Mayfair Hotel in Searcy Arkansas White County

Baaabra, I, too, love this hotel - even today.  I was able to take a tour through the upstairs rooms several years ago - it was like taking a walk back in time.   A good memory I have is, when the Rialto Theater was remodeled, the opening night was a big deal for Searcy.  Movie stars were there:  Ricardo Montalban and Little Rock native, Julie Adams.  The band played (I was in the band) the afternoon before the 'grand opening", complete with a search light. After the band concert, my friend and I - still in our band uniforms - walked to the Mayfair Hotel where we heard the movie stars were staying.  We sat in the lobby until they came down the stairs, asked them for their autographs - which I still have to this day.   I asked Mr. Montalban how to pronounce his name:  accent on the 'tal'  or on the 'ban'.....he put the accent mark over the 'tal' on his signature.    The down side of this is that I only had a torn scrap of notebook paper for him to sign.  He signed one side, Julie Adams the other.    Wouldn't you think I could have found some decent paper for their autographs?   Such is the thinking (or NOT thinking ) of a teenager in the 1950's.    Wonder what they would bring on eBay?

Speaking of star's autographs, which we really weren't......in going thru my 99 l/2 yr. old mother's things, I've found two autographs:  one of Jan Garber, a long ago big band leader, and Art Linkletter.   She was on a plane going to Florida and he was on the same plane.  She got his autograph on the back of a Flight Information paper.   Got Jan's on the back of a blank check on The Security  Bank.  He wrote: Cheerio, Jan Garber.  She wrote: Aug. 6, 1939 below his signature.  I would have been 3 yrs. and 2 days old.  

I, too, remember getting an autograph at the Mayfair Hotel.  It was the early 1940’s and K.K. King, the theater owner, was having some sort of special promotion for a movie.  I don’t remember what movie but Tex Ritter was in town.  So my brother, six years older than me, went down to the Mayfair Hotel to see him.  We went up to his room and he signed an 8X10 glossy photo for us but I wanted my own but he made my brother promise that I wouldn’t lose it.  I wish I knew what happened to it but it was one of my cherished possessions for a long time.

Also, in the late 1940’s, the trash bens behind the hotel was a great place to catch cockroaches.  We used then for bait in catching bream. The ladies running the hotel at that time would come out and chase us off because they didn’t want anyone to know how many cockroaches were just behind the hotel.  However, there were so many that we could catch all we wanted before they ran us off.

My mother Patsy Bittle worked at the Mayfaiir I think 1947-48!   Just wondering about the hotel and if any pictures of Hotel from that time frame exist.  My mom lived in Searcy, and we visited with our parents often.  Mom has fond memories of the place that she worked.  Any information from that time frame would be appreciated.  Thanks.

Nick Herzog,  son of Patsy Bittle of Searcy Ar.

Hi MY GrGrGrandfather James Albert Bevill owned this hotel about 1900.