In her rich life, Dr. Frances Bartlett Kinne, the former President of Jacksonville University, acquired an impressive list of friends and admirers, from Bob Hope and Jack Benny to Arthur Fielder, Aaron Copland, Ross Perot and Steve Forbes. Corporate giants sought her council. Her accomplishments were endless. So, I was delighted when she called me in the spring of 1998 about a visit to Southern California.
“It’ll be fun,” she promised. “I have to see (actor) Chuck (Charlton Heston), and of course (pianist) Roger (Williams), and if you don’t mind, could you drive me to Palm Springs to see Bob (Hope) and President Ford.”
Uh, yeah, Fran, I think I can find a way to make that happen.
Fran first met President Ford through her husband, Col. Harry Kinne, a senior officer on General Douglas MacArthur’s Pacific theatre staff. It was in the Pacific that, Fran also met Bob Hope on one of his USO tours. After commanding US efforts in the occupation and restoration of Germany after WW II, Col. Kinne and Fran relocated to Jacksonville. Fran became the Dean of Fine Arts at JU, the first female so designated in the country.
In Jacksonville, J.E, Davis, Founder of the Winn-Dixie supermarket chain, and his wonderful wife Flo, befriended the Kinne’s. J.E, Davis was Gerald Ford’s fishing buddy, and the three men quickly became friends. By 1970, Fran Kinne was the first female university president in the state of Florida, and Gerald Ford was the Republican leader of the US House of Representatives. Seeking a college for their oldest son Jack, Gerald and Betty Ford entrusted him to Fran and JU where he became a casual acquaintance of mine.
(There is a story about a gal friend at JU who went home with Jack one vacation. She got up in the middle of the night, hungry, went to the kitchen where she encountered a buck naked and supremely embarrassed Gerald Ford who forgot the Ford’s had a house guest. – but that is a story for another day)
After about a 90-minute drive, our first stop was at Bob Hope’s place. The place sat on 6.2 acres on a hill overlooking the floor of the western Coachella Valley. The residence was 23,366 square feet and included 10, bedrooms plus 13 full or partial bathrooms. The desert is not really known for its cold temperatures, but the place still has a fireplace in the master bedroom and another fireplace in the great room.
The house was designed to resemble a volcano. The modernist structure is built of concrete and glass, with an undulating copper roof that rises to an open semi-circle at its center.
The home was used primarily as a second residence for the Hope family and was the place where they entertained most often, inviting friends such as Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra and Glen Campbell to enjoy the views from the house.
The outside of the house had a swimming pool, a large pavilion (with another fireplace), and a tennis court. The pool had a mural by Malibu Getty muralist Garth Benton – with another mural by Benton also inside the house.
We walked into the house and were escorted to the second floor via an elevator. There we were treated to the most magnificent views anyone can ever imagine, 360 degrees of glass with Palm Springs and the airport below. It was as if we were airline traffic controllers command center.
It was not to long before Bob ambled in. He was in his mid-90’s then. I say ambled because he was showing his age. His sight was failing too. But as he entered the room I could swear he was humming, “Thanks for the Memories,” his theme song. He greeted Fran warmly as only two people with more than 60 years of history can. Fran gifted Bob with Godiva chocolate. Hope eyed the box, glanced around for his wife Dolores who was no where in sight and broke the box open. “I am not supposed to have this Bob said, but hell if I won’t.” He preceded to have three. They quickly got to reminiscing and told story after story. Fran asked Bob if he remembered coming to Jacksonville University with Jack Benny in 1972. Bob cracked “he was old but not feeble, of course he remembered.” It was the only time those two titans of show business had ever appeared on a college campus. They gave a rollicking performance. Fran tried to get Hope to commit to making a return trip to Jacksonville, but Hope would have none of it. “It’s not the end of the world you know!” Fran said. As always, Bob would have the last word, “almost.”
I almost did a spit take. It was the perfect response
With that we said our good byes, Fran and Bob hugged and we were off to see President Ford not before I took a photo of Fran in front of the Hope Mansion. I am told the house went on the market for $50,000,000 upon Hope’s passing at 100. Dolores lived to 102.
Fran and I arrived at a guard gate in Rancho Mirage, a Palm Springs suburb where the Fords lived and the President had maintained an office since leaving Washington DC in the late 70s. I rolled down my window and announced, “Fran Kinne to see the President.”
“The President is waiting for you,” he responded, and honored Dr. Kinne with a crisp salute as the gate to the entrance rose in unison with his arm. I joked to Fran that I felt as if I were driving Miss Daisy.
Once inside the reception area, Penny Circle, the President’s longtime administrative assistant, warmly greeted Fran. “The President is so looking forward to seeing you both,” Penny said leading us to the inner office. Fran was her normal self, bounding around the office, again handing out boxes of her trademarked Godiva chocolates to every familiar face.
The President’s office opened onto a fairway of the adjacent Thunderbird Country Club. Only several yards of manicured grass separated the out-of-bounds stakes from the sliding glass doors to the left of the President’s desk. As he rose to meet us, I was struck by just how big a man he was. He reminded me some of John Wayne, whom I had met years before. He was dressed in golf attire, short sleeve shirt with a pull over pastel color sweater vest and dark slacks.
The office resembled the University of Michigan Football Hall of Fame more than a typical office of the 38th President of the United States. Photos of Ford’s days as a MVP center for Michigan football team, and many other pieces of Michigan football memorabilia presented to the President during the years were everywhere.
On the wall I remember seeing a caricature of longtime waring foes, Anwar Sadat of Egypt and Menachem Begin of Israel. The President obviously treasured the role he played in bringing peace to the two countries. But for the most part, Michigan football, photos of his beloved family and books dominated the room. Although now into his eighties, the President was still youthful and vigorous of mind.
Fran and the President warmly reminisced about mutual friends and entertained each other with stories about Bob Hope. The President reminded Fran of the Honorary Doctorate she had presented him in 1984 to mark the 50th anniversary of the founding of Jacksonville University.
For a special memento, Fran had commandeered the JU maintenance staff to create a “golf club” from plumbing parts and an old length of pipe to present to the President along with his Doctorate. The President pointed to a corner next to one of the bookshelves where the “club” proudly resided.
After about an hour, we rose to leave, and Fran asked President Ford if he minded if I took a picture of the two of them together, which, I gladly did. As badly as I wanted to ask if I could also take a picture with the President, and as surely as this gentle man would have said yes, I fought the impulse to impose on him.
As we headed to the door, the President stopped and put his hand on my shoulder. “Frank, can I ask you for a favor?” he said. “Of course” I answered, thinking what in the world could the President of the United States ask of me?
“My son Steven is an actor,” he said. “Do you think there is any way you could help him get a job?” I had to chuckle. It’s a question I have been asked many times during the years, and most of the time I have a ready exit line. In fact, I knew that Steven was an actor so I smiled, extended my hand and said, “Mr. President, after all you did to heal this country, I’m sure that’s the least I can do.”
So, if you ever stumble upon a Suddenly Susan re-run take note of the great performance by a handsome, blond-haired anchorman in the two-part episode ” A Tale of Two Pants.” That would be Steven Ford.
Steve was prepared, there when you needed him, reliable, honest and dependable. In viewing his performance after almost 25 years Steven was better than I remembered at the time, and I liked his performance immensely then.
The same can be said of his father. Time and fresh eyes provide perspective on many things, not the least of which is the legacy of President Gerald Ford.
And whatever became of Fran Kinne? She passed in 2019 at 102 years old plus. She is in the Guinness Book of World Records listed as the oldest college commencement speaker ever at 100 years old. She received a standing ovation at the end of her thirty-minute oratory at Jacksonville University. It was all done off the top of her head without any notes. The greatest generation indeed.
