Linda Marks is trying to find info about her aunt and uncle, Frances and Monte Felder, who went by the name Fields professionally, and taught dance at one of the small Sullivan County hotels back in the late 50's and early 60's. Linda says, "I've asked my cousins if they know the name of the hotel or where it was located, but they don't know and no one else is around for me to ask. If any of you have any knowledge of them, Aunt Frances was my very favorite aunt and was a great dancer." So I tried to do a little research, thinking that if Frances Fields was well known in her day, then she might have been pals with Jackie Horner who is thought to be the prototype for the Penny Johnson character in the hit movie, "Dirty Dancing," which was set locally in the Catskills resort area. Of course, Jackie Horner is also known as the wife of Lou Goldstein, the famous Social Director & Simon Says guy of Grossinger's. Here's an interesting ancecdote that I came across from "It Happened in the Catskills," written by the husband and wife team of Myrna and Harvey Frommer as described in a very detailed Dartmouth.edu web review:
We hear from and learn about Neil Sedaka, who showed up at Esther Manor at the age of 19 with his band, the Nordanelles (for Norman, David and Neil), and ended up marrying Esther's daughter, much to the chagrin of her family; and of Eddie Fisher, who came up to Grossinger's in 1946 at 19, got "discovered" by Eddie Cantor on Labor Day 1949 and married Debbie Reynolds there in 1955.
Lou Goldstein, legendary social director at the hotel for many years, remembers the kid singer very well. "Eddie Fisher and I were roommates for a while -- the Playhouse at Grossinger's, Room 5. We were both single and looking. We made up a signal between us. If one of us was in the room with a girl, we would wrap a towel around the outside door knob so the other guy wouldn't barge in ... I had a lot of trouble getting into that room. It seemed like there was always a towel there."
May 17, 2011
May 2, 2011
Shelley Karpilow Farm
Here is a re-post from Shelley Karpilow of Berkeley, CA who had very sweet recollections of her family's summer "Farm" in Mountaindale.
My grandparents bought a "farm" with 50 acres, about 2.5 miles out of town. This was in 1925. (Unfortuntely I could not find a map, otherwise I would show everyone where it was.) It was on an obscure road, very rocky and up-hill, on the left, skirting Anderson's farm. There was one other farm on the road, which belonged to Mr. Pechter. He had chickens and cows, and his stepson was Paddy the cop. (I have this wrong somehow, but there was a relationship.) Our "farm" was about a quarter of a mile down the road. He took in boarders for the summer, as did my grandparents.
On the eave of the porch was a sign "Forest Hill Farm" which was there when they bought it, and never changed. There was also an apple orchard, a cherry tree, and wild strawberries across the road. As our family went there only for the summer, so there was not much farming done; besides we were all city people.
A few times my mother went up early and the kids went to school there. I attended the one-room school house for about a month, and another year, my brother went to the high school in town. That would have been about 1945, ( for by then, I was too old.)Sometime in the 40s, the place was sold for a paltry sum, one thousand dollars, I believe. My brothers loved going there, and would drive up to visit from time to time. The last time I was there was in 1974 or thereabouts. The house had fallen and just left as nature took its toll. The forest was encroaching, but we could still see the baseball fields, and the gooseberry bushes, and other landmarks from our childhood.
Of course I am very excited to see Mtdale revived. There had been artists there in my time too. The Foner brothers , amateur violinists , would play with my uncle Philip Bass, who was a professional. And Nell Blaine married another uncle, Robert.
If you want to know more, just write.
shelley karpilow
berkeley, ca usa -
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