There is so much to tell of my awesomely wonderful time at Festival of the West...

I... arrived at the steakhouse in good spirits and good keeping with the party. There must have been 50 people (more or less, didn't count) around one long table...
The noise (music) worried me lest people be unable to carry on a conversation, but by the end of dinner it had died down somewhat. Dennis (Holmes), his mother Janie, and Robert Crawford, Jr. circled the table, greeting every person. I had an empty chair next to me and Bobby sat down in it. Extremely nice-looking man, dark skin, dark hair, dark eyes, wearing a dark brown shirt, presenting a most agreeable picture. Looks about twenty years younger than his actual age. He told me his name was properly Robert III as his grandfather was also Robert, and his son would have been Robert IV but he somehow didn't have the heart to name him Robert, he either didn't seem to know quite why or didn't really say.

He asked me what I did. I said my job is to take care of my father (also named Robert and called Bobby, Bob, and occasionally even Bill depending on the person.) He said, "What's so bad about him that he needs taking care of?"

"Well, he's had two heart attacks, three strokes, at least one angioplasty, a triple bypass, and a couple of other major operations, plus he was in a wheelchair for his bad back and legs before ever having the strokes."

"Geez, what's he doing still alive?"

"No one knows, least of all him."

Then he said the usual things people often say (but, doing what I do, I don't get tired of hearing) about the dedication of family keeping a person alive in such a state, but in such a kind and loving manner I can't describe. Obviously the most warm, caring, deep, spiritual sort of a person, a rare soul. I was really gratified by his words and manner, and told Bobby that being in the state my dad is gives him time to think about things he just didn't consider before, and I cherish and appreciate this.

We talked about Bobby not having copies of his "Laramie" performances, and he said, "I don't think I did all that much on the show."

I said, "Oh, but don't you remember that episode 'Ride the Wild Wind' where you were the main character?"

"Not really."

And I'm thinking, nice guy, this, but maybe he partied just a little too much in the sixties.

"It was the one" (I know, properly "one of the two") "with Ernest Borgnine in it. You do remember him, don't you?"

"Oh, yes, I remember him quite well!"

And I think, HE'S all right!

As far as Bobby not having total recall, he seems to embrace living very much in the moment and is really blessed by this although cherishing the past. He told some of us at his table that he'll see a picture of one of his own kids as a baby and want to reach into the picture and pick up this baby, at the same time being unable to exactly recall what that baby was like. They way he said it was simply the sweetest thing, sorry I can't adequately describe! He just charmed us all silly. He mentioned his wonderful family quite a bit.

He told someone who asked about his outfit, "I call this my brother's hat" and something else of his brother's. You never heard a guy brag so much about his brother and we did talk a bit at his table about some of Johnny's work. In particular, I told Bobby how the first thing we ever watched on our own TV, when we got one that worked, was "The Rifleman".
He asked if I remembered what episode and I said not hardly, but I never lot the image of that rifle blazing. I remember being told of how we had to go to the neighbors' to watch President Kennedy's funeral as we didn't have a TV, and all the excitement of going to the neighbors' when "The Wizard of Oz" was on, and getting our own TV was such a defining moment. It was weird talking to the brother of someone who was part of such a big moment in my life, I mean, these people become such a part of your life but you don't really believe you'll ever get to meet or share with them even if from time to time you may think of it.

Although I wouldn't characterize Bobby as being the least hesitant to share details about his life, and truly appreciate some of the personal information he shared with us, neither is he necessarily overly forthcoming in just delivering information--he is capable of talking quite a lot, very smoothly and at some length, but not necessarily about himself. This reporter doing a story was really having trouble getting whatever it was she wanted out of him. She said she'd spent days researching and found precious little on Bobby, then when talking to him it seemed everything was "my brother this" and "my brother that." Like "my brother has a website, a MySpace page," or whatever it was, and the reporter asked, "And are you going to get those things?"
"No."
And the reporter and I just looked at each other like, "What are you gonna do?"

Bobby certainly didn't give me this big "Hi, Cori" on seeing me each time like Dennis. He just sort of stood there and glowed. I swear, except when signing or answering questions, he simply STOOD AND SMILED for THREE DAYS, nothing the least forced about it, just the most natural, charming, delightful smile. (I know what it was like because truth to tell I haven't stopped smiling yet.) I was truly touched by meeting such a sincere, warm, wonderful person!

~ Cornelia Shields

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