The New England Life of Cartoonist Bob Montana by Carol Lee Anderson

Author:Carol Lee Anderson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
Published: 2013-03-17T16:00:00+00:00

Although their stay in Italy had a special purpose, the Montanas were excited to get back to Meredith during the summer of 1959. They returned home with a plethora of memories, and Bob returned sporting a beard. While away, he experimented with different styles of beards and moustaches, settling on the type everyone liked the most and then kept it for the rest of his life.

The Montanas’ normal summer activities were enhanced by Bob agreeing to be a judge at the 1959 Miss Winnipesaukee Contest in the Weirs. In August, some of the largest crowds ever seen in Meredith jammed the streets and waterfront of the small community for the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Meredith Village Fire District. Part of the celebration included the dedication of the new town docks in Meredith Bay. A large throng of onlookers stood along the bay awaiting the official dedication by Governor Wesley Powell. What the crowd did not know was that Bob had been planning and scheming, although those who knew him might have suspected he would find something comical in an otherwise serious situation. He and the crew of the White Eagle had already set sail straight toward the new docks by the time the crowd lined up on the shore. Bob and his fellow sailors were not there to be spectators but instead actors—actors that had a very large audience.

In a planned pre–ribbon-cutting skit, it was Peg Montana who stole the show as she made several frantic and humorous attempts to cut the ribbon prior to the actual ceremony. In doing so, she lost her balance, fell out of the boat in which she had been standing and plunged with a large splash into the waters of Meredith Bay. The crowd cheered as they showed their appreciation for the showmanship, and the Meredith News reported it as a “hilarious stunt” that got the formal festivities underway.32

One week prior to the celebration at the docks, Roberta’s sister, Olga, and a friend visited from New York City. It was their first stay in New Hampshire, and upon looking around at the open pastures, wooded hillsides and numerous lakes, they asked, “What do you find to do here?” Roberta decided that she would show them, taking the duo through the White Mountains up north, sailing around Lake Winnipesaukee on the motor ship Mt. Washington and visiting friends in town. At the end of the week, they attended the dock dedication. They left early on Monday morning, happy to be heading back to the city, this time saying that New Hampshire was no place for a peaceful vacation. Roberta simply replied, “They asked for it.”33

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