My Dad has been a major influence in who I am and what I do. He has given me the opportunity for professional growth (working as an electrician and mechanic for his company) as well as personal growth (music lessons!). I am not sure that he has fully recovered from my driving lessons...
My earliest memories involve him...watching him play his trumpet on stage, working side-by-side as he patiently taught me to be an electrician...mechanic... musician.
I remember being enchanted by stories of his extrordinary life as a musician in the 30's, 40's and 50's. He joined the Navy during World War II as a Seabee Construction Electrician, then traveled with the Navy Band on USO tours. GO NAVY!
He is a master electrician and started
a stage lighting and sound business
with his father that is still operating.
He owns one of the original WW2
searchlight advertising companies, too.
He has played a part in the history
of our hometown, San Bernardino, CA:
witnessing Tong wars in the underground tunnels frequented by early Chinese immigrants to the community, taking music lessons from Ernie DeSoto, orchestra conductor at the old Opera House in 1922, hand-cranking an old silent-movie
projector on Sunday evenings for families visiting Urbita Springs,
and selling newspapers for a nickel apiece at his father's garage during
the Lindbergh kidnapping case.
He remembers rushing down to the new National Orange Show
to help open the huge doors of the exhibition building, allowing the flood waters of '33 to flow harmlessly through...then helping shovel
out 2,000 feet of mud, eight-feet deep, after the
waters receded (the mud was later used to fill
and level ground for the race car track).
He taught me to be a stagehand, then a stage electrician
and gave me the opportunity to work with the biggest
stars of the 60's, 70's and 80's. I worked for the Rolling Stones first American tour in 1966, and with Jefferson Airplane, Fleetwood Mac, Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin 
when they were simply warm-up bands. I helped a very intoxicated Janis Joplin to her bus...ditto a VERY stoned Jim Morrison to his.
A talented young poet that I used to sneak backstage at concerts grew up to have one of the biggest-selling albums of all time, ' Born In The USA.'
Dad and I were part of the historic NASA-
Dryden Space Shuttle Support Team and
worked together on movie sets like
'Yellow Rose' and 'Die Hard.' We also had
work on TV locations like 'Twelve O'Clock
High,' 'Combat,' 'Rat Patrol,' 'Cannon,'
and 'Barnaby Jones.'
Stars like Buddy Ebsen and Bob Hope were just 'some of the guys' to Dad. This unique, wonderful man celebrates his 82nd birthday on June 28...and still goes to work each day! His name is Irvan, but everyone calls him 'Stumpy'. He is not my father, but by any definition he is my Dad...and I love him VERY much.
Signed,
Bobby Jean
