028. Bob Montana's Iconic Character

In this episode, we travel to Meredith, NH to visit an iconic character from my youth. Perhaps, you'll recognize him, too!

Transcript

Hello Pedestal Peeps! It’s me, your host, Doug Farquharson. “Where the heck have you been,” you may be asking. And to be honest, that’s a fair question. Funny how things sneak up on you. I had intended on continuing to post new content over the summer and then, well, things just kept happening and next thing I know it’s October already! Holy Crap! Now, I’m not complaining, trust me. My wife and I had an awesome summer beginning back in late June and early July when we finally took a bucket list trip that we’ve been talking about for years. We spent two weeks, just the two of us, in Ireland and Scotland where our families are originally from. I’m going to give an unsolicited shout-out to our travel agent who was recommended to us by close friends. Ann O’Brien from Crystal Travel and Tours in Boston, MA. She put together an incredible package for us that was absolutely perfect. It was a mix of structured tours and free flow days with stays at everything from fancy hotels to quaint B&Bs to fun local lodges. And I discovered the joys of driving in the UK. Haha! Anyway, if you ever want to take a great trip to Ireland or Scotland, be sure to contact Ann. Her email is ann@crystal-travel.com and be sure to tell her Doug and Gail highly recommended her.

I did keep the podcast in mind while traveling around the Emerald Isle and Scotland. I took a bunch of photos of statues and sculptures while there and maybe I’ll do a mini-sode exploring them sometime soon. Kind of a little field trip episode perhaps.

The rest of our summer flew by between work where I wound up taking a lot of overtime to pay off those credit card bills from the trip! LOL And spending time up in Maine by the lake. Life is Good! September came and went with back to school and back to work drivel. Well, now it’s back to business. Both at home and here in podcast land.

 So, welcome to episode twenty-eight of the New England on a Pedestal podcast. If you are tuning in for the first time, I hope you find something you like here and explore previous episodes. If you’re returning for more Pedestal fun, thanks for coming back! Each episode of our podcast is a stand-alone chapter in the story of New England as told through its many and varied statues, sculptures, monuments, and memorials. Please subscribe to us through your favorite podcast platform and consider leaving a review for us. It will help us reach more listeners and expand our audience. Thank you!

This week, we find ourselves visiting the Town of Meredith in the gorgeous lakes region of New Hampshire. Hundreds of thousands of tourists have visited this beautiful town on the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee over the years, myself included. As a child, my family would rent a cottage on nearby Newfound Lake every August and often take a ride over to the big lake and do some sight-seeing. I have awesome memories of the area. Riding the mail boat as she delivered mail and ice cream to the small islands. Lunch or dinner cruises on the Grand Lady of the Lake, the Mt. Washington. Going for a scenic float plane ride with my kid brother. Mom didn’t like to fly, so we got to go up alone. Having a family dinner out at one of the many area restaurants. The area is easy to fall in love with and many have over the years. Some of the lucky ones bought property here and made it home. One of these folks was Robert Montana. Better known as Bob, he was born and raised in Stockdale, California. His parents both worked in the entertainment world and traveled a lot. His family often vacationed around New England. In the mid-1930s, they moved to Haverhill, Massachusetts where Bob soon attended high school. He would finish his high school career in New Hampshire. He later said that he was exposed to many odd and eccentric classmates and school personnel during those formative years.

Bob began a career writing and drawing comics for various companies. He had been keen on creating a series about four teenage boys. And though he tried continually to get it published, nothing became of it until he worked for MLJ Comics and it was suggested that the series be about two teen boys and two teen girls. Montana thought the main character should be named Chick. His boss favored Archibald. They compromised and the first comic book story featuring these characters was published in December of 1941 in Pep Comics. In November of 1942, the first comic book titled for the iconic character debuted. Bob Montana went off to serve in World War II and finished his service as a sergeant. While in the military he met his wife, Peggy. They would eventually raise several children together. Beginning in about 1946, Bob began creating both daily and Sunday comic strips and would eventually be featured in over 750 newspapers.

In 1948, the Montana family moved to Meredith and rapidly fit right in. It became an area where many artists and crafts makers would feel welcome and set up shop. Unfortunately, Bob died of an apparent heart attack while cross country skiing at the young age of 54 near his New Hampshire home. Through efforts by the Montanas and many others, the area became known for many artist residents and a thriving business area for artists and creators.

Local architect Chris Williams dreamed up the idea of paying tribute to Montana and sculptor Valery Mahuchy (mah-HOO-chee) was enlisted to create a fitting statue. And on August 9, 2018 the statue was dedicated during the town’s 250th anniversary. Now, if you’re like me, the name Robert “Bob” Montana may not have rung a bell for you. But the main character of his famous comic strips and books probably will: Archie. That’s right, the statue is a life size bronze version of Archie Andrews inviting you to sit with him on a park bench at 65 Main Street in Meredith, New Hampshire. It is part of Meredith’s Sculpture Walk that my wife’s friend, Carol told me about some time ago. And yes, Carol, we will dedicate an episode to it in the future!

Growing up in the late sixties and early seventies, I remember my sister always had a stack of Archie Comics sitting around. I started reading them then. Later, when my Dad was done with the newspaper, I’d grab it and flip to the funnies page and read the daily comic strips there. Archie, The Phantom, Hagar the Horrible, and many others. The characters Montana created include all the Riverdale high school kids, parents, and teachers and even Sabrina the Teenage Witch. The Archie Comics were originally created in a simpler time. I sometimes miss those days!

Sculptor Valery Mahuchy was born and educated in Belarus. She has many public art pieces throughout Belarus and now around the US of A. Her work can be found in many museums and private collections around the world. As quoted from the Artist Statement on her website she says, “Human life is essential to freedom. Everyone understands freedom in his own way. For some it is the realization of their inner potential in the world. Or an attempt to understand who you are and why you come to this Earth. I want to use the language of sculpture to try to answer these questions for myself, art for me is the language in which I can communicate with people from all over world.”

As we mentioned before, the concept behind New England on a Pedestal is rather simple. Travel around our six-state area, find some interesting statues, and discuss them. We have an ever-growing database of statues, monuments, memorials, and sculptures that we will be covering over time, but we certainly do not know all of them. That is where you can assist us. Shoot us an email at newenglandonapedestal@farqie.com and tell us about a favorite or unique or odd statue you know. If you have additional information or maybe a correction about something we have already shared, please send it our way and perhaps we will add an addendum to a later episode.

We would love to hear from you. Let us know what you think. What are we doing right? What can we do better? Let us know of a statue with a story near and dear to you. We can be reached via email at newenglandonapedestal@farqie.com. That’s New England on a Pedestal all one word at F A R Q I E dot com.  Go to Facebook and like the New England on a Pedestal page. Follow us on Instagram. We post photos and links on those social media platforms from time to time. You can now find a fan mail link in the description of each episode to send a message to us. There is also a voicemail and text line where you can reach out to us. Call or text (857) 410-0464. If you’re calling from outside the United States, remember to add the +1-country code. 

As always, I want to thank Jason, Jake, Sam, and Bekka for their artistic and technical help in producing this podcast and Steffani for her administrative assistance. But, most importantly, I want to thank you, the listener, for tuning in and sticking with us. Without you, there is no podcast!

Join us next episode when we venture to another New England town and dig into some local history there. Until then, be safe, be well, be kind and keep discovering. Thanks for listening!