Katherine Dale Plank, BHS '58 (1940-2025)

 

Katherine "Kathy:" Leslie Dale Plank

July 1, 1940 - January 14, 2025

Parents: Wilbur and Esther Carlson Dale

Siblings: Jennifer Dale Schatz BHS '66 and Chris Dale BHS '64 (1946 - 2022) 

FIND A GRAVE Link

 

Jennifer Dale Schatz posted this sad note today...

 

As many of you already know, my sister Kathy passed away January 14. She touched so many lives and we all miss her so. She was my dear, big sis…one I can’t replace.

Carolyn Jones Ruliffson, BHS '40 (1922-2008)

 

Carolyn Shillingford Jones Ruliffson

September 11, 1922 – August 29, 2008 

Carolyn was married to Don Ruliffson and they had daughters, Carroll and Beverly. All attended Burbank High. 

Click here to read about Mr Ruliffson, BHS '40 (1922-1966).

Click here to read about Beverly Jean Ruliffson Jensen, BHS '71 (1952-2010).

Gloria Jean Hendrickson Schwindler, BHS '58 (1940-2021)

Gloria Jean Schwindler 

1940 - 2021 

A loving wife, mother and sister - Gloria passed away peacefully at her home in Newhall on Tuesday, May 4, 2021 after a ten year battle with cancer. Her husband, John was at her side holding her while saying the Rosary when he passed her on to Our Lord. 

Gloria was born in Crosby, Minnesota on July 30, 1940 to Daisy Jean and Edward Hendrickson. She was a toddler when they moved to the Los Angeles area. As a young lady she was student in residence at Villa Cabrini Academy in Burbank later graduating from Burbank High School. 

Her working career included Denny's in Santa Clarita, then she was a medical receptionist and office manager in Encino for Dr. Weiner and then she was as an appointment agent for the medical firm SCOI (Southern California Orthopedic Institute). 

Gloria was an avid pet lover to two Chow Chows, brother and sister, Teddy Bear and Lady Bear. . Her great love was for Teddy Bear (Lady Bear also). It was a mutual, beautiful relationship. Gloria referred to them as "Our Chowdren". 

Gloria was a devout Catholic and a parishioner of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church where her children went to school. She was a proud member of the highly respected ladies group known as "The Tea Bags" who are active in social and fund raising activities for the church and local needy organizations. Gloria's favorite charity was St. Jude Hospital. 

Gloria is survived by her Loving husband, John, her son, Mark King Riley and her daughter-in-law, Alexandra of Castaic. She was preceded in death by her daughter, Susan Maureen Riley, her three sisters, Violet, Jessie and Frannie as well as her good friends, Mary Becker and Betty Moeller and her within the last six months, her beloved Chow Chows. 

The Rosary and services will be held on Saturday, June 5, 2021 at 10:00 AM at Our Lady Of Perpetual Health Catholic Church, 23223 Lyons Avenue, Newhall, CA 91321. 

John and the family request that you keep Gloria in your prayers. Thank you… 

Published in The Santa Clarita Valley Signal from May 21 to Jun. 18, 2021.

Jim Cummings, BHS '60 (1942-2020)

                                 

 

James Collier Cummings 

May 2, 1942 - December 7, 2020

Please keep Jim's family in your thoughts and prayers. 

RIP Jim.

We just learned yesterday that James C. Cummings BHS '60, passed away on December 7, 2020 after dealing with several health issues. Jim's parents owned Cummings Shoe Store on San Fernando Road in uptown Burbank for many years. Jim was the brother of Mike Cummings BHS '64 and Ann Cummings Voelkel BHS '56. 

We send our sincere condolences to Jim's family... 

Pam and Jon Kirkwood

Lon Simmons, BHS 1940 (1923-2015)

Our condolences to the family and friends of Lon Simmons. He certainly had a wonderful career!

Bay Area’s Preeminent Broadcaster, Lon Simmons, Passes Away

Posted by Tim Livingston on Apr 6, 2015 16:21

Lon Simmons, the man with the seminal voice that created one of baseball’s greatest broadcasting duos with Russ Hodges and went on to serve as one of the San Francisco Bay Area’s preeminent broadcasters for the better part of four decades, passed away on Sunday at the age of 91.

Born in Vancouver, Washington on July 19, 1923, Simmons served in the U.S. Coast Guard during World War II after achieving great success as a pitcher at Burbank High School and later on at Glendale College in Southern California. He served his country en lieu of a scholarship opportunity given to him by USC during World War II. When he returned from active duty, he signed with the Philadelphia Phillies and pitched in their minor league system in 1947, but injured himself only a few games into his pro career and decided to call it quits.

He then turned to radio a few years later, and his new career started in Elko, Nevada in 1952, working for the city’s public station, KNPR. He would move down to Fresno, California in 1954 and broadcast for Fresno State University, a time where he announced basketball games when a young guard named Jerry Tarkanian played for the team.

After three years in Fresno, he went to broadcast for KSFO in San Francisco in 1957 and became a color commentator for the 49ers, beginning one of the most memorable stints for any broadcaster to ever come through the San Francisco Bay Area. When the Giants arrived in 1958, Lon Simmons took the helm as the team’s play-by-play broadcaster and formed an incredible team with fellow Hall of Famer Russ Hodges, who had followed the team in the move from New York.

For the next 14 years, the two men painted beautiful audio tapestries during a prosperous time for the Giants, as Simmons’ own illustrious career began to peak with the ascension of Willie Mays and Willie McCovey to Hall of Fame status. His incredible wit and dry personality fit the game perfectly, and his deep baritone became one of the most memorable voices associated with a game filled with them. Fellow Hall of Fame broadcaster Jon Miller has credited both Simmons and Hodges as the catalyst behind his desire to get into broadcasting when he grew up in the Bay Area during this time, connecting three of the greatest broadcasters baseball has ever known.

It was indeed an embarrassment of riches at this time in the young career of Simmons. Just as he was starting his pro baseball broadcasting tenure, a young man named Vin Scully had moved west with the Dodgers just like Hodges had with the Giants. Simmons’ addition gave the historic rivalry yet another historic voice to tell countless memorable stories, this time on the west coast. His famous “Tell it good-bye!” home run call still rings true amongst baseball fans, a call he crafted after Hodges’ own inimitable call, “Bye-bye, baby!”

But football ended up being where many sports fans heard some of his best work. During a 1964 49ers game against the Minnesota Vikings, San Francisco quarterback Billy Kilmer was playing wide receiver and caught a pass before fumbling it. Minnesota defensive end Jim Marshall picked up the ball and excitedly took it the distance…to the wrong endzone.
 
That would not be his only memorable call for the 49ers. After his initial 24-year stint as the radio voice of the team ended in 1980, he returned in 1987 and was the man in the booth in 1988 when Steve Young made one of the most spectacular plays in NFL playoff history:

And soon after at Super Bowl XXIII, Simmons had the radio call during the incredible game-winning drive for the 49ers that was punctuated by Joe Montana’s touchdown pass to John Taylor.

He was also the broadcaster for the U.S. Men’s Hockey team that won the gold medal at the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, an event that Simmons calls one of the proudest in his career. From an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle back in 2013:

“Aside from his achievements in baseball and football, he has a special place in his heart for the 1960 Winter Olympics at Squaw Valley. Doing a ‘pool broadcast,’ which was carried around the world, Simmons called the U.S. hockey team’s stunning defeat of the Russians and Czechs, which clinched the gold.
‘The most exciting event I ever did in my life,’ he said. ‘The tension was unbelievable. It was the first time the U.S. beat the Russians, and you never hear about it. All the talk is about the 1980 team. If I were on that ’60 team, I’d be madder than hell.’”

After over two decades working for the Giants, Simmons started doing broadcasts for the Oakland A’s in 1981, working with the legendary Bill King. In 1989, when the A’s and Giants faced each other in the World Series, King came down with laryngitis over the last two games of the series, and it was Simmons who had the mike when his new team beat his old one in a clean four game sweep.

In 1995, Simmons made the decision to step away from the broadcasting booth full time. He would return to do spot broadcasts for the Giants in 1996 and stopped broadcasting for good in 2002, returning only to visit his old haunt and add color to some broadcasts in his final years. He even threw out the first pitch on his 90th birthday at AT&T Park in 2013.



His crowning achievement came in 2004, when the Pro Baseball Hall of Fame gave Simmons its highest broadcasting honor: The Ford C. Frick Award. He became the second Giants broadcaster to be honored, following his long-time partner Hodges’ induction in 1980. He remains the only broadcaster in the history of the Oakland A’s franchise to win the award. He also was reluctant to receive the honor, as he himself said he didn’t rate with guys like Hodges, Scully or Ernie Harwell. Again from the San Francisco Chronicle, this the piece following his passing:

“He was enshrined in the broadcasters’ wing of the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2004, an honor he treasured — albeit reluctantly.
Simmons had gone so far as to quash attempts by Giants officials and the likes of Joe Morgan and Vin Scully to push his candidacy.
‘I had felt, and still feel, I don’t rate up there with people like Scully, Harwell and Russ Hodges,’ Simmons said shortly after his election. ‘People can tell you things and make statements about how you do your job, and that’s gratifying’
‘But I’d finish broadcasts and be driving home and be really upset with myself because of something I didn’t say or some mistake I made … I never thought of myself as being a polished announcer.'”

As many tend to do, media members took to Twitter to express their condolences:
Giants radio play-by-play broadcaster Dave Flemming:

"I have been thinking about Lon since hearing the news this morning. Man, we are really, really going to miss him."

Long-time San Francisco Chronicle writer and current Comcast SportsNet Bay Area contributor Ray Ratto:
"Lon Simmons is the one broadcaster nobody ever tried to imitate, for the obvious reason that it couldn’t be done."

San Jose Mercury News columnist Tim Kawakami:
"Lon Simmons calling Giants games in the '70s is maybe my clearest childhood sports memory, and some of the best ones. Such a gracious man."

Longtime Giants beat writer Andrew Baggerly:
"Lon Simmons has passed away, the Giants say. The brightness of opening day dims a bit. The game has lost an iconic voice and true gentleman."

Lon Simmons spent over 40 years of his life as one of the best broadcasters in the history of sports and will be missed dearly by fans and colleagues alike. May he rest in peace.

http://awfulannouncing.com/2015/bay-areas-pre-eminent-broadcaster-lon-simmons-passes-away.html

Lena Hobbs Peckham, BHS '40 (1921-2013)

Lena Myrl Hobbs Peckham, BHS '40

September 5, 1921 - February 12, 2013

Lena Myrl Hobbs was born September 5, 1921. As a young girl she moved with her family to Burbank. They lived at Verdugo and Glenoaks. Lena went through school in Burbank, and graduated from BHS in 1940. She later met Willard Peckham who had moved to Southern California from Wisconsin. They were married in May of 1941. They had three daughters, Linda (BHS '60), Nancy (BHS '64), and Janice (BHS '72). In the 1940's Willard became a Burbank Police Officer. In the early 1950's he changed from BPD to the Burbank Fire Department where he remained until his retirement in 1972, at the Bel Aire Station at the top of Uclan Dr. for many years before he retired. From 1952 until 1972 Lena and Willard lived at Hilton Dr. and Eton in Burbank. During her years in Burbank Lena attended the Burbank Foursquare Church, First Baptist Church of Burbank at Fairmount and Glenoaks, and lastly Calvary Bible Church at Main St. and Alameda.

In September 1972 Lena and Willard moved to Northern California to Clearlake Oaks, where they lived for the next 40 years. Their home was on Clearlake, and their back yard went down to their dock where they kept their boat. During those years they also took many trips around the country in their motorhome. This past November they moved about thirty miles to Lucerne, CA, to live next door to their youngest daughter, Janice, and her husband.

Lena Myrl Hobbs Peckham passed away at home in Lucerne, CA on Tuesday afternoon, February 12, 2013, at age 91. Her husband, daughter, and son-in-law were with her when she passed away. This May she and Willard would have had their 72nd wedding anniversary. Willard is now age 95, and remains in good health.

Lena is survived by her husband, Willard H. Peckham, daughters Linda Peckham Christian of Portland, OR, Nancy Peckham Burris of Cloverdale, CA, and Janice Peckham Jennings of Lucerne, CA, nine grandchildren, twenty-seven great-grandchildren, two half-sisters, five nieces, and one nephew. She was a sweet, sweet lady who will be missed by her large and loving family and her many friends.

Alan Landros

Louis Dominick Basso (BHS '40) 1922-1943

Memorial site for Louis' submarine
http://www.oneternalpatrol.com/basso-l-d.htm

My Uncle Louis' parents, Romano and Domania Basso, came to the US in 1902 from Gallio, Italy and went straight to Colorado where they were copper miners. Then they moved to Montana around 1920, also copper miners there. Louis was born in Montana in 1922 on March 20th. He was the youngest of 5 kids. Louis' dad is the brother to my dad's dad, also a miner.

Louis' family came to LA in the late 1920's and settled in Sun Valley, but Louis either lived with my dad's family or used their address. He attended BHS all 3 years and stated in his senior interview that he wanted to go to the Navy and be an electrician. He played 2 years of football, 2 of basketball and 1 year of track.

His surviving 2 sisters and brother told my dad and wife that Louis had his heart set on being an electrician once out of the Navy so that he could earn money and take care of his family as they worked hard to take care of him. He wanted them to be proud of him. Also, he was very close to his mother.

I was just in contact with Bruce Osgood and he just ordered Louis's plaque for the WWII wall at BHS. My dad was there for my daughter's winter choir show and noticed that Louis was not on the wall.

When Louis entered the Navy he was given a manual and on the inside of the cover he wrote a poem. Here it is:

"Our Father, who art in heaven
Hallowed be thy name.
Lead me Father, guide me
Help me play life's game.

Answer the prayers of my mother
As she prays for her son
as she thinks of him as a hero,
stout hearted, loyal and true.

Father help her daily,
as she waits for mail from me
Anxiously waiting and praying
For her son who sails the sea.

Let this always be her prayer
As I think of her back there.
Father help me be the man
My mother thinks I am.

Father help me to be clean and strong,
a man amongst men.
True to my flag and service,
For the sake of my mother
Amen"

Sadly, Louis died when his submarine, the USS Triton (SS-201), was sunk in WW2.

http://www.oneternalpatrol.com/uss-triton-201.htm

Submitted by Patti Basso Maisner (BHS class of 1975)