Individual Details
Jack Bruce SMOTHERS
(26 Jul 1921 - 31 Jan 2000)
Dad's father, Ward Miles Smothers died on April 12, 1928 while working on a dredging team. Ward was well loved in the community. Dad said that hundreds of people attended his funeral.
After Ward's death, Grandmother placed Dad, Betty and Russell in an orphanage so that she could be with Al Davis. At the time, Al Davis was married to Grandmother's best friend, Nellie Davis. Al abandoned his wife and his three daughters to live with Grandmother. Dad said that Grandmother used the insurance money from Ward’s death to set Al up in several businesses.
The first orphanage in Prairie Phelps was very nice. When the Prairie Phelps orphanage found out that Grandmother had insurance money from Ward's death the children had to leave. The second orphanage, grandmother placed Dad, Betty and Russell in was terrible. Dad was so unhappy that he wrote a letter to the first orphanage pleading to be taken back.
When Dad was twelve years old and living with his mother and Al Davis, Al tied Dad to a tree and severely beat him. A family friend took Dad to the Sheriff's office. The Sheriff was Al Davis' cousin. The Sheriff told Al if he ever put a hand on Dad again, he would kill him. Dad said that “the Davis' were good people except for Al”.
After the beating, Dad went to Grandmother and Grandfather Bruce's farm and asked to live with them. Grandmother Bruce would not allow Dad to live on their farm. So Dad got a job at the local hotel in town. At the hotel Dad slept in the lobby at night so that he could take care of the front desk. During the day, Dad went to school.
During the Depression, Dad lived with Uncle Floyd and Aunt Shirley. Uncle Floyd had lost his job at the Ford Plant but Dad had several odd jobs. Dad said that “it was easier for a child to find work during the Depression than an adult”. Dad's jobs included helping a blind man who sold pencils, sweeping out a meat market for scrapes and enlisting in the CCC. Uncle Floyd and Aunt Shirley once told me that they would not have made it through the Depression without Dad's help.
After the CCC and before WWII, Dad drove out to California. His uncles, Warren, Wayne and Wade Smothers worked for the Studios (Hal Roach Studios, Selznick International Pictures, etc.) He got a job at Gotham's Delicatessen and Bar where Clark Gable had washed dishes before becoming a star. The delicatessen would cater movie sets. Dad and I would be watching an old movie and he would tell me that he had worked on the catering staff for the movie we were watching. He also delivered food to the homes of movie stars i.e. Clark Gables's ranch in Encino, Hedda Hopper's home, Joan Crawford, etc. Dad said that during the thirties the stars would open their own front doors.
Dad also loved to tell the story about Hedda Hopper’s butler making a pass at him. The owners’ of Gotham’s (Hungarian Jews) told Dad he never had to deliver food to Hedda Hopper’s house again. They also called Hedda to tell her what had happen.
Dad also worked for his Uncle Wayne. Uncle Wayne married Jeanette Eng. Jeanette Eng had a daughter from a previous marriage and also owned a Limousine Service next to 20th Century Fox. Occasionally Dad would drive for the Limo Service and Uncle Wayne would pay Dad the entire amount paid to the Limo company. He also learned how to drive several European cars. In Europe, during WWII, Dad drove for his commanding officer, a Major. No one else could drive a Citron. He said he got to eat and sleep wherever the Major did.
After the war, Dad was working at a funeral home in Asheville, North Carolina. Asheville is where he met Mom. Dad had gone to a restaurant and there were no tables available. Mom and her friend Avenelle were sitting at a table and Dad asked Mom and her friend if he could join them. While Mom and Dad were dating, they would spent time at the funeral home. The funeral home had a comfortable lobby with a large fireplace. There was also a ping pong table in the basement.
Dad loved to tell us a story about sleeping in a casket in the back of a Hurst when the driver pulled up to a gas station to get gas. A young black boy was at the pump. When he saw Dad getting out the casket, his eyes widened and he ran away.
Mom and Dad got married in Georgia. They lived in a boarding house in Asheville for a while. Dad told me that they were so poor they couldn't afford a bed and slept on an ironing board. They eventually moved to Toledo Ohio to live with Mom's parents until they could afford to build a house.
Dad was working for the railroad in Toledo with his friend Bob Abbott. Bob had just built a house across the street from a vacant lot. Mom and Dad purchased the lot and built a house. We lived in that house until 1959.
In 1959, we moved to Tustin, California. Tustin was the ideal place to grow up in. Tustin was paradise. Our house was surrounded by orange groves. In April, when the orange trees were in blossom, it was so incredibly fragrant. This beautiful sweet smell was all around us.
Mom and Dad lived in Tustin until Dad retired. From Tustin, they moved to Palm Springs. Since caddying for the stars in the thirties, Dad had planned on retiring in Palm Springs. Palm Springs was a lovely community in the eighties.
Dad spent his days walking, swimming, gardening and eating out with Mom. I was always amazed that no matter where they went out to eat the restaurant staff knew them by name.
After Ward's death, Grandmother placed Dad, Betty and Russell in an orphanage so that she could be with Al Davis. At the time, Al Davis was married to Grandmother's best friend, Nellie Davis. Al abandoned his wife and his three daughters to live with Grandmother. Dad said that Grandmother used the insurance money from Ward’s death to set Al up in several businesses.
The first orphanage in Prairie Phelps was very nice. When the Prairie Phelps orphanage found out that Grandmother had insurance money from Ward's death the children had to leave. The second orphanage, grandmother placed Dad, Betty and Russell in was terrible. Dad was so unhappy that he wrote a letter to the first orphanage pleading to be taken back.
When Dad was twelve years old and living with his mother and Al Davis, Al tied Dad to a tree and severely beat him. A family friend took Dad to the Sheriff's office. The Sheriff was Al Davis' cousin. The Sheriff told Al if he ever put a hand on Dad again, he would kill him. Dad said that “the Davis' were good people except for Al”.
After the beating, Dad went to Grandmother and Grandfather Bruce's farm and asked to live with them. Grandmother Bruce would not allow Dad to live on their farm. So Dad got a job at the local hotel in town. At the hotel Dad slept in the lobby at night so that he could take care of the front desk. During the day, Dad went to school.
During the Depression, Dad lived with Uncle Floyd and Aunt Shirley. Uncle Floyd had lost his job at the Ford Plant but Dad had several odd jobs. Dad said that “it was easier for a child to find work during the Depression than an adult”. Dad's jobs included helping a blind man who sold pencils, sweeping out a meat market for scrapes and enlisting in the CCC. Uncle Floyd and Aunt Shirley once told me that they would not have made it through the Depression without Dad's help.
After the CCC and before WWII, Dad drove out to California. His uncles, Warren, Wayne and Wade Smothers worked for the Studios (Hal Roach Studios, Selznick International Pictures, etc.) He got a job at Gotham's Delicatessen and Bar where Clark Gable had washed dishes before becoming a star. The delicatessen would cater movie sets. Dad and I would be watching an old movie and he would tell me that he had worked on the catering staff for the movie we were watching. He also delivered food to the homes of movie stars i.e. Clark Gables's ranch in Encino, Hedda Hopper's home, Joan Crawford, etc. Dad said that during the thirties the stars would open their own front doors.
Dad also loved to tell the story about Hedda Hopper’s butler making a pass at him. The owners’ of Gotham’s (Hungarian Jews) told Dad he never had to deliver food to Hedda Hopper’s house again. They also called Hedda to tell her what had happen.
Dad also worked for his Uncle Wayne. Uncle Wayne married Jeanette Eng. Jeanette Eng had a daughter from a previous marriage and also owned a Limousine Service next to 20th Century Fox. Occasionally Dad would drive for the Limo Service and Uncle Wayne would pay Dad the entire amount paid to the Limo company. He also learned how to drive several European cars. In Europe, during WWII, Dad drove for his commanding officer, a Major. No one else could drive a Citron. He said he got to eat and sleep wherever the Major did.
After the war, Dad was working at a funeral home in Asheville, North Carolina. Asheville is where he met Mom. Dad had gone to a restaurant and there were no tables available. Mom and her friend Avenelle were sitting at a table and Dad asked Mom and her friend if he could join them. While Mom and Dad were dating, they would spent time at the funeral home. The funeral home had a comfortable lobby with a large fireplace. There was also a ping pong table in the basement.
Dad loved to tell us a story about sleeping in a casket in the back of a Hurst when the driver pulled up to a gas station to get gas. A young black boy was at the pump. When he saw Dad getting out the casket, his eyes widened and he ran away.
Mom and Dad got married in Georgia. They lived in a boarding house in Asheville for a while. Dad told me that they were so poor they couldn't afford a bed and slept on an ironing board. They eventually moved to Toledo Ohio to live with Mom's parents until they could afford to build a house.
Dad was working for the railroad in Toledo with his friend Bob Abbott. Bob had just built a house across the street from a vacant lot. Mom and Dad purchased the lot and built a house. We lived in that house until 1959.
In 1959, we moved to Tustin, California. Tustin was the ideal place to grow up in. Tustin was paradise. Our house was surrounded by orange groves. In April, when the orange trees were in blossom, it was so incredibly fragrant. This beautiful sweet smell was all around us.
Mom and Dad lived in Tustin until Dad retired. From Tustin, they moved to Palm Springs. Since caddying for the stars in the thirties, Dad had planned on retiring in Palm Springs. Palm Springs was a lovely community in the eighties.
Dad spent his days walking, swimming, gardening and eating out with Mom. I was always amazed that no matter where they went out to eat the restaurant staff knew them by name.
Events
| Birth | 26 Jul 1921 | Craig, Nebraska, United States | |||
| Census | 1930 | Prairie, Phelps, Nebraska, United States |  |  | |
| Residence | From 1937 to 1940 | Kansas City, Jackson, Missouri, United States | | ||
| Military | From 15 Aug 1942 to 18 Oct 1945 | during World War II | | | |
| 517th Parachute Regimental Combat Team | 1944 - 45 | Fought at Ardemmes during the battle of the Bulge. - Europe | |||
| Occupation | 1946 - 1947 | limousine and hearse driver - Morris-Gearing & Company Funeral Home, 140 Merrimon Ave., Asheville, North Carolina | |||
| Marriage | 2 Apr 1947 | Georgia, United States - Living | |||
| Residence | May 1947 - 1951 | 1403 Ironwood Ave., Toledo, Ohio, United States | | ||
| Occupation | 1951 - 1953 | brakeman at Nickel Plate | |||
| Residence | 1951 - 1959 | 3759 Standard Dr., Toledo 13, Ohio, United States | |||
| Occupation | 1953 - 1959 | railroad employee at Rossford Ordnance Depot, Transportation Division - Toledo, Ohio, United States | |||
| Residence | 1959 - 1984 | 18211 Theodora Dr., Tustin, Orange County California | |||
| Occupation | 1960 - 1982 | Forman in the Public Works Department on El Toro Marine Base | |||
| Retirement | 1982 | | |||
| Military Reunion for 517th | 1985 - 1998 | Dad hosted a mini-reunion for the 517th every other year in Palm Springs - Palm Springs, California, United States | |||
| Residence | 1985 - 2000 | 1260 N Avenida Caballeros, Palm Springs, Riverside County Ca | |||
| Illness | Jul 1995 | an aneurysm of the arota - Palm Springs, California, United States | |||
| Death | 31 Jan 2000 | 1260 N Avenida Caballeros, Palm Springs, California, United States | | ||
| Burial | 4 Feb 2000 | Desert Memorial Park, Cathedral City, California, United States |
Families
| Spouse | Living |
| Child | Living |
| Child | Living |
| Child | Living |
| Father | Ward Miles SMOTHERS (1898 - 1928) |
| Mother | Clara Ruth "Ruth" BRUCE (1901 - 1987) |
| Sibling | Eade SMOTHERS (1920 - 1920) |
| Sibling | Betty Gayle SMOTHERS (1923 - 1990) |
| Sibling | Russell Eugene SMOTHERS (1924 - 1961) |
| Sibling | Richard SMOTHERS (1926 - 1926) |
Notes
Census
Grandmother placed Dad, Aunt Betty and Uncle Russell in a Orphanage so that she could be with Al Davis. She told Dad that Al Davis was the love of her life and that she and Al were having an affair before Ward's accident. Near the end of her life, Grandmother was in sever pain. She told Dad that she thought God was punishing her for abandoning her children to be with Al.Residence
Dad lived with Uncle Floyd and Aunt Shirley during the early 40's.Military
Residence
Mother and Dad lived with Grandmother and Grandfather Chadwell.Retirement
He retired from his Federal Civil Service job at El Toro Marine Base.Endnotes
1. "United States Census, 1930".
2. "United States. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946," database, National Archives and Records Administration (http://aad.archives.gov : : accessed 25 July 2016); Jack B. Smothers enlisted on 8/15/1942 in Los Angeles, California.
3. Smothers, Jack Bruce, no. 507-01-9124, Social Security Administration, "U.S. Social Security Death Index," FamilySearch (Salt Lake City, Utah: Family History Library, 31 January 2000)
4. "United States Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V3JS-FMJ : 19 May 2014), Jack B Smothers, 31 Jan 2000; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing). .