♪ ♪ welcome to the city of monrovia! we are delighted to have you join us in celebrating our centennial. today, we are featuring the parade. which, since 1914, the monrovia day association has annually presented. the parade theme this year is: looking back, moving forward. on our way to the parade, we will be able to see part of the city. monrovia is the fourth oldest city in los angeles county, and was named after william monroe,
who was instrumental in founding our city. today, 100 years later, our beautiful city, nestled in the foothills, has grown. as we can see in this breathtaking view. still, we have retained the good basic values intrinsic in an american home town. we've preserved our history as well as meeting modern day needs. monrovia boasts beautiful parks. this one housing the public library set in peaceful surroundings. nearby is the community center providing activities for all ages. as we continue on, we will go to the city hall and meet some representatives of monrovia.
a great and glorious good morning to all of you! i'm mayor paul stuart. it is with a sense of justifiable pride, or more than justifiable pride, that i extend a warm welcome to everyone who is participating in today's centennial celebration of monrovia. truly, the gem city of the foothills. i feel uniquely honored in being mayor during an historical event that occurs but once in a century. i thank you monrovia for that rare privilege. and now, it is my personal pleasure to introduce to you sandy young, the president of the monrovia chamber of commerce,
and a real sparkplug in today's festivities, who will in turn introduce to you the monrovia days queen and her court. sandy. [kiss] thank you paul. on behalf of the monrovia chamber of commerce, i to would like to welcome you to monrovia days 1986. what an exciting time to be involved in such a marvelous and pride filled community. i would like to introduce to you now, monrovia days centennial queen, cheri doolittle. cheri. thank you.
we're very happy to be here today, my court and i, and i'd like to introduce you to them. we have terrena perin, jennifer gwynn, christina sumrall and julie cross. and we're looking forward to seeing you at the parade today. hello. my name is carole trump and i am the president of the monrovia day association. since 1914, our association has been celebrating our cities birthday with a parade. mary wilcox tell us, in her book "the history of (the) monrovia day parades", that there were some dark years. but this was an exception, not a rule.
in july of this past year, i appointed pat nobrega as my parade chairman, and she immediately formed a committee, and we began our work. to do a parade is-is a tremendous project much bigger than the project that we had begun to undertake. our association adopted the centennial theme of "looking back and moving forward", and this is where we began. we looked back over our rich heritage of parades and we chose the best from them.
and then, moving forward, we wanted new and innovative ideas. and this is where a wonderful gentleman became such a good friend to us this year. mr. bill wallach has been with the tournament of roses for over 20 years, and he has traveled across our country helping other cities put on parades. he sat down, he listed to us. he answered our hundreds of questions and he opened doors and ideas that we had not yet known were possible to us.
we met red ladner of the horseless carriage club and don jensen from the model a club. bob trepanier and ted bowers, who are collectors of antique vehicles. we then went out in search of a float company which would bring to our city a new idea, that of the professional float. and in doing so, we found the green float company and made two very good friends in john and wendy hart, who have carried on their family business for a number of years. we went to azusa, to the american decorating company, and there cheryl brown
gave us an excellent overview of banners and bringing our parade together with signage. and, oh here in monrovia, how could we ever thank the city, the many departments of our city which have helped us. businesses, organizations. two organizations, which for the past several years, have helped us when it comes time to put that parade down the street. the wildcat band booster club and the monrovia arts festival association. on behalf on the monrovia day association, and her devoted parade committee,
pat nobrega, rick and sue marks, joyce gunnarson and darlyne west. i have the honor of presenting our gift to you monrovia. i present it with great pride and much love. happy birthday monrovia! enjoy your parade. i'm dran may. i'm randy henderson and i'm todd bills. we will be announcing the show this morning and tell you a little about each one of the events as they appear. [todd] in the background you can hear our(trumpets blare)
our specialty entrant the herald trumpets. leading, leading the parade down the street. [randy] kenny wilson and amy bourgeous. ron towles. [dran] the herald trumpets are very symbolic of official tournaments. uh, you usually hear these as uh, proclamation that the parade has begun. so, this is very apropos. [todd] lets watch them as they, as they come down the street. as you said, this is the beginning of the parade. you haven't missed anything. we're just starting. we just stepped off. it's officially 10:01. am. monrovia day 1986.
[randy] and what a beautiful day it is here in monrovia, gem city of the foothills. [todd] we love it! [randy] 100 years old. [dran] it should be interesting to note the name gem city. often times we wonder where that name comes from, but in 1910 they had found gold nuggets up at the sawpit canyons and there was no spectacular, uh, gold rush at that time, but, nevertheless that's one of the reasons we got our name. (trumpet fanfare blares) [randy] lets take a moment to listen to this beautiful sounds of the herald trumpets.
(trumpets continue) [dran] the trumpets are, uh, unusually a little bit longer than the normal trumpet. it gives them a deeper, rich tone. [todd] anybody? excuse me. kenny wilson, amy bourgeous, and ron towles. [dran] beautiful! [todd] next along in the parade is our official official opening banner, "welcome to the monrovia day parade."
[dran] the very first parade, the earliest account, was in about 1912 when they had their first parade and there weren't too many people on foot it was usually with a horse and buggy. ah, speaking of horses. [laughing] [todd] the first equestrian unit is a color guard unit. the norco mounted police women's auxiliary. [dran] and we have jean hoffman, kim keller, jan bost, heddy mcharg; they're riding. [randy] carrying the american flag, the state of california, city of norco, and their organization flag. [todd] our next entrant is a novelty. a horse with surrey.
carrying mayor paul stuart and his wife, betty. just wonder... one of the several wonderful entries provided by bob lowe from his many varied collections. [randy] a surrey is a light, four-wheeled, two-seated carriage with or without a top seating four persons. the name surrey comes from a town in england. [todd] our first float, "on track for the next hundred years", carrying the monrovia city council.
john nobrega, mary wilcox, bill card, bob bartlett. presented by the city of monrovia, green float builders. [dran] here we have the antique vehicle, um, holding dignitary, monrovia dignitaries. hello there! student body. this is the 1917 general english bus and [inaudible]. [todd] on board was asb president lance jergensen, city manager jim starbird, phyllis mccarthy, don hopper, john lustig, lou bernabo, and the police chief bill tugs. [randy] coming along in the background is our own monrovia high school marching wildcat band.
this years host band. 70 members strong in this prestigious sweepstake award winner. [todd] over the past seven years, the marching wildcats have won more than 100 awards: including seven sweeptakes awards and 25 first place. [dran] you should see their outfits. these are absolutely gorgeous. green and white. the colors of monrovia. um, it should be interesting to note that the first high school was established in 1893, and it was three rooms with 27 students. [randy] but beautfil precision drill work.
[todd] i think we can all be proud of the young [inaudible] community that turned out for this performance. [randy] in 1913, the principal's paid 1,800 dollars a year. [dran] he resigned. he couldn't take the... [laughter] so we've come a long way. [randy] wonderful sound. [dran] just listen to them. it's beautiful. even the outfits, with the gold trimming. beautful at the pace. [dran] we have, ah, coming up, um... a float.
which is the replica of the public transportation, ah, in 1887 in monrovia. the mules pulled the vehicle up myrtle avenue, then rode it going downhill. so they got a little momentum going. [chuckle] [todd] just took a little hay, huh? [todd] following in a horse drawn carriage is our monrovia centennial committee advisory council. they're representing some of the long-term people that have been in town. [randy] betty sandford, chairperson. joan bonholtzer. linda proctor.
lillian burke, pat myers, nancy brown. joe ragsdale. cordie ennis, kathie reece. cara... sarah rochelle stanford smith [todd] on the, uh, horse-drawn carriage are: mattie bouler, maebelle denslow, bill brooks, eldora polk, pat and pete ostrye. ah, mr. ostrye just completed, ah, centennial, monrovia centennial review. detailing a hundred years of monrovia history.
[dran] right now we have the percheron horses. todd? [todd] [inaudible] percheron horses are drawn... [dran] look at those horses! [todd] drawn vintage wagon. know as some of the largest draft horses in the world. [randy] they are beautful. they are beautiful. [todd] cheering the drill team is ann sunder. first lieutenant is michelle huddleston. [dran] ah, the precision of these exercises, and drills, that these young people have to do, is amazing! takes hours and hours of practice.
the drum core provides the beat with which they perform their exercises. [randy] lets take a pause and listen to this music. [drum chorus] [randy] alright leonard. [randy] our next item is a novelty item. [dran] right. this is the wells fargo. [randy] yeah [todd] ok, i'll take it down to doug murphy.
[randy] we'll synchronize this. [dran] ok. [randy] be wonderful. [todd] yeah! [randy] oh, what a wonderful entry! [todd] and now, ah, we have a novelty. a stage coach, representing wells fargo bank, driven by doug murphy. [dran] inside the coach we have sandy young, president of the monrovia chamber of commerce, with her husband bob and their children marcus and katrina. [randy] the big red coach was a familiar sight in the old west. they carried gold, mail, and supplies. got everyone where they needed to go.
wells fargo's historic coaches have represented california in two presidential inauguration parades. antique car. [todd] our next entry is an antique car. 1910 red overland. [randy] this beautiful car is entered by the holiday inn, which will be opening in monrovia soon. [todd] our next, ah, set of entries is really important. this is the monrovia day queen and court. the banner being carried by scouts, candi rebel and terolyn mcclain. following the banner, is the actual float carrying, the monrovia day court, entitled 'a breath of spring.'
queen, cheri doolittle; princesses, julie cross. jennifer gwynn, and terrina perrin, and christina sumerall. cheri is a student at rio hondo college majoring in law enforcement. a graduate of monrovia high school; she's the captain of the monrovia police explorer scout. daughter of monrovia police officer craig and donna doolittle. and she has a twin sister, kathy. [todd] our next entry is a big band, the city of los angeles highlander pipe band. shamus, jim coyne pipe drum major, ron mountain. [randy] this sought after band has appeared in the hollywood, beverly hills, monterey park, and other parades.
[dran] they're - they're making their first appearance in monrovia and we're happy to welcome them. lets take a little bit of time to listen to them, and watch them, as they parade in their scottish kilts. [bagpipes play] [dran] oh! that's fabulous! they have won so many things! the western usa and canadaian championships. they play traditional scotties and irish music, which we just heard. several gold medal solos. championships and also in australia and new south wales. [car horn honks]
wonderful! [randy] what a beautiful 1930 model a [model a klaxon horn] [randy] that's a nice model a. [dran] that's a... [randy] that's a 1911 stevens duryea. [dran] yes and it's a monrovia board of education president sally koch and members, fred purdy, christine goudy, and martha faith and roger graziani. [todd] driver, warwick eastwood.
[randy] i think what we have coming up now is a model a. [dran] are we sure? [randy] 1930 model a roadster. what a beautiful. superintendent of monrovia schools, don montgomery and his wife joan. [dran chuckles] [randy] jon - don has given years of dedication to the monrovia school district. [dran] check out that, check out the roadster! the rumble seat! [randy] it's beautiful. [dran] yeah!
it's a two people compartment for luggage. [randy] i think we need to congratulate don for appointment to superintendant. [todd] yes, i think we ought to. [randy] here we have a specialty, the vfw post 2070 led by ed hart. [todd] coming down the street, the next specialty entry represents monrovia youth baseball league. [dran] it's celebrating it's 30th year. this marching unit consists of youth between the ages of 8 to 12 years of age. [randy] mustang and bronco league. between... oh, excuse me.
mustang and bronco leagues with board members. boys are proud of new uniforms, representing major league teams, and thank many monrovia merchants and service groups who donate money for these uniforms. and their support and advice. [dran] they're awfully cute. 8 to 12 years of age and they're already playing major league? [randy] against the giants. [dran] my, there's quite a group of them. this is all from the monrovia area and they're sponsored by their parents as well. [randy] the emblem club tigers.
[dran] and a lot of volunteers [randy] a lot of volunteer hours go into [inaudible], organization, [inaudible]. the royals. [todd] following our baseball teams is an equestrian entry. cheryl richards riding bay coy. in a restored antique sidesaddle. bay coy is a pure arabian gelding. [dran] winner of the 1985 southern california paraders association. she's won many awards and is a top contender for csha sidesaddle
for the 1985-86 year. [todd] our next entrant is an equestrian unit. the equestrian trails national queen and court. with with jr. miss and court. [randy] the queen is julie alvarez and donna macdonald is in the court with jennifer beeson, teresa bartco, miss laura schall,
with jennifer alvarez, erin willen, [dran] tracy guthrie and johnny guthrie. [todd] uh, we have a banner and float coming up. "a centennial salute" presented by bob's big boy restaurant. green floats, builder. [dran] riding on the float, and surrounding the float, are monrovia high school cheer and song leaders with mascots. [todd] we'd like to mention wendy, at green floats, for all her help in putting a lot of these floats together and coordinating the, ah, novelty entries.
[randy] bob's big boy presenting [inaudible]. this float is... [todd] and i guess it's pretty appropriate they have high schoolers and bob's big boy together. [randy] yes it is. they do a very, very good job in this community. [cheering] [todd] what spirit! [dran] it sure is! [randy] what a wonderful float! what brilliant colors!
[todd] leading the float are the mascots of the wildcats. always an integral part of any monrovia high school event. [randy] they definitely get them. fans cheering for the home team. [randy] here to monrovia high school.[dran] a very nice job! [dran] a very nice job. [todd] celebrating 50 years. [cheering continues] monrovia pride.
[randy] great teamwork. great teamwork. [todd] we can be really proud of monrovia high school. following, ah, this float is a specialty item you may know something about randy. [randy] oh, this is the monrovia yacht club. and they're an amazing group of people. amazing group of people. trying their hardest to, ah... imitate the, ah...
yacht, and... [chuckles] [dran] heeeeeey! are they drowning or what? [laughs] [randy] looks like they've run aground this year. [todd] i could say a lack of water? randy, i just want to know...[randy] it's good to see them. [dran] look at this! oh god![randy] welcome aboard! [dran] we're getting rained on![randy] sprung a leak here. [randy chuckling]
[dran] randy, i just want to know. what on earth is a yacht club doing in the middle of the mountains? [randy] well, it's really a funny thing about this yacht club. ah, they were talked about 50 years ago as a joke. and that's really the reason they were brought back again. because 50 years ago they had a joke of the monrovia yacht basin and... so, a number of people, tried their best to relive history. i don't think they really own any boats to tell you the truth.
[todd] it might be key to note that monrovia is a landlocked town. [randy] yeah, totally. [dran] i-i-if you do become a member of the yacht club, you do get one of their wonderful blue t-shirts! [randy] yes.[dran] that says... [todd] our next entry on the streets, excuse me dran, [dran] go ahead. [todd] i want to catch them, is the schurr high school marching band and drill team. with over 200 members. obviously a large band. from the city of montebello. drum major: david muro; band director: leonard narumi.
[dran] and this is a big band. so, lets take a look at this. this will be one of our biggest bands in the parade. [randy] how many... how many members is this? 2000? [dran] this has a 200 members. look at this! roman togas! are their costumes. with chiffon trimmed in gold. it's beautiful! and their banners are in green, gold, and white. [band plays]
beautiful! [band continues] [randy] here we have the chief. chief's in a 1912 ford. chief tubbs of the monrovia police department. and by-the-way, we made mention earlier monrovia came to all blue uniforms from a, ah, a tan uniform, and the blue is just a wonderful, wonderful thing to have here [inaudible]. [dran] they're playing, they're playing the keystone kops. it's really interesting to note also that um, the, um.