ONE NUT’S NOTEZ

Tom Pry

A couple of things of interest, perhaps.

For one, in going thru my ASTC yearbook looking for something else, I stumbled across a photo of the late Billy Anderson and his then-girlfriend, Bettye West (both class of ’56). The processing date on it is the week of 2/14/55, so one should assume that to be a pretty accurate dating.

Sorry for the quality, but it was a very small picture.

Next, I was told today that Jimmy Lewis is not in the best of shape. As conveyed to me VIA THE RUMOR MILL (in other words, unverified), he was suffering from bleeding on the brain; doctors got that stopped, only to have Jimmy suffer a stroke. More as information is available. (I’d love to get a note from him quoting Mark Twain and Ernest Hemingway: “Reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated”).

From today’s paper:

Charles A. Lovell Sr., age 90 of Searcy, died Thursday, July 28, 2005. He worked as a general contractor, was a member of the Downtown Church of Christ for more than 60 years, a 33rd degree Mason, member of the Shriners, Order of the Eastern Star, Boy Scout Troop Leader, and a recipient of the Order of the Arrow. He is survived by one son, Charles A. Lovell, Jr. and wife Carol of Bakersfield, California; two daughters, Deanna Stuart of Sherwood, Lanay Northcutt and husband Marcus of Indianapolis, Indiana; four grandsons, Brett Stuart of Sherwood, Jeffery Lovell of San Diego, California, Drew Northcutt of Indianapolis, Alex Northcutt of Indianapolis. Visitation will be Saturday from 6 until 8 p.m. at Roller-Daniel Funeral Home. Funeral services will be Sunday at 2 p.m. at Downtown Church of Christ with interment to follow at Oak Grove Cemetery. To sign the online guestbook visit http://www.RollerFuneralHomes.com.

The operative name in all this is Deanna Stuart, nee Deanna Lovell. In the screwy way of this world, when I went to work for Alltel, I one day found myself working with her son, Brett (a PC gnome). (The Wilma Morris referenced in the full obit is NOT Wilma Morris Shinley, “our” Wilma; just a coincidence of names).

Anyway, our sympathies go out to Deanna and her family. 90 years ain’t a bad run, though, you’ve got to admit.

And, finally …. Searcy has never had a TV station to call its very own. At one point, Cecil Fuller (if my fragile mind remembers correctly) filed for and received a CP (Construction Permit) for an LPTV (Low Powered Television) station, but that whole program, nationwide, pretty much failed to come to anything: I think there’s one LPTV on the air in the whole state, in Little Rock, surviving only because it’s on the cable and, with the other LR stations, now on both satellite services.

Meanwhile I was slaving in the depths of what, in the cable business, was called LO, for Local Origination on cable, and I’m happy to report that the systems with which I was affiliated did quite well at it, providing local programs in locales that couldn’t get their own broadcast TV stations.

Searcy has had TV3 for awhile, most recently bought by Crain Media. Passable quality and low standards, but they’re working on it. Crain owns KWCK and all but 3 of the on-air stations in the county, so there’s some moxie there, but one gets the impression they’re going through the motions (but it’ll cost you $5,000,000 to buy them out).

Monday, 8/1/05, TV6 will go officially on the cable: My Town TV, and their big winner is LIVE telecasting of Quorum Court, District Court, City Council, Beebe stock car races, sporting events, etc. They’ve got two microwave trucks and some really nice equipment. At any rate, Monday 8/1/05 is Open House from 4-5, followed immediately by the Lions Auction, a 3-day televised event.

Photo copyright 2005 - Tom Pry

If you’re on the cable system here, give TV6 a look: they’re already in business.

And that’s your Letter From Home.

Love,
Goober from
Traffic Barrel, AR