Beyond the Byline: LCAEHOF inaugural class is impressive

Two weeks ago, the Luzerne County Arts and Entertainment Hall of Fame announced its inaugural class of 2023.

And what a class it is.

The inductees will be honored Oct. 14, at a dinner at Mohegan Pennsylvania.

I have served on the LCAEHOF Organizing Committee since Day 1, with Joe Nardone Sr., Gallery of Sound; Lindsay Griffin-Boylan, president/CEO Greater Wyoming Valley Chamber; Tony Brooks, Wilkes-Barre City Council/Wilkes-Barre Preservation Society; Mayor George Brown, Wilkes-Barre City; Constance Wynn, RACETeam — Rediscovering Ancestry Through Culture and Education; Alan K. Stout, Visit Luzerne County; and Jody Busch, musician/recording engineer.

I can’t say enough about this group of dedicated volunteers who really answered the bell when we set about choosing our first class.

The inaugural inductees are:

Arts category:

• Adrian Pearsall, architect and furniture designer — designed hundreds of distinctive furniture designs between 1952 and the mid 1970s. His furniture was the epitome of classic American mid-century modern design.

• Barbara Weisberger, founder of the Pennsylvania Ballet — founder of the Pennsylvania Ballet in 1961. She was George Balanchine’s protégé and his first American student as a child.

• C. Edgar Patience, coal artist — took the ordinary piece of coal and sculpted it into something extraordinary. The anthracite sculptor, who lived from 1906-1972, crafted works which were given as gifts to U.S. presidents and displayed in museums.

• George Catlin, Native American painter — was born near Public Square in 1796. The world famous Native American painter is the first American to have a large scale exhibition at the Louvre in Paris. His collection is now at the Smithsonian.

• Hammond Edward “Ham” Fisher, comic strip writer and cartoonist — was an American comic strip writer and cartoonist born in Wilkes-Barre in 1900. He is best known for the popular newspaper comic strip, Joe Palooka.

• Sue Hand, artist — is best known for her artworks in watercolor and her hexagon-shaped historical illustrations of mining, “The Anthracite Miners and Their Hollowed Ground.” Hand is the founder of the national miniature art organization, Cider Painters of America.

• Jack Palance, actor — was an American actor known for playing tough guys and villains. Born in Hazleton in 1919. He was nominated for three Academy Awards and won an Oscar for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for City Slickers.

• Santo Loquasto, production and costume designer for stage, film and dance — is a Tony-award winning production designer, scenic designer, and costume designer for stage, film, and dance. He was born in Wilkes-Barre in 1944.

Entertainment category

• Lee Vincent — formed the Lee Vincent Orchestra after returning from World War II and rose to prominence shortly after playing locally and nationally. In February 1951, he and several other jazz groups preformed in downtown Wilkes-Barre began what would become the Newport Jazz Festival.

• Joe Nardone & The All Stars — As the leader of Joe Nardone & The All-Stars, he has entertained thousands of people throughout Northeastern Pennsylvania. The concert promoter and founder of the Gallery of Sound record stores, will be joined by the core members of Joe Nardone & The All-Stars.

• Mel Wynn & the Rhythm Aces — perhaps the most impactful band on the local music scene in the 1960s and 1970s. Melvin Samuel Wynn, the front man for the Rhythm Aces, was known for his electrifying on-stage presence. But what they were truly best known for was the integration of local dances. Most dances up till the 1950s were segregated. But that was one large step that the band took together and weathered the storm.

• Eddie Day Pashinski — has dedicated much of his life to music. He spent 35 years as a music instructor at the Greater Nanticoke Area School District. He was the band leader of the highly successful regional acts, Eddie Day & TNT and Eddie Day & The Starfires.

• Jimmy Harnen — a native of Plymouth and, with the song “Where Are you Now,” he is the only artist from Luzerne County to score a Top-10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. Harnen began a successful career in the music business and held positions at DreamWorks Records, Capitol Records, Republic Nashville and is currently the president/CEO of BMLG Records.

• Breaking Benjamin — This explosive modern-rock band has sold over 19 million albums in the United States and have earned three platinum albums and two gold albums. They are the only band with roots in Luzerne County to have an album hit No. 1 on the Billboard album chart.

• Bobby Baird — took his first trumpet lesson 88 years ago and his career has spanned nine decades. The well-known area entertainer — best known for Bobby Baird and the Dixieland Band — his career is filled with memories of Julius La Rosa, Arthur Fiedler, Harry Truman, Ed Sullivan, Esther Williams, Harry James, Louis Armstrong, Al Hirt, Peggy Lee, Rosemary Clooney and countless others.

• Brunon Kryger/The Kryger Brothers — played polka music from 1937 until 1996 locally and nationally. They were inducted into the International Polka Association Hall of Fame and had both records and radio and TV shows locally.

• The Buoys — one of the first acts from Luzerne County to land a national recording contract and have national success. Known for their impeccable harmonies, the band signed with Scepter Records in 1971 and scored a Top 20 hit with the song “Timothy.”

• The Badlees — this critically-acclaimed roots-rock band was signed to two national recording contracts and scored national hits with the songs “Angeline Is Coming Home” and “Fear of Falling.” They have released nine full-length studio albums and three EPs.