Nighty night! Mrs. Calabash was really a local woman named Lucille Lucy Coleman. In 1940, Lucy was 28 years old and running a restaurant in Calabash, then a tiny seaside community bordering South Carolina. Durante and his touring entertainment troupe are said to have stopped in for supper one night. It may have been the genuine homespun friendliness of the young restaurant owner that prompted the gregarious Jimmy Durante to beckon Lucy over to his table for some short chitchat. Im going to make you famous, vowed Durante, thinking she recognized his well-known face. (In fact, at that moment, she didnt even know who he was!) Lucys daughter, Clarice Holden, says she will never forget what happened next. SECRET SIGN OFF As Mr. Durante and his group were walking out the door after their meal, Clarice recalls,he turned to my mom and said, Good night Mrs. Calabash. It wasnt long afterward that this popular entertainer began signing off his radio shows with a similar message. For years, audiences enjoyed this rather lighthearted farewell mystery. By the time of Durantes death in 1980, it had become one of his trademarks, almost as recognizable as his big schnozzola. But while that sign-off may have remained a mystery to most folks, Calabash residents believe it was Durantes way of saying to Mrs. Coleman, Hi, Lucy--I remember you, if youre still out there now. Lucy Coleman passed away in 1989, nearly 50 years after her meeting with Jimmy Durante. Calabash residents note that Lucy recognized the significance of Durantes little secret message but preferred to stay out of the limelight. She had no desire to claim credit as the real Mrs. Calabash. Mom was a very private person, recalls Clarice, She didnt speak much about her Mrs. Calabash entity, and declined all interviews and all invitations to appear on television. Apparently, Durantes popularity was so great that he could immortalize a prim Southern restaurant keeper. But neither he nor anyone else could get her to talk.
Posted on: Thu, 25 Sep 2014 04:02:11 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015