NEVADA CITY : Independent Newspaper provides a zany time and life long friends

Modern day Bonanza Market on Nevada City's Broad Street has a slight Gold Rush look to it. That look cleverly masks the fact that this was at one time a Purity Stores Market a Northern California market chain. Purity stores had adopted the Quonset building style for all their markets. Developed by the United States Marine Corp in World War II, it was a half circle type building. The Marines loved it for the large space it created, strength, low construction cost and easy to build qualities. You can still find some of the original WW II buildings at Southern California's Marine Camp Pendleton. If found at all today, that construction style will be found on America's farms. In the early 1980's Sparky became a " reporter " for the Nevada City Independent Newspaper. His only experience in this field was that he had seen and actually read a newspaper. And being a state college graduate his writing skills were non existent ! The Independent did not pay very well to say the least. So I am sure they got more than " their moneys worth " in this case. The Independent was founded by well known historian Bob Wyckoff and reflected his historic interest. Having been asked by well known Nevada City newspaperman Dave Carter to write a recreation column, Sparky responded with his " Full Court Press " that featured local recreational happenings. Among Carter's many newspaper skills was he was the local writer for the Sacramento Bee at the time. The paper was going through major changes at the time. A new publisher had replaced Wycoff in the fit form of David Fluke. David was fit for sure lifting weights and running every day. This was long before every American would claim to be a runner. His college days at the University of Oregon found him being an outstanding linebacker for a very good football team. Led by Heisman Award winning quarterback Terry Baker the team played in the Sun Bowl. That was the seventies and bowl games were very rare compared to today's bowl games that can feature a team with a losing record. The look and the content were also changing.

The look changed from a magazine size historical paper to a Sacramento News and Review size featuring local news. The Independent remained a weekly newspaper as it had previously been. Along with these changes came a new staff and that is were the fun really started. A new editor in the shape of one of Nevada City's most well known characters....Dan O'Neill. O'Neill had grown up in Norman Oklahoma and Nevada City and as a young adult created " Odd Bodkins " a clever cartoon strip that had a political bent to it. At it's zenith it was syndicated nationally and Sparky found out that it was one of his father's favorite strips. In the 60's his drawing of Walt Disney's characters doing none PC things to each other brought a major lawsuit. Claiming it was an art parody and freedom of speech it went all the way to the United States Supreme Court. O'Neill always claimed it was an unanimous vote, he was right, 9 to 0 against him and his fellow Mad Mouse artists. Heck, God doesn't mess with Disney in America ! His notoriety ended his strip and at this time he was starting a new one in the San Francisco Chronicle under the banner of O'Neill.

The others included R. L. Crabb who was at the time just starting his cartoon career. In the Nevada County of 2008 he is the most known local cartoonist around with his " It Takes A Village Idiot " appearing daily in the Grass Valley Union. Sparky calls Crabbman " Nevada County's IT man!". Crabbman stuck to his dream and with a lot of hard work he got it. It could not have happened to a nicer person. Bob Lickter was the staff photographer. one who was fearless and enjoyed getting the "right" photo. He must have gotten it from his father Mort who was a well known Hollywood photographer of the stars in his MGM Studio role. Bob's photos weave an history of Nevada County since the seventies a cherished collection for sure.

And then there was Pam Wood. Her official title was Art Director but she was the glue that kept all the insanity together enough each week so that the Independent would magically appear each week. She really was our Captain Kirk on the Starship Independent. Today, Pam Sibley, is a most well known graphic artist in Healdsburg California. Located in California's Wine Country she has created many famous wine labels among her vast portfolio. They all gave Sparky a major boost to his life and have become life long friends.

Of course there are hundreds of stories with this group, but to protect the guilty here are just three. The first one involves O'Neill, Lickter and Sparky. When O'Neill arrived at the Independent her wore a hat and suit ! He did not look or act like the rest of us, or that was how it seemed to Lickter and Sparky at the time. Did they really want to work for this man or not. O'Neill set out to convince the two that the ship was fine and too get on board. O'Neill is the kind of man after you know him for awhile he HAS done many things with many and some very famous people. But not knowing that you might think it is all bull. Trust me looking back he is not ! So in this attempt the three end up on Editor's Rock which is located on Deer Creek below the then Independent office. Sporting a fishing pole O'Neill told the doubting two that he was going to catch a fish. Even going so far as to direct Lickter to a spot were he could get the best shot of the soon to be caught trout. The skeptics grudgingly agreed. Tossing his line into the spot on Deer Creek where he had pointed the line snaps tight within 30 seconds of entering the stream. Out pops the trout, Lickter is so surprised by the now coming true predictions, falls into the creek. He managed to snap the shutter on his way down and later a developed picture showed a tail fin as it returned back to Deer Creek waters. O'Neill after setting the fish free showed a large smile. He needed to say nothing, the doubters had turned to believers and now got on board of Starship Independent.

Story two: You would not think a weekly could scoop the rich and powerful daily on a big story but it happened once at the Independent. The Coors Brewing Company had sponsored the Nevada City Classic for several years. This was one of their major corporate sponsorship and at times it had a very rocky local relationship. The rumor had been floating around that they were about to pull that sponsorship. But that is all it was a rumor. Sparky called and called the brewery in Colorado but no answers would come. Believing that it was true the staff had prepared a slot for that lead story and Crabbman and done a full color cover showing a Coors can running out of town. The issue deadline was rapidly approaching with no story. Facing this bleak reality Sparky called once again. And once again the same story....no comment. Out of desperation Sparky told the Coors PR person on the end of the line that he was sure they were pulling the plug and they would be going to press with that. It was no longer than 10 minutes later when the phone rang and was Coors calling from the Golden Colorado brewery. Stating that it was true and that they were pulling their sponsorship they would like to make a statement. Sparky had his story and the following days Independent scooped the Grass Valley Union. That was a great feeling and it got better, the next day The Union's Sports Editor Jeff Ackerman called and congratulated the Independent staff for a job well done. Despite not getting the story first ,Jeff has done well he is now that publication's publisher.

And the final one. Seeing a small two sentence item in the Yuba City newspaper that the Yuba County Water Agency wanted to build a dam on the North Yuba's Wambo Bar, Sparky was alarmed. Wambo Bar is west of the Highway 49 crossing and just up stream from Bullards Bar Reservoir. The dam would have backed water all the way to be just west of Downieville and in the process flood Good Year's Bar. As those who have seen this stretch of the river is spectacular. What was really going to happen ? Sparky could not wait and see. Hitchhiking to the Top of Yuba Pass he spent a week walking to Indian Valley all the time interviewing locals and tourists both. No one wanted the North Fork to change or at least no one he had talked too. Back at the Independent he wrote about his adventure and the threat that Wambo Bar Dam posed. Sure the circulation of this small weekly was just that...small. But one person did take note of this story, Dave Carter. Remember he was a writer for the Sacramento Bee and he picked up the story. Soon the whole world knew about it. That was the early 80's and there still is no dam on that marvelous portion of the North Fork of the Yuba River. No doubt many reasons why there isn't one. The Independent story certainly is one of them. In 2008 we are a world of news that is mostly controlled by large corporations, so hats off to all those small local news outlets that keep their communities informed. Hail to the memory of the Independent Newspaper !