED HE WAS A MOVIE STAR BUT I COULDN’T REMEMBER JUST WHO HE WAS! WE SWAM OVER AND CLIMBED UP ON THE LITTLE BOAT LANDING THAT HUNG OVER THE SIDE OF THE SHIP! WHEN WE GOT TO THE TOP OF THE LADDER THERE WERE ABOUT 50 PEOPLE SETTING AROUND ON DECK CHAIRS! MOSTLY GOOD LOOKING YOUNG LADIES IN TWO PIECE BATHING SUITS, THERE WERE SOME OLDER MEN AND WOMEN SCATTERED AROUND! THE MAN WHO HAD CALLED TO US CAME OVER AND INTRODUCED HIM SELF, “I’M ERROL FLYNN”, THIS IS MY BOAT AND YOU ARE? I’M HOWARD MAHONEY AND THIS IS MY COUSIN FRED HOLZER! HOW WOULD YOU BOYS LIKE TO MAKE SOME SPENDING MONEY? “FINE”, WE BOTH ANSWERED IN UNISON, WHAT DO WE HAVE TO DO? HE LOOKED AND POINTED UP AND SAID”YOU SEE THAT FISRT CROSS PIECE ON THE MAST? WE WANT YOU TO DIVE OFF THAT PLACE”. I ASKED HOW DEEP THE WATER WAS NEXT TO THE BOAT AND HE SAID, “AT LEAST 20 FEET!” HOW MUCH ARE YOU PAYING?” HE LOOKED AROUND AND SAID EVERYBODY WILL CHIP IN AND GIVE YOU EACH A HUNDRED DOLLARS!” I LOOKED AT FRED AND HE SHOOK HIS HEAD YES SO I ALSO AGREED! AS CLOSE AS ERROL FLYNN NEW IT WAS 46 FEET TO THE FIRST YARD ARM AND ANOTHER 8 FEET FROM THE DECK OF THE BOAT TO THE WATER THAT WAS 54 FEET! NEITHER ONE OF US HAD EVER DIVED FROM THAT HEIGHT BEFORE BUT SAID WHAT THE HECK WE WERE SWIMMERS AND DIVERS SO WE CLIMBED THE ROPE LADDER THAT WENT TO THE SPOT ON THE MAST! FRED SAID JUST DON’T LET YOUR FEET COME BACK OVER YOUR HEAD, KEEP YOU KNEES STRAIGHT, I KNEW THIS BUT IT SOUNDED GOOD HEARING HIM SAY IT! I WENT FIRST AND REALY WENT DEEP, WHEN I CAME UP FRED WAS ON HIS WAY DOWN AND HIT THE WATER ABOUT 5 FEET FROM ME ONLY CLOSER TO THE BOAT! I DOVE OUT AND HE DOVE STRAIGHT DOWN JUST BARELY CLEARING THE SIDE OF THE BOAT! I HELD MY BREATH, IT LOOKED LIKE HE HAD HIT IT BUT HE HADN’T! WHEN HE CAME UP HE WAS SMILLING! WE HAD MADE ENOUGH MONEY TO LAST THE REST OF THE SUMMER IF WE PLAYED IT CLOSE AND DIDN’T OVER DO IT!
WHEN WE GOT UP ON THE DECK EVERYONE CROWDED AROUND US ASKING WHY WE DID IT? THEN WE FOUND OUT MR. FLYNN HAD TRIED TO GET 7 OTHER PEOPLE TO DO IT BUT EVERYONE SAID NO THE WATER WASN’T DEEP ENOUGH! BUT, WE FIGURED IT WAS CLOSER TO 30 FEET THAN 20 ESPECIALLY ME, I HAD GONE DEEP AND TOOK LONGER THAN I FIGURED IT SHOULD HAVE TO COME TO THE SURFACE! WE COLLECTED OUR 200 DOLLARS AND ABOUT 50 DOLLARS IN ADDITIONAL TIPS FOR JUST HAVING THE GUTS TO DO IT! WHEN THE COAST GUARD HEARD WHAT WE HAD DONE THEY CONTACTED US AND WARNED US NOT TO DO ANYTHING LIKE THAT AGAIN OR THEY’D BLACK BALL US FROM THE NEWPORT BALBOA AREA! THEY ALSO TOLD US THEY HAD WRITTEN ERROL FLYNN A TICKET THAT COST HIM $1,000 FINE FOR ENDANGERING YOUNG PEOPLE! THIS WAS AFTER THE WAR AND WE WERE 16-17 AT THE TIME!
THAT’S “30” FOR THIS ISSUE.
HOWARD
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