Bygone Louisville stores/restaurants (Okolona, St. Matthews: villa, company, building)

[Thomas A. Wathen Jr.]

I have a question, does anyone know who owned Eddie Donaldson's downtown in the mid 70's? Was it Eddie himself, or was it only named after the guy? And if so, who was this Eddie Donaldson, did he have another claim to fame? Just curious.

[Thomas A. Wathen Jr.]

There was a DJ at WAKY radio way back in the early 70's called the Wierd Beard, if I recall correctly, his young son disappeared and was found drowned at the Crecent Hill water resevoirs two weeks later. I would like to research that story does anyone know of any info on the story besides what can be found in the CJT archives? Does anyone have any info as to what became of the DJ and his family?

[veggienut]

Originally Posted by Thomas A. Wathen Jr.

I have a question, does anyone know who owned Eddie Donaldson's downtown in the mid 70's? Was it Eddie himself, or was it only named after the guy? And if so, who was this Eddie Donaldson, did he have another claim to fame? Just curious.

Yes, I remember "Eddie Donaldson" and it was him the place was named for. He's rich from that biz I heard from a friend and is retired and living down in the Bahamas.

[Thomas A. Wathen Jr.]

Did he have any other occupation or was that it?! Any business partners that you're aware of? Thanx for the feedback!!!

[Thomas A. Wathen Jr.]

I understand that this forum focuses more on the history of bars and restaurants, but back when I moved away in 2003 there was a monthly local tabloid that was called "Snitch" and it focused on crime and punishment and the peace officer's daily grind. The Sept. 2002 edition had on it's cover in honor of the one year anniversary of the 9/11 atrocity, a photograph of the towers engulfed in smoke and flames. It is the most unusual shot of this tragedy I've ever seen. I had seen it before, but can not for the life of me find it in any of the pictures that are on the net. I even tried to contact "Snitch" itself only to find out that they no longer exist. If anyone knows where I can obtain a copy of that shot, I'd sure appreciate it! And by the way, GO CARDS!!!

[Gimme3steps]

Originally Posted by Thomas A. Wathen Jr.

There was a DJ at WAKY radio way back in the early 70's called the Wierd Beard, if I recall correctly, his young son disappeared and was found drowned at the Crecent Hill water resevoirs two weeks later. I would like to research that story does anyone know of any info on the story besides what can be found in the CJT archives? Does anyone have any info as to what became of the DJ and his family?

79waky.com/djs.htm

Weird Beard - Night jock from November 21, 1966 through September 30, 1971. Weird Beard left WAKY for a PD gig at LIN Broadcasting's station in Rochester, New York where he spent two or three years before taking a position with the Rochester Police Department. Another reason many people think he departed Louisville was because of the 1971 tragic drowning death of his young son, Scotty. Mason Lee Dixon recalls: "We spent many anguish-filled hours searching for the boy, sensing all of the time that he had crawled through the hole in the fence at the Water Company across the street from his house. There were all kinds of rumors flying hell, west and crooked since Burt (Weird Beard) and his wife were separated at the time. People can be cruel in their ignorance. Most of the city was sympathetic, even the competition. Only the cops and some really low-vibing characters were suspicious of Burt. It wasn't until the city finally consented to drain the reservoir that they recovered the body." Burt was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis at the age of 19, but didn't let that stand in the way of successful careers in broadcasting and law enforcement. He returned to Louisville and lived with his mother for a while. Eventually he went into a Pewee Valley, Kentucky nursing home where he died November 22, 1995 due to complications brought on by MS. [Real name: Carl Burton Markert]

[Thomas A. Wathen Jr.]

Thank you Gimme3steps. I used to have beers with Bill Bailey at the Club 21 on Shelby and Burnett, but Bill understandably didn't like to talk much about his radio days. Back when I was a kid and would call my grandmother up she would ALWAYS answer the phone, "Hello WAKY?!!". Hoping for a piece of the "Cash Call Jackpot"! LOL!!! I told Bill when we first started conversing that my grandmother would never believe that I was sittin' drinkin' beer with the Duke of Louisville! One of the rare times I did get him to talk about his radio days, I asked, "What drove ya outta radio Bill, not bein' able to speak your mind anymore?", he answered in that classic deep gravely voice of his, "Freakin' A pal!" LOL!!! He was a PRETTY outspoken old cuss! God rest his soul. Thanx again G3!

[Thomas A. Wathen Jr.]

I'm gonna get a little Dan Brown on y'all here, are you ready?! I'm sure this is going to stir up the hornet's nest!!! (PUN INTENDED! LOL!!!) Does anyone know what the origin of our city's emblem is?! A LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS: The Merovingian bloodline

[Orgetorix]

[Gweedo65]

My cousins and I use to frequent a restaurant in front of the Jefferson Mall in the mid to late 80s called Vito's Villa. It was in the same building that O'Charley's occupies today. For whatever reason, no one in Okolona (including my wife and her siblings who grew up in the area) can remeber the place, and swear that O'Charley's was built from the ground up as an O'Charley's. I have even emailed the Okolona Chamber of Commerce, and they haven't even replied to me. I can find NOTHING on a Google search, and would love nothing more to have a picture of the place to validate what I know to be the truth. Can anyone help me out here?