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Connie Bea Hope | |
|---|---|
| Born | Loretta Beatrice Constance Clements August 22, 1904 |
| Died | January 25, 1993 (aged 88) Mobile, Alabama |
| Other names | Beatrice Walker Hope |
| Spouse | Marion Walker et al |
| Children | Two daughters, Delores and Lorraine |
Connie Bea Hope was the stage name for Beatrice Walker Hope (August 24, 1904-January 25, 1993), a television personality and chef in Mobile, Alabama, on the local cooking program "Connie's Cupboard", which began in 1955 on WKRG-TV. She also appeared on the station's daily midday program Woman's World. After the programs ended in 1981, Hope became the station's goodwill ambassador for cooking and food-related events.
Hope has been called a fixture in the South Alabama culinary scene[1] and is included in tourism literature as part of the 20th century culture of Mobile.[2]
Early life
[edit]Hope was born to Edward H. Clements and the former Margaret Sims. She spent her childhood in the Oakdale area of Mobile, where she attended the Russell school on Broad Street with future Mobile Public Works Commissioner and Mayor Charlie Hackmeyer.
Professional career
[edit]During her teenage years, Hope operated a food counter at the Kress & Company candy store. She left Mobile during World War II but returned thereafter to work for Morrison's Cafeteria. Later, she was a traveling supervisor for Morrison's. She worked for a bakery in the Oakdale area before returning to Kress & Company to become the manager of the lunch counter and soda fountain.
She joined WKRG from its inception in September 1955 and began hosting Connie's Cupboard with Bea Hope, with Estelle Payton (1904–1999) as her assistant. In the early years, Payton, an African American, did not appear on camera unless her hands slipped into the shot while setting up or removing utensils. Later, in the 1960s, Payton began to appear on air. She was eventually given third billing on the program's opening titles, given her own microphone, and occasionally offered comments on Hope's demonstrations. The two women were known in the station for their usually good-natured backstage squabbles.[1][3]
Hope earned the stage name "Connie Bea" after some viewers began referring to her by that name. When not cooking on Channel 5, Hope could be seen with fellow members of two women's Mardi Gras associations or the Dauphin Way Baptist Church. In 1964, she was recognized by the D'Iberville Chapter of the American Business Women's Association. She was a founder and charter member of the Mobile Bay chapter of the organization.
Hope died at the age of eighty-eight in a Mobile hospital. Survivors included two daughters, Delores and Lorraine, a sister, Edwina; three grandchildren, Joseph, Monica, and John Romagnano, and four great grandchildren, Lisa, C. Anderson, Amy, and Brooke Romagnano.[1]
Her son-in-law, Joe Romagnano, served as National President of Paralyzed Veterans of America during the Carter administration
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Kim Lanier Cooking show hostess 'Connie Bea' Hope dies January 27, 1993 page B1, Mobile Register (AL)
- ^ Culture "Cul-cha"; How to Speak Mobile Mobile Bay Visitors and Convention Bureau
- ^ Lanier, Kim. "Television cook Estella Payton dies at age 95." Mobile Press-Register [Mobile, Alabama] 16 December 1999: B1.
Additional sources
[edit]- Daugherty, Frank. "Barnette reveals an amusing picture of Mobile." Mobile Press-Register [Mobile, Alabama] June 17, 1999: D1.
- Guide to the Virginia B. Greer Papers, 1942-1997 Accession: 07-09-465 Series 7: Audio Cassette Southalabama.edu Box 13 Audio recording of Greer’s appearances on Woman’s World, WKRG-TV, April 22, 1976.
- "Help sought to identify classmates in old school photo", Mobile Press Register. Mobile, Alabama. October 28, 1999: Y5
- http://probate.mobilecountyal.gov/: Mobile County Marriage Records Search
- http://www.frenchcreoles.com/Early%20Creole%20Homes/Beginnings%20Files/SimonRochon.pdf Provides reference for the parentage of Ms. Hope.
- U.S. Census of 1910
- U.S. Census of 1920
Category:American television chefs
Category:People from Mobile, Alabama
Category:1904 births
Category:1993 deaths
Category:Baptists from the United States