Saturday, September 29, 2007

Clyde Arlon Benedict - Tom's Son

Clyde Arlon Benedict
B. January 5, 1905
D. January, 1962
Burial: Cottom Cemetery, Denmark, Illinois

Brothers Clyde, Gene, and Harley relocated to the Quad City area. Clyde had been a painter, and it was said he had painted the large 3-D heads of two cows - one of them being Elsie the Borden Cow - sticking out from a large billboard atop the drugstore that had been at 18th Avenue and 38th Street, Rock Island. Every time we'd go past the sign (which was there for many, many years), I would think about Uncle Clyde, and if my mother, Elsie, was with me, she'd make a joke about her having the same name as the cow.

I remember Clyde visiting our family in the early 1950's, when we lived in the Arsenal Courts. One night he came for supper, and when supper was ready, my mom and dad and Clyde went looking everywhere, but couldn't find me. Turns out I had decided to take a nap, and was fast asleep upstairs, as the adults were outside, searching everywhere. I also remember riding to various places in Clyde's black sedan. The seats were woolly and scratchy. I remember one trip out to see my cousin Tommy and his mom and Dad, Gene and Helen, somewhere near Geneseo?

Tommy remembers Clyde coming out to eat Sunday dinners and also to watch the Friday night fights on tv.

I also remember going, at about the age of 6 or 7, with my dad, Harley, and Clyde way out in the country to a dog race. At the end of the race, when we got in the car to go home, I remember Clyde saying that he had lost $100, and I was horrified when Clyde started his car to go home. I wondered why on earth didn't we all get out of the car and go and find the money?