HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1979-08-23, Page 2PAGE 2 —GODERICH SIGNAL -STAR, THURSDAY, AUGUST 23, 1979
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BY JOANNE
BUCHANAN
Congratulations are in
order for Goderich town
councillor Elsa Haydon.
Councillor Haydon,
chairman of the Goderich
Parks Committee, was
elected to the office of
second vice-president for
the year 1979-80 at the
annual general meeting
of the Ontario Parks
Association held in
Thunder Bay on August 4.
++-I-
Recent visitors with
Elsie and Alvin Proctor
of Goderich were Mrs.
Earl Close Sr. (nee
Myrtle Morgan) of
Venice, Florida, and Earl
Close Jr. and his wife
Marjorie from Tempe,
Arizona. While here, they
also visited with many
relatives in' Goderich and
Goderich Township.
++
That modern two
storey structure which
was added to the
Goderich Legion Hall in
1975 has proven to be a
useful addition to our
community.
Not only does it ac-
commodate numerous
Legion functions--
met{tings, banquets,
bingos and dances --but
this addition, which
doubled the floor space of
the Legion building, is
booked Most weeks for
wedding receptions,
anniversaries', con-
ferences, etc.
However, this building,
a Branch 109 project, is
not yet debt free. As a
result, you can help the
Legion Ways and Means
Committee by attending
a giant auction sale this
Saturday, August 25
beginning at 10:30 a.m. at
the Legion hall.
Everything from fridges
to frying pans will be
sold.
If you have an article to
donate to this sale, please
phone 524-8607 or 524-9282
for free pick up.
+++
Also this Saturday,
August 25 you may want
to catch the Girl Guides
garage sale being held at
139 Britannia Road West.
The Guides are trying
to raise money for their -
trip to the World Centre
in Mexico a year from
now. It is one' of four
world centres for Guides.
In 1976, 14 Guides from
Goderich made the
journey to Mexico and
leader- Sylvia Brady says
it was .a really great
experience. It took the
girls three years ofhard
work but they managed
to raise enough money for
everything but meals and
spending money.
This time 18 girls are
making the trip. They are
all from the First
Goderich Guide Company
except for four Guides
from Stratford. Guider
Sylvia Brady, assistant
Guider Joyce Pirrkney
and nurse Marion Lane
will also make the trip.
It costs $750 per girl to
make the trip. So far $600
has been raised with the
majority of this coming
from the sales of beef on a
bun at the°Festival of the
Arts in July. Each girl is
busy doing odd jobs and
babysitting to earn extra
money too Kif you need a
reliable babysitter, phone
-Mrs. Brady for recom-
mendations) .
Mrs. Brady emphasizes
that this time the girls
only have one year to
earn enough money to
make the trip. They are
hoping for a , successfgl
turn out at the garage
sale this weekend. About
a dozen families have
donated furniture, toys,
books, clothing and
houshold affects to be
sold.
+++
The Goderich Signal -
Star is looking for recipes
for its Christmas cook
book which will come out
the first part of
November, just in time
for baking for the
holidays.
This year prizes are
being offered to youth
groups, service clubs and
church organizations for
recipes submitted. Watch
for special ads in the
Signal -Star in upcoming
weeks for more about
this.
+++
The Death of the
Donnellys opened at
Blyth Stemmer Festival
on Tuesday night (you
can read the review
elsewhere in the paper)
and something in-
teresting has been
discovered. The play
opened on August 31 and
was originally to have
run until September 1.(an
extra week has now been,
added' due to popular
demand). These dates
are coincidental because
on August 20, 1879 it is
said that William
Thompson lost a cow and
suspected the Donnellys
which led to a visit by the
Biddulph Peace Society
on September 2, 1879. The
massacre of the Don-
nellys took place in
February of the next
year.
+++
The next paper drive
pick up for the Goderich
Rotary Club witl be
September 8. Have your
papers bundled and
ready.
+++
4 .preserved • and oddly
elegant nineteenth-
century jail, fine old
houses and churches,
good antique shops, and --
it is stated with authority-
-some of the most
beautiful sunsets in the
world."
Goderich and Ben -
miller are featured in the
August edition of
Gourmet, an en-
tertainment magazine.
The article, written by
Mary Augusta Rodgers is
entitled Gourmet
Holidays, Ontario's
Stratford Festival. The
photos by Lans
Christensen include a
picture ,of one of
Goderich's historic
homes and a train exhibit
in the Huron County
Pioneer Museum.
After several
paragraphs on the village
of Benmiller and the
Benmiller Inn, there is
this paragraph:
"Only a few miles from
Benmiller is the port of
Goderich, built on a bluff
overlooking Lake Huron.
Its streets are° laid out
like a cartwheel,
radiating from the
courthouse and a central
park. There's the Huron
County Pioneer Mu-seum,
which is an excellent
regional museum, a well
Donnelly saga retold at
Blyth Summer Festival
BY JOANNE
BUCHANAN
The Death of the
Donnellys, which opened
at the Blyth Summer
Festival on Tuesday
evening, is a rowdy,
boisterous and physical
play with lots of
hollering, fighting,
singing and dancing.
The .a.ctors work -ha -rd in
this retelling of the the
Donnelly legend but I
would suggest that you
read up on that legend
before seeing this play.
The characters are
somewhat confusing with
some actors playing two
or more roles.
This play, written by
Ted Johns and presented
by Theatre Passe
Muraille in co-operation
with the Blyth Summer
Festival, is a sym-
pathetic look at the
Donnelly saga. This
becomes clear at the end
of the play when Will
Donnelly, upon the
discovery of his mur-
dered family, says "Our '
black looks white against
the butchering here."
The play, which spans
about 40 years of history,
opens with a barn raising.
A fight breaks., out and
Jim Donnelly kills a man.
He hides out for two
years, working his fields
during the day disguised
as a woman. Then, he
gives himself up. He goes
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to jail for seven years.
While he is in prison, his
wife Johannah (Julia)
raises their sons and
daughter. And she really
"rules the roost".
When Jim Donnelly
returns home, it is to find
that his sons have all
grown into strong, young
men. He has a very
emotional reaquaintance
with them. He is soon to
learn however that his
sons are also known as
"the big bad boys of
Biddulph". It is explained
in the lyrics of a song that
they have "the brains of
boys and the fists of
men." They are high-
spirited and constantly
fighting amongst
themselves.
The next act centers
around the club-footed
Will Donnelly; his
stagecoach b#siness and
his battles with com-
petitors. The battles
develop into full scale
wars with stables being
burned and horses being
killed.
In the final act, the
railroad brings change
into rural Ontario. The
Lucan community forms
its now -famous con-
spiracy to rid itself of the
Donnellys. Behind the
conspiracy is a priest and
a cold blooded bounty
hunter. The Biddulph
Peace Society is one of
many groups formed to
deal with the Donnellys.
On August 20, 1879
William Thompson loses
a cow which leads to a
visit to the Donnelly farm
by the society on Sep-
tember 2, 1879. On
December 9, 1879 Michael
Donnelly is killed in
Waterford. On January
14, 1980 Grouchy Ryder's
barn burns down.
The play is brought to a
gory conclusion with the
savage murder of Jim
Do»nelly; Johannah
Donnelly, Tom Donnelly
and a niece, Bridget
Donnelly.
At the end of the play
the audience is left with
no new answers to the
Donnelly puzzle. Were
the members of this Irish
family establish-ing itself
in a new land with all the
pioneer hardships, made
scapegoats by the rest of
the community? Or were
they monstorous enough
to drive the community to
the desperate means of
murder, arson and ex-
termination? It's for you
to decide upon seeing the
play.
Janet Amos and David
Fox are quite outstanding
in their roles as the
parents of the Black
Donnellys.
Arnos as Johanna is a
tough old Irish gal who
rules with a heavy hand
but also protects her sons
like a wild animal. Near
the end, one almost
wonders if she has gone a
little crazy.
Fox too is tough as Jim.
He can handle his sons
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but unlike them he has a
healthier respect for the
law having spent seven
years in prison.
Bob Collins, Layne
Coleman, John Jarvis,
Sam Malkin and Peter
Snell are all good in their
roles as the various
Donnelly boys. All in all it
is a very well cast play.
Karen Wiens handles a
dual role as the tough.. -
Maggie Thompson and
the hysterical Bridget
Donnelly quite well.
William Dunlop as
William Porte was one of
my favorites in the play.
Hardee Lineham as
Grouchy Ryder was also
good.
The shivaree is perhaps
one of the best scenes in
this
high-energy
production complete with
fiddle music by David
Papazian, Kim Vincent
and Jimmy Adams. The
stage coach race is also
another good scene. The
fighting in the play is
very realistic.
The Death of the
Donnellys will -run until
September 8. Reserve
your tickets early.
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And that's a nice note to
end this column on for
this week.
c. •
1vic
Corner
The Committee of
Adjustment will meet on
Tuesday, August 28 at 7
p.m. in the mayor's of-
fice.
GUARANTEED
INVESTMENT
CERTIFICATES
1 O/0
H. BRUCE ERSKINE
PHONE 524-9555
-- 86 NORTH ST.
Information
' FOR
G.D.C.u.
Stu ents
School reopens on Tuesday,- •
September 4th.
Buses will run at the regular time on Tuesday morning,
and will leave at the regular time (3:35 p.m) Tuesday
afternoon.
Students from the Goderich district attending Central
Huron in Clinton will leave by bus from South Street at.
8:45 a.m.
Students from the Goderich district attending G.D.C.I.
will report to their Horne Rooms no later than 8:55 a.m.
Home Room lists will be posted as follows:
Grade 9- East Gymnasium
Grade 10 - Technical Corridor
Grades 11, 12, & 13 - West Gymnasium
Students who have not registered should do so Im-
mediately by telephoning the school office (524-7353)
between 8 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.
Students are asked to bring either a Dudley com-
bination lock or '1.75 to purchase a new lock.
Grade 13 students should bring funds to purchase text-
books.
Grades 9, 10, 11 and•12students will be supplied with all
text -books by the Huron County School Board.
36 NORTH ST.
SHOPPERS SQUARE
GODERICH
5a4-8572
OPE
WEDNESDAYS