Bob Welbaum: The Cost of Meeting Davy Crockett
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This is where my carefully laid plan began to go out the window. First, we were told that Fess would sign up to three items. Then an enterprising dealer appeared with a stack of 8 x 10�? glossy photos of Fess as Davy for only $10 apiece! That seemed reasonable. I bought one without hesitation. Now I could get two signatures!
Then I saw the lithograph. Just inside the gift shop was “Fond Memories�? by legendary Disney artist Charles Boyer. It depicted Davy Crockett (Fess Parker) signing an autograph for an adoring Minnie Mouse as Mickey, Donald, and appropriately dressed children crowded around. What an image! As he had so often done in his remarkable career, Boyer had captured the perfect scene. And it would be exactly the right souvenir for what would probably be my only chance to meet Fess Parker.
Although I don’t remember anyone mentioning it, now I’m sure the availability of this lithograph was the real reason for the signing. And it worked, at least on me! Of course, the litho’s price of $195 (once again, my memory) kind of defeated my original purpose, but at that moment I was convinced buying it was the right thing to do.
When I finally got to meet Fess Parker, he was very gracious. And I took full advantage: sign my magazine, sign my picture, sign my new lithograph, pose for a picture, a little small talk, and I was happily on my way.
By the time I got home, I couldn’t wait to put my lithograph on the wall. But first it had to be framed. And no ordinary frame would do for Davy Crockett! I found a custom framer in a western shop, and he did a beautiful job: wide, rich brown wood with an embedded rope and cutouts in the mat for my picture with Fess and other convention souvenirs. Once again, such work was not cheap; in fact the frame cost more than the lithograph itself! But I didn’t care anymore, such a treasure had to be done right.
So now I have two great souvenirs of my meeting with Fess Parker proudly displayed on my living room wall. I just try never to think of my blown budget: a photograph, a lithograph with custom frame… it ended up well north of $400.
But hey, I did save the $35 for the wine-tasting session!
Since this is a column about Fess Parker, I can’t resist the temptation to repeat one story. Fess had been a speaker at the Special Edition Disneyana Convention, held February, 1995 at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, CA. He closed by saying “…and I wanted to share with you a story I don’t tell often any more, but it was my first brush with fame.�?
After shooting “Davy Crockett,�? he had returned to Texas to visit family and friends. During this visit, he had gone out to eat with a close friend and fellow actor to compare notes. This is what happened (in his own words):
So we went to a small roadside hamburger place, and we went in and we ordered our hamburgers … and enjoyed our visit.
And I noticed that there was an elderly lady sitting behind the cash register not too far from my table, and she kept looking over and staring at the two of us.
One of the things that I was sort of unaware of was that my hair had grown long for the part, and I still had the possibility of retakes. So long hair on a man was just not too often seen in those days.
We went up to the cash register to pay the bill, and finally this lady looked up at me and she said, “Young man, have I seen you on television?�?
Thinking maybe she’d seen the first episode of “Davy Crockett,�? I said “Yes, ma’am, you may have.�?
And she said “I knowed it! I watch wrasslin’ every Saturday night!�?
Discuss It
-- Bob Welbaum
Bob Welbaum is a longtime Disneyana fan and NFFC member.
-- October 25, 2005