Photoplay (Jan-Jun 1961)

He remembered this man. He was not a stranger after all. He was Brother Murphy, the preacher at their church. A picture flashed through his mind, a kindly face, slightly wrinkled around the eyes, and his hair — it was graying at the sides — it gave him a distinguished look. “Why does he always wear a business suit?” he’d asked his mother when he’d first met Brother Murphy. Because once he had seen a picture of a preacher in a book. The man wore a long, black frock coat and he’d asked, “Mommy, why doesn’t Brother Murphy ever wear such a fine coat like that?” She’d told him, “Dale, it doesn’t matter what Brother Murphy wears on the outside, it’s the way he feels inside that counts.” Now, as he sat thinking back, he could sense that Brother Murphy no longer stood above him. He reached out his hand and touched the padding on the shoulder of the preacher’s coat. He understood then that he was kneeling alongside him. Gently, as if not to frighten him, the preacher took one of his hands and then leaned over. He could feel the movement of the preacher’s lips pressed to his ear. God was listening He could not tell, at first, what he was saying. Then he knew. He was praying. How long they remained there — the preacher on his knees, a boy in his rocking chair — he did not know. He only knew that he felt a strength. He did not know how long they prayed; he could not count the times he said, “God, oh, God, help me.” But he knew, even though he was only a simple boy, that God was hearing the prayer. He never thought to question, “Why should God listen to me, Dale Robertson?” He never thought, “With the things He has to do, why should He take time?” He didn’t have to ask, because he knew that God was hearing him. How swiftly the time seemed to go. He prayed for days. It seemed that the preacher never left him. Then, one evening, just before sundown, he opened his wide blue eyes, and blinked them quickly, then he closed them and opened them again. He did not want to cause alarm to his parents. He didn’t want them to become excited over nothing, but it seemed he could see just slightly, just faintly the form of a man kneeling beside him. And he heard him speak words. The words? Were they only in his mind? Could he hear the words more clearly? Was someone whispering, “Dear Lord, we humbly ask Thy help. . . . Amen.” “Amen,” he whispered softly, testing the sound of the words against his ears. “Amen,” he said and with those words — after 373 days of darkness and after being 85 percent deaf — Dale Robertson began to hear and see again. Since that day, Dale has traveled a long road. He has known war and the pain of serious wounds. He has known moments of personal unhappiness. He’s known disappointments and struggles. Yet, despite them he has learned to make the best of himself. “And never once,” he says today, “have I lost faith.” He doesn’t often speak of that year’s experiences, few friends are even aware of them, yet he relives those days in some way every day of his life. They have taught him that he will never walk in darkness no matter what happens, for God, in His infinite wisdom, offers Mercy. It is up to man to see it. As Dale says, “It took blindness to teach me to see.” The End TV & MOVIE STAR PHOTOS Brand new stars and brand new pictures! PLUS your favorites! All handsome 4x5 photos, on glossy stock, just right for framing. Send your order today. STAR CANDIDS YOU’LL TREASURE 5. Alan Ladd 11. Elizabeth Taylor 15. Frank Sinatra 18. Rory Calhoun 19. Peter Lawford 25. Dale Evans 34. Roy Rogers 51. Doris Day 56. Perry Como 74. John Wayne 84. Janet Leigh 109. Dean Martin 110. Jerry Lewis 121. Tony Curtis 128. Debbie Reynolds 136. Rock Hudson 140. Dale Robertson 141. Marilyn Monroe 145. Marlon Brando 147. Tab Hunter 148. Robert Wagner 175. Charlton Heston 198. Gale Storm 202. George Nader 207. Eddie Fisher 215. Kim Novak 219. Natalie Wood 221. Joan Collins 223. Sal Mineo 225. Elvis Presley 227. Tony Perkins 228. Clint Walker 229. Pat Boone 230. Paul Newman 233. Pat Wayne 241. Lawrence Welk 245. Hugh O'Brian 246. Jim Arness 249. John Saxon 254. Nick Adams 256. Harry Belafonte 261. Tommy Sands 262. Will Hutchins 263. James Darren 264. Ricky Nelson 268. Dolores Hart 269. James Garner 270. Everly Brothers 272. Sandra Dee 275. Michael Ansara 276. Jack Kelly 278. Annette Funicello 280. Tim Considine 282. Johnny Mathis 283. David Nelson 284. Shirley Temple 285. Pat Conway 286. Bob Horton 287. John Payne 288. David Janssen 289. Dick Clark 291 . Carol Lynley 292. Jimmie Rodgers 293. Guy Williams 294. Frankie Avalon 295. John Gavin 298. Joanne Woodward 299. Teddy Randazzo 300. Paul Anka 301 . Peter Brown 302. Edd Byrnes 303. Joni James 306. Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. 307. John Smith 308. Lloyd Bridges 309. John Russell 310. Gene Barry 311. Chuck Connors 312. Geo. Montgomery 313. Craig Stevens 314. Steve McQueen 315. Conway Twitty 316. Ty Hardin 318. Fabian 319. Roger Smith 320. Tuesday Weld 321. Dion 322. Bobby Darin 325. Connie Francis 327. Eric Fleming 328. Clint Eastwood 329. Gardner McKay 330. Connie Stevens 333. Richard Long 334. Roger Moore 335. Van Williams 336. Peter Breck 338. Michael London 339. Pernell Roberts 341. Bob Conrad 342. Dwayne Hickman 343. Dorothy Provine 345. Robert Fuller 346. Peggy Castle 347. Patty McCormack 348. Bobby Rydell 349. Anthony Eisley 350. Johnnv Restivo 351. Doug McClure 352. George Hamilton 354. Dodie Stevens 355. Rod Lauren 356. Troy Donahue 357. Stephen Boyd Street City 358. Paul Evans 359. Bob Crewe 360. Shelley Fabares 361. Jane Fonda 362. Robert Stack 363. CIu Gulager 364. Ralph Taeger 365. Jeremy Slate 366. Keith Larsen 367. Shirley Bonne 368. Annie Farge 369. George Maharis 370. Marty Milner 371. Anthony George 372. Charles Quinlivan 373. Skip Homeier 374. Lori Martin 375. Howard Duff 376. Bill Reynolds 377. James Philbrook 378. Diane Brewster 379. Lee Patterson 380. Diane McBain 381. Rod Taylor 382. Cary Grant ► Send cash or money order. 12 pictures for $ I ; 6 for 50c. WORLD WIDE, DEPT. WG-I6I 112 Main St., Ossining, N. Y. I enclose $ for candid pictures of my favorite stars and have circled the numbers of the ones you are to send me by return mail. Name See Dale on NBC-TV in “Tales of Wells Fargo,” Mondays, 8:30-9:00 P.M. EST. He’s also in “Fast and Sexy” for Col. FILL IN AND MAIL COUPON TODAY! (NO ORDERS LESS THAN 50 CENTS) 61