One of the Freshman students, Harry Bybee of Virginia, whose father’s practice included some celebrities, knew this Frank Sinatra guy, who was just embarking on his amazing career.

Harry had the fraternity, Lambda Chi Beta, ask Frank to come over between shows to speak to the students. Since most of the fellows had left to enter the armed services, the rest of us students were also included (no doubt to fill up the assembly hall). Anyway, I well remember what a charming, non-assuming young man Frank was, and although I was no longer a teenie-bopper, I easily knew why all those young gals "swooned" over Frank! Before he left to go back to his gig at the theater, he invited all of us to be his guests one evening at the Circle, so about 50 of us went. At first, the ushers didn’t want to admit us because the seats were all taken, but when we agreed to stand for the performance, we saw the show!

The next day, Harry seeing my camera, asked me to take pictures of him and Sinatra one afternoon, so we walked across the street to a grassy spot near a little church, and they posed for pictures. Then, Frank said I should also have my picture taken, so I walked over next to him -- and he put his arm around me, and Harry snapped the picture.

I had written a popular-type song, called Love Walked By (I still have it) and I asked Harry to show it to Frank or Tommy for their comments. A day or two later, as I walked home from school past a small tavern, I heard Harry call me in, and there sat Harry, Frank and some of their friends at a table in the darkened pub. Having been raised in a puritan atmosphere, I was quite uncomfortable in the tavern. Frank handed me the music and said thanks-but-no-thanks and invited me to have a drink with them. But, I refused. Grabbing my sheet music, I hurried home. Imagine! Turning down a chance to visit and have a drink with Frank Sinatra!

End of story. Well, not quite.

About 20 years later, after George had returned from his duty overseas, we had graduated with degrees in Chiropractic, had married, and started raising our family. I’d heard that Frank Sinatra, Jr. would appear at the Prange Department Store in downtown Appleton, -- perhaps at a book-signing promotion, -- so I took little Gracie and the pictures to meet him. The line was long, and when it was our turn to greet him, he looked at my pictures and exclaimed, "My goodness, that’s my Dad!" So I prevailed upon him to let me take a picture of him with Grace, and he graciously agreed. I had some kind of trouble with my new, awkward, precision Polaroid camera, and I don’t think the pictures turned out as good.