Red, Pink and Hughes Are Recurring Themes This Week 

By Lorraine Boyd
The Daily Record

Picture this: Grammy Award winning guitarist Tommy Allsup, Rockabilly Hall of Famer songwriter Sonny West, and Billy McGuigan and his 11-piece Rave On band, on stage together, performing the music of 1950’s rock ‘n’ roll.

It was the first time that the two Buddy Holly contemporaries appeared on stage together. Each of them had uniquely contributed to the young rock ‘n’ roller’s career. Allsup tells of that fateful night of Feb. 3, 1959, when several of the entertainers boarded a chartered plane in Clear Lake, Iowa. He and Ritchie Valens flipped a coin for a seat, and Allsup lost. Waylon Jennings had already given up his seat to the Big Bopper. As we know now, it was Allsup who actually won that toss: the plane crashed, killing all aboard, including Buddy Holly.

Now, Omaha entertainer Billy McGuigan, who has created successful stage shows based on the music of Holly and of The Beatles, brought the “legends” together for Rave On: The Living Legends Edition. Last weekend, the Omaha Community Playhouse’s mainstage experienced a thunderstorm of ’50’s rock in a dynamic three-hour performance by all three, backed by McGuigan’s terrific band, highlighted by the work of Darren Pettit on saxophone and Leon Adams on keyboard.

Unfortunately, there were only four performances and those were last weekend. But Billy McGuigan returns to the Omaha Playhouse in December with Yesterday and Today, his Beatles revue. And it’s a blast too. My point is: don’t miss seeing McGuigan live. Whatever the show, it’s always great.

True or False?

 “According to conventional history, Howard Hughes died on April 5, 1976, at the age of 71. The official cause of death was kidney failure. His reclusive activities and drug use were well known, and most knew about his long hair, beard, and fingernails, and that his tall 6’4” frame now weighed barely 90 pounds.”  – Las Vegas Review-Journal

Now however, that story might be a victim of perhaps the greatest-ever disappearing act of one of the world’s richest and most famous men in the world. It’s now possible, even probable, that Howard Hughes actually lived to be 96 years old and died as recently as Nov. 21, 2001, in Dothan, Ala., after assuming another man’s identity in 1969, giving a mentally-deranged drug-addict imposter his own identity, and being married to one Eva Renee McLelland for 31 years.

The Strategic Air and Space Museum’s newest exhibit, BOXES: The Secret Life of Howard Hughes tells the tale of Hughes’ secret life under the assumed identity of Verner “Nik” Nicely, from Eva’s point of view. Her discovery that her eccentric Midwestern husband was really the great Howard Hughes was difficult, sending her on an unexpected path. With photographs, authentic documentation, and professional research, BOXES examines one of the greatest hoaxes of all time and tells the fascinating and touching real-life mystery drama of Howard Hughes.  

BOXES is based upon the highly-detailed memories of McLelland, who kept the details a secret until a year after the death of her husband, when she told the story for the first time to Major General Mark Musick. After six years of research, he contacted Douglas Wellman to write the book. Musick used the name Miller in the book.

Musick received the personal belongings from the estates of Eva and Hughes and has loaned them to the museum for an exhibit, which opens tomorrow and will remain on display until January 2, 2011. Such items include clothing and jewelry worn by Hughes and his wife, billfolds, the remainder of Hughes’ ashes and his funeral service flag, death certificate, letters to Eva, among many other documents and personal items.

The book, BOXES: The Secret Life of Howard Hughes, is available at the Museum’s gift store, online at Amazon, and at writelife.com.

A special presentation, followed by a book signing by Musick and Wellman, will be held at Strategic Air & Space Museum, this Sunday at 2 p.m.  General admission to the museum includes the presentation and signing.  Book purchase is additional.

Read it, see it, then decide for yourself! For more information, visit: www.SASMuseum.com.

Go Big Football

While I was at The Durham Museum last week, catching the two weather-related exhibits which wrap up September 12, I also saw a preview of the newest exhibit: 100 Yards of Glory: Omaha’s Football History! The exhibit, put together by the museum’s own staff, includes artifacts from Omaha’s three Heisman Trophy winners, along with those of many other local sports luminaries. The exhibit tells the story of Omaha’s football past, all the way back to the University of Nebraska’s first football game, a 10-0 victory against the Omaha YMCA men’s team in 1890. It spans 120 years of football’s high school, collegiate and professional ranks.

The presentation, which includes footage from famous games, is exquisitely displayed. Even for those of you who think you know a lot, there’ll be some surprises (my husband, a radio sports broadcaster, learned a few things himself).

The show formally opened Monday with a luncheon fundraiser for the museum’s On Track Guild, attended by more than 360, which featured speaker Bernadette Suh, mother of NU football great, Ndamukong Suh. The exhibit will remain until January 16, 2011. By the way, the Durham Museum in the former Union Station, has never looked better – it’s an exhibit of its own. And the museum’s permanent exhibit is spruced up and is really awesome. Another very entertaining history lesson.

Go Big Pink

Pinkalicious – The Musical opens The Rose’s 2010-2011 season next week with colorful fun for all ages.

Presented on the main stage September 10 to 26, the production, based on the popular book by Elizabeth and Victoria Kann, pairs a passion for pink with a lesson or two about balanced eating, as children and their parents sing and laugh along with the cast. Audiences are encouraged to become a part of the show by dressing in pink, too.

The production combines infectious music, lively puppets and dynamic choreography with a fun-loving story about a young girl – Pinkalicious – who takes her love for the color pink too far by adding extra food coloring to her mom’s cupcakes. She comes down with a severe case of “Pinkititis” – turning her pink from head to toe. When the hue changes to red, she learns the lesson that the only cure for “too much of a good thing” is to eat some vegetables.

“I can’t think of a better way to infuse a little healthy message with pure joy than Pinkalicious – The Musi­cal!” said Director Kevin Ehrhart.

Pinkalicious – The Musical is recommended for children ages 4 and up, and will run 60 minutes without intermission. Each child who comes to the show is encouraged to dress in pink and will receive free pink or red beads at the door!

For schedule and ticket information, visit www.rosetheater.org or call 345-4849.