Remember the Kellys

Remember the Kellys 

JIM MCCALLISTER:

John B. Kelly, Jr. actually started on the Beach Patrol late in 1942, but he rode in the races in 1943 and won them. This was my first year and Kelly’s first year.

Joe Regan was a weight lifter before most people knew what weights were all about so hehad a magnificent body, and of course Kelly had been rowing since he was 6 years old so he was full of muscles. And the two of them used to pose for the girls and they worked together on the Beach Patrol. (See: Senior Studio Pictures)

John B. Jr. rowed with Sims Dran and won in ’43, then he rowed with Joe Regan in ’44 and won, and then had to go in the Navy and Joe Regan rowed in ’45 with George Weisberg and won. And also in ’46 and won. So that’s how Joe Regan got the 3 years and got the John B. Kelly Perpetual Trophy.

BILL ASHEAD:

I was a lifeguard with Jim about the same number of years that he was, I can remember when I took my test. John B. Kelly Jr. was the fellow who took myself and another fellow who were rookies or attempting to become rookies, out for our boat test. And of course John B. Jr. was a skilled oarsman at that time since his father had him on the Schuylkill since he was about 6. So, I can remember him saying to me, pull to the port, pull to the starboard, and of course I had no idea what he was talking about. And the waves were breaking over the bow, and all we had was a lot of water and the boat kept getting heavier and heavier, and I thought I would never make it. never get around the flag and never come in. And of course in those days you were timed in your test for swimming and timed in your test for boating and rescues and so forth. That was my first encounter with John B. Jr.

And one year I had the distinction of working maybe for about 3 weeks in the early part of the season at 26^th Street, and of course the Kelly family had a beautiful, beautiful home which still remains up on the bay side of 26^th and Wesley, and John B. Senior built it because he was a renowned contractor in Philadelphia. And in those day, there were hardly any homes in Ocean City past 26^th Street, and the only reason we had a lifeguard station, or patrol (there were two of us), was because Kelly insisted on having a lifeguard. And they were very nice, the family was great to the lifeguards. 

They’d bring us – Grace, who later on became Princess Grace of Monaco – she’d bring us down sandwiches and milk and sodas and anything else we wanted at the time. Who knew that she’d become famous and who knew that John B. Kelly would become that famous and so forth. Grace was probably about 16 at the time. 15 or 16.

So the Kelly family I’ve gotten to know myself personally along with Jim McCallister over the years, and we have nothing but fond memories of our association with the family. John B. Kelly, Sr. was a little aloof but that’s natural ‘cause he didn’t know us that well. But he taught his son everything he knew about rowing and of course he went over to the Diamond Skulls, the Henley and he won those and he just got nosed out in the Olympics. This is John B. Kelly, Jr., the fellow who died 2 years ago, which is still a mystery to most of us who knew him ‘cause he was in fantastic shape. Course, Lizanne and her husband still live in Ocean City, that’s Lizanne Levine and Peggy, the oldest daughter and oldest child. She was married to a good friend of mine, fellow named Gene Conlan, and Gene died the same day that John B. Kelly, Jr. died. The most bizarre thing that’s ever happened to me that I can remember is a friend of mine called me on the phone and said Jack Kelly just died. He called me an hour and half later and said Gene Conlan, who was married to Jack’s sister Peggy – they were divorced – also died the same day. She still carries the name Peggy Coonlan. She lives up near the Fairmount section in Philadelphia and I chat with her maybe once or twice a year. She’s a great gal, too.

Jack lived at a place called the Plaza. It’s changed it’s name now but it’s at 19^th or 18^th and the Parkway across from what is now the Four Seasons Hotel. And he had a penthouse up on the top floor and also Peggy Conlan’s husband, after they were divorced, Gene Conlan, he had an apartment up on the top floor, cause Gene and Jack Kelly, Jr. remained good friends.

Kelly loved to row even in his later days when he was in the late ‘50s, he would row against his son. I think they called him J.B. His son would I guess be in the early or mid-20s, maybe 25 or 26. I’m guessing. He was a tremendous competitor, John B. Jr. and he never liked to get beat. And when his son beat him, he didn’t really like that at all. And they would row many, many times on the Schuylkill, and I believe that on the day that he died, he had rowed on the Schuylkill, and of course that wasn’t good enough for him. He wanted to keep in good physical condition, and he jogged, apparently from Boathouse Row was starting to jog back to his apartment, and I guess it was just too much for him. I believe that’s where they found him, the police. I don’t know if he ever had a problem with his heart, no one seems to know that. His son was not with him at the time.

John B. Kelly, Sr. favored  his son, primarily because he’d programed him to become an Olympic and Diamond Skulls champion, which he had not been allowed to do and was prevented from doing because they said that he had been working with his hands and he was a professional. And he vowed that he was going to have an offspring of his come back someday, which he did. And John B. Kelly, Jr. did win it. Over on the Thames in England in 1948, I believe.

This was what they called the Henley Regatta, or Diamond Skull. These were shells, racing boats, like on the Schuylkill.

Kelly, Jr. of course rode for Penn Charter when all the interacademic schools and the Catholic schools had crews.

I’m not sure that Mr. Kelly, Sr. favored on daughter over another. I think that was brought out in the excerpts about Grace, that he didn’t really give her much of a boost. Now I’m not as close as some other people who are not lifeguards who could discuss this, but I don’t know that he disfavored any daughter. I just think his whole heart was set on young John.

And Grace, to my recollection, boosted herself. I remember the first movie she made. I think it was Steps or something of that sort. Grace was very, very, very pretty girl. Matter of fact, the whole Kelly family were very handsome. They had distinct Kelly features, high cheekbones, very strong jaw.

But Grace was a bit feminine in her features. Even throughout her early years in theater, she would come back and visit Ocean City. I can remember talking to her, and she was a plain, down to earth girl, same as anybody else you’d see on the beach. If you talk to the people that I knew who knew her, you have nothing but nice, kind and good words to say about the family and about her too.

Matter of fact, Peggy, the oldest daughter of the Kellys, would visit Grace out in Hollywood quite a few times, and Peggy at that time was divorced so Grace would get her lined up with some rather prominent movie star dates. And Peggy loves to tell you about that. But I wouldn’t infringe on that at this time. I don’t have a memory of Grace that was negative, it was all positive.

And Jack too, But as we say, Jack was never real close with the lifeguards as much as we were. There were about 15 of us, because he was always training for the boat races here or more importantly, the Henley Regatta and the Olympics. I believe he won the Henley in 1946. I may be wrong. There were Olympics over in England in 1948, and I believe Jack was beaten by a Frenchman in the Olympics, but he won the Henley. He might have won the Henley several years. He was a fantastic athlete – played football, boxed in the Navy, played football at Penn Charter, played baseball, basketball and of course, rowing.

They owned a beatutiful home, in East Flass up on Henry Avenue. That was the partents and that’s where the Kelly family – they liked to refer to themselves as the Kelly Clan – grew up. And John B. Jr. went to Penn Charter and Grace went to Stevens with Jim McCallister’s wife. It was a private girls high school, sort of a prep school. It was a renowned school.

CAROL MCALLISTER:

Grace and I went to Stevens School, which was an interacademic school in the Philadelphia area. And we were neighbors – she lived five doors from me on Henry Avenue. And Grace was a very pretty girl, and a beautiful runner, if you can be a beautiful runner. She was a graceful person, and a beautiful dance. I could never understand why Hollywood didn’t play up her dancing, because she was in a modern dance group at school and she was a beautiful dancer and I never saw her dance anywhere except there.

I remember she played hockey and we all had to play every sport, so whether she was on the basketball team…we did not have swimming. She was four years older than me.