My Name Is Leonard Chesser!

I've been holding onto this until now, today is Leonard's 70th birthday & this is his birthday present (he didn't even have a copy until now). You should know who Leonard # 1 is, # 2 is Bill Sanderson better known to many as Larry from the Newhart Show. Where's his brother Daryl & his other brother Daryl when you need them? And # 3 is Leonard his BAD self! This is the coolest piece of Collierbilia I've come across so far it just doesn't get much better than this!

Thanks to GC Homeboy & his LW & DWS for tech assistance.

If video disappears you can view it at the Real Naples Channel too!
http://www.youtube.com/user/therealnaples

East Trail & Kelly Road

The Old Baroni House

A photo of them removing the old Baroni house which sat off to the right & rear of the restaurant (now known as St George & the Dragon, you can see the restaurant to the left). I believe the Baroni's actually lived there at one time & later used it as the kitchen.

Photo taken March 1966

Reminder the ultimate in 70's Naples video coming up at the end of the month!

Collier County Sheriff's #2 #3 & #4

Above you'll see a photo of Collier County Sheriff Louis Thorpe, deputy Roy Atkins & & young new deputy Doug Hendry. Collier County's 1st sheriff was W R Maynard, the 2nd was Thorpe that died of a heart attack at age 59. Atkins was his under deputy & took over command & served out his term. I believe he ran against Doug Hendry the 1st time & beat him by seven votes. Doug ran again & won & I can kind of grasp the story from that point on. The second scan is Doug's honorable discharge papers. And here's a totally unknown fact to me on line 33 are his WWII decorations & citations. He served in Normandy & received 5 Bronze Stars & a Purple Heart for his time served there. Doug kicked some serious butt way before becoming sheriff that wasn't a projected image he was the real deal. Thanks for all you did EA!
Again thanks to Doug Hendry Jr. & Golf Course Homeboy
PS: Watch this blog toward the end of the month I've got the COOLEST piece of Collierbilia that I've come across so far! It's over the top!

Collier County Sheriff EA Doug Hendry

Growing up in Naples in the 60's & 70's if there was one person that loomed larger than life it was EA Doug Hendry. To begin with the EA stood for Eldridge Albert a little known fact I always wondered about but never knew.I recently was lent his personal files and got to browse through them & am overwhelmed by the magnitude of this man. These 2 military photos are taken from those files & give a little glimpse into his life before policing Collier County. I guess what sticks out in my mind would be him at the Swamp Buggy races in his sheriff's shirt, blue jeans & cowboy boots. Not to mention him starting the races by firing his pistol (loaded with live rounds) in the air. If I didn't know better I would have to say that its all some kind of weird dream. In this day & age it really doesn't seem like it could have ever happened...
Also in these photo's are Doug's military dog tag.
Thanks to Doug Hendry Jr. & Golf Course Homeboy

The Sub At The Pier!

I remember going down through this rusted, floating washing machine thinking who in their right mind could spend much time in here. It was like crawling through a drain pipe in those Draino commercials. I'm thinking this must have been around 1968 but I really can't pin down the year. The city cut out the handrails & built a set of enter/exit steps that creaked & shifted with the waves. Back then it was right up there with being the "Wonderful Neighbor On The Gulf" for a day, the town was really BIG TIME now! Doug Hendry did the Timex commercial with John Cameron Swayze, we didn't need no stinkin' moonwalk, didn't care if John Lennon thought the Beatles were bigger than Jesus, we had a sub at the end of the pier! Shiver Me Timbers Matey! ARGHHH!
Reference Bored update: There were 2 subs at the pier at different times. One was the USS Marlin & the other was the USS Mackerel. Here's the Wiki link to the Mackerel which I believe is the one in the photo.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Mackerel_%28SST-1%29
Thanks Golf Course Homeboy

The Old Dock On Naples Bay

I'm shooting in the dark here because it was a little before my time but you can see the water tower down by the pier off in the distance. I'll scoot down to the shuffle board courts & try to get the dirt on this photo.

PS: This is Crayton Cove I've seen it in history books.