Jo Anne Darcy with Buddy Ebsen
Film Location 1971
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Jo Anne Darcy with actor Buddy Ebsen in 1971. Appears to be a film location shoot, probably on the west side of Crown Valley Road in Acton — but we don't know that; no written information accompanies this 8x10 matte print other than a personalized autograph from Ebsen taped to the back, and the year (below). At the time, Jo Anne and husband Curtis Darcy owned and operated Acton's '49er Saloon (1968-1974). The ninth and final season of the Ebsen vehicle, "The Beverly Hillbillies," had already wrapped production by this time. There are a couple of distinct possiblities: "Gunsmoke" Season 17 Episode 11 ("Drago"), which aired November 22, 1971, on CBS; or "Bonanza" Season 13 Episode 17 ("The Saddle Stiff"), which aired January 16, 1972, on NBC. The Darcys would leave Acton and move to the Emblem tract in Saugus. Jo Anne (1931-2017) managed the Newhall-Saugus-Valencia (later SCV) Chamber of Commerce, then served as senior field deputy to Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich and co-founded the Newhall Walk of Western Stars in 1981. She went on to serve as a founding City Council member and 4-time mayor of the City of Santa Clarita. Ebsen (1908-2003) never made it into the Walk.
JD7105: Original photograph donated by daughter Joleen Darcy in 2018 to the Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society. Photo file.
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