Page 8
Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com
January 14, 2011
Yes, Virginia, those movie homes really do exist large pool also featured in the film. It last sold in 1998 for $3,250,000. In 2003, the controversial “Bad Santa” was a favorite for Billy Bob Thornton fans. Thornton plays a grinch of a mall Santa who robs the mall after hours. He befriends a troubled kid and takes up residence in his house while the parents are out of town. The stuccostyle home featured in the film is actually up for sale right now. It is in West Hills, Calif., and is listed for $1,000,000. The 4,100 sq. ft. home offers panoramic city views, a custom infinity pool and barbecue center. In 2003’s “Elf,” Will Ferrell plays Buddy, a human raised by Santa’s elves who travels to New York City to seek his identity. The building where Buddy’s father lives is nicknamed “The Ghostbuster Building” because it served as the location for several scenes in the
LYNNE FRENCH
REAL ANSWERS Where are some of the Q houses we see in classic holiday movies? At rismedia.com, I found A some movies where the homes definitely co-star with the actors. The most recent is the 2006 film “The Holiday,” with Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz swapping homes for the holiday season to get away from their troubles. Diaz settles into a quaint cottage in the English countryside, while Winslow takes over a swanky abode in the small affluent city of San Marino, Calif. The 10,324 sq. ft. mansion has nine bedrooms, five bathrooms and a
John
McCutcheon folk music’s renaissance man, master instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, storyteller, activist and author
Jan. 22 at 7 p.m. $20 in advance at brownpapertickets.com or $25 a the door
Multiple Grammy Nominee
Clayton Valley Presbyterian Church 1578 Kirker Pass Road, Clayton
Carpet
Hardwood
Laminate
Starting at
Starting at
Starting at
$1.99 sq.ft.
$2.99 sq.ft.
$99 sq.ft.
CARPET
HARDWOOD
LAMINATE
TILE
Flooring & Interiors 1170 Burnett Ave., Ste. E, Concord
“Ghostbusters” movie. Built in 1929, 55 Central Park West has a unique art deco exterior. It has been the home to several famous residents, including Calvin Klein and Donna Karan. In 1990, “Home Alone” was the booby trapping holiday favorite. Macaulay Culkin’s character, Kevin McCallister, shared most of the screen time with the picturesque house the family called home. The actual house sits on a tree-lined street in Winnetka,
Ill. It was built in 1920 with five bedrooms, 3.5 baths and 4,243 sq. ft. of living space. The 1983 film “A Christmas Story” was set in the 1940s in Hammond, Ind. “You’ll shoot your eye out” was the infamous phrase which pertains to the Red Ryder BB gun idolized by Ralphie Parker. As a tribute to this movie’s immortality, the house used in the movie was completely restored and is now open to visitors. Located in Cleveland, Ohio, “A
Christmas Story House” is open for tours year-round. My personal favorite is 1947’s “Miracle on 34th Street.” The original Christmas classic starred Natalie Wood, Maureen O’Hara and John Payne. A majority of the movie is centered around Macy’s flagship store on 34th Street in New York City, but one of the most memorable scenes is when little Susan’s Christmas wish comes true and she sees the house of her dreams for the first
time. The real home is in Port Washington, N.Y. The 1,703 sq. ft. home still stands, looking practically the same as it did in 1947. Send your question and look for your answer in a future column. Email Lynne@LynneFrench.com. French is the broker/owner of Windermere Lynne French & Associates and a Clayton resident. For any real estate needs or questions, contact her at 672-8787 or stop in at 6200 Center St., Clayton.
Frank Exhibit, from page 1 are just a few of the familiar names seen on street signs and subdivision gates in Clayton and Concord. Her living relatives number well over 200 and span seven generations descended from Frederick John Frank and Elizabeth Bisber who married in 1868. The union produced 12 children. In the late 1890s, after working as hired labor on several local ranches, Frederick and Elizabeth settled in a rented farmhouse on Pine Hollow Road (later renamed Pine Hollow Court) adjacent to the south side of Mt. Diablo Elementary School. In 1897, Fred and Elizabeth’s oldest son Fred, Jr., headed north to join the Alaskan gold rush. “All the family’s dreams were on his shoulders,” Charmetta says. “He was supposed to be the Joe Kennedy of the family.” But, like Joe, Fred, Jr.’s life ended short of his predicted glory. He struck it rich in the Yukon and brought back enough money for the family to buy the ranch, but died of a burst appendix just three days after his triumphant return. In 1924 her grandparents built what Charmetta still calls the “new” house—the stucco bungalow she has shared with her third cousin Janet Easton, 59, for the past 40 years. Asked what she thinks is her family’s legacy, Charmetta quips, “they all married up…” “…our family wouldn’t have anything if they hadn’t married property,” adds Janet. characteristically finishing Charmetta’s sentence. Originally 20 acres, the Frank farm now covers just one acre. The driveway circles a windmill in the front yard. A small cottage where Charmetta lived in her early years stands next to the farmhouse. As a child, her residence was technically with her parents in Concord. But her grandparents’ ranch was a powerful draw. Her heart and her horses were always on the ranch. “When I did have to
go home, I drove my parents crazy. I’d pretend I forgot where my room was, where my house was,” she laughs. “I never wanted to be anywhere but here.” When she was 16, her parents allowed her to move into the cottage. “As long as I didn’t miss the bus, I could stay out here.” In the backyard, there is a ship—a near life size lumber schooner built as a project by the kids in the daycare she operated until 2006. Her daycare kids, now adults, still come by occasionally to visit and climb on the J.G. Wall, named for the first ship piloted by her great-grandfather, Capt. John Stockfleth. “Nothing about Charmetta Mann is ordinary,” observes her friend and Clayton Museum curator Mary Spryer. “Where kids in other daycares play kickball on the playground, at Charmetta’s, they built a ship. In 1977 when Alex Haley’s “Roots” aired, Charmetta began to seriously research her own family history. “I love that man,” says Charmetta. “I figured if a black man from Tennessee could trace his family back to Africa, I oughta be able to trace my own family right here.” Janet, who had begun some family history already, joined the pursuit and together the two women have tracked 340 descendants of Frederick and Elizabeth. “These are just the ones that we know their names,” says Charmetta. “We figure there are at least 150 to 250 more from families that we’ve lost track of.” They do not use any of the genealogy websites, relying instead on albums, letters, public records and oral history passed down from generation to generation. Janet has traced the Russelmann family history back as far as 1090. “I’m jealous,” says Charmetta, wryly. “My side of the family history only goes back to 1464. Columbus was 12.” Point to a leaf on the family tree and Charmetta will immedi-
Tamara Steiner/Clayton Pioneer
THIS STUCCO FARMHOUSE WAS BUILT by Charmetta Mann’s grandparents in 1924. The Clayton ranch has been home to the 70-year-old historian all her life. She and her cousin Janet Easton have shared the home since 1971 and still refer to it as the “new” house.
ately launch into one of her famous stories. She speaks with familiarity and humor of relatives that have been dead for 50, 100 years or more, recalling foibles, buried scandals, pranksters and love affairs. At the time of his death, Charmetta recounts, Fred, Jr., was engaged to Lillien Russelmann (Russelmann Park Road) “Her fiancé had only been home three days and Lillien was devastated by his death, taking to her bed for months.” Three years later, Lillien married Fred’s younger brother, Henry. But, alas, Henry was never to measure up to his dead brother. “She kept Fred’s picture on her nightstand,” says Janet “And she would frequently jab at Henry, saying ‘you’re no Fred.’” Lillien was Janet’s great-grandmother. Henry was Janet’s great grandfather and Charmetta’s great uncle. Beginning Sunday, January 16, visitors to the Clayton Museum will get an inside and very personal look at Clayton history as traced back through the Frank family when the museum’s latest exhibit “Frankly Speaking” opens. A volunteer docent and member of the board of directors of the Clayton Historical Society, Charmetta and her family have donated so many items to the museum that it seems like a second home. Among the many items included in the exhibit are
Capt. Stockfleth’s furniture, a “harness repair contraption” from the Lars and Lizzie Frank Olsen line of the family and photos, albums, portraits, letters and Henry Frank’s baby buggy (Henry was born on the Frank ranch in 1877). Spryer, has been working with Charmetta to mount the exhibit which will include items from many of Clayton’s pioneering families, almost all related in someway to the Frank family. “We are so lucky to have Charmetta – her history IS Clayton’s history,” says Spryer. “Her family has kept Clayton from becoming a ghost town.” “She’s helps me so much. If I need something to complete an exhibit,” Spryer continues, “She’ll go home and find the item— sometimes in her own kitchen.” Now, if you still can’t place her, close your eyes and picture the black and silver 1957 Chevy Nomad station wagon that is a fixture in front of the Clayton Museum all summer. That’s not part of the exhibit. That’s Charmetta’s car, her only car. Frankly Speaking opens on Sunday, January 16 at the Clayton Museum, 6101 Main Street in downtown Clayton. For more information, visit the Clayton Historical Society website, www.claytonhistory.org, or call (925) 672-0240. The museum is open Wednesdays and Sundays 2-4 p.m. and by appointment.
925-686-9901
Contra Costa Floors Showroom hours: M-F 9-5 Sat 10-4
Coupon expires 3/31/2011 not to be combined with any other offer.
World saw some extreme weather in 2010 During the first few weeks of January, meteorologists review weather events from the past year. As it turns out, 2010 was a year of interesting weather extremes in the local area and throughout the world. Data records for the last 25 years from a Concord weather station indicate that the average temperature in 2010 was 60.3 degrees F. Since the 2010 average is close to the 25-year average of 60.5 degrees, it would be easy to conclude that the past year was normal. However, closer review of monthly temperature averages paints a very different picture. In fact, in a five-class distribution, only January 2010 would be considered normal when compared to the 25-year average. April, May and August would be classified as much below normal, while September and December would be much above normal. Although the Bay Area regis-
WOODY WHITLATCH WEATHER WORDS tered a cooler than normal summer, heat waves affected other parts of the world. Last September, the temperature rose to 113 degrees in Los Angeles – breaking an all-time record high. In Pakistan, 129 degrees was the highest ever recorded on the Asian continent. A particularly long and deadly heat wave hit Russia last summer. More than 50,000 deaths were attributed to the excessive heat, smog and forest fires that ensued.
Rainfall data from Concord Airport show that 2010 was wetter than normal, with almost 21 inches of rain compared to an annual average of 19.6 inches. Nearly half of last year’s rain fell in January and December, with single-day totals of more than an inch on Jan. 19 and Dec. 19. In the United States and around the world, extreme rainfall and snowfall events made headlines. Monsoon season flooding ravaged parts of China and Pakistan, resulting in a death toll of more than 15,000. To offer perspective on the widespread flooding, it was estimated that an area the size of Wisconsin was inundated. A heavy pre-Christmas snowfall in the Midwest resulted in the collapse of the Metrodome Stadium roof in Minneapolis. That same storm struck the New York City area the day after Christmas. The resulting two to three feet of snow paralyzed
ground and air traffic for several days. Weather events in the first months of 2010 were influenced by a strong El Nino. During the middle of the year, El Nino faded – giving way to a strong La Nina episode later in the year. Both weather patterns have been known to produce extreme weather events, and 2010 saw the effects of both. Many climate scientists state that recent weather extremes are also signs of climate change induced by global warming. The past year produced some unusual temperature and rainfall patterns in the Clayton area. But after researching the weather recorded in other parts of the world in 2010, I don’t think events like the abnormally cool summer or wet winter seem as extreme.
Woody Whitlatch is a meteorologist with PG&E. Email your questions or comments to clayton_909@yahoo.com