The Way We Were - After the Holiday

I’ve now Received two tickets for the Holiday Reunion Dinner Dance. Assuming mum would want to come I rang her to let her know that it will be on Saturday October 5th, she says she will be away that weekend on a mini-holiday break - restrained whoop of joy lol - she says I could always take Eugen - gosh - hadn’t thought of that!! I lost no time in asking him if he would like to go - never one to give a straight answer, he says he’ll let me know, but says it sounds like fun.

Yay - Eugen IS coming to the dinner dance with me!

We had a lovely time, Eugen looked gorgeous in the smart suit he wore when we went on our disastrous date. I felt very proud with this smart handsome man on my arm, and the fact that he could converse with the Granbichler family in their own language. We had a typical Austrian meal of Vienna schnitzel, which I enjoyed, it was only when I discovered some years later how veal was produced that put me off ever eating it again :-(

Eugen came back to Ashley Court afterwards for coffee and I showed him my holiday photographs, eventually he said it was time to go and he bent down to give me a goodnight kiss.........He finally left at 2.30am..........His kisses may have become more ardent - and all the more enjoyable - but it never went beyond that.

As an eighteen year old, I had a great pash on British Pop Star - Craig Douglas. Back in the late Fifties - early Sixties, Craig had great chart success - his two most popular hits were ‘Only Sixteen’ and ‘Teenager in Love’. I became his fan club secretary for the North of England and of course, met him many times. We met up again shortly after I went to work in London, his manager’s offices were just a short distance away from Ashley Court, as was Craig’s flat, so we often met by chance. Just a few days after the Dinner Dance, Craig was appearing in a pop show to which I had tickets, and I asked Eugen if he would like to go with me. I’d spoken often of Craig, and Eugen was curious enough to want to meet him, so he was happy to come with me - on the promise that I would introduce him to Craig. I noted in my diary that it was a most enjoyable show - but not who else was on the bill with Craig :-(

I knew that the performers all went to The Sherlock, a pub near the theatre, so that’s where we made for after the show. And sure enough, Craig came in whilst we were at the bar ordering our drinks, I turned round to say hullo, and to give him his due, Craig was always friendly and polite - even though he must often have thought "my god - that female is everywhere!" I introduced him to Eugen, and seeing them both together, suddenly realised just how much alike they were......

Eugen was very pleased to have met him and intended telling is family about the meeting - apparently Craig was very popular in Switzerland too! Afterwards, Eugen and I went back to Ashley Court for coffee and another smoochy evening lol!

There will be so many changes during the coming months - events took us all by surprise, and I look back now and smile at how things turned out. I?ve concentrated mainly on anything to do with Eugen - after all, he was the cynosure of my life - but there were parallel events which I feel I must go into, to make more sense of what happens next.

In my first job at The Grand Hotel, in Sheffield, I met Lorna - my fellow lift girl, we became firm friends and would spend as much time together socially as working on opposite shifts allowed! We also lived two bus rides away from each other - a total journey of about 11/2 to 2hrs - but it didn?t bother us too much. Lorna had been to see a film called Town Without Pity, and couldn?t wait to tell me about the sound track, she?d gone out the very next day and bought the record of Gene Pitney singing the title track and she wanted me to go over and listen to it - the long journey was worth it - we played it over and over again lol! We also like the photo on the sleeve of the dark haired young singer........

When I first went to work at Stratters, and mentioned that I liked Gene Pitney - I was still buying his records - the Head Porter said nonchalantly - "oh he stays here quite a lot", Yeah right! I thought, did he really think I was going to fall for that? Then one day I went into work to be greeted by the porter with - "well he?s here". I hadn?t a clue what he was talking about - my head was always full of Eugen and I assumed he was referring to him. My fellow telephonist, Dottie, told me that there were some Americans in who were making a lot of phone calls, but they were really nice and kept apologising for keeping the telephonists so busy. She was right - the phone calls came thick and fast, and I loved their American drawl and the way they called us ?ma?am? and said please and thank you at the beginning and end of every sentence! I asked Eugen who they were - it sounded so funny hearing him trying to say ?Gene Pitney? in his lovely Swiss accent. I didn?t believe him - it was obvious he was in on the joke - even if he didn?t quite understand it!

But as I was on my way up to the ladies on the mezzanine floor, I met a young man coming down who was the spitting image of the dark haired young man on the cover of my record of Town Without Pity. It was indeed Gene Pitney! I was surprised to find that the porters, just for a change, weren?t winding me up, never at a loss for words, I said hullo, and told him about the ?joke?. "Ah - so you?re the young lady that we?ve been keeping so busy", he smiled apologetically - believe me - we became friends in an instant! After that first meeting, he rang down often just to chat to me and often popped his head around the switchroom door to say hello or goodbye. He came to stay often at Stratters and our friendship developed in leaps and bounds, I was proud that he trusted me to do things for him, he?d often ring in with messages for me to pass onto his friends and business associates. And he would pop into the switch room to tell me of his itinerary for that particular visit. Gene was a very astute business man as well as a pop singer and was often in London on business, as well as when he was here touring or appearing on TV shows. He was the most unaffected young man I?d ever met, considering he was a big American Pop Star, and was rapidly becoming very big over here. He told me on one of his visits that he was here to promote his latest record ?24 Hours from Tulsa?, and he sang it over the phone to me. I loved everything that Gene sang because he had such a unique voice, and said yes of course it is going to be a big hit and it was, it is probably the one that everyone remembers him for, although it only went to number 5 in the charts and he had hits that went higher than that, which people don?t seem to remember so well. The trouble was, it became so well played over the years that it is now far from being my favourite track!

The proof that Gene really was an exceptionally nice guy, was that even the porters liked him - and as a rule of thumb - they refused to like anybody!

Next - Time to say goodbye...............