1976 Pine Bluff Debutante Ball photos

These are some photos I took when Trip Martin and I went to the Debutante Ball at Pine Bluff Country Club on December 29, 1976.  We were supposed to be floor marshals and escort young women down to the front, but we got there too late. Other floor marshals handled the job, so we didn't get in trouble for missing out on our assigned duty. We hung around, dressed in our tuxedos, and enjoyed the party.

George Spencer, Steve Lloyd, Mark Davis, Louis Dunklin.

Don't know who these people are.

????, Marti Bellingrath, Trip.  I should know that lady's name...

Richard Freeman and Cathy Ayres.

One of the Bodie "girls", and Donald "Bugs" Simmons (with long hair).

Vickie Wineland, one of the 19 debutantes, and Trip. The other debs were Carol Tracy, Michelle Skrabanek, Janet Lee Scallion, Mary Ellen Russell, Melissa Dare Perdue, Helene Lauren Pascale, Dora Jane Oudin, Ann Oudin, Jan Nelson, Andrea Makris, Jane Ann Lloyd, Elizabeth Mann Kennedy, Karen Ann Johnson, Claire Ann Holmes, Paula Rae Henry, Fairfax Triplett Fullerton, Elizabeth Ann Dalheim, and Elizabeth Ann Case.

Trip triumphant but blurred.

 Joe (?) Cook, Alfred Warriner, and somebody whose name I should know.

 Laurie Pascale, whose older sister Helene was a debutante.

And the larger than life characters: Jewel Bain, "FuFa" Triplett Fullerton and son Baker Fullerton, whose sister Fairfax Fullerton was a debutante not only here but also at a New York City debutante ball held on January 1st at the Plaza Hotel.  Sidelong glance from the background is being cast by Joel Chandler.  Another New York connection is that Marti Bellingrath was living in New York City at this time, and Dad and I had brunch at the Russian Tea Room with her on a Sunday in October when we were on our way to Rome.

 Finally, on the same roll of film, Zeke (Steven's dog) and Ringo (Trulock Family dog) in kitchen at 4006 Cherry Street.

During the same week as this white debutante ball, there was also a black debutante ball held at what was then called Collegiate Plaza but later was called PJ's. Twenty young women were introduced to society at that event.

Pat Calkins (20 January 1954 - 8 December 2016)

 Pat and me, taken by Deborah Strauss in Austin in the spring of 1998.

This is a photo I took of Marcia Ball and Pat at La Zona Rosa, the bar and restaurant in Austin, in 1991 approximately.  See my Ink on His Face blog for the ghost-in-the-Saenger-theater story Pat told me, and click here to see some photos I took when I visited Pat in Lahaina, Maui in August 2008.

This is from the Dazed and Confused era, mid-1970s. Marc Cronin, Pat, Nancy Barnes Alvis, Mike Alvis, all now deceased, with alcohol and other drugs being a major factor in their early deaths.

Info from Pat's niece, Brooke:

Posting an update on my Uncle Pat here - it seems like the most efficient way due to everyone being spread around the place. Please share as you see fit. My mother, Kay Calkins, was Pat's youngest sister. I take care of my grandfather's affairs, who is Pat's father and next of kin. I am in contact with authorities, working through details and arrangements. I will post those here as soon as we have them nailed down.

I received confirmation today that Pat passed away from a heart attack. He had been in the hospital earlier this week with heart issues, but was discharged Wed afternoon or Thu morning. He had cell phone activity Thu morning, but not afterwards. Pat was found by the Home Health nurse that came to check on him Friday morning. The coroner estimates that he passed away Thu afternoon or evening, so Dec 8th. His heart attack happened in an area that they call "widow maker" - when a patient has this type of heart attack in the hospital, they only have a 20% chance of survival. The coroner described it as "turning off the light switch", it's immediate. It appears that Uncle Pat was standing in his living room, looking out the window to the parking lot, and simply fell backwards. There were no signs of distress or struggle, no reaching for a phone, etc. I share this only because it brings me comfort - knowing it was quick and that there would have been nothing that could have been done had someone been there. This is the same heart attack that my grandmother, Pat's mother, had at age 63 when she passed away quietly in our living room. Pat would have been 63 in January.

If anyone has any helpful information, please feel free to share it with me. I also would love any pictures that you may have.

Lastly, please pray for my grandfather, Charlie Calkins Jr. - or send good vibes, we appreciate it all. He will turn 91 this month, and this will be his third child to bury, while also losing his wife and one grandson (my brother). He is holding up well, considering - but this is all more than one person should have to bear.

We thank everyone for their kind words and support - and a special thank you to those who have helped me gather information today. Pat's stepdaughter AJ and I were talking today about this feeling like a wild goose chase, and I told her that I would expect nothing less from my crazy Uncle Pat. He was eccentric and interesting, marched to the beat of his own drummer - I will cherish the good times - like when he came out of the bushes on his unicycle to scare the bejesus out of me. Rest In Love Uncle Pat