<Home>     <to Table of Contents>


The “original Mr. Animation” – Bob Tiedemann

 

"REGULARS" WERE THE ROCKS

Everything has to have a solid foundation if it wants to keep going onward and upward; a Show producer/director knows this. Jean was surrounded by a great group of entertainers we came to call the Show "regulars". They could be depended upon to make themselves available for each month’s Show. These "regulars" were the performers who would probably have been seen by nearly all of the 750,000 Marines who came to Shows, even if they only saw one Show out of the 80+, the odds are they would have seen the "regulars". They gave the Show its’ solid foundation.

When the Shows first began, Jean was concerned that she wasn’t an entertainer that could sing, dance, play an instrument or have a comedy routine . . . like the "regulars". In my estimation, however, she was the ideal Show Hostess/FemCee: she was a Beauty Queen with brains, who had a sincere compassion for her fellowman. She decided what she would and could do as Hostess would be to make a half dozen or more costume changes in a Show to give the men a chance to see the glitz and glamour and the girl back home. She even designed and made a goodly portion of her wardrobe, including the camouflage bikini she designed and made from a shirt a G.I. gave her on a USO Tour to Vietnam; she made three USO Tours to Vietnam.
CLICK HERE FOR JEAN'S COSTUME CHANGES

The Shows really began with only a few committed "regulars" but kept on growing over the years. Randy Boone, Country artist and TV star on ‘The Virginian’ became a co-host with Jean as FemCee. They were joined with four real troupers: Sheri Alberoni, a former Mouseketeer, actress and vocalist; Sara James and the James Sisters, a Night Club Gospel group; Victoria Meyerink, child actress from the Danny Kaye Show; and, Jo Morton, Country guitarist-vocalist with her son Dale on accordion.

 

 

The roster of dependable "regulars" grew: Joy Eilers, pianist-vocalist-guitarist; actress/model Lee Dawn and Gary Davis, Country Folk Duo; Jack Denton, TV comedian and actor; Ella Edwards, TV – motion picture actress and model; DeVore & Dior, a Night Club duo; Joey Gee, ‘Little Mr. Soul’; Carol Laird, actress & Beauty Queen; Bob Tiedemann, ‘the original Mr. Animation’; Johnny & Colette Thunder, whip and gun artist; Linda Meiklejohn, motion picture/TV actress; Berniece Janssen, an original Ziegfield Follies girl and David’s mom; Beau Kazor, actor and David’s nephew; Gayle Rogers, actress; Melinda Moore, 16-year-old vocalist and daughter of Beryl Davis and Peter Potter; Hank Higgins and his puffit "Tiger Lil"; Mama Tina Gold, Country artist; Jeanne Baird, actress; Jay North, TV’s Dennis the Menace; Jan Dome, comedienne; Jon Provost, The Lassie Show’s "Timmy"; The Penny Brothers, vocalist duo; Pamela Baird, actress-vocalist; Tracy Allen, actress; The Mod Couple – Cal & Pudgy; Paula Bellamy, comedienne; K. Duane Pedersen, magician; and British actress and model, Lynn Peters.

It was reported in news coverage: we had brought vaudeville to Pendleton.

CLICK TO SEE MORE OF THE LIST OF ‘REGULARS’  Page 1    Page 2   Page 3

 

 

What was always difficult was to find bands that could fit this trip into their schedule. We were fortunate to have, beginning in the first year, become an initial "regular": Ron & The Entertainers, an 8-piece rock band.

It wasn’t long before we had a great repertory group of bands filling a two-plus hour Show each month. Bands joining on a semi-regular basis – whenever they could make it - included: Light Blue Scream, Ruben Rodriguez & The Guadalajara Kings, The Philharmonic, Sage, We The People (a dance group), The Jimmy Allen Orchestra, The Haze, Dino & The Dimensions, Reb Allen & The Charmers, The Pacific Ocean, The Sundowners, The MistyMorns, The Rogues, the Youth Band from Grant’s Music Center, The Hollywood Factors with Morris Wade, Sherman Andrus & The Brethren, The Animations, The Legend, Teddy Neely Five, Virgin Spring, Rain Forest, Frantic and Pat Scholtz & The Congregation.   Click Here for More Bands

 

In case you may wonder how we transported casts of dozens each month to Camp Pendleton, the Base supplied us with the bus transportation. And what great times we had on those rides from the Paramount Studios parking lot to Camp Pendleton and back.  Mike Lansing with his crazy antics keeping us in stitches -- if we weren't catching a few zzzzz's . . . and all the great camaraderie!

CLICK HERE TO SEE OUR TRANSPORTS

Finales
With very few exceptions, we were able to do a Show finale where the men and any other audience guests would be able to come up to the stage apron and get autographs or just say a word of thanks personally to our Show performers. It was always an exciting but somewhat hectic time of pushing and shoving plus kibitzing with the men by our cast members. I always looked at the finale's as love feasts . . . where we were able to wish the best and our love to our extended family of brothers, fathers, sons, uncles and cousins, either coming home from a tour of duty or heading into one. Finale's were what made me sure our Shows were part of a great big family affair!
A BCB Show - that's before the camouflage bikini creation!  Ace would call out the cast in their final salute to the troops. Included in this lineup are Lee Dawn next to Sara James, SAGE band members, Sheri Alberoni & Jean with Ponchita. Another early years Show included Joy Eilers (at piano), Victoria Meyerink and her dog, hula dancers, Lynn DeVore, Jeanne Baird and Aldo Ray. Indoor Theater Show included the L.A. Times columnist, Sara James, Ella Edwards and Cal & Pudgy - The Mod Couple. Mike Lansing escorts Victoria Meyerink on stage still holding her snacks plate as Sheri Alberoni dances with one of the Keystone Kops.
Ace in foreground as Victoria whispers in Jeanne Baird's ear; Joy Eilers, Dale Morton, Mike Lansing in hat and sunglasses; and Jo Morton and Clint Walker signing autographs. A young family member of a Marine gets an on-stage autograph from Jean as Bob Jamieson watches Liz Renay sign autographs for the men. Victoria Meyerink tries to show the photographer what her "Marine's Little Sister" pinup autograph looks like. Finales were also dance times as each cast member was called out; here are Hank Higgins, Lee Dawn and Sara James grooving to the music of Ron & The Entertainers, while the SAGE band members join in the dance.
Jean, Liz Renay and Lee Dawn talk with and sign autographs as Bob Jamieson watches over the other cast members at stage left sign autographs. Jean and Liz Renay loving every minute of being up close with their Marines! Another early year Show with Jean in a pre-camouflage bikini and two lucky Marines getting their close up shots with Jean on the stage. It must have been a cool day as Jean borrowed a Marine's jacket for this finale.
Ella Edwards and Joy Eilers share the piano stool as they sign autographs for the men. Wonder how many Marine caps Jean signed that Show!? Looks like a roving photographer was getting some film footage . . . wonder if any of that type of film still exists? Yes, that is Jean mugging for the photographer on stage as Marines give her notes to sign for them. 
     
Ella Edwards and Randy Boone always got hand cramps from finale autograph signing times.  That's Mike Lansing in the background with his signature cigar and sunglasses.      

<Home>   <Next to "What We Saw from the Stage">   <to Table of Contents>