Victoria Bigelow

It was wonderful to meet my George Reeves/Superman friends face to face. I enjoyed hearing your stories and talking about George and the show. The three planned events were all wonderful, with many highlights. Wasn't it magical when Jack Larson first appeared from his car in Tarzana and signed the autograph for the little boy who lives in the home where the plaque was installed? Wasn't the homeowner gracious??? Wow!

It was such a privilege for me (a classical musician) to be able to talk to Jack for a few moments about his poetry and his libretti. It was great to meet Stephanie Shayne, who has been so gracious and warm on Facebook.

The ceremony and plaque unveiling made for such a beautiful tribute. Later that day, at the luncheon, I was pleased to meet Jim Beaver, whose intelligence, research integrity, and writing (in addition to his acting chops, of course!) I admire very much. Meeting Larry Ward, Ruta Lee, and others were highlights. Beverly Washburn was so funny and sweet!

Ms Siegel was also very gracious and friendly. And what a thrill to meet John Hamilton, his wife, Janet, and lovely daughter, Jacqueline. I'm so glad you convinced “young” John to come, Jim. It was so beautiful seeing Jack and John meet for the first time in fifty-six years and embrace. What a touching moment! I had tears in my eyes, didn't you all?

The luncheon was a great success overall. I sat with Gail McIntyre and some local people who told me where I could find a number of places I wanted to go. In addition to the people mentioned above, I also got to meet my great, simpatico Facebook friend Ted Newsom for the first time, face to face. The food, the Superman display, and the program were marvelous. I wish it could have gone on longer. I know Jack has many stories to share.

I am so happy that I had the opportunity to tour the Pasadena Playhouse, hear of its history and that of the school, and to stand on the stage. In addition to the stage and house, there were a number of special features of the tour, e.g. the old light board, the library, and portraits. I tried to imagine George performing on that stage, honing his craft. The story of the restoration of the Playhouse after the "shutdown years" was interesting to me. I sang for years in what was once the old Capitol Theater in Detroit, now the Detroit Opera House, a building just two years older than the Playhouse and with a similar history. Arts organizations like the Pasadena Playhouse and the Detroit Opera House are pieces of the souls of their respective cities.

After the Pasadena Playhouse trip, Gail, Michael, Amanda, and I went on our own adventure. First we drove through Beverly Hills and found our way to George's home on Benedict Canyon Drive. We weren't as lucky as Ted's group, largely because we didn't have Ted's chutzpah and were too shy to knock on the door! The house was much smaller than I imagined. According to Zillow, it has two bedrooms and three baths. It is 1717 sq. feet. It sold for $460,000 in 1998. It is now worth $1,243,000. Wow! Location, location, location!!!! For a bit of perspective, my former home, a five bedroom, two bath, 2639 sq. ft. home in Berkley, Michigan (northern suburb of Detroit), is worth about $344.722.

After snapping a few photos and grabbing lunch, we went off in search of George's final resting place. George's entry on Findagrave directed us to the Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum, Altadena, CA, Pasadena Mausoleum, "Sunrise Corridor" immediately to left upon entering." Although this entry provides a lot of detail, it contains one serious flaw. If you look up "Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum" on Google Maps or Mapquest, it sends you to a mausoleum on Marengo. That's where we went. We searched all over this old building, which was empty except for us and the remains of people long dead....well, and maybe some large living rodents, as suggested by the trap set on the first floor. No George. Nothing that looked like a "Sunrise Corridor." The air was heavy, stale, and sour. We were all seriously creeped out and afraid of being locked in (we arrived just 30 minutes before the posted closing time). What to do? Our cell phone reception was terrible, but Amanda was finally able to pull up the photos on the Findagrave site. Hmmm...the outside of the building didn't match the photo. The tile pattern in the corridor didn't match. Oops! Wrong building. Super Jim Nolt answered our call of distress and clarified that George was inurned in the Mountain View Cemetery and MORTUARY, not the Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum.

Fortunately, the MVCM owns the creepy mausoleum we were in and was actually located just one street over. Luckily, they were still open (it was Sunday!) and the man in the office knew exactly how to tell us where to find our George. We quickly found the Pasadena Mausoleum, which is bright (as in well lit) and beautiful (as mausoleums go), and walked straight to George's niche. Whew! Our afternoon at the mausoleum was quite an adventure!

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Posted August 27, 2014
Jim