That Jones Girl

Her father loved animals and she grew up wanting to become a veterinarian. She was born in Charleroi, PA., a small river community along the Youghiogheny River about 20 miles from Pittsburgh, PA. She adored her father, loved her home town and most of the people in it, and was a rebel.

Shirley Jones wasn't exactly born with a silver spoon in her mouth, but she came close. Her grandfather was a coal miner who was a native of Wales and who relished hard work. He saved his hard-earned money, bought a building and a plot of land, and started a brewery which he passed on to Shirley's father.

The family even created a beer they called Stoney's, named after a dog owned by a black neighbor. The Jones Brewery started in my home town of Sutersville, PA., population 957, and moved to Smithton (pop. 800) about five miles away. When Shirley turned four years old, her grandfather offered her jelly beans if she would drink some of his beer. She took him up on his offer and hated it.

The Jones Brewing Co. provided jobs to nearly half the population of Smithton. Her grandfather started his business career by building a small hotel with six rooms that he called the Jones Hotel. He was the bartender and his wife, Lulu, handled the business side.

As to how he got the brewery, Shirley, who would later star in OKLAHOMA!, CAROUSEL, THE MUSIC MAN and THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY television series, heard as a child that he won it in a poker game.

The brewery originated in my home town of Sutersville, PA and manufactured Eureka Beer. (Stoney's Beer was later featured in a movie STRIKING DISTANCE and in two television shows NORTHERN EXPOSURE and MY NAME IS EARL.

When she was a child, Shirley's father traveled to the bars in a 50 mile radius from Pittsburgh transporting cases of beer. His days often ran from 6 a.m. until past midnight as he grew the family business. My dad would often trade a gallon or two of his homemade wine for a couple of cases of beer.

In her autobiography of the same name, Shirley said she shared her father's love of animals and the Pennsylvania countryside and would often accompany him on his trips. Her dad, Paul, had a deep feeling for the cows and horses in the green fields they passed and would point out the animals to her.

Shirley told him she wanted to become a veterinarian. As she matured, that dream ended when she discovered she could sing and she decided she wanted to become an actress and star in musical comedies.

Smithton had only four streets. The largest house in town was owned by a doctor while the Jones family occupied a 14-room brick house with a big front porch.

Shirley grew up as a tomboy. She hated dresses, wasn't afraid of snakes, spiders or other creatures, and fought bloody battles with boys who accused her of being the spoiled daughter of a beer distributor. Once she came close to being arrested when, with two friends, she set off the town's fire alarm just to see what would happen.

She discovered she could sing and would sing at all her family's functions. The news about her voice spread and she began taking singing lessons in Pittsburgh. Her singing coach Ralph Lewando was so impressed he thought she was a born opera singer, but Shirley didn't agree with him. She said she wanted to sing musical comedy.

Fate intervened. Shirley and her parents drove to New York for a week's vacation. She watched a Broadway show and fell in love with OKLAHOMA!

Just before she started college, her parents took her to New York and they began searching for plays on Broadway. Word came to her that Rodgers and Hammerstein's casting director was holding open auditions at the St. James Theater. Although she was extremely nervous, she decided to give it a try.

The theater just off Broadway was packed with over 100 aspiring young talents hoping for a part in the musical. The casting director John Fearnley nodded to her. She went to the microphone and sang 'The Best Things in Life are Free.' When she was finished, Fearnley asked her where she was from and what had she done before.

Shirley said, "Smithton, Pennsylvania and nothing."

He asked her if she had anything else prepared. She sang "Lover" and followed it up with an original song a friend had written for her, "My Very First Kiss."

Fearnley was so impressed he contacted Richard Rodgers, who happened to be across the street rehearsing an orchestra for OKLAHOMA! Rodgers listened to her, excused himself and called Oscar Hammerstein. After listening to her, they asked if she knew the score to OKLAHOMA! Shirley admitted she didn't.

They handed her the score, she did "People Will Say We're In Love" and "OH, What a Beautiful Morning" -- and they offered her a spot in the chorus of SOUTH PACIFIC. They also offered her a seven year contract.

Shirley Jones' talent opened the doors. She made many movies, including ELMER GANTRY with Burt Lancaster. She married a Hollywood actor named Jack Cassidy and would star in a long lived TV series called THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY. After she and Cassidy divorced, she married comedian Marty Ingels who she stayed married to until his death.

In 1960 she won an Academy Award for her performance as Best Supporting Actress in ELMER GANTRY. She is the mother of four sons and the grandmother of nine children. Now 85, she lives near Big Bear, CA.