Barnaby and Me

by Linn Sheldon

  • Format: Softcover, 184 pages, 5 x 7.8 inches
  • Illustrations: 21 black-and-white photographs
  • ISBN: 978-1-886228-42-9
  • Price: $12.95
Description

Now in paperback . . .

One of the most beloved figures in Cleveland entertainment history, Linn Sheldon enchanted children and charmed parents for decades as Barnaby, the master storyteller, Now he shares his own extraordinary life story. From a Dickensian childhood in Norwalk, Ohio, to Hollywood and back, Sheldon's odyssey includes a pioneering role in television, celebrity, personal tragedy and self-destruction, recovery, and reflection. A remarkable mix of melancholy, hilarity, irony, and warmth.

Book Excerpt:
Let's take a long look at Cleveland as I knew it when I began my career in earnest.

The city also became a launching pad for a number of successful orchestras— Guy Lombardo and Sammy Kaye, to mention two. That's because at the time, when radio was still king, Cleveland had a 50,000-watt radio station, WTAM, and the networks asked all 50,000-watters to program two to three hours of network feed from their call letters. Thus quality orchestras would come to Cleveland just to get on the radio in order to sell themselves to other cities throughout the country.

There were nightclubs up and down Euclid Avenue and on side streets from downtown to East 107th Street. I had some favorites: the Cabin Club, which had Redd Foxx as emcee and great bands and a lot of dancing; Lindsey's Sky Bar, and Chin's Chinese, both of which featured such legendary jazz pianists as Art Tatum and Fats Waller, and boogie-woogie masters Meade Lux Lewis and Albert Ammons. Moe's Main Street offered the song stylings of Tony Benedetto, whom you know as Tony Bennett, and later Johnnie Raye, who wept his way through “ The Little White Cloud That Cried.” Dean Martin was singing at the Hollenden Hotel.

Borselino's Restaurant also booked nightclub acts, and I worked there with a trio called “ The Three Sons” and a short, baby-faced singing star named Bobby Breen. One night he and I went over to the Statler Hotel at East 12th and Euclid. There, a singer named Karl Brisson was holding forth with George Duffy's orchestra. Very tall, very handsome, and suaver than suave in top hat and tails, he would serenade the ladies at the tables and make them wish they . . . [ Read More Free Samples ]

Reviews
Behind Barnaby's bold-striped jacket, bow tie and straw skimmer is an autobiography with a wealth of good humor, funny adventures and enough dirty linen to dismay a less optimistic personality. — Akron Beacon Journal
One of the most beloved figures in Cleveland entertainment history. — News-Herald
He is a masterful story-teller whose turbulent and rewarding life is told in 29 stories in this fascinating memoir. — Sun Press
A revealing and hilarious look at his career, which blossomed along with TV itself. The anecdotes are endless. — Sun Press
An entertaining account of one of the more significant and enduring Northern Ohio TV pioneers. — Northern Ohio Live
One of Cleveland's most beloved children's television stars. — Plain Dealer Sunday Magazine
Linn Sheldon has no peer as a story-teller. Accordingly, “Barnaby and Me” is anything but a traditional biography. Rather, it is a series of true stories told by a master, and from those stories emerges a compelling portrait of a very complex and very, very funny man . . . Sheldon's stories and insights about early television and the people who pioneered the medium are as delightful as they are unique. — Star Beacon
About Linn Sheldon
Linn Sheldon

Linn Sheldon was a pioneer in the early days of television and a groundbreaking children's television host. His character Barnaby was a fixture on Cleveland television for decades. He has won many awards for programming, including two Emmy awards. More About Linn Sheldon

Contains References to:

Actor Memoirs, Alcoholism, Barnaby, Children's Television, Cleveland Actors, Cleveland Entertainers, Cleveland Media, Elves, Enchanted Forest, Linn Sheldon, Local Storytellers, Norwalk, Ohio, Show business, William Saroyan, WKYC TV,

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