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THE 1990'S
| 1990 - With
great enthusiasm and energy, the presidency was assumed by Dave
Doheny. Our new Officer Installation was held at the Enlisted Club
on Corry Field. The drinks and food were excellent and at a good
price. The 1990 show theme was a virtual repeat of the 1977 show
and was a tribute to Irving Berlin. With much doubt and many extra
rehearsals it came together and with The Stacked Deck, we did an
afternoon and evening performance at the J.C. Noonan Center, and
although we were robbed of the Saenger theater, our profits were
more than in 1989. Hopefully, we learned several lessons from this
experience.
1991 - his year started off with a bang but ended on a very sad
note by the death of our beloved director, Dr. Oliver Leonard, on
December 24th, losing his battle with cancer. The very capable
Carter Combs graciously accepted the difficult position of filling
Doc Leonard's large shoes. The chorus moved on, though, and Dave
Doheny agreed to take the helm again and we were lucky to have
him. Fiesta Follies '91 was performed in the Jane C. Noonan
Center at the First Presbyterian Church in downtown Pensacola. The
chorus was still under the direction of Dr. Oliver Leonard with
assistance of Carter Combs and Bob Kean. The performing quartets,
Chord Commanders, Midnight Cavaliers from Fort Walton Beach, and
our special guest quartet, Basin Street from New Orleans, did a
great job and it was a very nice show.
1992 - Bill Gwaltney snatched the presidency from Dave Doheny,
and proved to be a very effective leader of our chorus by making
some long-needed changes. The Fiesta Follies for 1992 was Hooray
for Hollywood and was performed at Pensacola High School.
Our guest quartet this year was none other than FRED
from the Big Chicken Chorus in Marietta,Georgia, one of the
all-time funniest and extremely talented quartets -- they had the
audience roaring. In addition to FRED, we also had performances by
the Chord Commanders, Escambia High School Escambians, and
Lagniappe Quartet from Pensacola.
1993 - Our annual show for 1993 was Phantom
of the Barbershop and, yes, it had the same driving bass as
in its Broadway production namesake. Bill "SOB" Gwaltney
(SOB stands for Sweet Ol' Bill) served his second term as our
chapter president and Carter Combs was still doing a fine job as
the chorus director. The show was put on at the Saenger
Theater. In addition to our local quartets, the Chord Commanders
and Phase IV, we also had the Pensacola Sound (local Sweet Adeline
Chorus), Echoes Menu from Woodham High School, and our guest
quartet from Atlanta, Georgia, Talk of the South (1992 Dixie
District Quartet Champions).
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AN INSIDE STRAIGHT
Left-to-right: Chet Chambers
(tenor), Bob Whitcomb (lead), Jerry Merrill (bass), and Jack Harron
(baritone)
An Inside Straight began with its present singers in
January 2002. The quartet continuously strives to improve its singing.
To that end, they all attended Harmony College in 2002 for a solid week
of quartet coaching. They also attended the Sunshine District's Sizzle
twice for coaching. The quartet competed in the Sunshine District's
Senior Quartet Competition in the fall of 2003, finishing tenth. They
intend to compete again in the fall of 2004.
An Inside Straight lost their beloved bass,
Jerry Merrill, November, 2006, after a long battle with cancer. He was
replaced by a long-standing member of the chorus, Ralph Fisk
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THE CHORDSMAN
Left-to-right:: Dave Doheny
(tenor), Jim Lemke (lead), Bill Gwaltney (baritone), Stan Biggs (bass)
he Chordsmen were a popular quartet who sang together
from 1998 until 2003. They performed for any occasion, plus they sang
the National Anthem regularly for the Pensacola Ice Pilots hockey team
and Pensacola
Pelicans baseball team. They also performed regularly at the annual
Pensacola Senior Follies and Pensacola Beach Optimists Club fund raiser. |
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THE PANDHANDLERS
Left-to-right: Bill Flynn (lead),
Cass Phillips (tenor), Jeb Stewart (bass), and Bob Kean (baritone)
The members of the Panhandlers all sung with numerous
other quartets, some of which have won and almost won district
championships both in the Sunshine (Florida) and Dixie districts. The
Panhandlers won the 1999 Sunshine District Senior Quartet Championship
but were unsuccessful in their bid for the International Senior Quartet
title in Biloxi, Mississippi. |
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