660 replies to this topic

[Sparky]

^ Those were the kind of days when one looks back on their life that stands out as unbelievably cool.

What a hoot.

Being a part of your dad’s show was like the top of the musical achievement situations that Victoria had in those days.

I still have the 64 Strat that I played on his shows. I was better at it then than I am now.

[AllseeingEye]

^ Those were the kind of days when one looks back on their life that stands out as unbelievably cool.

What a hoot.

Being a part of your dad’s show was like the top of the musical achievement situations that Victoria had in those days.

I still have the 64 Strat that I played on his shows. I was better at it then than I am now.

 

Whoa....don't need to tell you that could be worth some serious coin depending on the model. Of course you know that and I'm equally sure $ is the last reason you've hung onto it this long. You're in good company Sparky, I know Hendrix and one of my fav guitar players, Mr. Stevie Ray Vaughn, played the 64 Strat. Nice....!

[Sparky]

I found it under the Christmas Tree in ‘64.

[AllseeingEye]

Funny how the online digital realm has a way of bringing up memories of your own or family's past that you've never seen before; thanks to the Old Victoria FB group a pic of dad with Charlie White, co-founder of CHEK, at the station's 50th anniversary in October 2006. Noticed a typo though - his teen dance show was Club 6, not "Dance Party". If I ever run into Jim Gibson I'll have to rib him about that one lol....

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[Sparky]

^ Did you ever find some 16MM film canisters in that pile of Bob’s keepsakes?

[AllseeingEye]

There are several film canister's in storage, some family/vacation-oriented, but plenty marked CHEK and Club 6, not to mention several hundred B&W still shots of the kids dancing in the old Epsom Drive studio as well as a trove of CJVI-related material including some great radio-audio tapes from the late 50's/early 60's. Bottom line when he passed all of those items passed to mom who is still with us and as you know suffers from dementia.

 

Legally all of that material is hers. Although there is nothing and no one actually preventing my sister and I from going through it, restoring the films to digital format, scanning the pictures etc., we have mutually agreed that the ethical and honorable thing to do is to refrain until she passes. That is the least we can do to honor his memory and respect her while she is alive.

 

When the time comes we'll do all of that; I've been in touch with some of the ex-CHEK guys as well as Glenn Parfitt, the creator-principal of the excellent site Royal City Music Project, which chronicles the history of popular music, bands and personalities in Victoria from the 50's onward. There are fortunately no shortage of resources that will help out when we go to restore & digitize the films in particular.

 

Offhand I know there is film footage of dad interviewing Jayne Mansfield when she visited the CHEK-Club 6 set, interviews with Bobby Curtola and other 'teen' heartthrobs of the era, as well as an interview with a group of young guys called the Irish Rovers, among many others. The pic I'm really looking forward to scanning and posting is the  8.5 x 11 B&W glossy of a 16-year old David Foster getting his groove on on the Club 6 dance floor....

Edited by AllseeingEye, 03 November 2019 - 05:50 PM.

[Sparky]

Nice that you know what you have there and respectful to leave it where it lies for now.

David was the first basemen on our Moose team...of the Lakehill Little League because he was left handed of course. Mike Rogers, our coach, and I used to reminisce 30 years later, about the old days where David had to leave the practice early to go for his piano lessons......like that was going to get him anywhere.....

[Rob Randall]

^^Would those old films in the canisters be kinescopes of the live broadcast?

 

his teen dance show was Club 6, not "Dance Party". If I ever run into Jim Gibson I'll have to rib him about that one lol....

 

The Colonist archives list a CHEK 6 program called "Dance Party" in 1964/65.

[AllseeingEye]

^^Would those old films in the canisters be kinescopes of the live broadcast?

 

 

The Colonist archives list a CHEK 6 program called "Dance Party" in 1964/65.

No they're a combination of Super 8 and 16mm films produced by the show and shot by one of the studio technicians during the early incarnation of C6, when it was produced live. Later in its life, after 1967 I believe, it was taped. We are fortunate to have copies of those tapes since the high cost of the early tape reel units meant for a lot of TV productions in North America, tape/reels we simply re-used repeatedly over and over, and the original recordings lost for good.

[Rob Randall]

Very interesting. Kinescopes would be good to see it as it was broadcast, complete with commercials but actual 16 mm film of the show would be amazing.

 

The loss of those episodes is really tragic. For instance JP Patches, which came out of Seattle around the same era was something north of 10,000 episodes but apparently less than half a dozen survive.

[AllseeingEye]

Very interesting. Kinescopes would be good to see it as it was broadcast, complete with commercials but actual 16 mm film of the show would be amazing.

 

The loss of those episodes is really tragic. For instance JP Patches, which came out of Seattle around the same era was something north of 10,000 episodes but apparently less than half a dozen survive.

That is truly a shame since JPP was a northwest institution, but sadly not uncommon; NASA in its infinite wisdom did much the same thing with some minor event called the 1969 moon landing. Apparently many priceless film segments shot by the Apollo 11 crew, documenting arguably the greatest scientific achievement in human history and certainly to that time, was lost for the same reason, i.e. it was recorded and re-recorded over.

[AllseeingEye]

So we finally started to crack open a portion of the family vault and retrieved a small sample of CHEK TV - Club 6 stuff. Here are a few pics on the set of the show from 1962-5 when it was produced (later taped, after 1967) on the Epsom Drive location.

 

This is but a fraction of what we have. Somewhere still buried are pictures of the Irish Rovers, Bobby Curtola, Jayne Mansfield to name but a few of the well known folks who dropped by the set over the years. Looking forward to the Mansfield pic especially since in it she is bouncing 4 year old ASE on her lap.

 

There is at least one 8.5 x 11 B&W studio glossy yet to be uncovered of a 15 year old David Foster shaking his groove thing on the show, mop top hair style, skinny tie and all.....

 

 

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[UDeMan]

Didn't David Foster just live one street away from Epsom on Ascot Street?

[Mike K.]

Amazing, ASE, thank you.

[AllseeingEye]

Didn't David Foster just live one street away from Epsom on Ascot Street?

 

I believe he attended Lansdowne HS so if not on Epsom he was certainly living not far away. I had but one tenuous link to him; in 1987 when I moved over to attend UBC I needed a car so I bought a '77 Dodge Charger SE from a buddy who it turned out had purchased it from DF's mother. A real 1970's pimp mobile that brute was too, lol......

[Mike K.]

Where exactly on Epsom was the station? Such an odd location.

[AllseeingEye]

Right at the very end to the left where the current townhouse complex sits. In 1956 land in Saanich was cheap; that and siting considerations for the station broadcast transmitter figured into its location.

 

Remember that part of Saanich - *most* of Saanich in fact was very rural at that time. I'm sure Dave Armstrong picked up the land literally for a song and a dance. After 1965 we lived < 5 minutes away by car - dad had a VERY nice commute! - on Cedar Hill Rd which was virtually all farms and greenhouses where it intersects with present day McKenzie Avenue.

Edited by AllseeingEye, 23 October 2020 - 07:33 PM.

[Victoria Watcher]

Right at the very end to the left where the current townhouse complex sits. In 1956 land in Saanich was cheap; that and siting considerations for the station broadcast transmitter figured into its location.

 

do you know if the/a transmitter tower was up on doncaster hill?  because it seems the station would be a little bit on the "wrong" side of that little hump if it did not have a transmitter above.   or maybe it sent a signal to mt. doug for redistribution?

 

 

if you have ever been in any of those houses on either side of doncaster, or on kootenay/revelstoke they have pretty awesome views.  on kootenay, revelstoke or the west side of doncaster looking down onto the trees and golf course, you might think you are in africa.  (except for the golfers).

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 23 October 2020 - 07:52 PM.

[Sparky]

Let me know when you find the pic of the Phantoms with me slapping my Strat.

[AllseeingEye]

Let me know when you find the pic of the Phantoms with me slapping my Strat.

 

I'm sure you are in there somewhere: we still have a slough of tupperware tubs, folders and binders to go through yet and I know there are plenty of glossies of the local bands in there....