From: Hali Stephens
RE: Robert Vaughn Bell
Date: Oct. 16, 2003
Dear Mr. Paregien:
I thought you might like to know that Robert Vaughn Bell was my Uncle - the only sibling and older brother of my mother who passed away in 1997 - 6 months after my Uncle Bob died of throat cancer in that same year. Their mother, my grandmother, passed away in 1998 just a few months short of age 100.
I have an original manuscript from one of my uncle's books and copies of all of the books he had written, one of which he autographed for me as well as photographs - one in particular which I believe he used for publicity purposes.
The last time I visited him in California, I was fortunate enough to see the den where he kept his antique gun collection and other western memorabilia and where he actually did all of his writing. Creek Park Ranch was what he called his homestead, and it was bedecked with steer skulls, cactus and split-rail fencing.
Because we both shared a love of the written word, we kept in touch up until a few months before his death.
I found your website through a dear friend in Racine, Wisconsin who found the link that got me here. I have been doing some on-again/off-again family genealogy research and was interested in finding out more about him. Your website provided some valuable and interesting information. I just wanted to tell you thank you. I think my uncle would have been very pleased at what you say about him here.
He was truly "my most unforgettable character" as they say in Readers Digest. He had many careers in his lifetime, but historical western novels were his forte'. He was first and foremost a cowboy.
Respectfully,
H. Stephens
Date:
Dear Mr. Paregien:
Thank you for you kind and "quick" response to my email of last evening. Indeed, I am George's wife (and Bob Bell's niece).
I would be honored to have you post my letter to you on your website. I would ask that you not post my email address, however, as there are too many dishonest folks out there who pray on the good folks and try to mess up their computers with spam and viruses. I know you will respect my wishes.
I will need to do some hunting in order to find the photograph we talked about. When my mother died, she lived on the West Coast and I live on the East Coast, so some things were packed up rather quickly. I believe there were some newspaper articles on my Uncle Bob as well, which I will be happy to share with you once I can locate them. Give me a little time to complete this task, and I'll be back in touch with you once I do.
Some tidbits of information: my mother told me that moviemakers were planning on making a movie out of one of my uncle's books, but I do not know which one. At the time, my uncle was in close contact with Goldie Hawn and her then husband, Gus Trikonis. I'm not sure if they had any prospective involvement in this proposed venture.
A long time ago, when Uncle Bob was in the salvage business (I believe this was part of the diving partnership), he located a Japanese sub sunk off the coast of Long Beach and was seeking permission from our government in order to raise it. The government, I was told, said that this was an impossibility, and I don't know what transcended from that point.
My uncle was part Choctaw Indian (as evidence by the large nose and high cheekbones. I believe my mother told me that they were 1/32 Choctaw. My mother kept the Cherokee Indian Version of the 23rd Psalm constantly by her bedside - a gift from my uncle, it was in a small non-descript black frame - I have it now. Uncle Bob was also interested in genealogy, and one of our ancestors married a full-blooded Cherokee Indian woman.
As I remember things, I will email my thoughts to you to use or discard as you wish.
Again, thank you for your interest.
Sincerely,
Hali Stephens
© 2003 by Stan Paregien, Sr.
