One more thing...

 I had a serious moment today when I came across a piece of art. This person rendered something that was complex, beautiful and heartbreaking all at once called The Death of Bobby Driscoll. And when you see it, I'm very sure you'll agree. 

I don't have permission to share it on here (couldn't ask, or even leave a comment because of login issues on deviantArt, grrr...), but I wanted to post the link and encourage you to go view it. The way the artist incorporated Bobby's life, good and bad, into his death nearly brought me to tears. What's more, the art style was eerily reminiscent of Bobby's own collage work. I think it's safe to say he would have greatly appreciated it for many reasons. 

Go. Look. Leave comments. I only wish I could, but it's "You must sign in to comment. Oh, you forgot your password? We'll send you a link." **Never does.** **Try to sign in with something else and that doesn't work due to reasons 1-16.** So if you do choose to comment (provided you have a deviantArt login or create one), please tell the artist I sent you and that I very much love this creation with all my heart. 

Happy [Un]Birthday to Bobby! (yeah, sorry...)

Okay Y'all. I totally missed Bobby's birthday by about two months and promised to cover an interview that I never made good on, but today's a new day and I'm doing it. 

I still absolutely love love love Bobby and will never get tired of talking about him. I just haven't been faithful to act on that love and blog lately because, well, chronic illness. It'll kick your kneecaps in, Folks. 

Without further ado, I present...

************************************ 

**STARTED ON BOBBY'S ACTUAL BIRTHDAY. So I still get points**

Happy BB You Guys! If things had been different, he would have been 87 today...

But instead, he will forever be young and full of fresh promise to us. 

At any rate! I have a handful of things to touch on, so let me jump right in. 

Firstly, I had the opportunity a few weeks ago to talk to the sweet and beautiful Louise Kane! She was a friend and girlfriend of Bobby's during their teenage years in Pacific Palisades. 

When I first heard Louise's voice over the phone, I was struck by how vivacious and pleasant her tone was. I found myself surprised. And I'm not sure why, although as I've mentioned before, I work with mostly octogenarians at my assisted living, and therefore have come to expect that those of that age bracket are feeble and forgetful. But not so with Louise. She was a teacher for most of her life which may account for how well-spoken she was, but the moment I heard her, I knew she was going to be able to lend so much to our knowledge of Bobby from those pivotal years. 

Louise's dad (one Joe Kane) was a director who was most definitely a self-made man. I won't go into the details here (mostly because I didn't take good enough notes to), but suffice it to say I found her retelling of the events of his life to be pretty fascinating, and that was despite me having initially called just for Bobby. 

But now, down to business! Here are a few things I learned from Louise, presented to you in bullet points because it's took hard on my brain today to write it up in beautiful prose: 

• Bobby was just a really lovely person. Are we surprised? 
• He would often come to their house to not just see her, but to read books to her little sister. This tells me he was probably a good, expressive storyteller that kept her much-younger sister highly entertained. 
• There was a church the family was a part of in the Palisades area, a Presbyterian church lead by a Rev. Jane (pronounced Ju-NAY). Rev. Jane started a youth group mostly comprised of young men, some of whom had not-so-fantastic home lives and would otherwise have been into some pretty shady dealings. I had the thought that this might have been where Bobby fell in with some troubled guys who were already into the risky behaviors we now know he took part in. There would be a party every Sunday night at various homes. 
• The guys, who Louise made friends with, would come over to her home almost every Thursday night, have dinner (Louise always made a Betty Crocker cake!) and watch TV--she specifically mentioned Dragnet and I Love Lucy. 

(Isn't it all so delightfully 50's?) 

• They were friends for awhile before they began dating in time for Louise's senior prom. She claimed he was a doting boyfriend, recalling specifically the lovely earrings he purchased for her at one point. He was affectionate, loyal, and protective: once, while the pair of them were at a stoplight in Hollywood, a car of guys pulled up beside of them and Louise felt uncomfortable at the way they kept looking over at her and laughing. This, in turn, really made Bob angry.

(By the way, anyone else having a deja vu moment from another story about Bobby, another car load of laughing guys, another girl...?) 

• She and Bobby went on a lot of dates at jazz clubs. He was apparently a jazz fiend, and enjoyed going to a place she referred to as the Hague. Chet Baker was a favorite of his. 
• When it came to what happened between Bobby and Walt Disney, Louise says he really never talked about it other than the cursory mention that he'd been let go by the studio for his acne. She said what he dwelt on afterward was mostly just moving forward and getting new parts. I've noticed that it depends on the person as whether or not Bob talked much about his heartache over Disney...some people have said he masked his upset, others say he didn't. Of course, this is much like the way all of us are. We're more comfortable sharing certain things with certain people, and I would imagine that at this age, Bobby wanted to appear more like the tough, happy-go-lucky guy he probably wanted to be when with a girlfriend. So the fact that he didn't sit and shed tears over the matter with Louise makes sense to me.

• So here's another one of those "depends on who you talk to" things: Louise truly loved the Driscolls and felt that Bobby's parents were very loving and sweet to him, his mom being the farthest thing from a "momager" she could possibly be. I know we've all heard a very different story about that, so who knows, really? I've said this before, but I have a feeling the truth about Bobby's relationship with his parents lies somewhere in the middle. She was invited to dinner at his home on more than one occasion, and that's where I was given...

...brace yourselves...

Mrs. Driscoll's Chicken with Herbs recipe! I kid y'all not. This is where I wish I had one of those nifty "Jump to Recipe" features all the cooking blogs have, but you'll just have to scroll down yourselves for it. 

• Louise prefaced again that Bobby was just very loving. Her own father said he knew Bobby was a good guy, "because he loved both kids and dogs." 

This made my heart hurt a little. I have only ever felt like what Bobby wanted was just a good life with friends, family, and the chance to express himself artistically. It's painful to look back and see how all that was stolen from him by the addiction. 

• Now for any of you girls who may wonder if Bobby was really as dapper as he appears in his photos, let me assure you per Louise that he absolutely was. She said that no matter where they went, he was dressed nicely in a button-up shirt underneath a sweater, and what she called "loose pants", but explained as basically being the opposite of what the rebellious "greaser" guys wore. He always tried to look and smell nice, and was particular about his appearance. One adorable story she told was how he once left a shirt of his with her so she could sew a button back on it, and before giving it back to him, she brushed it with a little of her powder so it would smell like her. She laughed telling this story, saying "I don't know why I thought he would want to actually smell like me." 
• Lastly, I asked if he was self-conscious about his height. Louise said she wasn't sure because he never said that in so many words, but that once he commented on the fact that she was taller than he was. After having heard a number of people say that Bobby would make remarks every so often about his height, I've come to my own conclusion that he was likely very bothered by it. 

And so, for now, that concludes the things I learned! However, Louise was awesome enough to say that she would be open to talking again if I had more questions. So you know what that means... 

I'm opening up the floor for any of you to send me your questions to ask her! Y'all may think of some that I didn't. Just remember, Louise was really only familiar with him during their teenage years, and doesn't have a lot of knowledge of what he was up to outside that. 

Okay, so Mrs. Driscoll's chicken recipe! I'd really love to know if this is Louise's handwriting or Mrs. Driscoll's...

So let me just say, I made this already. And, rather than it being just some random basic chicken recipe, it's SUPER good--this coming from a person who's kind of funny about chicken. The coating is what truly makes it. My advice though is to use breast tenderloins. You won't have to bake it anywhere near an hour. It took more like between 20-30 minutes. Just be aware that you can definitely taste the rosemary, for those of you who don't like that. 

And this is where I will leave you today. Good news, though! I have a whole new list of stuff to blog about now, and am armed to the teeth with more determination than ever to jump back in life and DO THE THINGS. Which, of course, includes blogging. So hopefully I'll be back soon with another post. Meanwhile, please comment and tell me what you would like to find out from Louise about Bobby! 

Fresh Pictures of our Dapper Darling

 Well imagine my delightful surprise when, in the midst of scrolling Facebook in my bed and having dropped the phone on my face multiple times while falling asleep...

I decide to check my email one more time before bed. 

And behold: permission from Louise Kane, one of Bobby's high school friends/girlfriends, for the website owner and I to use some old photos of him that were taken years ago. 

As you can well imagine, I jumped up off my bed and made a cup of coffee at 12:03am. This resulting post has been fueled by caffeine and inspiration. 

So without further ado, let's look at the first one. 

This was apparently taken at a wedding Bobby attended. We don't know what year, but I would place him at around 17-19 years old here. What stood out to me most--and probably will to you, too--is his cheeky stance. Where all the other men in the picture have their hands folded properly in front of them, Bobby's over here with his hands crammed into his pockets, tilting his head to gaze into the camera. I believe this showcases Bobby's fun personality brilliantly. 

Next up! Prom of either '54 or '55. 

That big smile, plus the presence of Louise's family members (presumably her dad and little sister), and the brilliant
blue of her oh-so-fifties (in a good way) dress just brings the entire scenario even more to life. I love how, this time around, Bobby has his hands "properly" folded in the manner of the time. I cannot imagine what a dreamy date he would have made for a girl. 

Okay, and now, my favorite: 

This was taken at Louise's house over Christmas, and I love it more than words could say. Here we have Bobby in a blue sweater looking eagerly at something someone either just opened or is about to open. He sits with one arm around Louise and the other around her little sister who sits on his lap. Side note, she's holding a copy of Charlotte's Web, which I thought in error hadn't been written yet, I guess due to its popularity when I myself was a kid. It seemed like more of a 70s/80s book to me, but sure enough, it's been around for a good long time. I wonder if Bobby himself bought the book for her? Or did she simply receive it that day and was still carrying it around? 

There was so, so much to this man that we will never know. I'm grateful beyond words to Louise for sharing some of her pictures with us, and also for her agreement to do an interview, which I'm working out the details of! It's a rare opportunity we may not have again to hear a story about Bobby from a primary source. 

I imagine being young as they were, and sitting or standing close to him. Did he smell of aftershave, cologne? Was he physically affectionate, holding your hand or keeping his arm around you? Did he open car doors for girls? How flirtatious was he? And, I have to admit wondering, did he ever pressure his dates to kiss him or to "go too far"? These aren't really the kinds of questions I would ask Louise, because they would be kind of personal to her. But they live rent-free in my mind. 

What are some things you wonder about Bobby's dating years? And which one of these pictures is your favorite? 

I want to again thank "Judy" (she's funny about her real name getting out there) of BobbyDriscoll.com for constantly feeding me new material. I can honestly say I would have very little in the way of new pictures without her. She is steadfast in chasing new leads, talking to relevant people, and securing rare material about Bobby, and I cannot appreciate her enough. It is she who is probaby doing the very most to keep his memory alive. 

Signing off for now! But please: comment comment comment!