Past Tense: Feb. 23, 2017

65 years ago – 1952

Townsfolk were invited to a premiere showing of “Ballad of Idyllwild,” a movie made on the campus of ISOMATA (now Idyllwild Arts Academy). Marais and Miranda were the authors, and Meredith Willson contributed to the theme song.

60 years ago – 1957

Diane Hunt, daughter of the Errol Hunts, and Tim Matthews, son of the Jim Matthews, were married Feb. 3 in the Idyllwild Community Church.

55 years ago – 1962

Dr. Earl Herald, director of the Steinhardt Aquarium in San Francisco and editor of the TV series “Science in Action,” was in town to offer an illustrated program on marine fish of the Pacific Coast.

50 years ago – 1967

County supervisors directed the road department to continue studies of widening Circle Drive. Idyllwild groups requested that it be widened to 50 feet.

45 years ago – 1972

Assigned to write an article about Idyllwild’s “charming” squirrels, reporter Gary Squier complied but put the facts in line: “I don’t think the little beasts are charming at all, but only noisy and stupid.”

• • •

Town Crier found there were more than 25 formally organized groups in the community, justifying Idyllwild’s nickname “the meeting town.”

40 years ago – 1977

Clarence Bischof, a pioneer lumberman in Idyllwild, passed away in San Diego.

30 years ago – 1987

Lloyd Wood, Idyllwild’s postmaster for 22 years, officially retired. His replacement was Jim Cretes, postmaster for 3 ½ years in Temecula and a 28-year veteran of the Postal Service.

20 years ago – 1997

Idyllwild was among the many areas in Southern California where stargazers could look in awe at Comet Hale-Bopp. The comet was expected to outshine Hyakutake Comet of 1996, Halley’s Comet of 1985 and Comet West of 1976.

15 years ago – 2002

George Covington -— the founder of WNKI 1610 AM, Idyllwild’s tourist and emergency information radio station — died after battling a number of illnesses.

10 years ago – 2007

Jeff Smith of Pine Cove filed a formal complaint with the State Water Resources Control Board over whether Idyllwild Water District had the right to use water from Strawberry Creek.

5 years ago – 2012

The HELP Center received a grant from Riverside County to aid clients’ children to participate in Town Hall Recreation programs.

1 year ago – 2016

More than 100 Idyllwild Arts alumni, from graduating years 1987 through 2015,  returned to campus for a reunion weekend honoring Marshall Hawkins.