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| Connie Bea Hope | |
|---|---|
| Born | Loretta Beatrice Constance Clements |
| Other names | Beatrice Walker Hope |
| Spouses | Marion Walker and others |
Connie Bea Hope was the stage name for Beatrice Walker Hope (August 24, 1904-January 25, 1993), a Mobile, Alabama television personality and chef on the local TV cooking show "Connie's Cupboard" for WKRG-TV and later on the station's daily midday program Woman's World from 1955 to 1981. After the program ended, she became the station's goodwill ambassador for cooking and food-related events.
Hope has been called a fixture in the area's culinary scene and is included in tourism literature as part of Mobile's culture.
Early life
She was born on August 22, 1904 to Edward H. Clements and his wife 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
Hope's career around food included a counter position at the Kress & Co. candy store during her teenage years. She left Mobile during the Second World War and returned to work for Morrison's Cafeteria. She became a traveling supervisor for Morrison's later on. She worked for a bakery in the Oakdale area before returning to Kress & Co. to become the store's manager of the lunch counter and soda fountain. She joined WKRG from the very beginning in September 1955 and began hosting "Connie's Cupboard with Bea Hope" along with Estelle Payton 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.
It turns out Hope earned the stage name "Connie Bea" after some viewers began referring to her by that name. Whenever she is 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 (she was born a Catholic, converted for reasons related to divorce and remarriage). She was recognized by the D'Iberville Chapter of the American Business Women's Association in 1964. Not only was she a charter member, but also the founder of the Mobile Bay chapter of the organization. She died on January 25, 1993 at the age of 88 in a Mobile hospital, leaving behind her daughters Delores and Lorraine, sister Edwina, three grandchildren Joseph, Monica, and John Romagnano; and great grandchildren Lisa, Chase, Amy and Brooke Romagnano.
References
- ^ 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 16 December 1999: B1.
Additional sources
- Daugherty, Frank. "Barnette reveals an amusing picture of Mobile." Mobile Press-Register 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