Geradine Janezic, pictured above, was a longtime club member and fan. She passed away some time ago and her daughter Joy contacted me earlier this year, asking if we would like her scrapbook. She sent it along with this letter:

I remember meeting Gerry at a few club meetings, mostly in Ohio and the midwest area, and we stayed in touch with letters and an occasional phone call. She was a bubbly, enthusiastic person, always excited at hearing the latest Nelson and Jeanette news. I recall one particular meeting that Dorothy Dillard attended as a guest, after the initial publication of my book Sweethearts. Dorothy, my source of the Isabel Eddy letters, was from Detroit but attended several east coast meetings around that time. Back in their heyday, Dorothy of course attended many of Nelson’s and Jeanette’s concerts, club gatherings (as they followed the singers around on tour) and film screenings. Imagine their surprise when Dorothy recognized Gerry and vice versa, though it had been many years since they’d last seen each other! I was so happy to see that for them, the story had come full circle and they were able to openly discuss what had been forbidden to speak about in the  fan clubs of their youth.

Joy sent us her mom’s scrapbook and I’m happy to say that there are some interesting photos and clippings in it that I have not previously seen. We will be photographing them and using them in upcoming magazines, so all will share in enjoying them.

I asked Joy to do a writeup about her mom and to email me a photo, which she kindly did. (See above.) Below is her email to me:

Hi Sharon,

Wrote a little about my mom, Geraldine Janezic.

Gerry was 12 years old when she heard Nelson Eddy on the radio for the first time. In her own words, she said “I fell madly in love with his voice!”

Staying to watch Naughty Marietta four times in a row at the theater, she became fascinated with their movies. As years went by, nothing made her happier than finding the movies scheduled on TCM. She would often write to different TV stations requesting that their movies be shown.

Even though she owned many on DVD, She’d still get up at the crack of dawn to watch on TV. She’d always say “I like knowing other people are watching the same time as me!”

Her love of the singing sweethearts continued throughout her life. When she received her first Mac/Eddy Today magazine, It was her dream come true. She was forever grateful for this wonderful tribute to them and truly treasured every issue.

As her daughter, I want to thank the club for making my mom’s world a happier place.

Sincerely,
Joy Rico

Thank you, Joy, for your thoughtfulness, and for sharing with our group. Our condolences and best wishes to you and your family.

I received an email a couple of months ago from Cory Edelman: “My Mother, Marilyn Edelman, was an original and long-time member of the Club and a devoted fan of Jeanette and Nelson. I am sorry to report that she passed away in February 2013.” In a later email, he added, “I’ve attached a recent photo of my Mom. It would be fine to note my Mom’s support of the Club since its inception and her unwavering appreciation of Jeanette and Nelson, her quest for any and all videos of their films and how she enjoyed watching them over and over, never tiring of their being to her the ideal romantic screen couple and of their great musical talents.”

Marilyn was one of our very first club members and for many years she attended our Los Angeles-area meetings. Even in later years, when she was unable to join us for events, we spoke on the phone many times. She always liked to catch up on the latest news and research findings.

Cory kindly donated her collection to us. We are always grateful for such thoughtfulness as complete sets of our magazines are – and will continue to be – donated to various film libraries and museums. Scrapbooks, photos and other memorabilia are so very useful and shared with all our members via the magazines, calendars, website photos, and plain research! Down the road, all of these items will end up in one or more larger donations on behalf of our Mac/Eddy Club. But in the meantime, the materials are shared in our group with those who love Jeanette and Nelson, as Marilyn did.

The very first scrapbook donation, by the way, came to us quite a few years ago from actress Phyllis Kirk, who was afraid her precious Jeanette and Nelson scrapbook would be thrown out by uncaring family members after her death, so she wanted it in safe hands while she was still living.

I want to thank Cory again, and offer him our condolences and best wishes.