Notes for Robert Franc Schulkers: RFS full biography is available on the Seckatary Hawkins Club webpage at www.seckatary.com
Additional details are available, and a much more detailed biography is available on the Seckatary Hawkins Club internet webpage at www.seckatary.com
Randy Schulkers writes - 1/1/96: I was so fortunate to be living for several years at Grandpa Seck's house in my early life. My parents were young idealistic nightclub entertainers who couldn't afford to pay rent and needed the free baby-sitting that Julia B and Aunt Mayme would provide. (There is another sweet story to be told here, but it will have to wait till I finish this one). I rarely saw my parents in these formative years because they worked all night and slept most of the daylight when not rehearsing.
It was my daily aim to hang around Grandpa's closed door until The Seckatary emerged for work breaks. Once he saw me, he would peremptorily and very ceremoniously shove me into his work room so we could talk, play chess and read together. No-one else was allowed in, of course. Actually, I was forbidden by my mother to "bother Grandpa", but I couldn't help it. I completely loved the man with that fervent child's devotion from the minute I met him and I know he had the same regard for me. I just couldn't stay away. There was a true bonding of "boys" between us, and I wanted to be just exactly like him. Now that I realize how great and productive he was, I know I will never be "exactly like him"; however, I feel his influence and presence in the edges of my mind every day and always try to be at my best. That's all he ever asked of me or anyone.
Such as it was, there existed our secret arrangement - " Shhh... remember to meet me by the old Sycamore Tree tomorrow"; (Well, his doorway was made of wood that could have been Sycamore - wasn't it?). ; "and we will have great adventures together." In this way, neither of us was at fault for breaking the house rule of leaving Grandpa alone, because it was always a chance meeting and "just for a minute". I am not 100% sure, but I remember that Grandpa and I would spend a few hours of every day together. Some days the visit lasted longer than others depending upon his energy level. Once I was inside the inner work chambers, no one and nothing could separate us or extricate me. I was the protected member of our private "club" and it was the greatest feeling of belonging that I ever knew. I pray that someday I can give such a gift to one or more of my grandchildren.
Grandpa was a devout Catholic who never missed Sunday mass. I was always so proud to walk with him to the Hyde Park square and sit up tall in Saint Mary's church for the services. Afterwards, we would always light a candle for each of us. The walk home after church always seemed to chance by the bakery or candy or ice cream stores - and we got SO hungry with all that praying don't you know!
Grandpa liked family history and did extensive study, research and reporting of the Darnell and Randolph lineage of his wife. He even delved into a lineage study after a chance meeting with a famous author and past Enquirer editor, George Randolph Chester. He couldn't find a connecting line with Julia B's Randolph heritage, though he tried. He could never gather much about the Schulkers clan in Germany, and so much is lost to us now. We hope that some day an enterprising young family member will catch the genealogy bug and perhaps even spend some time in Germany. Any takers?
How fondly I remember living out the stories in books such as "Stormie The Dog Stealer". Sometimes Grandpa would read Seck Hawkins stories to me during chess lessons, and OH!, what stories they became. Nobody could tell the Seckatary stories with the same passion, enthusiasm and vocal intrigue as the master himself. We would sometimes talk for hours about other things the boy's had done that he hadn't written down yet. He was always convinced that his stories were going to be read by all boys and girls someday. He wanted me and my big brother to be sure to help my dad take care of that somehow. Dad had said we would work on this when he retired at 65, but unfortunately, my dear Daddy was called to entertain in heaven much earlier than planned.
Never fat in his youth, Seck was 5 feet 10" tall with brown hair and tender, but piercing mid-summer-sky blue eyes. We all remember him slightly balding in front, with that grandfather-ish, pleasingly white hair and a pot belly in his later years. His earlier photos showed the slightly mischievous sparkle in those eyes that lasted as long as I knew him. His voice was tenor with a slightly nasal and raspy pitch that got more nasal and high pitched with age. His singing past-time was a family affair that never failed to get everyone in the house singing before long. The breadth of obscure song titles he could belt out was always amazing to newcomers. We all still sing when we get together and I always remember Grandpa and my dad (who he called Junior), going on and on with the rest of the family, harmonizing to this day. They are never out of mind.
Everyone would look forward to any time we could have with Grandpa-Seckatary too, but especially us kids. He brightened up the room with his presence and gave his 100% undivided attention to whomsoever he would talk to, regardless of age, which made us feel so important. He always received the respect of everyone he interacted with too, but without seeming to ask for it. He didn't have a way of demanding it like some bombastic Army general; but, just seemed to deserve it. When he came over to the children's dinner table, it was all we could do to keep from choking on our food as he made us laugh like crazy - all he had to do was come over and give us that silly, wide-eyed look.
Robert F. Schulkers wrote the famous 1920's boys stories: The Adventures of Seckatary Hawkins - The "Fair and Square Club". Good clean reading fun you can't put down about a Kentucky River boys club and their many exciting adventures. 1. Stoner's Boy -"The Mystery of the Gray Ghost" 2. Mystery of the Cazanova Treasure - "Seckatary Hawkins in Cuba" 3. The Red Runners -"The Mystery of the Hypnotizing Eyes" 4. The Gray Ghost - "The Return of Stoner's Boy" 5. Stormie the Dog Stealer - "The Mystery of the Baying Hounds" 6. Knights of the Square Table - "The Mystery of the Lonely House" 7. Ching Toy - "The Mystery of the Magic Triangle" 8. The Chinese Coin - "The Mystery of the Cave of Wonders"- 9. The Yellow - "The Mystery of the Boy With the Longbow" 10. Herman the Fiddler - "The Mystery of the Three-eyed Ape" 11. The Ghost of Lake Tapaho - "The Mystery of the Lake"
So what the heck is a Seckatary anyway? - His early job as secretary at the Cincinnati Enquirer may have had some spark of origin. The "Seckatary" mis-spelling was said to have come about when the club was formed and the boys were about 8 or 9 years old. They couldn't spell too well, and so the name stuck. It was meant to reflect a youngster's, phonetic mis-spelling of "secretary", of course. This offered an ease of real-life identifying characteristics to the stories through a common phonetic mis-spelling of words - a tendency that the majority of average young target readers were determined to have had.
He first wrote "A Christmas Story" for the Enquirer's children's page, then contributed about every fortnight: a series with animal characters (Animal - land Tales); stories of children of Biblical times; and several on four boys that foreshadowed and developed into the Seckatary Hawkins series. "Johnny's Snow Fortress" was the first Seck Hawkins story published in the February 3, 1918 Cincinnati Enquirer newspaper. Later, it was reprinted in Volume I, number 1 of the 1922 bi-weekly Seckatary Hawkins magazine serials published by H & S Pogue's department stores. It was not titled "Johnny's Snow Fortress", but simply "The First Hawkins Story" - but it was and is still referred to as "The Snow Fort".
Initially, Robert used the mis-spelled name "Rejiment" for the club name to illustrate the young age of the boys. Editions of his "Boat House Boys", "Mile-a-minute-Milo" and other short series added fuel to the fire. National boys and girl's club, local radio program, and newspaper comic strip ran during the mid 1920's. A national radio show was broadcast from the Chicago Merchandise Mart in 1929-30.
"To Kill a Mockingbird", written and published in 1960 by Seckatary Hawkins club member, Harper Lee, contains Seckatary Hawkins story references. "The Gray Ghost" book is a topic for Jem and friends - and Stoner's Boy is Jem's bedside book that Atticus chooses to read as Scout slips off to sleep at the end of the story. Seckatary Hawkins provides the ending moral lesson in the novel when Scout comments on Stoner's Boy who was initially thought of as a bad boy; but, he was found out to be real nice in the end.
The Fair and Square club of Seckatary Hawkins was dedicated to good clean fun and the Club motto is: "A winner never quits and a quitter never wins" . Robert always insisted on high moral standards from the club members, stressing "Fair and Square" as the way we should all live our lives. "Which we did".
More About Robert Franc Schulkers and Julia Buckley Darnell: Marriage: February/10/1915, Augusta, Ky - Eloped.
Children of Robert Franc Schulkers and Julia Buckley Darnell are:
Robert Franc Schulkers (b. July/21/1890, d. April/06/1972)
Notes for Robert Franc Schulkers: