April 10, 2024
Violet-crowned Hummingbird, Paton’s, 4-7-24
A Magnolia Warbler was reported at Paton’s on 4-6-24 so I decided to give it a try. No Magnolia, but several spiffy male Audubon’s that could work as a stand-in. The Violet-crowned hummingbird is a year-round resident.
Zone-tailed Hawk, Clark Crossing, 4-4-24
Zone-tailed Hawk (2), Clark Crossing, 4-4-24
Zone-tailed Hawk (2), Clark Crossing, 4-4-24
Clark Crossing is in the area of Carmen, about 0.5 miles south of Tubac – about 40 miles south of Tucson on I-19.
Berylline Hummingbird, Madera-Kubo, 4-6-24
Hermit Warbler, Proctor Road (Madera Canyon) 4-10-24
Hermit Warblers are not considered rare, but they are hard to find. The color of this bird is strongly influenced by the bright sunlight filtering through the new leaves in the canopy.
Now for Something completely different. Band leader and murderer Spade Cooley at the Bostonia Ballroom in an undated photo. I would guess that this is from ~1958. Cooley and his band were extremely popular in the 1940s and 50s. He broke into movies because he looked a lot like Roy Rogers. He was a member of the Riders of the Purple Sage and appeared in many movies – usually insipid western musicals. Famously, “Rockin in the Rockies” (1945) included Spade’s big hit Miss Molly – the movie was headlined by the Three Stooges. Spade had his own TV show broadcast live on KTLA (Los Angeles 5) from 1949 and into the mid-50s. His big hits were; Miss Molly, Shame on You, and Take Me Back to Tulsa. His main vocalist was Tex Williams – superstar in his own right. The woman in the evening dress on stage was his second wife, who he beat to death in 1961. She was a vocalist, yodeler, and bass player. Their 14-year-old daughter was forced to watch the murder. It was too brutal to be described here. He was convicted of murder in Bakersfield. The crime warranted a death penalty, but perhaps because of friends with political influence, he was spared Death Row. Cooley spent almost 10 years at Chino State Prison rather than the much worse Circle of Hell – San Quentin – where most murderers were sent. Governor Reagan was a friend of Cooley or was influenced by Cooley’s Hollywood friends and likely arranged for his preferential treatment by a parole board which voted to release Cooley before he had spent ten years behind bars. Several months before his release date he was given a 72-hour furlough and he was taken to Oakland where he played at a benefit concert for the Alameda (?) County Sheriff’s Department. He played one set before intermission – to a standing ovation. Then he went back stage and dropped dead. The End. All the tunes and the movie that I mentioned are on YouTube and easy to find.
