Did you know Al Bell?
Monday, January 29, 2007 at 04:16PM I always thought Al Bell had the best job in the world. When I was a little boy growing up on the prairie back in the 1950s and 60s, our small school would bring in an Al Bell Production once a year to give an "assembly" program. This is how I am guessing Mr. Bell made his living. Bell and his wife would take a very nice vacation somewhere exotic each summer. Now in small town Iowa circa 1960, "exotic" might have been interpreted a little differently than it is today. I remember some of the places Al traveled were Calgary in Canada, Mexico, Washington State, and Ireland. Anyway, the Bells would go to a place, take some slides, buy a native costume (the more outlandish the better), and couple music recordings. From these materials, he would spend an hour combining his slides, jokes, dancing, and a touch of mania on a stage in front of 500 delighted elementary school kids (and grateful teachers) in a gym or auditorium, in different schools every day throughout the school year. I'm guessing he charged maybe $50 a show, two shows a day. In the late 50's, working even 50 school days a year would have made him a rather nice income.
Does any one else remember Al Bell? I know he existed since I found reference to his programs in school histories on the web. I remember hearing that his home town may have been Menlo, Iowa. Let me know if you remember an Al Bell production - they always started with a ringing school bell.
I thought of Al Bell because I gave a short talk to my Kiwanis club today on my Inca Trail hike to Machu Picchu last November. Heavy on slides, a little trivia (there is a depiction of the Last Supper in the Cuzco Cathedral where guinea pig is being served), and a straight account of the rigors of the hike. It was well received, and I thought, I've finally gotten my chance to be Al Bell!
Sometimes accomplishing the small goals are just as satisfying as accomplishing the big ones.
____________________
Update: May 2008 Thanks so much for all the responses and memories shared. Keep them coming! This photo came to me via blog reader. She attached a Christmas photo of the Bells from about 1958. 
There has been a great interest shown in finding and preserving the films and memorabilia from Al Bell's school programs by those of us who fondly remember him and appreciate the influence he and his wife had on our lives. They infused some wanderlust in many an Iowa farm kid! At some time, I will approach Iowa Public Television or the Iowa Historical Society with the this blog entry and all the interest shown, and hope they will pick up the ball. It may not happen until I retire - a mere 9 years away! In the meantime, if you'd like to leave a comment, sharing you memories of the Bells and leaving information about how family members might be contacted, please do so. Doug
___________________
Update: May 2008
Jim Calkins from West Branch Middle School is working on putting together a list of Bell's topics and schools at which he spoke. If have specific information about either of these things, please e-mail Jim at conn53victor (a) mchsi.com. Thanks!
Here are a some newspaper articles from Wright County and Estherville about Al's visits.
___________________
Update: March 2010
Another Al Bell post here with a link to a Des Moines Register article about the Bells and a Facebook Fan page.
Update: August 2010
An Al Bell Film Festival, Sept 12, 2010 in Stuart, Iowa and a movement to restore his films!
Reader Comments (212)
I loved Al Bell and his shows. I attended Nora Springs Rock Falls elementary in the 70's. Our family never travelled so Al Bell was one of the few ways I got to experience other cultures- if even for a short time. It seemed like even the problem kids would settle down for our Al Bell assemblies. What a gift they gave to us.
I grew up in Belmond, Ia and enjoyed many years of Al Bell's travels through his programs at school. Thank you for this blog site. I wonder where he and his family are now.
This is so cool. I was watching television this afternoon about exotic places around the world and Al Bell came to mind. So I thought I'd search him on google to see if there was anything here about him. That's why I thought when I came upon this link through google it was so cool.
Never in my mind have I ever forgetten Al Bell. He brought to our school audience the most interesting and intriquing life style's I had ever known, and admired to know.
I lived in Estherville, Iowa. His life was a real envy to me.
Hello Doug,
Yes I remember Al Bell and his wife. I grew up and went to school in the most south central part of Iowa in a town named Lineville. Lineville is the smallest school in Iowa with a student body K-12 of less than 100 students.
Al Bell would come every year to share his trips with us. I too remember the Chow dogs, an elephants foot, the slides, and all the trinkets they would bring.
I was one of the lucky ones who recieved a fake bill with his face on it for helping unload their station wagon and trailer. However I lost the fake bill in a house fire approximately 16 years ago.
I also remember them singing in the language of the country they had visited.
So much is missed in this day and age. The Bell's did open the eyes of one Iowa farm boy and made the rest of the world real to me instead of reading about it from a book. And all this for just .15 cents a show!
Great memories of my childhood. A museaum is a great idea.
Mark Judd
I have such great memories of Al Bell and his fabulously exotic trips. I must have been at the tail end of his career (late 70s) but they made a huge impression on me. He came to Lake Mills schools (North Central Iowa) every year and it was a Very Big Deal assembly in the auditorium.
My most vivid memory is the big ringing mission bell shot that always was on the opening credits of his film.
I work at a science museum these days and was just getting a tour of some new South American artifacts (headdresses and necklaces and such) and all I could think of was Al Bell and his adventures and souvenirs.
Thanks for the blog, Doug.
Sorry to be a year late with my comment, but I was just now thinking about Al Bell and got your site when I googled him. I lived in Menlo, Iowa from 1954 - 1957. My dad was the Methodist minister in town and the younger daughter Becky was my best friend in 3rd through 6th grades. We had numerous sleepovers and I thought her family was so sophisticated and glamorous. My younger sister mentioned having seen a "documentary" at school when she was in second grade where a snake dropped into a boat with someone. I didn't realize she was old enough to remember that show, but it was the year Al did Okeefenokee Swamp. Becky was the "star" that year and she rode through the swamp in a small boat into which a snake dropped. I immediately quit envying her summer pursuits! The other show I remember is when Al Jr. was at the Calgary stampede. Good times! We were spellbound every year.
Also from Diana:
Doug, thanks for your reply. I have not stayed in contact with the Bell family. I was a little off on my dates yesterday. We lived in Menlo from 1955 - 1958. Becky and I stayed in touch a year or so after we moved, and then lost touch. However, my google search offered a connection to Allen and Rhea Bell from classmates.com. I've sent an email to Rhea to see if she can connect me to Becky.
Meanwhile, I'm attaching a Christmas photo of Al, Becky, Doug and Rhea from the latter 1950's (probably 1958). Al and Rhea Jrs would have been in college. Also my brother David has chimed in that Al brought a baby alligator to school with his swamp adventure movie.
...
I ... have been out of Iowa for the most part since 1958. I was born in Ames and lived in rural central and southwest Iowa during the 50's. I don't know what to answer about the photo. Since it was given to me, I presume it is mine to do with as I wish and I don't have a problem posting it. I have an uncle who was a radio broadcaster in the Midwest during the time Al Bell would have been in radio. I just emailed him about a half hour ago and asked if the name rang any "bells" with him. I've had confirmation that my email inquiry to Rhea was sent, and I guess now we wait. Fascinating how people continue to stumble across your blog! I've got some cousins who grew up on Iowa farms and I'll see if they ever saw any of the shows.
Diana
Here's what my Uncle Dix remembers about Al's early career. Not bad for an 86-year-old.
Diana
Dear Di...
Yes, Al Bell was on KRNT, Des Moines -- and possibly on WHO -- when I worked at WOI, Ames and WMT, Cedar Rapids. I did not know him personally but he was very good and from what you know about him, he must have been a fun person.
Love,
Dix
I REMEMBER AL AND HIS FAMILY AT MENLO,IA -MY ERA- 1955-1958. I BELIEVE WE PAID 10 CENTS TO SEE HIS MOVIES AT MENLO SCHOOL. THE SWAMP MOVIE I RECALL MOST. IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY THE BABY ALLIGATOR WHICH THEY BROUGHT BACK - NAME WAS CISERRO. THEIR DAUGHTER BECKY AND MY SISTER, DIANA, WERE BEST FRIENDS. THE BELL HOME WAS INTERESTING BACK IN THE DAY. THEY HAD A HOME ENTERTAINMENT SET UP THAT NO ELSE IN THAT PART OF THE COUNTRY WOULD IMAGINE. WE MOVED FROM THE AREA IN JUNE 1958. WHEN I'D SEE ERNIE KOVACS ON TV I WOULD THINK OF AL BELL. IT HAD TO BE ERNIE'S MUSTACHE AND HUMOR THAT JOGGED MY MEMORY OF AL BELL. DAVE LIKELY IRONTON,MISSOURI
I have thought about Al Bell over the years and tried to find information about him on the internet from time to time. Finally, today, I googled Al Bell and found your blog! I am also very late with my comments, but just wanted to say that Al was a big hit during my growing-up years in Manilla, Iowa. He came with his films, stories, artifacts, costumes and stories about far-away places. We would sit on chairs lined up in the gym and everyone loved his shows! I recognized him instantly in the photo that you posted, and it really tugged at my heart. He was a wonderful showman and made a difference in the lives of many midwestern kids back in the good old days. I can't wait to send your blog to my sisters and brother, who will all remember him, I'm sure! Mary (McDonald) Lomax; Bellevue, Nebraska -- graduated from Manilla Community Schools in l969.
PS--Please keep us posted as to whether or not you get anything started on an Al Bell Foundation, or if there is ever a presentation at the State Fair--I would gladly go there to see it!
I also recall the Al Bell Assemblies. They were somewhat the highlight of our school year. I attended school in Adel,Iowa in the 60's and remember the ringing of the bell and the costumes. Mr. and Mrs. Bell were quite entertaining and as my family didn't travel much, these where the programs that let me "see the world".
I wonder if anyone offers a similar program for kids today. I'm not sure this generation of youth would appreciate that type of education, but I could be wrong. (sounds like an old person, huh)Thank you for resurrecting this memory. I have many fond memories of those days in Iowa, but somehow had buried the ones of Al Bell and it is nice to think about them again.
Thanks for leaving this comment, Michael.
I catch myself "sounding like an old person" more and more often! I suspect Al would seem pretty tame to most of today's kids who grew up on the Crocodile Hunter and other extreme sorts of entertainers, 24 hour cable channels with National Geographic and computer games.
But he was an eye opener for me and many Iowa kids!
Thanks again,
Doug
I haven't checked this blog for awhile and when I saw the photo posted of the Al Bell Family, it was like I went back in time. Seeing their faces just made me feel like I saw them last week!
Thank you Diana for sharing this photo with us. I hope someone is able to re-connect with the Bell children again so that some form of honorable foundation or display can be created.
Doug, you can definitely count on my support! Al Bell deserves it!
Shaune Haas
shaas@austin.rr.com
It was a great day in Hubbard when the Al Bell Roadshow rolled into town in the late sixties to mid seventies. As my friend Nelson would say, "Al Bell had life dicked" - take a huge trip, destination of choice, gather up some souvenirs, make a movie, then spend the rest of the year peddling it all to small school assemblies. What a job, what a life!
What I found most appealing about the Bells was how unlike us they seemed: Al the showman, exuberant, prancing about in costume with a real sense of theatrics. I am even now surprised to learn that they lived among us. I had always envisioned them blowing in from the east coast.
Al Bell was on friendly terms with my fifth grade teacher, Lorraine Hornung, and I remember that year he and his wife came to our classroom after the show so we could see the souvenirs up close. I believe it was either Spain or Mexico that time around.
Reading the entries above brought back some memories: bringing a dime to school the day of, the 3 dollar "Bell" bill for the heavy lifters, the show from Romania/Transylvania where he came out as Count Dracula to name a few. The entry from Diana Fisher on 4/28/07 about the hecklers was rather sad. I hope he didn't finish on a sour note. I wonder how he would have dealt with today's youth with ever diminishing attention spans!
Al Bell continues to pop into my mind every now and again which is what led me to your blog. I've lived abroad now for over twenty years. Though I don't know how much influence those assembly programs in the school gym had on my desire to see a bit of the world, I know at least that the Bells certainly planted a seed.
Thanks for getting the ball rolling on your blog, Doug.
David Sellen
Hi David,
Glad to know you enjoyed the blog entry on Al Bell. I had NO idea it would strike a chord with so many Iowans who grew up in the 50s, 60s, and 70s.
I hope if we get enough comments like yours, Iowa Public Television or the Iowa Historical Association might take an interest in preserving/documenting Mr. Bell's contributions to Iowa education.
All the very best,
Doug
Hello,
I grew up in Ruthven, Iowa and every year I looked forward to the movie presentation that Al Bell gave at our school. I was in grade school during the 1960's and if I remember correctly, Al Bell gave his presentation in movie form and not slides. My older brothers who remember him, do remember the slide presentation.
I think I was in 5th grade (Lohrville IA) when he returned with an octopus...had to be the strangest thing he ever brought back!
Hi folks
Just ran across the Al Bell comments. I am working on our 30th reunion, and am including an Al Bell question. We have found memories of Al and his wife, and the fun they'd bring to our little towns in Iowa.
The last time I heard of Al Bell was in the 1990's, and there was an article in the Des Moines Register about an estate sale, in Ankeny, where they were auctioning off his family's treasures. So sad.
Thanks for you memories.
hello
I knew Al Bell as uncle Allen . my Father W.L.Bell JR. always called him Allen and he called my dad junior
allen was my fathers older and only brother.I am not sure of allen but my father was born in lost nation Iowa.
in 1918 there mother mauad robins bell was a school teacher and died in the early 1920s.thay where very young
there father W.L. Bell sr. raiised them. I think he was a banker. For sometime thay lived in prophetstown IL on the rock
river I know this because my father would go there to vist friends and to his high school reunion. My mother and father
were married in st louis and he worked for the international harvester co in big truck sales we moved all over the midwest
with in 1970 my dad buying a dealership in northwest arkansas allen and aunt rea would vist us and we would go to iowa to see them most every
year we could not wait to see the lastest adventure he and aunt rea had been on and we would get our own privet show
JUST GREAT! . my father told storys about him and allen one was about the big mustache he wore . thay made a big sling shot out of old tire tubes and used it to fllyng big rocks at each other thay used a trash can lid to protect themself with
my dad got off a shot and hit allen abouve the lip left a scar and he always wore the mustache to cover it up
at least the what my dad told me.I have a lot of his old movie poster in storage that aunt rea sent to us over the years
she was the fire behind his passion to perform I think it is wounderful to see how many people have recived that passion
thanks Timothy Bell
Hi Mr Bell,
Wonderful to hear from a member of the family! Thanks for adding the information.
Doug
Al Bell, Who didn't Love it when Al and his wife came to school, that was the highlight of the school year!!!!!!!!! I grow up in Pilot Mound (Grand Comn. School in Boxholm, Iowa). Can"t remimber how many years ago, his children in Ankeny had a sell of some of his items that he brought back from his trips. Never made it to the sell, kick myself for not going. Thanks for bring back some of my most favorite memory of school.
Lance