Daniel Greene

Tag: singing

  • Photos by J. M. Shafer, Altoona Mirror staff photographer, 1940

    Photos by J. M. Shafer, Altoona Mirror staff photographer, 1940

    Store owner? | J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    Store owner? | J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    Auto mechanic? | J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    Auto mechanic? | J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    This man shows up in several of these photos! | J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    This man shows up in several of these photos! | J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    Grandma in middle | J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    Grandma in middle | J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    Goby with a male cast member (maybe director?) | J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    Goby with a male cast member (maybe director?) | J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    Goby in diner | J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    Goby in diner | J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror
    J. M. Shafer Staff Photographer Altoona Mirror

    I found these photos among my maternal grandmother’s memoirs of her time as a vaudeville performer. They were all stamped on the back:

    J. M. SHAFER
    STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
    ALTOONA MIRROR

    These nine photos were among my grandmother’s photos of her time as a trouper with Egyptian Follies. I searched the Internet for information about J. M. Shafer and found this mention of his time as a staff photographer with the Altoona Mirror in an obituary:

    Mr. Shafer retired as photographer on May 21, 1980 [sic. Must have been 1970.], after more than 41 years’ service. He began his service with the Mirror on March 8, 1929, as a messenger to Daniel N. Step, president and publisher.

    On March 8, 1933, he became the first staff photographer under the late J. Edward Benney, then city editor.

    –Altoona Mirror [edits mine]

    References

    Altoona Mirror. (1983, August 5). Retired Mirror employee dies. Death Record, p. 4. Altoona, Blair County, PA: Altoona Mirror. Retrieved from http://boards.ancestry.com/surnames.shafer/739/mb.ashx

  • Here’s to the lady who launched

    Here’s to the late, great Elaine Stritch, the lady who launched– one of Broadway’s most fabulous songs.

  • Singing “We’ll Meet Again” at neighbor’s funeral

    Sang this WWII-era song at my neighbor Elva’s memorial service because her husband served in WWII, and for all we know, we all may meet again some sunny day.

  • Singing “It’s Christmas Eve,” a song I wrote

    I wrote this song as a sort of rollicking sea shanty. It’s just one of those things that spontaneously came forth! Our kitty, Callie, makes an entrance at the end.

  • Singing “Some Other Time” in memory of Mom

    My mom, Jonni Greene, died two weeks ago. She was a singer, and singing was something we shared with love. This song came into my head yesterday, and it’s no wonder. The sad thing is, there is no other time after a person is gone. Still, we did spend quality time together before she died, and we did tell each other everything we wanted to– up til then. I’m sure there will be many more things I want to tell or ask my mother as the years go by, and who knows? If there is such a thing as life after death, or reincarnation, we might actually catch up some other time.

    The song “Some Other Time” is from the 1944 Broadway musical On the Town, with lyrics by Betty Comden & Adolph Green, and music by Leonard Bernstein.