Dance teacher recalls life from Brooklyn to stage and pageants
Jack Saxon, 62, a Decatur dance instructor with Birmingham and Sylacauga classes, reflects on a 50 year career in show business. He joined Gus Edwards Review at 13, toured vaudeville, and now teaches five Decatur classes while choreographing and acting in Birmingham. His students include five Miss Alabama winners and relatives who achieved national pageant success.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Jack Saxon
Brooklyn
Saxon
Decatur
Aquadome
Gus Edwards
Birmingham
Sylacauga
Virginia McGraw Denis
Francis Dorn
Bess Myerson
Judy Short
Atlantic City
Decatur dance teacher Saxon inspires with lifelong passion
Alvin Benn recalls Virginia driving to Birmingham for lessons as Saxon, who has taught about 20 000 youngsters, credits dancing for fitness and cites Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly as inspirations. His Decatur classes serve ages 4 to 17, with a May 31 recital at Austin High School featuring a Birmingham group and Saxon’s soft shoe routine.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Virginia
Decatur
Birmingham
Saxon
Fred Astaire
Gene Kelley
Bill
Austin High School
Judy Jones
Nixon Visit Skips Normal Security as Mobile Prepares
Officials estimate 30 000 to 100 000 people will attend President Nixon's Mobile visit on Tuesday. Police Maj. James Botta says area law officers, state troopers, docks security police and neighboring agencies will handle crowd control and security alongside the Secret Service.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Mobile
Ala
Nixon
James Botta
Botta
Secret Service
Pier 5
Ibe
State Accidents Claim Two Lives
Two people died in Alabama weekend crashes per State troopers. Dweight James Madden, 18, of Salem died when a car went off Lee County 87 near Opelika. Edward H. Cyran, 20, of Thorndike Mass., was struck by another vehicle in a separate Lee County crash Friday night.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Associated Press
Alabama
James Madden
Rt. 2
Salem
Lee County
Opelika
Edward H. Cyran
Thorndike
Mass
Decaturite Tapped Way to Atlantic City by Lee Sentell
Virginia McGraw later Mrs Maurice Denis rose from Decatur to win Miss Alabama and perform on Broadway before a Copa gig and Copa Girl contract. Now 49, she tells Decatur Daily readers she may visit Alabama again as 22 North Alabama contestants rehearse for the Miss Point Mallard pageant guiding toward Miss Alabama and Atlantic City.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Lee Sentell
Decatur
Virginia McGraw
Gordon, Bibb
Birmingham
Maurice Denis
Virginia
Roxy Theater
L & N Railroad
McGraws
Warrior
Jefferson County
Jo Ann Summer
Carl Conley
Jo Ann
New York
South
Montreal
Jack Saxon
Miss Caldwell
North Alabama
Tennessee
Atlantic City
N. J
Decatur Daily
Recycling Wrinkle Adds To Morgan County Clean-Up Drive
Morgan Beautiful launches a county cleanup May 29 to June 5 in Decatur featuring a paint-up fix-up campaign and recycling stations run by the Teenage Ecological Leadership League TELL at Gateway Decatur and Westgate centers. Volunteers from Boy Scouts Keep America Beautiful Morgan Beautiful and local schools will collect trash at multiple schools and haul non tree limbs to two county landfills.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Morgan County
Decatur
Charles Mathias
Morgan Beautiful Committee
Mathias
Teenage
Ecological Leadership League
TELL
Gateway
Westgate
Morgan Beautiful
Priceville
Flint
West Morgan
Moulton Heights
Neel
Danville
Plainview
Somerville
Falkville
Massey
Eva
Ryan
Florette
Union Hill
Lacey’s Spring
Cotaco
1943 Copper Cent Value and Miss Point Mallard Seats
A reader asks if a 1943 copper cent is valuable. The answer notes no official copper cents were minted in 1943, zinc-coated steel used instead, and only rare forged copper cents circulate. Also details on Miss Point Mallard seating: none reserved, 800 seats, free admission to pageant and open house. An old Blue Back Speller is worth about $15, others around $5-$10.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Decatur
L. A. Atur
Jim Johnson
Miss Point Mallard Production
Virginia State
Emergency Phones For Poisoning And Other Emergencies
Emergency guidance asks to call nearest hospital or family physician for possible poisoning and to dial O for other emergencies, directing the caller to inform the operator about the nature of the emergency.
Siamese named Sue advances to national pageant semifinals
Sue Wong, a Birmingham native Siamese cat with a humorous misnamed identity, reached the semifinals of the Royal Pussycat Pageant of America after being chosen from 100 semifinalists. Lily Clark of Montgomery entered him for the contest, but pageant directors later announced he failed to reach the 10 national finalists.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Bill Oberst
Associated Press
Birmingham
Ala
Sue Wong
Sue
Lily Clark
Montgomery
Lily
D. Clark
Cat Foods Company
Clark
Sam
Also Mentioned on This Page
Alvin Benn
ACTOS
Austin High
David Williamson
Leslie Guthrie
Beth Allison
Angie Holloway
Dani Benn
Glenette Perry
Bobby Herbert
Decaturite
Denis
Florida
Jo Ann Conley
Decatur Boat Harbor
Morgan County Commission
Flint City
Percy Thrasher
Joe Williams
Flint Park
THE
Athens
Highway Patrol
Sess
Limestone County
Lawrence County
Seep
Ee Etree
Cullman County
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